Materia Medica of Mineral Origin

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The compounding methods of Tibetan medicines are either a combination of tastes, potencies, or post-digestive tastes (resulting from the digestive process).

Medicines that are combinations of sweet, sour, salty, and hot tastes will help eliminate excess rlung. Medicines combining bitter, sweet, and astringent tastes will help eliminate excess mkhris-pa. Medicines combining hot, sour, and salty tastes will help eliminate excess bad-kan.

Most Tibetan medicinal preparations, however, are combinations of the eight potencies - heavy/light, hot/cold, oily/rough, and dull/sharp. These eight potencies can be divided into the seventeen qualities that can counteract the subtle natures of rlung, mkhris-pa and bad-kan.

Earth has the following qualities: heavy, stable, blunt, smooth, oily, and dry. These qualities pacify rlung disorders, because the nature of rlung is light, movable, cool, rough, hard, and thin. Earth can aggravate bad-kan because they share the same qualities.

Water has the following qualities: fluidity, cooling, heavy, blunt, oily, and supple. These qualities pacify mkhris-pa disorders, because the nature of mkhris-pa is oily, pungent, hot, light, sharp, and moist. Water can aggravate bad-kan because they share the same qualities.

Fire has the following qualities: hot, sharp, dry, coarse, light, oily, and mobile. These qualities pacify bad-kan disorders, because the nature of bad-kan is cool, blunt, smooth, sticky, heavy, steady, and oily. Fire can aggravate mkhris-pa because they share the same qualities.

Air has the following qualities: light, mobile, cold, coarse, pale, and dry. These qualities pacify bad-kan disorders. Air can aggravate rlung because they share the same qualities.

The main gemstones and precious metals used in Tibetan medicine are pearl, coral, turquoise, lapis, sapphire, diamond, achates, emerald, ruby, gold, silver, iron, and copper. All the gemstones and mineral have to be detoxified, refined, and powdered before they can be used as medicine.

Of the gems, turquoise has an astringent taste and cool potency. It treats hepatitis and eye disease, and it is an antidote. Pearl has an astringent taste and cool potency. It treats brain damage due to inflammation or injury, nerve degeneration, stiffness and contraction of ligaments and tendons, paralysis, and it is an antidote. Lapis has an astringent taste and cool potency. It is an antidote, treating skin diseases, leprosy, and premature graying of hair. Achate, another precious stone, has an astringent taste and cool potency, treating epilepsy, headaches, and eye diseases. Emerald has an astringent taste and cool potency, treating epilepsy and neurological disease; they are also an antipyretic.

Of the precious metals, gold has an astringent taste and cool potency. It promotes longevity and rejuvenation, and counteracts oxide poisons. Iron has an astringent taste and cool potency. It treats eye diseases and edema, and alleviates poisoning of the liver.

Minerals used include orpiment, charcoal, stalactite, limestone, zinc, marcasite, hematite, and tourmaline. Of the minerals, limestone has a sweet taste and hot potency, and stops diarrhea, eliminates fever, and strengthens bones and the digestive system. Realgar has a bitter taste and hot potency, and relieves glandular fever and septic wounds. Stalactite has an astringent taste and hot potency, and strengthens the tendons and ligaments weakened due to injury. Hematite has an astringent taste and cool potency, and heals cracks, bone fractures, and brain damage due to accidents. Charcoal dissolves stones and stops bleeding.

This thangka painting was created by the monk-artist Ram Bdr. Lama, at the Lama Thanka Painting School in Bhaktapur, Kathmandu.

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Unveiling the Divine Art: Journey into the Making of Thangkas

A Thangka is a traditional Tibetan Buddhist painting that usually depicts a Buddhist Deity (Buddha or Bodhisattva), a scene, or a mandala. These paintings are considered important paraphernalia in Buddhist rituals. They are used to teach the life of the Buddha, various lamas, and Bodhisattvas to the monastic students, and are also useful in visualizing the deity while meditating. One of the most important subjects of thangkas is the Bhavacakra (the wheel of life) which depicts the Art of Enlightenment. It is believed that Thangka paintings were developed over the centuries from the murals, of which only a few can be seen in the Ajanta caves in India and the Mogao caves in Gansu Province, Tibet. Thangkas are painted on cotton or silk applique and are usually small in size. The artist of these paintings is highly trained and has a proper understanding of Buddhist philosophy, knowledge, and background to create a realistic and bona fide painting.

The process of making a thangka begins with stitching a loosely woven cotton fabric onto a wooden frame. Traditionally, the canvas was prepared by coating it with gesso, chalk, and base pigment.

After this, the outline of the form of the deity is sketched with a pencil or charcoal onto the canvas using iconographic grids. The drawing process is followed in accordance with strict guidelines laid out in Buddhist scriptures. The systematic grid helps the artist to make a geometrical and professional painting. When the drawing of the figures is finalized and adjusted, it is then outlined with black ink.

Earlier, a special paint of different colors was made by mixing powdered forms of organic (vegetable) and mineral pigments in a water-soluble adhesive. Nowadays, artists use acrylic paints instead. The colors are now applied to the sketch using the wet and dry brush techniques. One of the characteristic features of a thangka is the use of vibrant colors such as red, blue, black, green, yellow, etc.

In the final step, pure gold is coated over some parts of the thangka to increase its beauty. Due to this beautification, thangkas are much more expensive and also stand out from other ordinary paintings.

Thangka paintings are generally kept unrolled when not on display on the wall. They also come with a frame, a silken cover in front, and a textile backing to protect the painting from getting damaged. Because Thangkas are delicate in nature, they are recommended to be kept in places with no excess moisture and where there is not much exposure to sunlight. This makes them last a long time without their colors fading away. Painting a thangka is an elaborate and complex process and requires excellent skills. A skilled artist can take up to 6 months to complete a detailed thangka painting. In earlier times, thangka painters were lamas that spent many years on Buddhist studies before they painted.