Tibetan Healing Techniques

Tibetan medical system is a strange amalgam of the old as also the new. It is an age old system that incorporates modern ideas as well. In this system reliance is placed not only on medicines but on divine help. Many things that are lifeless or irrelevant in our views are supposed to be the cause of disease in this therapy. Indeed it is a unique system that defies description.

 The system of medicine and treatment adopted by the Tibetan lamas for the last three thousand years defies description. It is supposed to be a mysterious system with makes use of many therapies along with spiritualism. The modem medical system has totally failed to unravel the mystery of this age old system.

          In the Tibetan system of healing, it is supposed that there could be innumerable reasons for sickness. The resistance power of the body to ward of diseases could be affected by as diverse reasons as an imbalance in the universe, movements of the stars, earth, weather, trees  and plants, climate, supernatural beings, everyday occurrences, family reasons and mental conflicts. The renowned intellectual Theodore Burang has given detailed knowledge of this system of healing in his well-known book ‘Tibetan Art of Healing’. This book is considered to be the most authentic reference work on this system of treatment.

          According to Burang, in Tibetan healing, a disease is supposed to be the product of unbalanced life, food and thoughts. Mental energy and body factor are also equally responsible for sickness. Tibetan healing also believes that imbalances in bile, gas and phlegm are the initial causes of the diseases as these are mainly responsible for all bodily activity. Not only these but many substances resembling these three can also be the causes of disease. According to old physicians the wind controls the brain, bile controls energy and phlegm manage the lifeless parts of the body. This means that the disease could be connected to brain, activity or parts of the body. If any of these three is affected by any irregularity or other things, it gives rise to disease, as also its compilation. The sickness can be of hot or cold nature. The hot diseases are connected to bile while phlegm gives birth to cold sickness.

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          As far as the location of diseases is concerned, it is supposed that these take birth and develop in four parts of the body, viz., stomach, liver, bigger and smaller intestines. The disease is diagnosed by its effect on different parts of the body.

Diagnosis of Disease

The Tibetan physician gauges the mental capacity and thought level of the patient by talking to him and finding out the imbalances in his daily routine. The extent of the disease is determined by color of urine, condition of tongue, spittle, throat, eyes, skin, nails, sleep and food habits. The patient is consulted to find out the reason of his illness and which part is affected.

Pulse Examination

The Tibetan physicians are experts in diagnosing diseases by examining the pulse rate. If the pulse rate is high, it means that the body has an excess of bile. If the pulse is high but irregular, it shows that there is the excess of wind or gas. If the pulse rate is slow and irregular, the physician knows that body suffers from the excess of phlegm. The only difference between old Chinese physicians and Tibetan healers is that the Chinese physicians believe that the pulse rate can be differentiated in two hundred ways while the Tibetans recognize only eleven variations in it. It is amazing that the Tibetan physicians are such experts in reading the pulse that they can describe the illness in the same manner as the astrologers read the palm, or describe the future events

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          The art of examining the pulse was discovered by Pin Chuyah some five hundred years before Christ. Thousands of disciples taught this art to the hakims of Arab countries. It is supposed that Chuyah learnt this from some ayurvedic physician. For examination of pulse, artery or vein, one places his finger on any artery going towards lungs, heart, liver, kidneys, spleen, stomach, mouth, throat, legs, reproductive organs, chest, ear, nose, eyes, urinary bladder and bowels. The pulse reveals the defect inflow of blood and then its connection with the wind, bile and phlegm are determined. Pulse examination is done in the morning. An attempt is also made to examine the vein or artery of the affected part.

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          Generally, the physician asks a set of 29 questions by which he gains knowledge regarding pains, the condition of the body, fever, effect of food taken, the taste of mouth, daily routine, mental tensions, sexual life, sleep and thirst of the patient. Then the physician examines the pulse, urine, spittle, tongue, skin, nails, eyes and mouth. The patient is also asked about his dreams. This enables the physician to find out the mental condition of the patient.

Method of Treatment

Generally, it is tried to cure the patient by avoiding medicines and surgery. For this, cool air, sunlight, steam, massage and exercise are accorded priority. The massage in this method is governed by the position of certain points in the body. These points are supposed to be connected to different parts of the body. The massage is given by rapidly moving the hands from top to bottom, from bottom to top, from right to left and then from left to right and in a circle. Nails and skin are used in massage for different objectives.

          Many learned men described the properties of various herbs and minerals that can be used for eradicating diseases in the book ‘Shing Quiyao Liu’ (Special formulas for Treatment) some three hundred years before Christ. In another book written two hundred years before Christ ‘Shang Han Lun’ (The condition, symptoms and Treatment of Fevers) detailed analysis had been made of epidemics, contagious diseases and their causes. Many types of baths were also described in this book. Even now, many other therapies use the methods of treatment given in this book for these diseases. It may be mentioned that the use of ice pack, cold water puttee and bath which were recommended in this book are still being widely used. Rishang in his book ‘Tibetan Medicine’ which he wrote in English in 1973, lays stress on these time-tested methods.

          In Tibetan healing, the patient is sometimes made to inhale medicinal smoke. Medicines are added to his bath water. An enema is given for cleansing the bowels. Medicines are also rubbed into the body. These things are known as a soft method.

          In the hard method, impure blood is taken out. Injuries are burnt, dried or cup up for treatment. As a last resort, surgery is also used for treatment.

          In the Tibetan system of healing, physical, mental and spiritual treatment is given simultaneously in diseases like cancer, mental ailments, lunacy, and skin diseases and if one is possessed by supernatural beings.

Types of Medicines

          As every factor that influences life is considered important in the Tibetan system of healing, the methods and medicines employed for treatment are also selected on the basis of their effect on every on every aspect of disease. Great emphasis is laid on these system.

          Most of the medicines are extracted from herbs and plants. Medicines extracted from animals are sparingly used. Other methods are used in emergent cases. Apart from bone powder, meat, fat, bile, brain, skin and liver, even the urine of animals is used in many cases. Medicines are administrated in the form of powder, syrup, medicinal discoction, oil and snuff. The treatment may last from few days to months. Mostly medicines of 18 different types are used in Tibetan treatment, though more than 2000 medicines are in use. Only a few medicines are widely used in view of their low cost and availability in pure form. This medical system is unique in itself. It is being successfully used in many countries for diagnosis and treatment of diseases.