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Portulaca, Purslane, Ma Chi Xian 马齿苋

Kulfa (Ayurveda)
Kharfah, Kulfa (Unani)
Ma Chi Xian (TCM)
New Kreuterbuch, Matthiolus, 1563

Thomé, Flora von Deutschland Österreich und der Schweiz, 1885
Botanical name:
Portulaca oleracea
Two types were differentiated: Garden with Broad leaves (best); Wild with Narrow leaves

Parts used:
Leaf, Seed

Temperature & Taste:
Very Cool, dry. Sour

Classifications:
2N. REPELLENT.    2O. ASTRINGENT.    2P. HEMOSTATIC
3B. FEBRIFUGE & ANTIPYRETIC.    3P. ANTHELMINTIC
4a. CEPHALIC.    4e. STOMACHIC.     4f. SPLENETIC.    4g. HEPATIC.    4h. NEPHRITIC.    4i. UTERINE

Uses:
1. Clears Heat and Toxin (TCM, West, Ayurveda):
-’Used chiefly to abate Feverish Heat, and in Putrid Malignant Fevers’. (Schroder)
-hot, toxic skin conditions including Boils, Carbuncles
-hot inflammations of the eyes, mouth, and throat.
-Snake and Insect bites

2. Calms the Mind, Eases Pain:
-cools the body and promote rest when there is excess heat; the flowers are calming and sedative.
-‘It cools all the inward parts, eases pain ... causes sleep’. (Salmon)

3. Clears Heat of the Liver and Stomach (TCM, West, Ayurveda):
-headache, red eyes, irritability, constipation, heat-type pain, insomnia
-redness and inflammation of the eyes, Tinnitus and Deafness
-thirst or vomiting from stomach heat
-heat and inflammation of the Bowels; Diarrhea, Dysentery and Appendicitis.
-recently used for Hypertension

4. Clears Deficient Heat, Nourishes the Fluids (TCM, West, Ayurveda):
-thirst, dry mouth and throat, and other symptoms of heat, dryness, or Yin deficiency from heat.
-‘It quenches thirst caused by Stomach, Heart, Liver and Kidney fire’ (13th Century Arab text).
-‘a certain cure for Consumption’ (Salmon)
-‘Venerous dreams’, and to ‘allaieth the outrageous Lust of the body’.
-Seed has been used for Diabetes (Ayurveda, Unani, West)

5. Clears Heat and Damp, Promotes Urine:
-hot, sharp and painful urination.
-Salmon listed it to ease pain in Gonorrhea

6. Clears Heat, Stops Coughs:
-dry coughs, shortness of Breath, Phthisic;

7. Cools the Blood, Stops Bleeding:
-heat-type bleeding including excess menstruation, spitting of blood, bleeding hemorrhoids, and spontaneous bleeding from heat
-postpartum uterine bleeding

8. Kills Worms:
-‘Commended against Worms in young children and is singular good, especially if they be feverish withall, for it both allaies the overmuch Heat, and killeth the Worms: which thing is done through the Saltness mixed therewith, which is not only an enemy to Worms, but also to putrefaction’ (Gd); Said to be best for Hookworm. (Seed is best; usually boiled in wine)

9. Externally:
-Inflamed or Ulcerated Genitals, Hemorrhoids; Gerard said as a douche it is good for inflammation and Ulcers of the Uterus.
-applied Acne and heat type skin conditions
-hot, poisonous Sores and Carbuncles (TCM)
-applied to various skin diseases including Erysipelas (Ayurveda)
-they also use the juice of the stem to soothe Itching. Also used for Prickly Heat in India.
-juice with Oil of Roses is applied to Burnings, heat type Mastitis, and to hinder the heat of sores etc.
-good for sore and Swollen Mouth and Gums, and to fasten Loose Teeth.
-applied to Gout pains, hardness and cramps of the Sinews.
-used externally for heat, especially of the head; applied to the forehead and temples to promote rest and calm the mind (Culpeper)
-applied to pain and swelling from Wasp Stings and Snake Bites.
-applied to Burns, Scalds
-applied to the breasts to stop the flow of milk.
-in enemas for fluxes and ulcers of the bowels.


