Every entry cites its classical text and reference database.
Korean and English, translated with care — not machine-dumped.
Built on the Donguibogam, Memory of the World since 2009.
Frequently searched herbs
Ginseng人蔘
Ginseng is the most celebrated tonic herb in Korean traditional medicine, often called the king of herbs.…
Licorice Root甘草
Licorice root, the dried root and rhizome of a perennial legume, appears in more traditional Korean formu…
Fresh Ginger生薑
Fresh ginger bridges the kitchen and the pharmacy in Korean tradition. It is used at the first signs of w…
Jujube大棗
Jujube, the fruit of a deciduous tree in the buckthorn family, is the Korean red date and among the most …
Goji Berry枸杞子
Goji berry, the fruit of a deciduous shrub in the nightshade family, is the classic tonic for the liver a…
Schisandra Berry五味子
Schisandra, the fruit of a deciduous woody vine, grows wild in deep mountains with red climbing stems, le…
Clematis Root威靈仙
Clematis root earned its reputation as "the essential medicine for pain" through a curious folk method of…
Thuja Seed柏實
Thuja seed comes from the arborvitae, a tree the Donguibogam describes with real botanical curiosity: whi…
Sparrow-Tongue Tea Leaf苦茶
Jakseolcha ("sparrow-tongue tea") takes its name from its tiny, tongue-shaped young leaves, picked early …
Korean Mint藿香
Korean mint carries a fragrance the Donguibogam itself notes was once blended into incense, and that same…
Black Pepper胡椒
Black pepper needs no introduction as a kitchen spice, and the Donguibogam records exactly the role that …
Tofu豆腐
Tofu is one of the most common foods on the Korean table today, but the Donguibogam classes it as having …
Burdock Fruit惡實
Burdock's root is a familiar side dish in Korea (ueong-jorim), but the entry in the Donguibogam under thi…
Evodia Fruit吳茱萸
Evodia is a strongly warming fruit that the Donguibogam itself treats with some caution: alongside its us…
Angelica Dahurica Root白芷
Angelica dahurica root is a classic remedy for wind-type headache with watery, teary eyes, and the Dongui…
Black Sesame胡麻
Black sesame's Chinese name, "barbarian hemp," and its other name, "great victor," both come straight fro…
Mugwort Leaf艾葉
Mugwort leaf — ssuk, woven through Korean food, rice cakes, and the founding myth itself — is recorded in…
Pine Resin松脂
Pine resin flows from Korea's most iconic tree, and the Donguibogam records it as a versatile remedy for …
Deer Antler (Velvet)鹿茸
Deer antler is the single most prized tonic in East Asian medicine, harvested each spring while the new a…
Korean Angelica Root當歸
Danggwi is the foremost blood tonic of Korean tradition, central to formulas such as Samul-tang. Its name…
Eucommia Bark杜仲
Eucommia bark is still sold in Korea today as duchung-cha, a tea for the lower back and knees. The Dongui…
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The Donguibogam (東醫寶鑑) and its Herbology Volume (湯液篇)
The Donguibogam (東醫寶鑑, "Precious Mirror of Eastern Medicine") is a 25-volume medical encyclopedia compiled in 1613 by Heo Jun, chief royal physician of the Joseon court. It synthesized the vast body of East Asian medical knowledge into an original clinical system, and in 2009 became the first medical text inscribed in the UNESCO Memory of the World register.
The work is organized into five major divisions: Naegyeong-pyeon (內景篇, internal medicine), Oehyeong-pyeon (外形篇, external and physical conditions), Japbyeong-pyeon (雜病篇, epidemic and miscellaneous disorders), Tangaek-pyeon (湯液篇, herbology and materia medica), and Chimgu-pyeon (鍼灸篇, acupuncture and moxibustion).
The Tangaek-pyeon is the definitive herbology volume, recording the nature, taste, toxicity, harvest timing, and processing method of over 1,400 locally-sourced and major medicinal substances. DonguiHub reorganizes 144 representative herbs from this volume for the modern reader, pairing the classical text with accurate, accessible explanation of their traditional properties.