For the will, drive and focus to achieve ambitions
Polygala is one of my favorite herbs, and is one of the most profound in its effects. I recommend it as a brain tonic herb, as a will-strengthening tonic herb and a balancer of the fire and water energy within you. If you have big ambitions or if you just feel you could do with a little more will and drive, then you will benefit from daily use of polygala.
Polygala has been used in Chinese and Taoist medicine for thousands of years as a will strengthener. The kind of will I mean is less about willpower (as in fighting against yourself) and more about the ability to get things done, the ability to take action consistently until you get a result.
The Chinese would be more esoteric about it and say it helps you to manifest your visions into reality. They are referring to yi power, your creative visualisation power.
Polygala is unique in that it connects the heart centre with the kidneys. The heart is the most fiery yang part of the body and kidneys are the most watery yin part of the body. There is a meridian that connects the two, right through the centre of the body, and its called the Penetrating Vessel. Polygala opens that meridian and helps energy to be transmitted along it and balance these two parts.
When the yang fire and yin water are brought into balance, it can be one of the most profound things that can happen to you. This was the goal of the ancient alchemists throughout the ages.
If that sounds too spiritual and hard to nail down, then you may prefer to focus on the proven ability polygala has/ to make the brain work better. It improves the memory by stopping acetylcholine being broken down as quickly so you have that neurotransmitter available to you for longer.
Polygala has been shown to improve both cognition and focus. I suspect that its capacity to help you to get stuff done and bring your dreams into reality has something to do with having your brain functioning better.
