Gerke Pildora - Preciosa Nov20 PDF

HIMALAYA, the Journal of the
Association for Nepal and

Himalayan Studies
Volume 39 | Number 1 Article 13
July 2019
The Potency of Tradition: Turquoise, Coral, and

Pearl in Sowa Rigpa
Barbara Gerke
University of Vienna, [email protected]
Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.macalester.edu/himalaya
Recommended Citation
Gerke, Barbara (2019) "The Potency of Tradition: Turquoise, Coral, and Pearl in Sowa Rigpa," HIMALAYA, the Journal of the
Association for Nepal and Himalayan Studies: Vol. 39 : No. 1 , Article 13.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.macalester.edu/himalaya/vol39/iss1/13
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-

Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
This Research Article is brought to you for free and open access by the
DigitalCommons@Macalester College at DigitalCommons@Macalester
College. It has been accepted for inclusion in HIMALAYA, the Journal of
the Association for Nepal and Himalayan Studies by an authorized
The Potency of Tradition: Turquoise, Coral, and Pearl in Sowa Rigpa
Acknowledgements
The research for this chapter was carried out during the Lise- Meitner senior research fellowship M1870, and
the writing was completed during the FWF project P30804-G24, both funded by the Austrian Science Fund
(FWF) through the University of Vienna. The author is indebted to the Men-Tsee-Khang in Dharamsala and
especially the Tibetan physicians Dr. Choelothar, Dr. Tenzin Thaye, and Dr. Penpa Tsering for sharing their
time and Sowa Rigpa expertise. The author thanks Florian Ploberger, Tawni Tidwell, Melanie Vandenhelsken,
Jan van der Valk, and the anonymous reviewers for their discussions and useful suggestions.
This research article is available in HIMALAYA, the Journal of the Association for Nepal and Himalayan Studies:
https://digitalcommons.macalester.edu/himalaya/vol39/iss1/13
The Potency of Tradition: Turquoise, Coral, and Pearl in
Sowa Rigpa
Barbara Gerke
Turquoise, coral, rubies, diamonds, amber, and oral transmission, since the direct senso-
and pearls are among the potent substances experiential understanding of the stones’ nüpa
used in Tibet’s medical traditions, specifically is limited compared to the more sensorial
in ‘precious pills’ or rinchen rilbu (rin chen ril assessments of the nüpa of plants through
bu). Tibetan physicians use precious stones smell and taste. Findings show that potency of
as medicines only after processing, without precious stones emerges as a complex synergy
which none of them are considered medically of interactions between substances and their
beneficial. In this paper, I analyze three socio-historical, religious, economic, and
precious substances—turquoise, coral, and political values, which are all encapsulated in
pearl—which appear together in many precious ‘tradition.’ In line with Neveling and Klien (2010)
pill formulas and are processed using the same and Scheid (2007), I look at tradition as a fluid
techniques. Based on textual analysis and process of knowledge transmission over time,
interviews with Tibetan physicians in India, and analyze what happens when practitioners
I address the questions: What makes these try to explain the rationale behind processing
substances particularly ‘potent,’ expressed practices they still meticulously follow, and how
in the Tibetan term nüpa (nus pa)? How questioning, especially by foreign researchers,
and why are these substances processed might influence practitioners to call on
for use in medicines, and how is processing biomedical science to explain tradition.
linked to nüpa? I argue that Tibetan medical Keywords: Sowa Rigpa, currents of tradition, invented
practitioners authenticate their tradition of traditions, potency, precious pills.
using precious stones as potent substances
primarily through relying on authoritative texts
HIMALAYA Volume 39, Number 1 | 91

