浓朴、白薇为之使。畏秦艽、莽草、矾石。恶桃花。反乌头。
辛、苦、微寒。入手太阴经气分。开心胸郁结之气，降肺火咳逆之痰。治淋疝乳难，消喉痹
瘰，解小肠邪热，疗肺痿咯血。得浓朴，化痰降气。配白芷，消便痈肿痛。配苦参、当归
，治妊娠尿难。配连翘，治瘿瘤。配栝蒌，开结痰。（导热下行，痰气自利。）配桔梗，下气
止嗽。
川中平藩者味甘最佳，象山者味苦。去时感火痰，去心糯米拌炒，米熟为度，去米用。
胃寒
者姜汁炒。贝母中有独颗不作两片无皱者，号曰丹龙精，不入药，误服令人筋脉不收。惟以
黄精、小蓝汁服之立解。
寒痰停饮，恶心冷泻，二者禁用。
川贝降肺经之火痰，杏仁行肺经之寒痰，白附去肺经之风痰，蒌仁涤肺经之结痰。肺经之
痰，非阿胶不下。肺经之毒痰，非硝石不除。若湿痰发于脾经，半夏驱之使不滞。痰气伏于
脾经，旋复推之使不停。血痰结于脾经，冬花开之使不积。又有湿热在脾胃而成痰者，槐角
理之，痰自清豁而弗生。实痰留于胃腑而致胀者，玄明荡之，痰自消归于乌有。如因痰而胃
痛，蠃壳止之。宿痰而成囊，苍术除之。豁痰迷于心窍，远志为功。破心经之痰郁，赖有蕤
仁。礞石滚痰之滞，肺经独爽。铁花开痰之结，肝脏自泰。肾经得青盐，痰火顿息。肾中入
蛤粉，痰热皆除。至于肾经之虚痰，牡蛎逆之而见功。肾水泛为痰，熟地补之而奏续。膈上
之痰，兼火者青黛疗之，兼燥者花粉降之。惟大黄能下顽痰于肠胃，枳实能散积痰之稠粘。
更有相火逆结之痰，解之者在僵蚕。胁下寒结之痰，豁之者需白芥。经络中之风痰，南星可
祛。郁则荆沥导之，结则牵牛散之，热则竹沥行之。惊风而生痰饮，非攻之不退，全竭之力
也。风热多致痰壅，非吐之不平，白矾之力也。常山逐痰积，野狼毒开恶痰，槟榔坠痰癖，慈
菇吐痰痫，川蓼子决风痰之上壅，马兜铃下梅核之痰丸。诸药各有专治，诸痰别有分消。不
知痰所从来，不审药所职司，动以川、半为治痰之品，一概混施，未有能济者也。
厚朴、白薇作为它的引经药。畏忌秦艽、莽草、矾石。厌恶桃花。与乌头相反。
味辛、苦，性微寒。归入手太阴肺经的气分。能疏通心胸郁结之气，降泄肺火引起的咳逆之痰。治疗淋证、疝气、乳汁不通，消除喉痹、瘰疬，解除小肠邪热，治疗肺痿咯血。与厚朴配合，可化痰降气。与白芷配合，可消除便痈肿痛。与苦参、当归配合，治疗妊娠期间小便困难。与连翘配合，治疗瘿瘤。与瓜蒌配合，可开通结聚之痰。（引导热邪下行，痰气自然通畅。）与桔梗配合，可下气止咳。
产于四川中平藩地区的贝母味甘为最佳，象山产的贝母味苦。去除时感受火邪之痰，需用糯米拌炒去心，米熟为度，去掉糯米后使用。
胃寒者用姜汁炒制。贝母中有单独一颗、不分为两片且无皱纹的，称为“丹龙精”，不入药用，误服会导致筋脉松弛不收。只有用黄精、小蓝汁服用才能立即解毒。
寒痰停饮、恶心冷泻，这两种情况禁用。
川贝母能降肺经之火痰，杏仁能行肺经之寒痰，白附子能去肺经之风痰，瓜蒌仁能涤除肺经之结痰。肺经之痰，非阿胶不能下行。肺经之毒痰，非硝石不能清除。如果湿痰发于脾经，半夏驱除它使其不滞留。痰气伏于脾经，旋覆花推荡它使其不停留。血痰结于脾经，冬瓜子（此处原文作“冬花”，通常指款冬花，但结合语境及常见配伍，若指清热化痰散结，款冬花亦常用，然此处强调“开”积，需斟酌，按原文直译）开散它使其不积聚。又有湿热在脾胃而成痰者，槐角调理它，痰自然清稀而不再生。实痰留于胃腑导致胀满者，玄明粉荡涤它，痰自然消归于无。如果因痰导致胃痛，瓦楞子止住它。宿痰形成囊肿，苍术消除它。豁痰以通心窍，远志有功。破除心经之痰郁，赖有蕤仁。礞石滚痰以除滞涩，肺经独得清爽。铁华粉开痰结，肝脏自然安泰。肾经得到青盐，痰火顿时平息。肾中加入蛤粉，痰热皆除。至于肾经之虚痰，牡蛎逆治而见效。肾水泛溢为痰，熟地黄补益而奏效。膈上之痰，兼火者用青黛治疗，兼燥者用天花粉降泄。只有大黄能下攻肠胃之顽痰，枳实能消散积滞之稠粘痰。更有相火逆结之痰，解之者在于僵蚕。胁下寒结之痰，豁之者需白芥子。经络中之风痰，南星可祛除。郁结则用荆沥疏导，结聚则用牵牛子散之，热盛则用竹沥行之。惊风而生痰饮，非攻逐不退，全蝎之力也。风热多致痰壅，非吐之不平，白矾之力也。常山驱逐痰积，野狼毒开破恶痰，槟榔坠下痰癖，慈菇吐出痰痫，川蓼子决断风痰之上壅，马兜铃下化梅核之痰丸。诸药各有专治，诸痰别有分消。不知痰所从来，不审药所职司，动辄以川贝、半夏为治痰之品，一概混施，未有能济事者也。
