Release exterior
Gui Zhi
桂枝
Cinnamon twig
Cinnamomum cassia (twig)
Warms the channels and helps a mild surface pattern.
Not for self-dosing. This page is not a formula, not a strength, and not a substitute for a licensed herbalist or physician.
Category
Warm · Acrid, Sweet
Meridians entered
Traditional uses
The twig, not the thick bark. Teaching use is to release the muscle layer, warm the limbs, and support a weak surface. It shows up with Bai Shao when a text wants to balance warming and softening.
Common pairings
- Bai Shao 白芍
Gui Zhi and Bai Shao are the pair that warms and also protects yin and the nutritive level, the skeleton of Gui Zhi Tang.
- Ma Huang 麻黄
A stronger surface combination. See Ma Huang. Not a tea to invent.
Cautions
Not for self-dosing. Use care in pregnancy and with heavy menstrual bleeding. Warm herbs can feel agitating if there is already heat.
Points with a similar aim
Broken Sequence
Wrist point for the nape, a fresh cold, and the Ren vessel.
Use caution
Union Valley
The classic hand point for head, face, and the start of a cold.
Traditionally avoided in pregnancy
Yang Stream
Snuffbox wrist point for local wrist pain.
Use caution
Great Vertebra
The big vertebra at the base of the neck.
Use caution