Introduction: Knowing about the ‘Precious’ and is limited when applied to gems and precious stones.
the ‘Potent’ Consequently, contemporary Tibetan physicians rely more
on their texts when processing precious stones, attributing
On the one hand we attribute the knowledge of
potency to tradition, since they ‘cannot taste stones.’
precious substances to the ‘higher levels of mind’1
Moreover, socio-political, economic, and religious conno-
by medical practitioners in the past, who were also
tations of preciousness guide their assessment of these
Buddhist practitioners, wrote the texts we rely on,
stones’ nüpa. However, during interviews practitioners
and created really good formulas. But on the other
seem compelled to turn to biomedical science to explain
hand, we have to understand the substances them-
tradition (Adams 2002; Kloos 2011, 2015). A scientific hege-
selves as having potency, since they were used in
mony seems at play during such ethnographic encounters.
medicine long before Buddhism came to Tibet. We
I want to highlight that the physicians’ answers call for
need to ask more questions to understand this. We
reflexivity on part of the researcher, since practitioners
take it as a given, that is our problem. (Dr. Tenzin
might assume scientific research as the expected way to
Thaye, Dharamsala, March 2018)
explain the processing techniques that are mentioned in
I received this answer from Dr. Tenzin Thaye, one of the the ancient texts they still rely on. In effect, they margin-
visiting physicians of the Fourteenth Dalai Lama and a alize their own complex epistemology.
senior physician at the Men-Tsee-Khang in Dharamsala,
Nüpa as the Fundamental Capacity of Substances
northwestern India,2 to my question of how he knew that
precious stones were therapeutically potent and could be In the Tibetan language, complex notions of potency
used as medicines. He explained that he could not taste are articulated under the umbrella term nüpa, which is
them the way he tasted plants. Thus, he relied on those frequently translated into English as ‘potency,’ referring
masters of the past who possessed ‘higher levels of mind,’ to a substance’s capacity to have an effect. Nüpa appears
and whose texts passed down specialized knowledge on as a central and unifying concept of potency, around
the potency of ‘precious substances,’ in Tibetan called which other terms and classifications are established. For
rinpoché men (rin po che’i sman). example, Sowa Rigpa practitioners talk about the ‘potency
of substances’ (rdzas kyi nus pa) as one of the three key
In this paper, I explore three precious substances used in
pillars of medicine making, called menjor (sman sbyor),
Tibetan medicine (Sowa Rigpa) that are deemed powerful
along with the ‘potency of mantras’ (sngags kyi nus pa),
and potent: turquoise, or yu (g.yu), coral, or juru (byu ru),
referring to consecration, and the ‘potency of dependent
and pearl, or mutik (mu tig). My guiding questions are:
arising’ (rten ’brel gyi nus pa), referring to the enhance-
What makes these three substances particularly ‘potent,’
ment of nüpa through processing substances at auspicious
as expressed in the Tibetan term nüpa (nus pa)? Why do
times.3 In the Four Tantras (Rgyud bzhi), the principle Sowa
they have to be pre-processed, using specific ‘taming
Rigpa root text dating back to the twelfth century CE, the
methods’ (’dul thabs), such as soaking, cooking, and
eight nüpa (nus pa brgyad) are sensorial parameters (heavy,
washing, and how is their processing linked to nüpa?
oily, cool, blunt, light, coarse, hot, and sharp), linked to the
My analysis focuses on the importance of ‘tradition’ for ‘six tastes’ (ro drug) and the ‘three postdigestive tastes’ (zhu
contemporary Tibetan physicians and how they tend to rjes gsum) of substances.4
explain their traditional practices to foreign researchers.
An early eighteenth century key pharmacopoeia text
The interview quotes show how Sowa Rigpa experts in
refers to a different set of eight nüpa, which considers
India are exposed to an increasingly modern scientific
substances’ morphological shapes and tastes along with
discourse, which makes them question their own textual
religious notions of potency, such as the ‘nüpa of aspira-
knowledge and tradition, also in encounters with foreign
tional prayers.’5 In Nyingma ritual contexts, nüpa may refer
researchers. This might easily give the impression that
to the powers inherent in deities and tantric practitioners,
“they cannot explain what they are doing and why,”
and often appears with tu (mthu), magical power, through
while a careful reading of their responses implicitly
which nüpa is conjured into substances in which it is not
includes fundamental Sowa Rigpa epistemologies of nüpa
innate. Tu also appears in medical texts, for example on
that explain the logic behind basic principles of their
the potency of gems. In the seventeenth century, Dési
processing techniques.
Sangyé Gyatso writes in his Blue Beryl commentary on the
Talking with Sowa Rigpa professionals in India, I found Four Tantras, that gems combine “power and potency”
that sensory engagement through smell and taste, more (mthu dang nus pa), enabling them to treat all kinds of
typically used to assess the potency of plant material, diseases (Sangyé Gyatso 1982: 12/9-11). Nüpa in ritual
92 | HIMALAYA Spring 2019

