New to this? Read about the Sovereign-Minister-Assistant-Courier hierarchy

Formula和解剂· 和解少阳

小柴胡汤

Xiǎo Chái Hú Tāng

Minor Bupleurum Decoction

The principal formula for lesser yang (shao yang) disease from the Shang Han Lun, containing chai hu, huang qin, ren shen, ban xia, sheng jiang, da zao, and zhi gan cao. It harmonizes the exterior and interior, possessing the richest set of modification rules (jia jian fa) of any classical formula.

Source《伤寒论》辨太阳病脉证并治中

Treatment Principle

和解少阳

Harmonize the Shaoyang

Composition · 组成

Herb	Role	Dosage	Notes
柴胡Chái Hú	君Sovereign	12g	和解少阳，疏肝解郁
黄芩Huáng Qín	臣Minister	9g	清泄少阳之热，与柴胡一升一降
人参Rén Shēn	佐Assistant	6g	扶正祛邪
半夏Bàn Xià	佐Assistant	9g	和胃降逆止呕
生姜Shēng Jiāng	佐Assistant	9g	助半夏和胃止呕，并散表邪
大枣Dà Zǎo	使Courier	12g	与生姜调和营卫，益气和中
甘草Gān Cǎo	使Courier	6g	调和诸药

Modifications · 加减

胸中烦而不呕
+ 瓜蒌
− 半夏、人参
邪热扰胸
渴
+ 天花粉
− 半夏
津伤
腹中痛
+ 白芍
− 黄芩
肝气乘脾
胁下痞硬
+ 牡蛎
− 大枣
气滞血结

Treats Patterns · 主治证型

少阳证

Shào Yáng Zhèng

Shaoyang Pattern

Preparation · 煎服法

水煎服。

Editor-reviewed· 2026-04-08

PractitionerPatientDate

小柴胡汤Xiǎo Chái Hú Tāng

Minor Bupleurum Decoction

Herb	Pinyin	Role	Dose
柴胡	Chái Hú	Jun (Sovereign)	12g
黄芩	Huáng Qín	Chen (Minister)	9g
人参	Rén Shēn	Zuo (Assistant)	6g
半夏	Bàn Xià	Zuo (Assistant)	9g
生姜	Shēng Jiāng	Zuo (Assistant)	9g
大枣	Dà Zǎo	Shi (Courier)	12g
甘草	Gān Cǎo	Shi (Courier)	6g

Preparation: 水煎服。

This prescription is provided only by the dispensing TCM practitioner. Take as directed; do not modify the dose or share it. If you experience any adverse effect, stop immediately and contact your practitioner. The content of this platform is educational reference, not medical advice.
Bencao Dian · https://bencaodian.org · CC BY-SA 4.0

Permalink · CC BY-SA 4.0

Cite this entry

@misc{bencaodian-xiao-chai-hu-tang,
  author       = {{Bencaodian Editorial}},
  title        = {Xiǎo Chái Hú Tāng 小柴胡汤 (Minor Bupleurum Decoction)},
  year         = {2026},
  howpublished = {Bencao Dian: A Bilingual Knowledge Graph of Traditional Chinese Medicine},
  url          = {https://bencaodian.org/en/formulas/xiao-chai-hu-tang},
  urldate      = {2026-04-17},
  note         = {CC BY-SA 4.0}
}

Permalink is fixed

Herb

Role

Dosage

Notes

柴胡Chái Hú

君Sovereign

12g

和解少阳，疏肝解郁

清泄少阳之热，与柴胡一升一降

扶正祛邪

和胃降逆止呕

助半夏和胃止呕，并散表邪

12g

与生姜调和营卫，益气和中

甘草Gān Cǎo

使Courier

调和诸药

Herb

Pinyin

Role

Dose

柴胡

Chái Hú

Jun (Sovereign)

12g

黄芩

Huáng Qín

Chen (Minister)

人参

Rén Shēn

Zuo (Assistant)

半夏

Bàn Xià

Zuo (Assistant)

生姜

Shēng Jiāng

Zuo (Assistant)

大枣

Dà Zǎo

Shi (Courier)

12g

甘草

Gān Cǎo

Shi (Courier)

@misc{bencaodian-xiao-chai-hu-tang, author = {{Bencaodian Editorial}}, title = {Xiǎo Chái Hú Tāng 小柴胡汤 (Minor Bupleurum Decoction)}, year = {2026}, howpublished = {Bencao Dian: A Bilingual Knowledge Graph of Traditional Chinese Medicine}, url = {https://bencaodian.org/en/formulas/xiao-chai-hu-tang}, urldate = {2026-04-17}, note = {CC BY-SA 4.0} }