DOSE:
Seed in Decoction or Infusion: 3–6 grams;
Dried Herb in Decoction: 6–20 grams; Fresh Herb is eaten as a vegetable.
Seed in Powder: 1–3 grams

CORRECTIVES:
Peppermint, Mastic

SUBSTITUTES:
Ispaghol seed

Main Combinations:
1. To clear Heat from the Stomach and Liver, cool the Blood and promote rest, Purslane seed and Endive juice are prepared into a syrup with Vinegar. (as in Syrup of Purslane Seed)
2. High Fever:
i. Melon seed, Purslane seed, Licorice, Tragacanth (as in Troches for Burning Fever of Galen)
ii. Purslane seed with Rose, Tabasheer, Licorice juice, Tragacanth (as in Troches of Spodium of Nicholas)
3. Strong Heat, Purslane seed, Lettuce seed, Poppy seed, Gourd seed, Watermelon seed, Licorice juice, Tragacanth (Mesue)
4. Blood Heat, with Sorrel, Mallow, Plantain, Endive, Aniseed, Borage, Violet (as in Decoction to Cool the Blood)
5. Excess Menstruation and internal Bruising, Purslane, Terra Lemnia (or Red Earth), Amber, Gum Arabic and Dragons Blood (as in Powder for Excess Menstruation of Serapion)
6. Hematuria, thickened Purslane juice is made into pills with Gum Arabic and Tragacanth
7. Burning Urine, Purslane seed with the 4 Cold Seeds and Poppy seed, Henbane seed (Powder for Burning Urine of Renodeus)
8. Kidney Ulcers, with White Poppy seed, Endive seed, Lettuce seed, Water Lily flower (as in Powder of Montagnana for Kidney Ulcers)
9. Diabetes from Heat, Purslane seed, Plantain seed, Coriander seed, Red Earth, Tormentil, Nutmeg (as in Powder for Diabetes of Riverius)
10. Abscess of Ulcer of the Bladder, with 4 Cold Seeds and Marshmallow root (Alexander Benedictus)
11. Bleeding during Pregnancy, with Bistort, Plantain and Coriander (as in Powder for Bleeding During Pregnancy)
12. Threatened Miscarriage, with Aloeswood, Sandalwood, Red Coral, Bistort, Mastic, Cowry shell (as in Powder Against Miscarriage of Unani)
13. To promote Sleep, Purslane seed, Poppy seed (Philon)
14. Internal Abscess, decoct Purslane and Dandelion together.

Major Formulas:
Decoction of Fruit
Decoction to Cool the Blood (Wirtzung)
Powder for Diabetes (Riverius)
Powder to Promote Sleep (Philon)
Troches for Burning Fever (Galen)
Troches of Camphor (Nicholas)
Troches of Spodium (Trochisci Spodii) (Nicholas)
Troches of Spodium (Trochisci Spodii) (Avicenna)
Expert Troches of Mahomet

Cautions:
1. Not used in Cold bodies
2. Not used in Pregnancy

Main Preparations used:
Dehydrated Juice, Distilled Water, Syrup of the Juice, Compound Syrup, Conserve of the Leaves

1. Conserve of Purslane:
i. Purslane leaf (1 part), White Sugar (2 parts). Beat together and heat slightly.

2. Water of Purslane:
i. Purslane (5 parts), Water (12 ½ parts). Distil 10 parts. Pour the distillate on 10 parts Purslane and distil 10 parts again. It can be repeated a third time. (Pharmacopoeia Gallica, 1818)
History
'The creeping annual Purslane has probably been long used as a domestic remedy by the Hindus. The Sanskrit name is Loni. The fresh leaves are acid, and are prescribed when bruised as a cooling external application in erysipelas, and an infusion of them is given as a diuretic. In Arabic and Persian works the herb is called Baklat-el-Humaka or Baklat-el-Mubarika and Kurfah; two kinds are described, the large and the small. The former is probably the P. oleracea, as its use as a vegetable is noticed. Both kinds are said to be cold and moist, and to have detergent and astringent properties. Portulaca is the [?] of Dioscorides ii., 113, and is mentioned by Celsus, who calls it Portulaca, and by
Pliny who calls it Andrachne. The plant and seeds arc recommended in a great many diseases of the kidneys, bladder, and lungs, which are supposed to be caused by hot or bilious humours. They are also praised as an external application in burns, scalds, and various forms of skin disease. Ainslie mentions P. quadrifida and P. oleracea as being used in Southern India by Tamil physicians. These herbs can be obtained in most vegetable markets, and the seeds of P. oleracea are kept in the druggists' shops. (Vegetable Materia Medica of Western India, Dymock, 1885)