contexts is also deeply linked to ideas of consecration Asking Questions, Authenticating Traditions
through jinlap (byin rlabs), often translated as ‘bless-
I place my discussion within the debates on ‘tradition’
ings,’ which are ritually evoked and meant to transform
because my material raises questions on the status of
substances, people, and places (see Sehnalova 2019). In
tradition in specific knowledge transmissions of Asian
sum, understanding nüpa in Sowa Rigpa requires a complex
medical practices. Since Hobsbawn and Ranger first
analysis of multiple components that stretch beyond a
introduced the term ‘invented tradition’ in 1983 in the
substance-based understanding of potency. It also speaks
context of constructing a nation, much has been written
of a heterogeneous dynamic of oral and textual traditions
on this subject. At the time, Hobsbawn looked at ‘invented’
that define today’s menjor practice.
traditions in contrast to traditions that were ‘alive,’ a divi-
This complexity is apparent in the processing of coral, sion that may not always hold considering the complexity
pearl, and turquoise presented here. Their nüpa of coarse- described above. In the case presented here, the
ness (rtsub) needs to be made smooth (’jam), which is processing techniques are alive, but rarely questioned
achieved through soaking, and cooking them with natron by practitioners. Notably, the ‘not-asking’ why certain
(bul tog), salts (tsha), saltpetre (ze tshwa), urine (dri chu), things have to be done is in itself characteristic of their
and fermented barley beer (chang) (see Table 1). Plants knowledge transmission.
used in the process are a type of fern (re ral) that is sweet
Ranger revisited the idea of invented traditions in 1993,
and astringent, a type of gentian (gang ga chung), which is
and used ‘imagined’ instead of ‘invented’ to emphasize
bitter and cooling, seabuckthorn (star bu), which is sour in
the making of tradition as a more continuous process over
taste with a sharp nüpa, and myrobalan (a ru). Collectively,
time. The ideas of these two pioneers still play a role in
these transform the ‘harmful/poisonous parts’ or duk
anthropological analyses of traditions. However, scholars
(dug) of gems. These menjor techniques are known overall
have redefined tradition as “an open and fluid concept
as ‘removal of harmful parts’ or dukdön (dug ’don), during
that has been shaped by movements beyond borders,
which rough and indigestible qualities of precious
time and social entities” (Neveling and Klien 2010: 9-10).
substances are made smooth for use in medicines (see
Neveling and Klien urge scholars to pay attention to “how
van der Valk 2019; Tidwell and Nettles 2019). These prac-
the definition of and reference to traditions depend on
tices are transmitted textually, orally, learnt manually as a
the respective aims of and contexts in which given actors
craft, and are considered absolutely essential to make
are embedded” (ibid: 13)—which, I add, includes the
potent medicines.
researcher studying the tradition. As we shall see, when
This brief outline demonstrates that Sowa Rigpa param- medical techniques are still practiced but are difficult to
eters involved in nüpa and menjor are quite complex, explain, practitioners evoke tradition more strongly to
requiring a deep understanding of Sowa Rigpa episte- authenticate their practice (and its potency).
mology. Moreover, considering that the techniques of
Medical anthropologists have studied the invention of
processing gems have been in place since the fourteenth
traditions largely in the context of newly emerging forms
century (or earlier), we are dealing with a knowledge
of traditional medicine, for example, as “a comprehensive
system developing through long-term transmissions. This
strategy to reconstruct national identity,” in this case in
cannot be easily understood by a single individual since it
Uzbekistan (Hohmann 2010: 129). Other Asian medical
presents the accumulation of knowledge over time, across
systems have been approached as ‘inventions’ during
various domains. Overall, this complexity should inform
periods of nation-state building. For example, Janes and
our assessment of what tradition means in Sowa Rigpa and
Hilliard (2008) discuss the invention of Mongolian medi-
how it is encountered during fieldwork. We are dealing
cine after the fall of the Soviet Union. The socio-political
with an intricate ‘network pharmacology,’ which is a
contexts in which traditional Mongolian and Tibetan medi-
recent and more sensitive approach to Asian medical tradi-
cine in the PRC have transformed since the 1990s reveal
tions (Schwabl and van der Valk 2019; Tidwell and Nettles
various degrees of national and trans-national inventions
2019). The responses of Sowa Rigpa experts presented
in their interaction with science, the state, and religion
here show that they most often do not assume foreign
(Adams 2002; Janes and Hilliard 2008). Hsu explores
researchers to have in-depth menjor knowledge, and
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) as an invented
that they themselves might be unsure of the underlying
tradition during the 1950s-1980s, which is distinct from
reasoning behind their practices, which is understandable
its later developments as a pharmaco-therapy (Hsu 2008:
considering their long-term transmission. I found that, in
467). Langford (2002) presents a nuanced study of how
effect, they frequently suggest that science could bridge
modern Ayurveda is re-imagined to treat (post)-colonial
the gap and explain their traditional techniques.
ills. Several of the above studies build on Hobsbawm and

