Herbs of the Donguibogam
Each entry pairs the original Donguibogam text with a modern explanation, properties, traditional applications, and cautions. Sources are cited on every page.
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A
Achyranthes Root牛膝
Usul, "ox knee," is named for its stem, which has joints like the knee of a crane or an ox — the Donguibo…
Acorn橡實
Acorn is best known in Korea today as dotori-muk, the jelly made from its starch, but the Donguibogam rec…
Adenophora Root沙參
Deodeok is a mountain vegetable and a lung-nourishing herb in one — the balloon flower’s close cousin, fa…
Adzuki Bean赤小豆
Adzuki bean is the beloved base of patjuk (red bean porridge) and many Korean sweets today, and the Dongu…
Agarwood沈香
Agarwood is prized precisely because it does not form naturally — the Donguibogam explains that southern …
Aged Tangerine Peel橘皮
Tangerine peel is a kitchen-cabinet remedy for stuck qi and phlegm, and the Donguibogam records that Kore…
Alisma Rhizome澤瀉
Alisma rhizome is the classic water-draining herb of Korean tradition, valued for clearing heat trapped i…
Anemarrhena Rhizome知母
Anemarrhena root, called jimo, is a cooling herb that drains stomach fire while replenishing kidney water…
Angelica Dahurica Root白芷
Angelica dahurica root is a classic remedy for wind-type headache with watery, teary eyes, and the Dongui…
Apricot Kernel杏核仁
Apricot kernel is the classic cough herb of the fruit section — the bitter seed inside the apricot stone,…
Areca Nut檳榔
Areca nut, the Donguibogam notes, was eaten in southern regions the way fruit is eaten elsewhere — locals…
Asian Pear梨子
Pear is the juicy autumn fruit Koreans associate with Chuseok and with soothing a dry throat. The Donguib…
Asparagus Root天門冬
Asparagus root is a cooling yin-tonic long paired with its close relative Liriope (maekmundong) in tradit…
Astragalus Root黃芪
Astragalus is the classic qi tonic for the body's surface. Where ginseng restores deep vitality, astragal…
B
Balloon Flower Root桔梗
Balloon flower root — doraji in Korean — is as familiar on the dinner table as in the medicine cabinet, e…
Barley大麥
Barley is still eaten across Korea today as bori-bap (barley rice) and bori-cha (roasted barley tea), and…
Bitter Orange (mature fruit)枳殼
Bitter orange is harvested young as jishi (枳實) and mature as jigak (枳殼) — the Donguibogam explains the cl…
Black Atractylodes Rhizome蒼朮
Black atractylodes is white atractylodes's rugged sibling — the Donguibogam itself notes that early mater…
Black Pepper胡椒
Black pepper needs no introduction as a kitchen spice, and the Donguibogam records exactly the role that …
Black Sesame胡麻
Black sesame's Chinese name, "barbarian hemp," and its other name, "great victor," both come straight fro…
Bovine Bezoar (Calculus Bovis)牛黃
Bovine bezoar is a gallstone that forms naturally in domestic cattle, gathered as a byproduct rather than…
Buckwheat蕎麥
Buckwheat is the base of naengmyeon noodles and memil-muk (buckwheat jelly) still enjoyed across Korea, a…
Bupleurum Root柴胡
Bupleurum root is the herb the Donguibogam sets apart for "alternating chills and fever" — the classical …
Burdock Fruit惡實
Burdock's root is a familiar side dish in Korea (ueong-jorim), but the entry in the Donguibogam under thi…
C
Chestnut栗子
The chestnut is a food the Donguibogam treats as quietly medicinal: recorded as boosting qi, thickening t…
Chinese Chive韭菜
Chive is prized in the Donguibogam as the warmest, most nourishing everyday vegetable — cut it and it gro…
Chinese Quince木瓜
The fragrant quince — famous for perfuming a room and for its role in traditional tea — is recorded in th…
Cimicifuga Rhizome升麻
The name shēngmá, "rising hemp," comes from what the Donguibogam records about the plant: its leaves look…
Cinnamon Bark桂皮
Cinnamon bark is the great warmer of the traditional pharmacy. Where ginger warms the surface and the sto…
Clematis Root威靈仙
Clematis root earned its reputation as "the essential medicine for pain" through a curious folk method of…
Clove丁香
Clove is the same nail-shaped flower bud known worldwide as a spice, recorded in the Donguibogam as a war…
Cnidium Rhizome芎藭
Cnidium rhizome is celebrated in Korean tradition as the premier herb for blood-related headache, prized …
Coltsfoot Flower款冬花
Coltsfoot has one of the most striking botanical habits in the Tangaek-pyeon: it flowers in the snow. The…
Coptis Rhizome黃連
