Tibetan Medicine

A Vision for the Future

A new project that has been very close to Khenpo Kunzang’s heart for a long time is now taking shape. The goal of the project is to create a traditional Tibetan medical college, also known as a Mentseekhang. Besides the Mentseekhang at Chakpori in Lhasa, there are very few full scale Mentseekhangs in Tibet, if any at all. This is particularly true for the Golok region, in which there are no Mentseekhangs at all, there are only a handful of small clinics. Many of the elderly Tibetan doctors are now nearing the end of their lives and in some cases, these teachers have not had the opportunity to pass on their knowledge to a younger generation.

The Preservation of a Profound Medical System

The Mentseekhang project is an opportunity to preserve the Tibetan Medical tradition, which is a very profound and subtle medical system. In addition to medicine, a Mentseekhang is also a place for students to learn the Tibetan astrological sciences, which are also very profound. In fact, in 2008 the students of Sengdruk Taktse School created their first Tibetan Calendar. This is not a calendar in the sense of the word that we are used to in the West. A Tibetan calendar is a detailed lunar calendar that not only maps the waxing and waning moon, but also lunar and solar eclipses, accurate weather predictions, floods, earthquakes, and can also tell whether a year will be particularly difficult for old or young people, and also whether the year will be a difficult year for the world in general, the calendar also prescribes actions to be taken to avoid certain difficulties.

Kunpen Mentseekhang

Khenpo Kunzang has named this medical college “Kunpen Mentsheekang” which means “The Medical and Astrological College that Benefits All”. His goal really is to benefit people impartially. The building of a medical college has many benefits, which include:

1. Providing continued education for graduates of Sengdruk Taktse School and other schools
2. Preservation of the Tibetan medical tradition
3. Providing health care to locals and nomads, who often have no access to health care in their areas
4. Providing a non invasive form of health care for Tibetans (Tibetan medicine does not employ surgical operations)
5. Providing health care to local Tibetans in their own language (language is often a barrier when receiving health care)
6. Providing cost effective health care to locals.
7. With permission from the local government, the Mentseekhang could eventually become an international study center for people of all nationalities to study the Tibetan medical tradition.

These are just some of the benefits of building a Mentseekhang. The vision and scope of this project is very large, Khenpo Kunzang has every intention to create a full scale Tibetan Medical College that will enable students to study the Tibetan Medical tradition in it’s entirety from start to finish.

Khenpo Kunzang’s Message About the Mentseekhang

May all be auspicious!

In general, Tibet has what are called the five minor and five major sciences. The root of all these are linked to compassion. The function of these sciences is solely in order to bring benefit and happiness to sentient beings. Because of this, it is honored and respected throughout the world. Especially, out of the five major sciences, the medical tradition is the best. There are many subjects of study and practice in the world, and the Tibetan medical tradition is especially noble.

These days all countries perform operations for serious illnesses. Only the rich and wealthy are able to get operations, the poor and feeble do not have the fortune to get an operation. Even if they are able to pay a large fee to receive an operation, they find that many times they will have to go receive the operation again because the first operation did not fully fix their problem. In Tibetan medicine, whether rich or poor, high or low, one does not need to pay high fees or have frightening surgery to fix one’s illness. Of course, minor illnesses can be cured. But also major illnesses that are difficult to cure, such as brain cancer, cancer of the liver, degenerative nerve diseases, heart attacks etc.., can all be cured by relying solely upon medicine (not surgery), one can see this and experience it with one’s one eyes. For this reason, even doctors from foreign countries have respect for the Tibetan medical tradition and have encouraged those who are very skilled in the practice of Tibetan medicine to continue the work they are doing, and have received many awards for their work.For these reasons, the Tibetan medical tradition is a jewel that belongs to the whole world (not just Tibet), and has become like the heart jewel for limitless sentient beings in the world.

However, the Tibetan medical tradition including the herbs and ingredients for making the medicine, as well as the practice of the Tibetan medical tradition, is really only complete inside Tibet. In the past, the Tibetan medical tradition had flourished greatly. The study and practice, as well as the application of the techniques, were studied by many skillful people who were able to alleviate the illnesses of limitless beings and they were able to live happy lives.

These days, due to outer and inner circumstances, the Tibetan medical tradition has become very weak and feeble. People who are able to examine the nerves and bodily fluids, and identify herbal medicines are as rare as stars in the daytime. Currently, in Central Tibet, Kham, and Amdo, besides a Medical and Astrology College (Mentseekhang) in Lhasa, there are no complete Medical Colleges. Even though there are some medical practitioners who have private practices (they see patients at their homes), many have not received the lineage of direct instruction and have not studied and practiced properly. Many of the authentic medical doctors are now very old and near death. Because there are very few young lineage holders of the Tibetan medical tradition, it is becoming like a butter lamp in which the oil is nearly exhausted. If it is not looked after continually, it will not stay very long and will become like a flower in the sky (I.e there are no flowers in the sky).

Therefore, if we can start a Mentseekhang before the skilled medical practitioners of Central Tibet, Kham, and Amdo pass away, there is no doubt that this will benefit not only Tibet but the whole world as well.

With astrology, one can correctly observe the movement of the planets, stars, sun, moon and weeks of the calendar. With that knowledge, one can understand the movement of time, and what happiness and suffering will arise for sentient beings, and with that knowledge one can understand how to take care of the present and future. One can also clearly prophesise what is needed in order to take care of oneself and others. Countless sentient beings happiness and suffering, what they should accept and reject, what they should embark upon and what they should retreat from. For these reasons, astrology, just like the medical tradition, is a science that will bring benefit to beings. For these reasons, scientists have expressed that these traditions are something that should be respected and preserved. However, those who truly understand these sciences are few, and those who know how to actually apply these techniques are even more rare.

Because the Lhasa Mentseekhang is the only Mentseekhang in Tibet, if it does not flourish and survive in the future, the medical science along with astrological sciences will both vanish into thin air.

Seeing this situation, here at Kumkar Sengdruk Taktse, I have wanted to start a medical college called Kunpen Mentseekhang for some time, and have been considering the various ways in which this could be accomplished. However, due to the extreme poorness of the economy and wealth here, this has so far only been a mere thought. I have expressed my wish to many scholars and learned people, and they have all agreed that this is a very important undertaking.

I encourage everyone to help the Joru Foundation in any way they can. Due to the fact that the Tibetan medical tradition is quickly disappearing and is like a butter lamp with barely any oil left, anything you can do to help will be like adding more butter to that butter lamp, which will make it shine brighter so that everyone can see it’s brilliance. I fold my hands together and beseech anyone who can help to help in any way they can.

- Written by Khenpo Kunzang in September 2008.