Ranger’s initial focus on nation building. They talk of loss, in Tibetan sölgyün (srol rgyun), is a ‘continuous way’ of
continuous transformation, invention, and renewal, but doing something. It is frequently perceived by its prac-
rarely of specific medical skills and their long-term trans- titioners as something ‘stable’ to be passed on through
missions, with some notable exceptions.6 generations. This stability is ensured through lineage-
based practice,10 albeit with openness to alterations.11
For China, Scheid unpacks the ‘tradition/modernity’
For practitioners, such adherence to continuity can be
dichotomy of the invented TCM system, where practi-
reassuring but also challenging when explaining their
tioners have presented TCM as traditional to a Western
practices in times of a global hegemony of science, through
audience and at the same time invented new theories
which they might also want to assert their modernity.
that made it appear more scientific (2007: 5). Scheid
takes a fresh look at tradition “as an articulation between When looking at tradition it is crucial to understand
human beings and social practices that persists over what processes are involved in its transmission. Jansen,
time” (ibid), emphasizing its continuity and organic Luning, and de Maker in Traditions on the Move state:
growth, particularly through plurality, intrinsic tensions, “Tradition […] not only refers to knowledge that has been
and differences—a dynamic for which Hobsbawm’s labeled in a particular way, but also to the mechanisms
‘re-invention’ metaphor is clearly insufficient (ibid: 8-9). that serve to pass such knowledge on” (2009: vii). Dr.
Methodologically, Scheid’s approach requires an overar- Tenzin Thaye’s opening quote reminds us that traditional
ching focus on both long-term history and contemporary knowledge is often ‘taken as a given,’ and that it has in
agency, since both shape ongoing medical practice. To the past been perfected by accomplished teachers and is
analyze such dynamics Scheid developed the broader rarely questioned by students. On another occasion, while
concept of ‘currents of tradition’ (ibid: 10-13). This has discussing medical history, he recalled his own experience
already proven valuable in the analysis of continuity as a student:
practices in Sowa Rigpa, even when applied only to one
We never really ask these questions on history.
generation of practitioners (Blaikie 2013).
Of course, we need to know the lineage, but that’s
My examples reveal currents of tradition in long-term enough. We are not taught that way, and it is not
established formulas (since the fourteenth century) that so important for us. When I was learning from the
in contemporary Sowa Rigpa contexts are called upon by senior teachers, I was very young, and I simply did
practitioners to authenticate tradition rather than rein- not think of asking these questions because our
vent it. I will show that the ways in which practitioners teachers were so qualified. They taught us like their
place their faith in tradition, and at the same time call on sons and imparted everything they knew, like pour-
science to explain it, reflects back on how and by whom ing all their knowledge into a vessel. In principle,
the questions have been asked. Such research contexts are students usually did not ask questions.
important to analyze when tracing contemporary currents (Dharamsala, May 2015)
of tradition back into the past—specifically through texts
Dr. Penpa Tsering who, like Tenzin Thaye, is Men-Tsee-
and orally-transmitted practices.
Khang trained, but has established his independent
My research of Sowa Rigpa processing techniques of pharmacy near Dharamsala, had a similar take on
precious gems took place among Tibetans living in the issue:
diaspora in India,7 where they have been increasingly
Since ancient times, students don’t ask questions
exposed to ideas of science, standardization, and other
to the teacher. Why? Because they have too much
forms of regulation while re-establishing Sowa Rigpa in
dépa [dad pa; faith, respect, confidence]. What the
exile (Kloos 2011, 2015, 2017).8 This paper’s ethnographic
teacher says is real. Students also don’t want to ask.
focus is on northwestern India.9 While shifts in Tibetans’
So, the teacher also did not have the need to give a
socio-political and economic situations in exile have led to
reason … Those who made the formulas for the first
re-inventing their identity and the image of Tibet (Anand
time, they had a reason, they had to think before
2000; Dodin and Räther 2001), the continuity of medical
putting things together, how to remove the duk.
practice has shown that physicians and their institutions
They knew the reason. But, they did not explain it.
are deeply invested in Sowa Rigpa tradition. Clearly, Sowa
Sometimes we can explain it with our own rea-
Rigpa practices have never been homogenous, but repre-
soning, because a substance we use during dukdön
sent a continuity of tradition with a strong reliance on
is good for poisoning … but other times we can’t.
lineage, authority, and place (e.g. Blaikie 2015). Tradition,
(Sidhbari, March 2018)

A mechanism to transmit knowledge based on ‘lineage’ or rinpoché men (which include precious gems, stones,
(rgyud), through texts and ‘oral transmissions’ men ngak minerals, and metals) often cannot be tasted. Dr. Tenzin
(man ngag), is an integral part of Sowa Rigpa learning Thaye explained what this means for the physicians
(Tidwell 2017). Reliance on the textual transmissions and processing these substances: “The potency of plants is
adherence to oral instructions by a qualified teacher is easier to understand and explain because we directly rely
deemed necessary to pass on menjor techniques. This does on smell and taste. For metals and gems we have to rely
not exclude a strong Tibetan tradition of debate. Janet more on our texts and the transmission of our teachers”
Gyatso (2015) points out that while the necessity to pose (Dharamsala, March 2018).
questions and expect empirical evidence is in itself a key
Thus, the knowledge of nüpa of precious stones emerges
phenomenon of the Enlightenment, empirical inquiry and
from a synergy of texts, authoritative lineages, and
debate are evident in pre-modern Tibetan medical prac-
passed-down skills. I argue that Sowa Rigpa’s textual
tice. As we shall see, particular practices of questioning can
tradition is called upon to a greater extent when the direct
both reaffirm and destabilize the relationship Sowa Rigpa
senso-experiential understanding of nüpa is limited; the
practitioners hold with their tradition.
legitimate use of precious stones as potent substances is
We have to remember that embodying Sowa Rigpa justified through relying on textual and oral tradition. This
knowledge through memorization of large amounts of is further supported by socio-economic histories of the
texts and following the teachers’ instructions with great stones’ preciousness (see below).
faith is a particular way of knowledge transmission. The
In Sowa Rigpa, so-called ‘precious pills’ or rinchen rilbu (rin
potency of texts should not be underestimated. According
chen ril bu) are famous for their ingredients of precious and
to anthropologist and qualified amchi Tawni Tidwell,
semi-precious stones. The Four Tantras classifies eleven
“text is enacted” until it becomes a lived experience for
substances as rinpoché men (gold, silver, copper, iron,
the medical practitioner. Tibetan medical texts “shape
turquoise, pearl, mother of pearl, conch shell, coral, and
paradigms, mobilize discourse, provide primary sources
lapis lazuli).12 By the late seventeenth and early eighteenth
and authority for knowledge and insight, and forge expe-
centuries, we find their numbers increase considerably in
rience. Texts are living, breathing, speaking entities that
Sowa Rigpa texts. For example, Deumar Tendzin Püntsok
teach, guide and direct” (Tidwell 2017: 13-14). They are
(born 1672) introduces fifty-six precious substances in his
often brief or written in verse (a mnemonic device), and
materia medica text, dividing them into forty-two non-
actual skills of menjor practice are passed down directly
meltable (gems and precious stones) and seventeen
from teacher to student.
meltable substances (largely metals).13 Many of these
In today’s Indian diaspora context, most students are substances came from outside Tibet and attest to a
educated in Indian English-medium schools before joining long-distance trade of these often valuable commodities
the Men-Tsee-Khang and have developed different used for jewelry (Fig. 1), amulets, statue making, ritual
approaches to questioning. They question their teachers implements, clothing, as royal gifts, and so on. They also
more easily, as do foreign researchers. Practitioners thus allude to what must have been an increased interest in
find it difficult to explain tradition in some cases. As Dr. using precious substances as medicines, ingesting their
Penpa Tsering experienced: preciousness. Since they were expensive, precious pills
remained largely an elite medicine (Gerke 2017).
Our students ask: ‘Why do you boil rocks?’ We have
no answer but rely on our texts. Dukdön has to be For this study, I selected turquoise, coral, and pearl,
done, but it is difficult to explain. because they appear to be the three most common
(Sidhbari, June 2017) rinpoché men used in popular precious pills.14 All three are
mentioned already in the Four Tantras and even earlier.
Sensing Preciousness Moreover, they are processed using the same tech-
niques. That preciousness could be ingested in the form
Processing skills are manifold, considering the variety of
of precious medicines was a notion widespread in early
herbal, mineral, metal, and animal substances used in Sowa
Buddhist Nyingma practices of ‘imbibing the essence’
Rigpa. Practitioners engage different senses to identify
(bcud len), or ‘nectars’ (bdud rtsi), in the form of all kinds
the nüpa of substances. When compounding herbal
of blessed pills that promise ‘liberation through tasting
substances, specialists largely taste herbs, evaluating their
or eating’ (myong grol), also including ‘accomplished
cooling or heating effects on the body and its pathways
medicines’ (sman grub; see Sehnalova 2019). The precious
(e.g. Cardi 2005-2006: 103). While plants are more easily
substances under investigation here (turquoise, coral,
susceptible to the olfactory senses, precious medicines
and pearl) appear already in various Sowa Rigpa formulas