Coptis is the archetypal bitter-cold herb of Korean medicine, so bitter that the proverb "bitterer than c…
Cornus Fruit山茱萸
Cornus fruit is a foundational kidney-nourishing herb in Korean tradition, valued for strengthening what …
Costus Root (Mu Xiang)木香
Mokhyang is an imported (唐) aromatic root, and the Donguibogam identifies it directly as "green wood frag…
Cucumber胡瓜
Cucumber is an everyday vegetable today, but the Donguibogam's entry for it is unusually brief and cautio…
Curcuma Tuber鬱金
A close relative of turmeric, this tuber is noted in the Donguibogam not for a strong fragrance but for a…
D
Dandelion蒲公草
Dandelion is one of the most familiar roadside plants in Korea, its yellow flowers and milky sap known to…
Deer Antler (Velvet)鹿茸
Deer antler is the single most prized tonic in East Asian medicine, harvested each spring while the new a…
Dianthus Seed瞿麥
Dianthus seed's name is refreshingly literal — its seeds resemble wheat grains, giving it the name "wheat…
Dittany Root Bark白鮮
Dittany root bark's Korean folk name literally translates to "white goat-smell," a nickname the Donguibog…
E
Eggplant茄子
Eggplant is a staple side-dish vegetable in Korea, and the Donguibogam records its use for cold-heat imba…
Eleuthero Bark五加皮
Eleuthero bark — from a thorny relative of ginseng — is the Donguibogam’s herb for strengthening sinew an…
Epimedium淫羊藿
Epimedium's Korean folk name, "three branches, nine leaves grass" (samji-guyeopcho), describes its distin…
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…
Evodia Fruit吳茱萸
Evodia is a strongly warming fruit that the Donguibogam itself treats with some caution: alongside its us…
F
Fennel Seed茴香
Fennel is a familiar seasoning and an old digestive. The Donguibogam describes the plant with a cook's ey…
Field Mint薄荷
Field mint bridges the vegetable garden and the medicine cabinet in Korean tradition, eaten fresh as a ve…
Figwort Root (Xuanshen)玄參
Hyeonsam, "dark ginseng," is described by the Donguibogam as a plant whose seedling leaves look like sesa…
Fleeceflower Root何首烏
Fleeceflower root's name comes with a full legend recorded right in the Donguibogam: a frail, wifeless ol…
Forsythia Fruit連翹
Yeongyo is the seedpod of forsythia — the shrub whose yellow flowers are among the first signs of spring …
Foxtail Millet粟米
Foxtail millet, the small yellow grain of "jopap" (millet rice), is described in the Donguibogam mainly b…
Fresh Ginger生薑
Fresh ginger bridges the kitchen and the pharmacy in Korean tradition. It is used at the first signs of w…
Fresh Rehmannia Root生地黃
Raw rehmannia is the cold, blood-cooling twin of prepared rehmannia (sukjihwang), which is warm and tonif…
Fritillaria Bulb貝母
Bemo, "shell mother," is named for the shape of the bulb: it has segments, yellow-white in color, and loo…
G
Gardenia Fruit梔子
Gardenia fruit is familiar in Korean kitchens as a natural yellow food dye (chija-mul), but the Donguibog…
Garlic大蒜
Garlic sits at the very center of the Korean table and, in the Donguibogam, at the crossroads of food and…
Gastrodia Rhizome天麻
Gastrodia is a leafless orchid that lives off fungal partners rather than photosynthesis, and the Donguib…
Ginseng人蔘
Ginseng is the most celebrated tonic herb in Korean traditional medicine, often called the king of herbs.…
Glutinous Rice糯米
Glutinous rice is the sticky rice used for rice cakes, sweet drinks and rice wine. The Donguibogam define…
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…
Grape蒲萄
Grape needs no introduction on the modern table, and the Donguibogam already records it as strengthening …
Grassleaf Sweet Flag菖蒲
Seokchangpo grows on mossy stones beside mountain streams, and the Donguibogam describes how to tell it f…
Gromwell Root紫草
Gromwell's Korean name, jichi, is still recognized today mainly through its use as a purple dye and as th…
H
Hawthorn Fruit山査子
Hawthorn is the small red sour fruit used today in teas, jellies and candies. The Donguibogam records it …
Hogweed Root前胡
Hogweed root is a plain, common root the Donguibogam describes in the shortest possible terms — found eve…
J
Japanese Plum梅實
Plum is the source of maesil-cheong and maesil-cha found in nearly every Korean household, and the Dongui…
Japanese Thistle大薊
Thistle — daegye, the larger of two related entries the Donguibogam records side by side — is distinguish…
Job's Tears薏苡仁
Job's tears is popular today as a diet and skin-care grain, but the Donguibogam notes something modern fa…
Jujube大棗
