About Sowa Rigpa

Tibetan Medicine- Sowa Rigpa, is the traditional medical system of Tibet and the Himalayas. It’s one of the oldest healing traditions in existence, yet it remains fully alive today. Sowa Rigpa integrated elements from the medical systems of ancient Tibet, India, Greece, Mongolia, Persia, and China, forming a unique medical tradition with a distinct Himalayan character shaped by both pre-Buddhist and Buddhist thought.

In Buddhist philosophy, the ultimate underlying causes of both physical and mental diseases are said to be the three mind poisons: ignorance, desire-attachment, and anger. The basic cause of illnesses according to Buddhist philosophy, is the ego, full of trivial pursuits and clinging attachments. It is this clinging nature that ultimately produces the confused mind and thereby all suffering and disease.

The Tibetan word Sowa can be translated as healing or nurturing, while the word Rigpa means both science and awareness. Thus Sowa Rigpa (or Sorig) can be understood as both, 1) the healing science- a system of medical knowledge and practice that brings relative balance and health of body, energy, and mind and 2) nurturing the awareness- a tool to understand the nature of your mind and the universe and accomplish absolute balance and liberation.

The essence of the traditional theory and practice is contained within the Four Medical Tantras considered the root text of Tibetan Medicine:
Root Tantra: an essential map of the medical system, including the basis of health and disease.
Explanatory Tantra: an exposition of anatomy, physiology, and embryology, as well as diagnosis and treatment.
Oral Transmission Tantra: a detailed presentation of diseases from eight major branches of pathology, with treatments.
Final Tantra: instruction in practical and clinical medicine.

The Four Medical Tantras were composed by Yuthok Yonten Gonpo the Elder (729-854 AD) and revised by Yuthok Yonten Gonpo the Younger (1126-1202 AD).

In Tibetan medical texts, 404 diseases are mentioned:
101 are karmic diseases, which are fatal without Dharma teacher and sincere student, and they cannot be cured by medical treatment;
101 are diseases caused in this lifetime and need medical treatment with herbs, massages, surgery or other natural therapies;
101 are caused by spirits, and need spiritual treatment, such as spiritual ceremonies; and
101 are caused by inadequate diet and behavior and can be remedied without medicine, by changing food habits and lifestyle.

Conditions that have a karmic root-cause, without a qualified spiritual guide, a teacher of Dharma, and a good relationship with the spiritual guide, are considered in Tibetan medicine- incurable.

“The master is the source of all knowledge and higher experiences that one can acquire within a short period of time if the master is pleased by their genuine sincerity.” Tibetan medical text

Generally, teachers of Dharma of Tibetan medicine, should not be teaching students who have the following three negative mindsets and intentions:

• A student who is like a poisonous contaminated container;
• A student who is like a closed container;
• A student who is like a container with a hole at the bottom.

A contaminated container refers to negative motivations to learn the art of medicine, such as wishing to become rich, famous, to harm others, or to produce mass destruction. A closed container represents the lack of interest in the studies. It can be the case when someone is forced to learn by the family or situation. It is then useless to learn the art of awakening or healing. A container with a hole at the bottom means there is interest and facility to learn, but also a lack of the faculty to memorize. The student is then not able to study the art of awakening and healing, he cannot help others.