dating back to the eighth to eleventh centuries. Today, properties and potencies emerged: their trade, economic
they are largely used in precious pills.15 Dr. Tenzin Thaye value, exotic rarity, and so forth, followed by textual and
aptly summarizes the superiority of rinpoché men as ethnographic inquiries regarding their processing. I argue
medicines:16 that these properties contribute to them being perceived
as potent medicines.
The rinpoché men is considered the ‘king of pacify-
ing [medicines]’ (zhi byed kyi rgyal po). If you have
a serious and chronic illness, plants alone are not
enough. You have to invite the king to treat it. We
call it loknön (log gnon).17 It is like ‘double nüpa.’ If
plants have half, then rinpoché men have double the
potency. (Dharamsala, March 2018)
The contemporary PRC-based author Kelden Nyima pres-

ents the potency of rinpoché men as a mix of environmental
and religious factors: precious substances are in contact
with the five elements (water, fire, earth, wind, and space)
for a very long time and thus have ‘superior power’ (stobs
nus lhag pa) compared to medicines made from herbs,
fragrant substances, and animals.
They [rinpoché men] not only have the nüpa of cer-

tain elements, taste and powers, but also hold the
nüpa of interdependent arising, of prayer, of color,
of rays, and so on, and thus, clear diseases and bad
spirits, and when worn on the body they have the
nüpa of protection.18
Figure 1. A Tibetan woman wearing jewelry with turquoise,
Kalden Nyima here alludes to various types of nüpa that corals, and pearls.
are recognized in Sowa Rigpa, some of which were
introduced above. Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0)20
Rinpoché men as a category parallels Indian understand- The Potency of Place and Preciousness
ings of the broadly equivalent Sanskrit term ratna, which
means “anything deemed to be the foremost of its kind” Carla Nappi observed in the Chinese materia medica text
(Salvini 2016: 221). In Indian Buddhism, preciousness was Bencao of the sixteenth century that:
attributed to jewels and precious metals early on, where
There was a clear connection between an object’s
they “appear as figures of speech, offerings, ornaments,
worth and the place where it could be found or the
magical implements, ideal landscapes and suggestive
land of the people who found it. Hence an object’s
narrative elements” (ibid: 220). Indian Buddhism clearly
location was an important aspect of almost any
influenced Tibetan notions of preciousness of gems and
discussion of its value, and an especially precious
offered powerful Buddhist metaphors in the establishment
variety of a substance was usually distinguished,
of Tibetan ideas of their nüpa.19 However, as Dr. Tenzin
in part, by its geographic origin. Locality was also
Thaye, who himself is a practicing Buddhist monk, said in
correlated with value in what might be considered
the opening quote: precious substances were used in Tibet
a localized value system usually indicated by the
long before Buddhism came to Tibet, and their substance-
term guizhong [precious].21 (2009: 115)
based potency should also be understood independently
from religion. Similarly, the Four Tantras, its commentaries and materia
medica texts, while abounding with information on the
Moreover, as we shall see with the example of old
various types and geographic areas of where precious
turquoise, elements from the early Tibetan empire
substances can be found, devote only one line to their
(eighth to tenth centuries CE) also continue to impact
therapeutic efficacy.22 The court physician of the Fifth
how contemporary Tibetans perceive the potency of
Dalai Lama, Lozang Chödrak (1638–1710), when writing on
the turquoise stone. Below, I explore several avenues of
precious substances “does not only mention the place of
these three precious substances from which ideas of their
origin but the current price as well, mainly in comparison

