Peony is known simply as ‘shaoyao’ when not distinguishing between red and white peony. ‘Shao’ refers to the peony plant, while ‘yao’ means medicine; hence ‘shaoyao’ means: the medicine made from peony.
The earliest mention of Peony (shaoyao) was listed in the ‘Divine Husbandman’s Classic of the Materia Medica’ (Shennong Bencao Jing) written in the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220 CE) as one of the 120 drugs in the second or middle class
” If one wishes to prevent illnesses and to balance depletions and consumption, he should base (his efforts) on (drugs mentioned in) the middle (class of this) classic.” Medicine in China, Paul U. Unschuld p.19
History
Peony is known simply as ‘shaoyao’ when not distinguishing between red and white peony. ‘Shao’ refers to the peony plant, while ‘yao’ means medicine; hence ‘shaoyao’ means: the medicine made from peony.
The earliest mention of Peony (shaoyao) was listed in the ‘Divine Husbandman’s Classic of the Materia Medica’ (Shennong Bencao Jing) written in the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220 CE) as one of the 120 drugs in the second or middle class
” If one wishes to prevent illnesses and to balance depletions and consumption, he should base (his efforts) on (drugs mentioned in) the middle (class of this) classic.” Medicine in China, Paul U. Unschuld p.19
Here it was described as being “bitter, treating evil qi and abdominal pain, eliminating blood stasis, breaking hard gatherings, promoting urination, and boosting the qi.” Subhuti Dharmananda http://www.itmonline.org/arts/peony.htm
In ‘The Collection of Commentaries on the Classic of the Materia Medica’, (Ben Cao Jing Ji Zhu) by Tao Hongjing of the Northern Qi dynasty 494CE ‘shaoyao’ was again listed in the middle class of drugs which were connected with the curing of illnesses rather than increasing longevity which was associated with the first or upper class.
Li Shi Zhen’s “Materia Medica arranged according to Drug Descriptions and Technical Aspects” (Bencao Gangmu) published 1596, records a distinction between the whole root (red peony / chi shao) and peeled white root (white peony / bai shao). In modern TCM, paeonia veitchii or paeonia obovata are used when a formula calls for chi shao.
In the ‘Complete Works’ of Zhang Jing-yue (1624CE), he used white peony in ‘Important Formula for Painful Diarrhoea’ (tong xie yao fang) and ’Bupleurum Powder to Dredge the Liver’ (chai hu shu gan wan). These are just two of numerous formulas containing white peony which are still very popular today.
The genus Paeonia was established by Linnaeus in ‘Species Plantarum’ in1753. Paeonia lactiflora was first named by Peter Pallas, a botanical explorer in Russia, in 1776. It was thought to be introduced to European gardens from Siberia in the 16th century and by Sir Joseph Banks into England by the early 19th century. The genus Paeonia is named after the mythical Paeon, physician to the Greek Gods. Paeon was a pupil of Aesculapius, the god of medicine. Aesculapius’ mother gave Paeon the peony plant and he used it to cure Pluto of a wound. Out of jealousy, Aesculapius plotted to kill Paeon. To protect him, Pluto turned him into the plant which has since borne his name.
Botanical outline
Paeonia is a genus of 36 species of temperate climate flowering herbs and shrubs. It is the only genus in the family Paeoniaceae, originally in Ranunculaceae. They are native to Asia, Southern Europe and Western North America.
Paeonia lactiflora is a perennial herb growing from 50 to 80cms tall. With a smooth, erect stem, its leaves are alternate, with 3 leaflets, the two lower ones often in two parts, dark green with a reddish base. The large, fragrant flowers, 5–10 cm in diameter, are solitary at the branch tip, usually white or in various shades of pink and red, with numerous stamens and yellow anthers.
Native to central and eastern Asia, it has been grown as an ornamental in China since the 10th century BCE. Hundreds of cultivars, including doubles, have been developed.
For medicinal use, the flower buds are removed before opening to encourage root growth. Cultivated roots are harvested in late summer to early autumn after four to five years growth. The root is also used in the traditional medicine of Korea and Japan. Traditionally, it has been cleaned, boiled, soaked in cold water, peeled and dried in the sun. Alternatively, it can be stir fried or sprayed with yellow wine and then stir-fried.
Medicinal properties
Paeonia lactiflora (white peony) has long been used both in TCM and folk medicine. In traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), Paeonia lactiflora, (bai shao), is described as bitter, sour and cool and enters the Liver and the Spleen channels. It alleviates pain caused by Liver Yin & Blood deficiency and so is frequently used in gynaecological formulas.
According to ‘Materia Medica’ by Bensky, Clavey and Stöger, Paeonia lactiflora nourishes the Blood and regulates the menses, calms and curbs the Liver Yang and alleviates pain, preserves the Yin and adjusts the nutritive and protective levels.
White peony is frequently said to ‘soften the Liver’ ie. by nourishing the Blood and Yin to promote the flow of Liver Qi, it moderates the Liver’s tendency to rebel and for the Liver Yang to rise.
Yifan Yang draws a very clear distinction between the uses of white peony (bai shao) & red peony (chi shao).
“Red peony and white peony come from similar plants. Both are cold in nature and enter the Blood and the liver meridian. Because red peony is cold and bitter, it is able to reduce liver heat as well as heat in the blood. It has a dispersing property, can invigorate the blood, and remove congealed blood, and is therefore often used in treating pain due to blood stagnation.
White peony is less cold but bitter, so it can clear liver heat or heat in the blood, but its function is weaker than that of red peony. One difference is its sour taste, which results in an astringent property. Cold and sourness may generate and stabilize the yin. As it enters the liver meridian, it particularly nourishes the liver yin and blood. It is an appropriate herb when there is yin deficiency with slight empty heat in the blood. In this situation, the main symptoms are dizziness, dry and burning eyes, irritability, and hypochondriac pain and distention.
Like red peony, white peony can also alleviate pain, but pain caused by liver yin and blood deficiency, in which the muscles and tendons lose their nourishment. This pain is cramping in nature, such as in abdominal pain and cramp after diarrhea, menstruation, labor, or cramp of the muscles of the limbs. Moreover, as white peony has a sour taste, it may stabilize the yin and body fluids and inhibit sweating, so is used for spontaneous sweating and night sweating.”
Chinese Herbal Medicines Comparisons & Characteristics by Yifan Yang p.49
The principal active ingredients extracted from Paeonia lactiflora root are the monoterpene glycosides, paeoniflorin and paeonol. Research has shown them to exhibit the potential for many biological effects.
These include antioxidant, antitumor, antipathogenic, immune-system-modulation activities, cardiovascular-system-protective activities and central-nervous-system activities, including protection against ischemic injury.
Arch Pharm Res. 2008 Apr;31(4):445-50. doi: 10.1007/s12272-001-1177-6. Epub 2008 May 1.
Antiallergic effect of the root of Paeonia lactiflora and its constituents paeoniflorin and paeonol.
Lee B, Shin YW, Bae EA, Han SJ, Kim JS, Kang SS, Kim DH.
Department of Life and Nanopharmaceutical Sciences and Department of Pharmaceutical Science, Kyung Hee University, 1 Hoegi,
Guo R-B, Wang G-F, Zhao A-P, Gu J, Sun X-L, et al. (2012) Paeoniflorin Protects against Ischemia-Induced Brain Damages in Rats via Inhibiting MAPKs/NF-κB-Mediated Inflammatory Responses. PLoS ONE 7(11): e49701. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0049701