Polaris (Magnoliae Officinalis Cortex) and Anemarrhenae Rhizoma serve as its guiding herbs. It is incompatible with Atractylodis Rhizoma, Imperatae Rhizoma, and Alum. It opposes Aconiti Lateralis Radix Preparata.
Acrid, bitter, slightly cold. Enters the Qi level of the Hand-Taiyin Lung Meridian. It opens up stagnant Qi in the chest and heart, and descends Phlegm caused by coughing due to Lung Fire. It treats strangury, hernia, and difficult lactation; eliminates throat obstruction (Hou Bi) and scrofula (Luo Li); resolves pathogenic heat in the Small Intestine; and treats pulmonary consumptive disease (Fei Wei) with hemoptysis. Combined with Polaris (Magnoliae Officinalis Cortex), it transforms Phlegm and descends Qi. Combined with Angelicae Dahuricae Radix, it reduces swelling and pain from perianal abscesses. Combined with Sophorae Flavescentis Radix and Angelicae Sinensis Radix, it treats dysuria during pregnancy. Combined with Forsythiae Fructus, it treats goiter (Ying Liu). Combined with Trichosanthis Fructus, it opens obstructed Phlegm. (Guides heat downward, allowing Phlegm and Qi to flow freely.) Combined with Platycodonis Radix, it descends Qi and stops coughing.
Bells from Zhongpingfan, Sichuan, with a sweet taste are considered best; those from Xiangshan have a bitter taste. To clear Phlegm generated by Fire-Heat, remove the core, stir-fry with glutinous rice until the rice is cooked, then discard the rice and use the herb. For patients with Stomach Cold, stir-fry with ginger juice. Among Bells, there is a variety that is single-celled, not divided into two lobes, and lacks wrinkles, known as "Dan Long Jing" (Dragon Essence). It is not used in medicine; accidental ingestion causes flaccidity of sinews and vessels. This toxicity can be immediately resolved by taking Polygonati Rhizoma (Huang Jing) and juice of Isatis Indigotica (Xiao Lan Zhi).
Contraindicated in cases of Cold-Phlegm retention and cold diarrhea with nausea.