with gold coins or tea” (Czaja, in preparation). One gets to change color has made turquoise an ‘alive’ stone, an
the impression that authors were more concerned with apparent key to understanding its enduring perception
various sub-types of precious substances and their places as a potent stone. Once processed for use in medicine,
of origin and trade. Tibetan authors also mention ‘rarity’ turquoise becomes very light in color. Pale white is
(dkon) as an important attribute of precious substances, actually its inherent color, since turquoise exists largely of
entailing the difficulty of procuring a substance over long aluminum phosphate and is colored by copper (blue) and
distances. Inviting skilled knowledge holders from afar has iron (green), which oxidize when heat is applied
been an enduring practice throughout Tibet’s history. It (Walker-Watson 1983: 16-17).
was also a key characteristic of the cosmopolitan nature
Tibetans prefer old turquoise for use as amulets and in
of life in Lhasa in the seventeenth century, when the Fifth
precious pills, such as in Old Turquoise 25. Dr. Tenzin
Dalai Lama and his regent Sangyé Gyatso initiated a large
Thaye thought of old turquoise as a particularly ripe stone.
production of medicines with precious substances (Sangyé
‘Old’ as compared to ‘new’ types of turquoise have truly
Gyatso 2010: 327). Making precious pills was expensive and
‘ripened’ (smin) in the bosom of the earth’s rocks, making
required wealthy patronage, which at times in Tibet’s past
them more blue and less rocky, and thus more potent.
also involved sectarian struggles.23 Clearly, perceptions of
Dr. Choelothar, a senior Men-Tsee-Khang physician with
their potency emerged across political alliances and vast
long-term menjor experience, explained why the type of
religious and economic networks, now further explored
turquoise used in medicine should be old:
with three examples.
Old means it has been around for a long time, not
TURQUOISE recently mined, but a long time ago, and prefera-
“Turquoise treats poisoning and liver fevers.” bly worn [which turns the color more dark green].
Four Tantras24 The color of old turquoise is also different, the old
one is darker, the new one is light. We prefer the
Turquoise, yu, is among the few rinpoché men found in
old pieces, but nowadays they are difficult to get.
Tibet.25 The Medical House of Yutokpa received the name
(Chontra, May 2016)
Yutok, meaning ‘Turquoise Roof’ (g.yu thog) after one of
their lineage holders placed turquoise and gold on the roof There are also less complex formulas that include old
of this famous Medical House.26 Deumar lists turquoise turquoise as its main ingredient; all of them are primarily
right after diamond (rdo rje) as the “king of precious liver formulas (Dawa Ridak 2003: 65, 202). Old turquoise
substances.”27 Yu was traded, as is evident from its Persian appears already as an ingredient in a liver formula in
name firoza (puruza in Arabic, meaning victorious or the Medicine of the Moon King.31 Unfortunately, these texts
prospering), appearing in Tibetan texts as bai rwadza or sai do not offer any explanation why turquoise is beneficial
rwa dza.28 Iranian culture impacted the Tibetan empire via for the liver.32 Deumar describes various Indian types of
trade from the seventh/eighth century onwards (Souren turquoise, yet prefers three Tibetan types of old turquoise
Melikian-Chirvani 2011). Turquoise was “an object of for medicines.33 Nowadays, Sowa Rigpa practitioners in
imperial interaction” with an active trade across Central India buy turquoise stones from US mines in Arizona,
and South Asia and the Near East (Khazeni 2014: 19-20). considering Asian types difficult to identify since they are
It is also the main precious stone directly linked to the frequently fake.
pre-Buddhist vital force la (bla), going back to Tibetan
imperial times.29 Tibetans wear a la yu (bla g.yu) to protect CORAL
themselves from a loss of la. A young Tibetan wearing a “Coral cures fevers of the liver, channel fevers from poisoning.”
turquoise around his neck told me: Four Tantras34
I am wearing this real old yu. I like it, because in the Red coral has long been valued in Tibet for its rarity
past during King Songtsen Gampo, the highest rank and beauty, and it exemplifies how international trade
of the jewels is yu, that’s why we call him the ‘hold- exchanges influence perceptions of preciousness and
er of yu.’ It is the highest rank of the gems. That’s potency. Coral was traded from the Mediterranean, South
why I wear it.30 Seas, Ceylon, and Persia. Deumar lists several foreign and
colloquial names of coral that testify to its long-distance
Tibetans describe turquoise as turning yellowish during
sourcing (Tendzin Püntsok 2009: 90/17-19). Marco Polo
tripa (mkhris pa) diseases, indicating the health status of
mentions the monetary, decorative, and religious use of
its owner. Once given to a new owner, the color is said to
red coral among Tibetans in the thirteenth century (Polo
restore itself (Walker-Watson 1983: 16-17). This ability

