Encyclopaedia of Tibetan Medicine - Volumes 1-6

by Vaidya Bhagwan Dash

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Health conscious people and scientists all over the world are evincing keen interest in "alternative medicine" and the World Health Organisation has recognised the role of traditional medicine in achieving health for all by 2000 A.D.

Indo-Tibetan medicine enshrined in Rgyudbzi is a veritable treasure of centuries of accumulated experience with rational fundamentals and scientifically analysable therapeutic measures meant for the preservation and promotion of positive health, and prevention and cure of obstinate and otherwise incurable diseases.

Rgyudbzi which was originally composed in Sanskrit and still preserved in Tibetan translation literally means a "Four-fold Treatise". Because of its Sanskrit origin and ignorance of Ayurveda, technical terms used in this text are oftern misrepresented in translations and critical analyses. The present effort is to give the Sanskrit equivalents on the basis of Ayurvedic texts like Vagbhata's Astanga-hrdaya of which both the original Sanskrit-form and Tibetan translation are available.

On the basis of this equivalent terminology, the text of Rgyudbzi is rendered into English in a narrative form. In future, this will also help in restoring the original Sanskrit text, which, as the opening sentence of this translated text shows, was, known as Amrta-hrdaya-astanga-guhyopadesa-tantra.

The whole work will be published in 15 volumes. The present first volume contains the first part of this four-fold text. It is the smallest but the most important part of this invaluable work in as much as it presents in a nut-shell the entire text in the form of a tree having three roots, nine trunks, forty seven branches, 224 leaves, two flowers and three fruits along with a vivid picture of the flora and fauna of the mountain ranges in the south, north, east and west of the dron khyer or city called Lta-na-sdug (Lit. the place which is beautiful to look at) identified with either Varanasi or Bodh-Gaya, the abodes of Lord Buddha.

These four mountain ranges are the Vindhyas, the Himalayas, the Gandhamardana mountain and the Malaya mountain. It also describes the various categories of retinues and their names who heard the medical teachings from the emanations (Nirmana-kayas) of Bhaisajya-guru incarnation of Lord Buddha."No. 9072

About the Author:

Vaidya Bhagwan Dash has had an outstandingly brilliant academic career. In addition to graduate and postgraduate qualifications in Ayurveda, he holds a Master's degree in Sanskrit and a Doctorate from University of Delhi. In the course of over thirty years dedicated to research and practice of Ayurveda, Dr. Dash has attended several international conferences and seminars held in Brazil, Mexico and France. He was invited to deliver a course of lectures in Ayurveda at the Patrice Lumumba Friendship University, Moscow and the Australian School of Ayurveda at Adelaide, South Australia. A sanskrit scholar; he handles the English language with equal felicity.

A significant advantage to his propensity for research in Ayurveda is Dr. Dash's proficiency in Tibetan Medicine. Author of over twenty-eight important publications covering different aspects of Ayurveda and Tibetan Medicine, he has to his credit an English translation and commentary of Caraka Samhita, the most authentic Ayurvedic classic. He was Deputy Adviser in Ayurveda to the Government of India in the Ministry of Health and F.W. till 1981, when he took voluntary retirement to enable him to devote more time for academic and research activities.

As a Consultant in Traditional Medicine of the World Health Organisation, he had paid several visits to Bangladesh, Bhutan, Burma and Mongolia to study and advise on the Health Development Programmes of those countries.