Jujube, the fruit of a deciduous tree in the buckthorn family, is the Korean red date and among the most …
K
Korean Angelica Root當歸
Danggwi is the foremost blood tonic of Korean tradition, central to formulas such as Samul-tang. Its name…
Korean Black Raspberry覆盆子
Bokbunja, the Korean black raspberry, is best known today as the base of a sweet fruit wine, but the Dong…
Korean Cherry櫻桃
Korean cherry ripens earliest among fruits each spring, and the Donguibogam notes this specifically — bec…
Korean Melon甛瓜
Korean melon (chamoe) is a beloved summer fruit, and the Donguibogam records its thirst-quenching, heat-c…
Korean Mint藿香
Korean mint carries a fragrance the Donguibogam itself notes was once blended into incense, and that same…
Korean Pine Nut海松子
Pine nuts are one of the most recognizably Korean foods in the Tangaek-pyeon: the entry gives the Korean …
Korean Yam薯蕷
Korean yam bridges food and medicine as directly as any herb in this tradition, gently tonifying the sple…
Kudzu Root葛根
Kudzu root is the source of the familiar hangover tea (galgeun-cha) still sold across Korea today. The Do…
L
Lettuce萵苣
Lettuce is the wrap-leaf behind Korean ssam culture today, and the Donguibogam records a benefit still re…
Licorice Root甘草
Licorice root, the dried root and rhizome of a perennial legume, appears in more traditional Korean formu…
Lily Bulb百合
Lily bulb is still eaten in Korea as a mild, starchy porridge ingredient (baekhap-juk), and the Donguibog…
Liriope Tuber麥門冬
Liriope tuber takes its name from the shape of its root, which forms small beads resembling wheat grains …
Longan龍眼
Longan is the sweet tropical fruit whose peeled flesh looks like a translucent eye, and the Donguibogam g…
Lotus Seed蓮實
Every part of the lotus gets its own name in the Donguibogam's careful botanical account — leaf as ha, st…
M
Magnolia Bark厚朴
Magnolia bark, marked in the Donguibogam as an imported (Tang) medicine, is a foundational herb for stagn…
Magnolia Flower Bud辛夷
Magnolia flower bud is gathered just before it opens, when the furry bud still resembles a small peach. T…
Motherwort Seed茺蔚子
Everyone recognizes ingmocho ("benefits the mother") as the go-to herb for women's health, but that famou…
Moutan Root Bark牡丹
Moutan is peony's tree-form relative — the source of the root bark used in medicine rather than the flowe…
Mugwort Leaf艾葉
Mugwort leaf — ssuk, woven through Korean food, rice cakes, and the founding myth itself — is recorded in…
Mulberry Root Bark桑根白皮
Mulberry is a tree whose every part appears in the Donguibogam — root bark, leaf, twig, fruit, even the w…
Mung Bean菉豆
Mung bean is the source of sukju-namul (bean sprouts) and bindae-tteok batter familiar in Korean cooking,…
Musk (historical record)麝香
Musk was recorded by the Donguibogam as one of the most powerful mind-opening substances in the classical…
N
Napa Cabbage菘菜
Napa cabbage is the essential vegetable behind Korean kimchi, and the Donguibogam already records it as t…
Notopterygium Root (Qianghuo)羌活
Ganghwal is a close relative of dokhwal, and the Donguibogam begins by saying so: its main uses are much …
Nutgrass Rhizome (Cyperus)莎草根
Hyangbuja is the knob-like tuber at the base of a sedge, said to resemble a jujube pit and also called "s…
P
Peach Kernel桃核仁
Peach kernel is the classic blood-moving herb of the fruit section, recorded in the Donguibogam as breaki…
Peony Root芍藥
Peony root partners danggwi at the heart of Samul-tang, the foundational blood-nourishing formula. Tradit…
Perilla Leaf紫蘇葉
Perilla leaf is another herb that lives equally in the kitchen and the medicine cabinet, its purple-backe…
Pine Resin松脂
Pine resin flows from Korea's most iconic tree, and the Donguibogam records it as a versatile remedy for …
Pinellia Rhizome半夏
Pinellia is one of the most important phlegm-resolving herbs in Korean tradition, but the Donguibogam is …
Plantain Seed車前子
Plantain earned its Chinese name — "before the cart" — from where it thrives: the Donguibogam notes it lo…
Polygala Root遠志
Polygala root carries a name that means 'far-reaching ambition,' reflecting the Donguibogam's description…
Pomegranate石榴
The pomegranate in the Donguibogam is a fruit with two faces. The text separates sweet pomegranates, whic…
Poria茯苓
Poria is unusual among traditional herbs in that it is not a plant at all, but the dried sclerotium of a …
Prepared Rehmannia Root熟地黃
Prepared rehmannia is the richest blood-nourishing root in Korean tradition, made by steaming and drying …
