Morina, Spyang tsher སྤྱང་ཚེར་

Spyang tsher (Tibet)
Ci Xu Duan (TCM)
Bishkandara (Ayurveda)
Picture Morina longifolia
Lindley, J., Edwards’s Botanical Register (1840)

 Picture Morina nepalensis
Curtis, W., Botanical Magazine (1887)
Picture Morina longifolia
(Photo by Vinayaraj) (Wikimedia)

Botanical name:


Morina spp.
Several types are differentiated:
  1. Spyang tsher: Morina nepalensis (syn. M. betanicoides)
  2. Spyang tsher dkar po (White): Morina longifolia, M. kokonorica, M. polyphylla
  3. Spyang tsher nag po (Black): Carduus acanthoides, Cirsium verutum, Cirsium souliei, C. polonicum, C. eriophorum
Other sources sited include Morina coulteriana

Parts used:


Root

Temperature & Taste:


Neutral. Sweet

Classification:




Uses:


1. Clears Heat, Resists Poison:
-Toxic Sores and Swellings
-Diarrhea, Dysentery (Nepal)
-drains pus in suppurative wounds
-Swellings, Tumors, Cancer (Tibet, Norbu)

2. Benefits Stomach, Clears Damp:
-Stomachache, Indigestion
-Phlegm and Damp diseases from poor digestion
-full doses as an emetic in Phlegm disorders (Tibet)

3. Stops Wind, Settles Spasms:
-Dizziness, Headache
-deviation of the mouth and eyes

4. Tonifies the Kidneys, Clears Wind-Damp:
-swollen painful joints; Arthritis and Rheumatism
-Lumbago
-muscle and joint pain, numbness of the limbs (Nepal)
-Edema, Urinary incontinence
-Excess Bleeding after Childbirth (Nepal)

5. Externally:
-topically to Sores, Boils
-Swellings, Tumors
-applied to purulent Wounds


Dose:


Powder: 1–3 grams
Decoction: 3–6 grams

Comment:


The herb of the related Morina chinensis is used in TCM. It is primarily used for Wind-Damp painful obstruction and swollen painful sores and swellings. It is probably synonymous in effect.

Main Combinations:


1. Painful swollen joints, combine Morina with Stellera chamaejasme, Aconitum spicatum, Terminalia bellirica and apply to the joints.

Major Formulas:



Cautions:


None noted

Main Preparations used: