Atlas of Tibetan medicine is a unique pictorial artifact featuring a set of 76 illustration paintings to the medical tractate of the 17th century ‘Vaidurya Onbo’. Illustrations are painted on thin linen tailor-made canvas in late 19th century in Tibet. The Atlas is kept at the funds of The National Museum of the Republic of Buryatia and is the only full copy of the Tibetan original of the 17th century.
Atlas of Tibetan medicine. Sheet 1. ‘Root Tantra’ features the Medicine Master Buddha Bhaisajyaguru (Tibetan: Manla) in the city of medicine Tanadug surrounded by four groups of healers, namely non-Buddhist, deities, rishis and the Buddhists.
According to the Buddhist myth, the Buddha of Medicine Manla created a magic city of medicine Tanadug (‘Beautiful’) in order to expose the medical science. The list shows the city itself, its surroundings and the Buddha Bhaisajyaguru’s palace, shown as mandala, in the centre. The sacred nature of the palace territory and its unavailability to the uninitiated ones is underlined by the figures of four cardinal directions guardians who stand at the gates.
The “Four crowds” of listeners, namely non-Buddhists, deities, wordly wisemen-rishis and the Buddhists surround The Buddha of Medicine from the upper left part contra clockwise. Each group of listeners have understood Buddha in their own way which explains the origin of different medicine traditions. All Tibetan schools shown at the upper cartouches as a raw of teachers finish with the portraits of the 5th Dalai Lama and Desrid Sanzhay-Chzhamtso, which symbolizes the foundation of the united traditions of the Tibetan medicine fixed in “Vaidurya Onbo” and Atlas of Tibetan medicine.
The image of the city surroundings features the brief exposition of Tibetan medicine medicaments and principles of their classification. On the north of the city is a mountain Ganchan (the upper sector of a sheet behind the city walls) where the “plants of a cold nature”, that heal the fever diseases, grow. On the southern side, at mountain Bigchzhed (lower sector) the “plants of a hot nature”, that heal the cold diseases, grow. On the east, at mountain Boydan (right sector) is the wood of myrobalan (arur), which is believed to be a universal medicine for all diseases. On the west of the city, at mountain Malaya are the hot mineral springs and rich mineral prospects used in medicine. In the woods surrounding the city are the various animals and birds which are also used for making the medicaments of animal nature.
Desrid Sanzhay-Chzhamtso (1653-1705) is an author of a medical tractate “Vaidurya Onbo”, one of the biggest scientists of his time, the 5th Dalai Lama’s regent. At his time a feudal-theocratic state was formed. He wrote manuscripts on many aspects of Buddhism, history, medicine and astrology.
Atlas of Tibetan medicine. Sheet 1. ‘Root Tantra’ features the Medicine Master Buddha Bhaisajyaguru (Tibetan: Manla) in the city of medicine Tanadug surrounded by four groups of healers, namely non-Buddhist, deities, rishis and the Buddhists.
According to the Buddhist myth, the Buddha of Medicine Manla created a magic city of medicine Tanadug (‘Beautiful’) in order to expose the medical science. The list shows the city itself, its surroundings and the Buddha Bhaisajyaguru’s palace, shown as mandala, in the centre. The sacred nature of the palace territory and its unavailability to the uninitiated ones is underlined by the figures of four cardinal directions guardians who stand at the gates.
The “Four crowds” of listeners, namely non-Buddhists, deities, wordly wisemen-rishis and the Buddhists surround The Buddha of Medicine from the upper left part contra clockwise. Each group of listeners have understood Buddha in their own way which explains the origin of different medicine traditions. All Tibetan schools shown at the upper cartouches as a raw of teachers finish with the portraits of the 5th Dalai Lama and Desrid Sanzhay-Chzhamtso, which symbolizes the foundation of the united traditions of the Tibetan medicine fixed in “Vaidurya Onbo” and Atlas of Tibetan medicine.
The image of the city surroundings features the brief exposition of Tibetan medicine medicaments and principles of their classification. On the north of the city is a mountain Ganchan (the upper sector of a sheet behind the city walls) where the “plants of a cold nature”, that heal the fever diseases, grow. On the southern side, at mountain Bigchzhed (lower sector) the “plants of a hot nature”, that heal the cold diseases, grow. On the east, at mountain Boydan (right sector) is the wood of myrobalan (arur), which is believed to be a universal medicine for all diseases. On the west of the city, at mountain Malaya are the hot mineral springs and rich mineral prospects used in medicine. In the woods surrounding the city are the various animals and birds which are also used for making the medicaments of animal nature.
Desrid Sanzhay-Chzhamtso (1653-1705) is an author of a medical tractate “Vaidurya Onbo”, one of the biggest scientists of his time, the 5th Dalai Lama’s regent. At his time a feudal-theocratic state was formed. He wrote manuscripts on many aspects of Buddhism, history, medicine and astrology.
