Bhutan, the kingdom of the peaceful Dragon, used to be called Men Jong, Land of Medicinal Plants, because of the fertility its valleys and the luxury of its forest flora. Above the Indian plain, the country gradually rises, stage after stage, hill after hill, from the luxurious jungle of the foothills, about 200m. above sea level to the solitude of the snow capped peaks culminating at more than 7500m.

These differences in altitude, bringing almost tropical vegetation tight to the vase of glaciers, has made it possible for plants of extremely different climate and environments to grow in the same country. Tropical and subtropical forests are found in the South. Temparate and even mediteranean plants flourish in the valleys , and very rare specimens grow up to 500m. To date, more than 600 medicinal plants have been identified in Bhutan, and at least 300 of these commonly used by procticioners in the country for preparing drugs, pills and tablets.

The Bhutanese medical system goes well beyond the notion of medicine in the narrow Western sense. It forms part of a whole - blending culture and tradition , in which Buddhism is the prevailing influence. Health and spirituality are inseperable and together they reveal the true origins of any sickness. The art of healing is therefore a dimension of the sacred.

Sowa Rigpa
The system of medicine referred to as Sowa Rigpa is practiced in many countries today, but owing origins and development to ancient Tibet. Sowa Rigpa is known nowadays as Tibetan medicine.

It is believed that the beginning of time , the art of healing was a prerogative of the gods, and it was not until Kashiraja Dewadas and ancient Indian king, went to heaven to learn medicine from them, that it could be offered to man as a means to fight suffering. He taught hi progeny the principles and the practice of healing, and this knowledge was spread and perpetuated as an oral tradition until the lord Buddha appeared and gave specific written teachings on medicine. These were recorded in Sanskrit and became part of early Buddhist sacred writings .

When Buddhism was first brought into Tibet in the eighth century by Guru Rimpoche, some of these medicinal texts were translated into the Tibetan Language, and enlightened rulers of that country became interested in the subject. They started promoting the development of the art of healing, by organizing meeting on medicine to which they invited healers not only from the whole of Tibet and surrounding Himalayan countries, but also from China, India, and the Muslim world. It is reported that all these conferences, all the different systems were examined and the best practices adopted and incorporated into the newly born Sowa Rigpa, which was then handed down from one generation to the next. This tradition was further enriched by the contribution of great Tibetan doctors including Gyuthog "the Elder" in the eighth century, and one of his descendants, Gyuthog " the Younger," who lived in the eleventh century. The latter mad a notable contribution in spreading the celebrated Gyu'shi or "Four Medical Tantras" and its commentary, the Vaidurya Ngonpo. The Four Medical Tantras, which were originally Sanskrit texts dating perhaps from the fourteenth century, are unanimously considered to be the basic work of Tibetan medicine. It was under the reign of the fifth Dalai Lama that the Chagpori Medical School, soon to become a famous center of healing, was founded at Lhasa.

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