Witnessed by: TCM
Dung beetle (Catharsius molossus), of the Scarabaeidae (Insecta) family. A stout black scarab of pasture and dung, which rolls and buries dung balls; the whole animal is the drug; native range: pasture and dung across China, south and southeast Asia. Globally recognized as qiang lang (蜣螂) in Chinese, and dung beetle, scarab in English. The part used is the whole dried beetle, the head and legs sometimes removed. A hard, glossy black armoured beetle, the male horned on the head, brittle when dried and crushing to a dark powder; the odour rank and foul.
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.
DUNG BEETLE
IDENTITY
Name
- Common
- dung beetle
- Scientific name
- Catharsius molossus (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Family
- Scarabaeidae (Insecta)
Form
- Part used
- the whole dried beetle, the head and legs sometimes removed
PROPERTIES
Nature
Taste
how the plant declares itself on the tongue
- TCM
- salty (咸)
Temperature
- TCM
- cold (寒)
Affinity
where in the body it travels
Organs / channels
- TCM
- Liver · Stomach · Large Intestine
PRACTICE
Virtue
Actions
- TCM
- unblocks the bowels and breaks up accumulated masses, dispels stasis and reduces swelling, and settles fright and calms convulsions
Cautions
- Contraindications
- pregnancy; deficiency and cold patterns without accumulation
- Toxicity
- toxic; a strong breaker of accumulation, dosed small and briefly
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