et al. 1845: 384). Political alliances were forged through PEARL
contributions of red coral sent from Tibet to China during “Pearl prevents loss of cerebral fluid and is an antidote
the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1912) dynasties (Zolla to poisoning.”
and Del Mare 1997: 28). Four Tantras38
Trade in coral to Tibet changed over time, which Tibetan The Tibetan term for pearl, mutik, is a loan word from
physicians also documented in their texts. Deumar the Sanskrit muktā. According to Deumar, various types
writes in the early eighteenth century: “Red coral came of pearls were traded from India, Sir Lanka, and Hor
from Ceylon and Mukuta35 and other islands. Nowadays, (Mongolia).39 Pearls were popular among Tibetan nobility,
Kashmiri and Nepali traders will bring it in large quan- worn as head gear (Fig. 1), and decorated Buddhist statues
tity.”36 This change might have been partially influenced and all kinds of artifacts. Ayurveda has a long tradition of
by the British Empire taking over the coral trade from the using them in the form of bhasmas and pisti.40 Chemically,
Mediterranean around the turn of the eighteenth century the main mineral component is aragonite, a crystalline
(Lacey 2016). Coral was valued across the Himalayas. form of calcium carbonate. Aragonite is secreted by the
For example, in 1841, the Sikkimese Chogyal preferred mollusk, which forms the pearl inside the oyster shell (nya
payment in coral and other precious goods instead of phyi). The shell is also used as a substitute for pearl.
cash from the British in return for their annexation of
Tibetan texts list six types of pearls known to be sourced
Darjeeling (McKay 2018).
from animals (elephant tusks or skulls, snake brains, and
The substance trade with Asia was also influenced by the stomach of a sea creature) and from plants (e.g. banana
what was culturally considered ‘precious.’ For example, trees) in foreign lands.41 This parallels the Ayurveda Prakāsa,
in Europe amber and coral were deemed semi-precious, which describes the eight sources of pearl as oyster shell,
while in China they were thought of as more precious conch shell, elephant, pig, snake, fish, frog, and bamboo
than diamonds. Uncut gems were preferred in Asia, while (Murthy 2008: 368).
in Europe cut gems were more highly valued (Lacey 2016:
None of these types are of relevance in today’s Sowa Rigpa
96-97). In China, corals were considered ‘national trea-
menjor practice in India, where cultivated oyster pearls are
sures’ (guobao) for at least two thousand years, and during
easily available. According to Dr. Choelothar, Deumar’s
the Qing the coral trade was strictly ruled by the emperor,
description of pearl types “read like the Indian mytholog-
who in fact owned all coral imports (ibid: 97). Coral was a
ical stories. They are part of our textual tradition to show
status symbol of the aristocracy, and it was supposed to
how rare and special this medicine is. Here in India, pearls
have the power to attract auspiciousness and protect from
are easily available and not very expensive. For precious
unfavorable events. In Chinese, bao means both ‘treasure’
pills we use real pearls; but oyster shell is an acceptable
and ‘precious,’ and baogui means ‘precious’ and ‘valuable,’
substitute since it is made from the same matter” (Chontra,
something that is materially and emotionally valued
March 2018). At the same time, he emphasized that “when
(ibid: 96). The red color of coral played a role in it being
making precious pills, the real substances must be used,
associated with potency, fertility, vitality, longevity, and
not substitutes” (ibid).
the yang essence. Tibet was likely influenced by percep-
tions of coral in China, and the Tibetan term for coral, Pearl is used in many precious medicines in Sowa Rigpa,
juru, in older texts jiru (byi ru), shows linguistic parallels such as Mutik 6, Mutik 25, and Mutik 70 (= Rinchen Ratna
to the Chinese, shānhú 珊瑚. Deumar describes the nature Samphel). Dr. Penpa Tsering showed me three types of
of coral: “Because they grow on rocky outcroppings pearls he recently bought at Khari Baoli in Delhi, the
and sandy regions of outer ocean edges, their material largest wholesale market for medicinal raw ingredients in
substance is stone. However, because of their manner India. The smaller types were expensive (INR 40,000 /kg,
of growth, they are also referred to as a tree [-type about $ 576/kg) and only used in precious pearl medicine.
substance].”37 He would also add some of the larger pearls for INR 8,000/
kg (about $ 115/kg, see Fig. 2). For him, primarily the price
The main precious pill that is named after coral is Red
and their rarity defined their preciousness for use in medi-
Coral 25 (Jumar 25), used to treat nerve disorders (Sönam
cine; the more expensive the pearls, the more precious and
Döndrup 2006: 517/11). It contains coral, lapis, pearl, and
potent the medicine:
oyster shells and twenty-one other substances. Coral is
used in several precious pills, but not in ordinary formulas. We don’t know exactly how much difference of
Contemporary Sowa Rigpa experts in India source the less nüpa there is between [these two types] of pearls.
expensive cut pieces in various colors from Indian jewelers We did not do any research. But I am sure, because
for their medicines. the price is too high, too costly, so it has special

