Botanical Name: Fructus Lycii, Lycium
Treasures: Yin Jing
Atmospheric Energy: Neutral
Taste: Sweet
Organic Associations: Liver, Kidneys, and lungs. Nourishes blood.
Contraindications: Traditionally considered very gentle. Check with your practitioner if you take blood-thinning medication or are pregnant.
Most people do not think of Goji Berries as a Tonic herb… They just know them as the bright little “superfood” berry. But in China they have been consumed for centuries as a daily Tonic to aid a long, healthy life! They are eaten fresh, dried AND in Tea!!
There is story of a Taoist “Immortal” (A spiritual master) who, legend says, lived to be over 250 years old!!
His name was Master Li Ching Yun and one of his most recommended tonic herbs for longevity is Goji Berries. He loved Goji for its life promoting and longevity powers. He also claimed it helped him walk swiftly in the mountains!
Master Li Ching Yun suggested a 1/3 of an ounce of goji berry daily… That is just 10 grams, or a small handful!
Keep a quiet heart, sit like a tortoise, walk sprightly like a pigeon and sleep like a dog.
The Benefits of Goji Berry - What Goji berry (Lycium) is good for…
Goji berry, also known as Lycium / Gou Qi Zi in China, is known to tonify the vital essence (“Jing”). Specifically, they support yin jing. It is traditionally enjoyed for longevity and a bright mood!
In Chinese herbalism goji is traditionally regarded as a Blood and Yin Jing tonic… and a favourite of women of all ages! Daily goji berries are a great (and delicious) addition to any woman’s routine! When combined with equal parts Schisandra berry (Wu Wei Zi), they are a supreme tonic for beauty as well!
Like other Tonic Herbs, the benefits of Goji Berries are experienced over prolonged and daily use.
Goji Berry (Lycium) - ‘The Happy Fruit’
In China, Goji Berries are known as the “Happy Fruit” because they are said to lift one’s mood!
In China it is said that eating a handful of gojis everyday will make you happy for the whole day!
When eaten daily for 100 days or more, you wont stop smiling…
For this reason, goji berries are traditionally enjoyed to brighten the spirits. They are traditionally enjoyed to lift your mood, so that you can live your best life!
Goji Berries Support Graceful Aging… So that you can live a long, vibrant and healthy life!
Longevity is not just living a long life… It is about the QUALITY of life. 100 years of misery is VERY different from 100 years of joy!
Goji berries (like we talked about earlier) help us live a long AND joyful life. They keep a smile on your face, so you can navigate life with happiness.
In TCM, they are said to nourish the blood and the “yin jing”.
Like we have talked about elsewhere, yin jing is your primal life force essence… My favourite way of describing Yin Jing is like a bucket that holds water…
When yin jing becomes depleted, that bucket has cracks and holes. No matter how much water (energy) is in the bucket, you will always be running on “low”…
In Taoist tradition, goji berries are said to help patch up your bucket!
Goji berries Make you BEAUTIFUL! From The Inside out… AND the outside in!
Goji / Lycium berries are known as a beauty tonic. They are traditionally enjoyed for RADIANT skin!
My belief is that Goji is not just a “physical” beauty tonic… Have you ever noticed that happy people are naturally beautiful? It’s like they have a certain “Glow” about them. As we learned… Goji berries make us happy! And thus they make us beautiful…
Goji is the “original” Superfood…
We have all heard of the term “superfood”… They are basically any food that is rich in nutrients and health promoting qualities, even when taken in relatively small amounts. One thing we LOVE about tonic herbs, is that they are all considered to be akin to “superfoods”.
Although many tonic herbs are not “foods” (like reishi, chaga, etc…), they are traditionally consumed as frequently as we eat regular food! Goji berries are literally a food… and an herb!
They are rich in minerals, enzymes, polysaccharides, and antioxidants… A small handful a day is a lovely daily habit!
Taoist Masters LOVE Goji Berries!
There are many taoist masters who wrote about Goji berries… And all of them lived extraordinarily long lives!
Sun Si-MIao is one of these masters. He is known as the “Herb King” and lived from 581 AD to 682 AD. He lived to be 101 years old, even though he was born with a very weak constitution. He was constantly sick as a child. In fact, his health was so poor his family nearly went bankrupt trying to keep him alive and healthy!
At an early age he began studying herbalism. This became Sun’s life long path… He wrote the famous book “Prescriptions Worth a Thousand Pieces of Gold”… He believed that if any of his prescriptions could save just ONE life, it would be worth more than a thousand gold pieces.
At age 101 he died peacefully. He wrote his family “supplement” book at the age of 100… Which shows that he not only lived a LONG life, he lived a GOOD life!
How many 100 year olds are mentally sound and strong enough to write a book…?
And not just any book… But one that is still known over 1300 years later!
Sun Si-Miao was known to consume goji every morning and every night through out his entire life.
Not All Gojis Are The Same…
Quality is important. If you are buying dried goji, make sure they are soft and supple. They should not be dry, brittle or hard to chew. They should be delicious, with a lovely texture!
Why We Love Goji Berries (Lycium)…
So like we talked about, these berries are potent food AND tonic…
They have a variety of benefits in including:
- Yin Jing tonic
- Blood tonic (TCM)
- Traditional longevity food
- Beauty tonic (Makes for lovely skin!)
- The “happy fruit”: said to “put a smile on your face”
Goji berries are one of the gentlest tonic herbs! Enjoy them daily as snack, in soups/stews, in smoothies, as tincture, and even as a tea! One of the famous teas in China is “goji and schisandra” mixed 50/50, and steeped for 5-10minutes.
