Witnessed by: TCM · Western
Schisandra (Schisandra chinensis), of the Schisandraceae family. Woody climbing vine bearing strings of red berries; native range: forests of north-east China, Korea and the Russian Far East. Globally recognized as wu wei zi (五味子) in Chinese. The part used is fruit (berry). Wrinkled red berries — sour and sweet skin, bitter-pungent flesh, salty seed: all five flavors in one bite.
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.
SCHISANDRA
IDENTITY
Name
- Common
- schisandra
- Scientific name
- Schisandra chinensis (Turcz.) Baill.
- Family
- Schisandraceae
Form
- Part used
- fruit (berry)
PROPERTIES
Nature
Taste
how the plant declares itself on the tongue
- TCM
- sour · sweet · bitter · pungent · salty
- Western
- sour, astringent, aromatic
Temperature
- TCM
- warm
- Western
- warming
Affinity
where in the body it travels
Organs / channels
- TCM
- Lung · Kidney · Heart
- Western
- liver, nervous system, adrenals
PRACTICE
Virtue
Actions
- TCM
- astringes Lung qi and stops cough, tonifies Kidney, restrains leakage (sweat, essence), calms the shen, generates fluids
- Western
- adaptogen, astringent, hepatoprotective, nervine tonic
Cautions
Contraindications: early-stage exterior conditions or excess heat/cough (its astringency can trap a pathogen)
Toxicity: none notable
Interactions
- Western
- CYP450-metabolised drugs: modulates CYP3A4 and P-glycoprotein, altering drug levels
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