Study on the division of disease and various methods of treatment appeared in the Tibetan Medicine

서장의학(西藏醫學)에 나타난 진단(診斷)과 치료(治療)에 관한 연구(硏究)

The condition contrary to the physiological conditions obtained by the normal functioning of seven constituents of the body is defined as disease. The primary causes of the disease are emotional defilements of desire, hatred and delusion. The secondary causes of diseases are seasonal climatic changes, the agency of harmful demons, and improper diet or conduct. Once a disease occurs, it brings the disfunctioning of the three humors of wind, bile, and phlegm. Therefore all the disease should be examined and determined which of theses three humors effect its nature the most. There are five main techniques of external therapy, namely bloodletting, which extract the impure blood produced by disease of heat; moxibustion, which debilitates cold diseases, medicinal compresses, fomentation, massage with ointment, and minor surgery. Among these, the former three are the mild treatment and the latter three the severe ones because of the pain the patient has to suffer during the whole procedure.