Pubescent Angelica Root (Duhuo)獨活
The name "dokhwal," "alone-moving," comes from an observation recorded in the Donguibogam: the plant send…
Purslane馬齒莧
Purslane's old alternate name, "five-element grass," comes from a small piece of natural poetry the Dongu…
R
Radish萊菔
The common radish is one of the Donguibogam’s clearest food-medicines: recorded as dissolving food stagna…
Ripe Persimmon紅柿
Ripe persimmon is a familiar autumn fruit in Korea, and the Donguibogam records its famous "seven virtues…
Rose of Sharon Bark木槿
Mugunghwa is Korea's national flower, but the Donguibogam entry under this name treats its bark, not the …
S
Safflower紅藍花
Safflower is the flower behind traditional red dye and rouge, and the Donguibogam records a dose-dependen…
Salvia Root (Danshen)丹參
Danshen means "red ginseng root" in a literal sense — danshim in Korean — and the Donguibogam describes w…
Sanguisorba Root地楡
Sanguisorba root's old alternate name, "jade black bean paste," comes from its purple-black seed clusters…
Saposhnikovia Root (Siler)防風
The name means "guard against wind," and the Donguibogam gives it a sweeping reputation: it treats "thirt…
Schisandra Berry五味子
Schisandra, the fruit of a deciduous woody vine, grows wild in deep mountains with red climbing stems, le…
Schizonepeta荊芥
Schizonepeta is a classic early-response herb for the first chill and headache of a cold, traditionally n…
Scutellaria Root黃芩
Scutellaria root is one of the most enduring heat-clearing herbs in East Asian medicine, its old alternat…
Sea Vegetable (Miyeok / Wakame)海菜
In the Donguibogam the entry for 海菜 uses the old Korean name "meoyuk," which is today's miyeok. The text …
Shepherd's Purse薺菜
Shepherd's purse is the classic early-spring wild green in Korean cooking, and the Donguibogam notes its …
Sichuan Pepper Fruit蜀椒
Sichuan pepper's fruit is still familiar in Korean cooking as chopi, the tingling spice used in certain r…
Sickle Senna Seed決明子
Sickle senna seed's very name means "decides brightness" — a direct promise about eyesight the Donguiboga…
Solomon's Seal Rhizome黃精
Solomon's seal is the source of dunggulle-cha, one of the most common teas in Korea, and the Donguibogam'…
Sophora Root苦參
Sophora root's name says it all — "bitter root" — and the Donguibogam does not soften the point, warning …
Soybean大豆
Soybean is the most common bean on the Korean table today, and the Donguibogam already records it as a fo…
Sparrow-Tongue Tea Leaf苦茶
Jakseolcha ("sparrow-tongue tea") takes its name from its tiny, tongue-shaped young leaves, picked early …
Sweet Chrysanthemum甘菊花
Chrysanthemum flower tea is a familiar autumn drink in Korea, and the Donguibogam treats the flower as a …
T
Taro芋子
Taro is a familiar autumn root used in Korean toran-guk (taro soup), and the Donguibogam is explicit abou…
Tatarian Aster Root紫菀
Tatarian aster's poetic old name, "soul-returning grass," reflects how highly it was regarded for lung co…
Thuja Seed柏實
Thuja seed comes from the arborvitae, a tree the Donguibogam describes with real botanical curiosity: whi…
Tofu豆腐
Tofu is one of the most common foods on the Korean table today, but the Donguibogam classes it as having …
Trichosanthes Root瓜蔞根
Trichosanthes root, "heaven-flower powder" (天花粉), is called in the Donguibogam the holy medicine for wast…
Turmeric Rhizome薑黃
Turmeric rhizome — the herb behind today's turmeric supplement boom — is recorded in the Donguibogam as a…
U
V
W
Walnut胡桃
The walnut, its kernel folded like the brain it was fancifully linked to, is recorded in the Donguibogam …
Water Dropwort水芹
Water dropwort (minari) is a familiar spring vegetable in Korean cooking, especially in maeuntang and var…
Watermelon西瓜
Watermelon is the quintessential Korean summer fruit, and the Donguibogam records a story about its origi…
Wax Gourd白冬瓜
Wax gourd is a mild, watery vegetable used in Korean soups, and the Donguibogam explains its name precise…
Wheat小麥
Wheat is the grain behind noodles and bread, but the Donguibogam records something less obvious: the whol…
White Atractylodes Rhizome白朮
White atractylodes is one of the most widely used spleen-tonifying herbs in Korean tradition, central to …
Wild Jujube Seed酸棗仁
Wild jujube seed comes from a different tree than the sweet jujube eaten as food — a smaller, thornier wi…
Wood Ear Mushroom木耳
Wood ear is the dark, ear-shaped fungus that grows on dead wood and is still sold dried. The entry is as …