Sichuan Bell (Chuan Bei Mu) descends Fire-Phlegm in the Lung Meridian; Apricot Seed (Xing Ren) moves Cold-Phlegm in the Lung Meridian; White Aconite Root (Bai Fu Zi) dispels Wind-Phlegm in the Lung Meridian; Trichosanthis Semen (Lou Ren) purges Congested-Phlegm in the Lung Meridian. For Phlegm in the Lung Meridian, only Donkey-Hide Gelatin (E Jiao) can guide it downward. For Toxic-Phlegm in the Lung Meridian, only Natrii Sulfas (Xiao Shi) can eliminate it. If Damp-Phlegm arises from the Spleen Meridian, Pinelliae Rhizoma drives it out so it does not stagnate. If Phlegm-Qi lies hidden in the Spleen Meridian, Inulae Flos pushes it away so it does not remain. If Blood-Phlegm knots in the Spleen Meridian, Aster Tataricus Flower (Dong Hua) opens it so it does not accumulate. When Damp-Heat in the Spleen and Stomach generates Phlegm, Sophorae Tonkinensis Legume (Huai Jiao) regulates it, causing Phlegm to become clear and thin, preventing its formation. When Excess-Phlegm remains in the Stomach Fu organ causing distension, Natrii Sulfas Crystallizatus (Xuan Ming Fen) purges it, causing Phlegm to vanish completely. If stomachache is caused by Phlegm, Arcae Concha (Lei Ke) stops it. If old Phlegm forms cysts, Atractylodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma (Cang Zhu) removes it. To resolve Phlegm and open the Heart orifices, Polygalae Radix (Yuan Zhi) is effective. To break Phlegm-stagnation in the Heart Meridian, Prunus Armeniaca Kernel (Rui Ren) is relied upon. Qingmu Stone (Meng Shi) rolls away Phlegm stagnation, leaving the Lung Meridian clear. Tiehua Powder (Tie Hua Kai) resolves Phlegm knots, bringing peace to the Liver. With Green Salt (Qing Yan) for the Kidney Meridian, Phlegm-Fire subsides instantly. With Arca Shell Powder (Ge Fen) entering the Kidneys, Phlegm-Heat is entirely removed. As for Deficiency-Phlegm of the Kidney Meridian, Ostrea Concha (Mu Li) counteracts it with success. When Kidney Water overflows as Phlegm, Rehmanniae Radix Praeparata (Shu Di) tonifies it to achieve continuity. For Phlegm above the diaphragm, if accompanied by Fire, Indigo Naturalis (Qing Dai) treats it; if accompanied by Dryness, Trichosanthis Radix (Hua Fen) descends it. Only Rhubarb (Da Huang) can purge stubborn Phlegm from the intestines and stomach; Immature Bitter Orange (Zhi Shi) can scatter accumulated sticky Phlegm. Furthermore, for Phlegm caused by rebellious Ministerial Fire, Silkworm (Jiang Can) resolves it. For Cold-knotted Phlegm under the ribs, Mustard Seed (Bai Jie) clears it. For Wind-Phlegm in the collaterals, Pinelliae Rhizoma (Nan Xing) expels it. For stagnation, Amomum Juice (Jing Li) guides it; for knotting, Morning Glory Seed (Qian Niu) scatters it; for Heat, Bamboo Sap (Zhu Li) circulates it. For convulsions generating Phlegm-fluids, only aggressive expulsion works, utilizing the power of Scorpion (Quan Jie). Wind-Heat often leads to Phlegm congestion, which requires vomiting to calm, utilizing the power of Alum (Bai Fan). Chang Shan drives out Phlegm accumulation; Wild Wolfbane (Ye Lang Du) breaks malignant Phlegm; Areca Seed (Bing Lang) drops down Phlegm masses; Colocasia Corm (Ci Gu) induces vomiting for Phlegm-epilepsy; Sichuan Smartweed Seed (Chuan Liao Zi) decides against upward congestion of Wind-Phlegm; Aristolochiae Fructus (Ma Dou Ling) descends the Phlegm-ball of Plum-pit Qi. Each herb has its specific treatment; each type of Phlegm has its distinct resolution. Without knowing the origin of Phlegm, and without examining the function of the drugs, one often indiscriminately uses Sichuan Bell and Pinellia as Phlegm-resolving agents, mixing them together without distinction. Such practice rarely achieves therapeutic success.