Tibetan Medicine

Tibetan medicine is a system of holistic healing, the main fundamentals of which are believed to have come from the teachings of Lord Buddha. Tibetan medicine comes from various cultures, the most prominent being the Indian, Chinese, and Persian cultures.

Tibetan medicine (the way the world knows it today), came into practice somewhere around the 7^th and 8^th century CE. Prior to this, there was a system of healing in Tibet, but it was more of a folk system, which was particularly world famous. As the Tibetans already had a very superior knowledge about healing systems, the rulers in Tibet at the time, invited many scholars and doctors from India and China to teach their medicine ways to Tibetans. Thus, by blending information from diverse healing methods, Tibetans fashioned a new system of medicine, which was taken from centuries of amassed practical knowledge and instinct about the ways of diseases and health.

Fundamental Doctrines of Tibetan Medicine

Tibetan medicine is based on 5 basic elements and 3 main biodynamics. Knowledge of these 5 elements and 3 biodynamics is vital for the understanding of Tibetan medicine.

1) The 5 Elements: An important belief in Tibetan medicine is that all things in nature, man included, are made up of the 5 elements, which are a big part of the philosophy of Tibetan medicine. These five elements are as under:

1. Earth: The earth, being solid and steady, is likened to the physical body of all people.
    

2. Water: The nature of water is to produce humidity and moisture. As such, water is what helps to form all bodily fluids.
    

3. Fire: All metabolic and enzyme activity in the human body is represented by fire, as fire has the ability to change and alter things with its heat, thus the similarity to metabolic change and activity.   
    

4. Wind: Wind is responsible for movement and performs the same function in the human body. All respiratory and circulatory functions in the body thus take place because of the wind element.
    

5. Space: All the other elements in the body are continuously experiencing change, being in a constant cycle of increase and decrease. But the space element is not an interactive element, but only provides the ‘space’ for the remaining 4 elements to carry out their functions. The space element is represented by bodily hollow spaces and orifices.

Thus, the human body is an amalgamation of all these 5 elements. The physical and psychological parts of the body, both are represented by them.

2) The 3 Biodynamics: As the human body is made up of the above 5 elements, according to Tibetan medicine, the body is further governed by three chief operating systems, which we refer to as biodynamics. Here is a look at these 3 systems.

• Rlung: This is the Tibetan name for the first system, which can be translated as “wind” in English. This system is responsible for many processes of the human body. The body has 5 different kinds of winds, each of which has important functions.

1. The ‘life wind’ because of which a person can breathe, sneeze, cough, and swallow.

2. The ‘ascending wind’ which allows you to talk and increases memory.

3. The ‘heart wind’ which flows in the entire body and is responsible for all movement.

4. The ‘fire wind’ that is responsible for metabolism and digestion.

5. The ‘descending wind’ which flows in the lower organs and allows for the excretion of wastes and secretion of sperm.

• Mkhris-pa: Can be referred to as “Bile” in English. Once again, the body has 5 kinds of bile, which are as follows:

1. The ‘digestive bile’ which aids digestive processes and gives strength to the remaining 4 kinds of bile.

2. The ‘colour bile’ which imparts colour to different body parts such as hair, eyes etc.

3. The ‘heart bile’ which is responsible for all your feelings, thoughts, hatred, anger etc.

4. The ‘sight bile’ without which you would not be able to see.

5. The ‘pigment bile’ because of which you get your skin colour.

• Bad-kan: Translated in English as “Phlegm”; these are also of 5 types:

1. The ‘sustaining phlegm’ which is responsible for the flow of all bodily juices. It also gives strength to the other four types of phlegm.

2. The ‘decomposing phlegm’ which helps to absorb the nutrients from the foods that you eat by decomposing the foods.

3. The ‘tasting phlegm’ which gives your tongue the ability to taste.

4. The ‘satisfying phlegm’ because of which you understand what satisfaction means. Without this phlegm, you will find it hard to be satisfied no matter what you do.

5. The ‘connective phlegm’ which allows free and unrestricted movement of all the joints in the body.

When all these three systems are functioning properly, the body is at optimum health. If there is any imbalance of any of these 3 systems; this is when the body experiences illness. Thus, Tibetan medicine aims to educate people about the 5 elements and tries to bring the 3 biodynamics in perfect harmony, thus solving all health problems.

Tibetan Medicine: Diagnosing a Patient

A diagnosis under Tibetan medicine is reached at after conducting the following:

1) Visual Examination: The doctor will ask for a urine sample and check its smell and colour. It will also be checked for any deposits and residues. In addition to taking a urine sample, the doctor will also check the colour of the patient’s eyes, nails, and skin. A thorough examination of the tongue is also conducted.

2) Taking the Pulse: By taking a patient’s pulse (6 pulses in each wrist), the doctor can expertly reach a conclusion as to the illness and also the causes behind it.

3) Oral Interview: This involves taking the complete medical history of the patient. The doctor will also ask the patient what symptoms they are suffering from and will take an account of the dietary habits and lifestyle habits of the patient.

Once a doctor of Tibetan medicine has completed his examination and reached a diagnosis; treatment will begin. All illnesses, depending on how mild or serious they are; are treated with four kinds of treatment options.

• Dietary Changes: Mild ailments can often be treated just by changing your nutritional pattern.
   

• Behavioural Changes: As Tibetan medicine believes that illness of the body comes from ignorance of the 5 elements and systems, by educating people and changing their behaviour, many health problems can be taken care of.
   

• Herbal Medicines: For ailments that cannot be cured by dietary and behavioural changes, herbal medicines may be prescribed.
   

• Tibetan Surgery: For serious diseases, surgery may have to be performed. But Tibetan surgical procedures are very different from modern surgical procedures. In Tibetan medicine, surgery refers to techniques such as blood letting, cupping, massages, compresses, fermentations, golden needle therapy, and medicinal baths.