Tibet
Healing - the Basics
Tibetan
medicine dates back to about the 7th century AD at which time the Tibetan
ruler, King Songtsen Gampo summoned his court physicians from China,
India, and Iran to develop this medicinal system.
Tibetan
medicine is therefore based on the combination of Ayurvedic, Traditional
Chinese Medicine (TCM), and Tibetan buddhism, with elements of Arabic
medicine.
The
holistic approach (as with Ayurveda & TCM) takes into account the
following factors:
- lifestyle
- emotions
- attitudes
- environment
- weather
As
well, there are thought to be three "humors" in the body
that control organ function:
- wind,
relating to respiration and movement
- bile,
relating to digestion, complexion, and temperment
- phlegm,
relating to sleep, joint mobility, and skin elasticity
One
of the roots of disease is considered to be ignorance of the true nature
of reality. This lack of acceptance results in conflicting emotions
and desires that create three different mental states:
- attachment
- aversion
- confusion
These
three types of mental state, also known as "the three poisons"
contaminate the mind, leading to imbalance and disease.
Additional
causes of imbalance are the factors of environment, seasonal climatic
influences, diet, poison, trauma, and conduct in life. These factors
act on the humors by their similar or contrary natures, causing excess
or deficiency.
Again,
due to its roots, the medicine of Tibet uses much of the same methods
of diagnosis as Traditional Chinese Medicine. Practitioners of Tibetan
Medicine also utilize the methods of pulse taking, urine analysis,
tongue diagnosis, and general observation to determine the condition
of the patient.
Treatments
include herbal medicine and accessory therapies (acupuncture, suggestions
on diet and behavior, massage, moxibustion, purification techniques,
and religious rituals). The ultimate aim of all these techniques is
the restoration of balance in the humors.
In
recent years, Tibetan medicine has gained popularity in the west and
is now becoming more widely available through physicians of Tibet living
in western countries.
