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Photograph of Tetradium ruticarpum (A.Juss.) T.G.Hartley (Evodia Fruit)
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Evodia Fruit

오수유 (吳茱萸) · Tetradium ruticarpum (A.Juss.) T.G.Hartley
Interior-warming herb Hot Pungent, bitter Spleen, Kidney, Liver
NatureHot
TastePungent, bitter
MeridiansSpleen, Kidney, Liver
Part usedFruit
FamilyRutaceae
CategoryInterior-warming herb
Find by concern: Cold-type abdominal painCold stomachVomiting

Overview

Evodia is a strongly warming fruit that the Donguibogam itself treats with some caution: alongside its use for severe cold-type abdominal pain and cholera-type vomiting, the text explicitly warns that overeating it causes qi blockage and a gaping, staring expression. It is marked as a mildly toxic, imported (Tang) medicine requiring preparation before use.

In the Donguibogam

東醫
寶鑑
性熱, 味辛苦, 有小毒. 主溫中下氣止痛. 心腹積冷絞痛, 諸冷實不消, 中惡心腹痛. 治霍亂吐瀉, 轉筋. 消痰, 破癥癖, 除濕血㿏痺, 療腎氣脚氣, 胃中冷氣.
Source: Donguibogam, Tangaek-pyeon (Herbology volume)
TranslationIts nature is hot, its taste pungent and bitter, and it has mild toxicity. It mainly warms the center, brings down qi, and stops pain. It treats accumulated cold with twisting pain in the chest and abdomen, all manner of undigested cold-food stagnation, and sudden malign chest-abdomen pain. It treats cholera-type vomiting and diarrhea with cramping. It resolves phlegm, breaks up hardened masses, removes damp-blood numbness, and treats kidney-qi leg disorders and cold qi in the stomach.

Traditional uses recorded in the Donguibogam

  • Warms the center, dispels severe cold
  • Descends qi, stops pain
  • Dries dampness
  • Resolves phlegm and stagnation

Traditional applications recorded in the classical text

  • Severe cold-type abdominal pain
  • Cholera-type vomiting and diarrhea with cramping
  • Cold-damp leg disorders
  • Cold qi in the stomach

Traditional preparation

Decoction 1–4g, always after repeated soaking to remove bitter liquid, as prescribed by the classics. Not for self-medication.

Cautions

Caution: Recorded in the Donguibogam as having mild toxicity (有小毒) and a strongly hot nature; the text itself warns that overeating causes qi blockage and a gaping, staring expression, and it requires repeated soaking to remove bitter liquid before use. Not for pregnancy or heat-excess conditions. Use only under professional guidance.
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Frequently asked questions

Is evodia safe to take on its own?

The Donguibogam itself flags it as having mild toxicity and warns that overeating causes qi blockage and a gaping, staring expression — traditional processing (repeated soaking) is required, and use should follow professional guidance rather than self-medication.

What was evodia's main traditional use?

Severe cold-type abdominal pain and cholera-type vomiting and diarrhea with cramping, alongside warming a cold stomach — always noted alongside the herb's toxicity caution.

Sources