This week we meditated on guā lǒu shī, 栝樓實, Trichosanthes cucumerina fruit, snake or king gourd.
Pre Meditation
Sweet flavor. The flavor lingers.
Meditation 1
Me: I have a strong headache come on in front on my right ear/below my temple (zygomatic arch, near TMJ). This passes. I have a lot of sensation in my crown chakra.
My daughter (with a stomach ache going into the meditation): There was a shadowy clawed hand, made of shadows inside of my body. My stomach ache was in the form of a black mass in part of my abdomen (upper left quadrant). The claws were scraping against it and the darkness was spreading. It was making the problem spread. Passing gas has begun (maybe helping with the stomach ache).
Meditation 2
Me: A headache started in the same spot, went right through my head to the other side, and wrapped upwards around and above my left eyebrow. Then it dissipated.
My daughter: The claw was coming towards the black "bulb" on my left side again. The bulb started radiating white light, and by doing so it drove off the claw.
Summary and Traditional Use
Guā lǒu shī is considered sweet and helpful for clearing phlegm heat and qi stagnation (often manifesting as pain). The whole plant can be used, but the fruit (which we used for our tea) acts primarily on the stomach, large intestine, and lung channels.
Relieving dry constipation, lung qi stagnation (manifesting as lumps or absesses in the breasts, could be sorrow), today the fruit is made into an injectable form and used for angina (often due to build up of fatty substances narrowing the blood vessel walls), used in diabetes for sugar management. This herb is also used for menstrual block and general blood stagnation (or congealed blood). It is said to cure deafness (Shén Nóng Běncǎo Jīng)--i do not know what the mechanism is for this, whether it is clearing passages in the ear that are filled with mucus, wax, or other congealed substances, or regrowth of cilia. Not to be used in large quantities by pregnant women (extracts of the plant were used as an abortifacient during "one child per family" China and continue to be used for expelling dead fetus, ectopic pregnancies, etc).
In Ayurvedic medicine, T. dioicha (leaf), is used for enlarged and edematous (damp) liver.
The ability of this herb to moisten and promote movement did seem to be experienced by my daughter. I had painful headaches arise and disappear that were positionally related to the gall bladder channel (often associated with liver issues). Helping with menstrual issues is often related to some support of the liver function. In Chinese medicine the lungs control the liver and the two organs work together to regulate flow of qi. Because of these connections and my experiences, I could see this herb being part of a formula to ease headaches in front of and above the ears, and eyebrows. Energetically I wonder about how the herb is so into stagnant and inflammed liquids (tumors, blood clots, phlegm, plaques seem to have a similar quality and are often associated with inflammation). I enjoy looking at a plant's physical characteristics and environment of preferences for clues to why they succeed medicinally and how they teach us to function better. This plant enjoys growing in marshes, home of stagnant waters. It moves the stagnate, turbid liquids up high (it is a vine)--unlike most plants, growing close to the earth, this ascends the water and transforms it. The plant takes this energy and makes the largest/'king' gourds, filled with cooling, moistening energy, with the ability to move this fluid as far as it needs to go. Movement in itself is medicine--this is a large part of the process of healing pain.
Invitation
Have you worked with Guā lǒu shī fruit by itself or in formula, or other parts of the herb, or varietals? What was your experience? Our plant meditations make me curious about the emotional and/or spiritual qualities of this herb. Did you notice the plant's work on this level?