Also known as Purple Ginseng and Five Phoenix Flower.

Ishimitsu, whose aliases include Purple Ginseng and Five Phoenix Flowers, is an annual herb that grows from 20 to 70 centimeters tall, with a well-branched root and an inconspicuous taproot that is yellowish-brown in color. The whole plant is pubescent or villous inversely. Stem single or branched, erect or basally inclined, 4-angled.

Effects and Functions of Shihmianuan:

It activates blood circulation and removes blood stasis, clears heat and relieves dampness, disperses knots and subdues swellings, and is mainly used in treating menstrual disorders, menstrual pain, menstrual closure, dislocation of blood in stools and urine, dampness-heat jaundice, feverish blood dysentery, gonorrhea and astringent pains, dyspepsia, rheumatism and bone pains, scrofula, sores, and mammary carbuncles, as well as herpes zoster, leprosy, bruises, and other injuries.

It can be decocted and taken internally, or used externally with the juice of the fresh product, or applied to the affected area by pounding the fresh product in appropriate quantities.

Reference: Baidu Encyclopedia-Shihmianuan