Witnessed by: TCM
Bat droppings, of the Vespertilionidae (Mammalia, Chiroptera) family. Small insect-eating bats roosting in caves and roof spaces, the droppings accumulating in drifts beneath; native range: swept from the floors of caves, old temples, roof spaces and disused buildings across China wherever bats roost. Globally recognized as ye ming sha (夜明砂), tian shu shi (天鼠屎) in Chinese, bat droppings, bat guano in English, and Faeces Vespertilionis in Latin. The part used is the dried droppings, sifted clean. Small dark-brown to black grains, cylindrical and blunt-ended, light and crumbling; broken open they glitter with the undigested eyes and wing-cases of insects. The smell is rank and faintly ammoniacal, the taste bitterish.
In this cross-tradition database, we analyze how this substance operates across world medicine systems — tracking its traditional tastes, temperatures, tissue affinities, post-digestive effects, and planetary correspondences across Ayurveda, Unani, and Western herbalism.
BAT DROPPINGS
IDENTITY
Name
- Common
- bat droppings
- Family
- Vespertilionidae (Mammalia, Chiroptera)
Form
- Part used
- the dried droppings, sifted clean
PROPERTIES
Nature
Taste
how the plant declares itself on the tongue
- TCM
- pungent (辛)
Temperature
- TCM
- cold (寒)
Affinity
where in the body it travels
Organs / channels
- TCM
- Liver
PRACTICE
Virtue
Actions
- TCM
- clears liver heat and brightens the eyes, disperses superficial visual obstruction, dispels blood stasis, and reduces accumulation
Cautions
- Contraindications
- caution in pregnancy; not for eye disease from blood or yin deficiency without heat; not for those with weak digestion
- Toxicity
- recorded as non-toxic, but raw guano is a real infectious hazard — the dust carries fungal spores, and the material must be sourced dried, sifted and clean
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