nüpa. It is rare and very costly ... because these little in different chapters.43 Coral appears with old turquoise
pearls are only used for medicine, not for jewelry. once in a formula,44 and pearl appears with mother of pearl
They are also used in Ayurveda and by Unani physi- once.45 In total, turquoise is listed twice, coral six, and
cians. (Sidhbari, March 2018) pearl eight times. In the ‘Oral Instructional Tantra’ (the
third part of the Four Tantras), turquoise and coral each
Synergies in Formulas appear eight times and pearl thirteen times. Together they
appear in formulas three times, each for the treatment of
As we have seen, pearl, turquoise, and coral come from
poisoning.46 These preliminary searches did not include
very different cultural and geographical environments
any of the various synonyms used for these substances. Dr.
with entirely different social and medical histories. Why
Choelothar said about the way of combining ingredients
are they grouped together in Sowa Rigpa formulas and
(also discussed by Schwabl and van der Valk 2019):
also undergo the same processing techniques? What do
these three substances have in common, beyond being We cannot explain why these three are used to-
classified as rinpoché men? In the modern Lhasa medical gether in formulas, since they have distinct thera-
text book New Dawn (Skya rengs gsar pa), they are all peutic benefits. This happens very often in Tibetan
classified as having ‘astringent taste,’ ro kawa (ro bska ba), menjor practice. When you look up the single ingre-
and a ‘cooling nature’ (ngo bo bsil; RDLM 1985: 213/13- dient in the texts, you find it is linked to a specific
19, 232/14-16). Similarly, the Ayurvedic compendium therapeutic effect, but this ingredient might turn
Aṣṭāṅgahṛdayasaṃhitā, which was one of the foundational up in many formulas that are used for a very differ-
texts used in the compiling of the Four Tantras (Yang Ga ent illness complex. This is how substances work
2010), mentions pearl and coral as both belonging to the together. We would have to do a lot of research to
“astringent group” of substances (Hilgenberg and Kirfel explain this. (Chontra, March 2018)
1941: 61,verse 32). Their therapeutic benefits, however,
This is again an example in which tradition legitimizes
remain quite distinct.42 Discussing the astringent taste of
empirical menjor knowledge with a call for science
precious substances with Dr. Choelothar in Chontra, in
to explain it, especially when encountering foreign
March 2018, he explained: “When we cannot taste clearly
researchers. Kloos convincingly shows how Sowa Rigpa has
the sweet, sour, bitter, or hot tastes, which are easily
survived and thrived in exile through reliance on modern
tasted, we generally say it is ro kawa. So, almost all precious
science and technology, moving from tradition to what
substances are ro kawa.” Thus, ro kawa means not only
he calls an “alternative, uniquely Tibetan modernity”
‘astringent taste,’ but also ‘having no taste.’
(2015: 140). To date, such inclusions of science have largely
In the early Tibetan medical text Medicine of the Moon King, focused on laboratory tests, clinical trials, the integration
pearl and coral (as byi ru) appear together in four formulas of basic biomedicine into the teaching curriculum, and the
Figure 2. Dr. Penpa Tsering

showing me the larger and less
expensive type of pearls, Sidhbari.
(Gerke, 2018)

application of biomedical diagnostics in clinical encoun- Rigpa practitioners themselves are active players in this
ters. Overall, these approaches have helped to make Sowa approach.48 Dr. Choelothar explained the purpose of dukdön:
Rigpa appear more scientific to the public, the state, and
Precious substances are ‘rough’ (rtsub) by nature
the global industry, which in the PRC has proven a suitable
and have to be made ‘smooth’ (’jam btsal) in order
survival strategy (e.g. Adams 2002). In India, modernized
for us to digest them in the medicines. They have
Tibetan medicine has also shaped “an assumed ‘traditional’
duk, but it means they are rough to digest, not that
exile Tibetan political and cultural identity” (Kloos 2015:
they are poisonous. We cannot really explain these
130). How does this expressed need for scientific research
old methods and why exactly these substances are
translate into Tibetan approaches to tradition in the
needed. This should be researched. It is our ancient
context of menjor processing techniques of gems? Like
tradition and we follow it. (Chontra, March 2018)
most practical menjor knowledge, skills have been passed
on orally, and relying on tradition also maintains the Table 1 compares an early fourteenth century dukdön
practices’ identity. technique for turquoise, coral, and pearl by Zurkhar
Nyamnyi Dorjé with the nineteenth century instructions
Processing Precious Substances
by Kongtrül Yönten Gyatso (1813-1899) of eastern Tibet,
Turquoise, lapis lazuli, pearl, and so forth, all and a twentieth century description by the famous physi-
precious substances made of animate or inanimate, cian and scholar Khempo Troru Tsénam (1928-2004), who
meltable or non-meltable elements, have to be sep- taught the making of precious pills across Tibet after the
arated and freed from duk [their harmful qualities]. 1980s. As is characteristic for Sowa Rigpa works, we find
Unless freed from duk, [they will cause] great harm. considerable intertextualities. As Table 1 shows, authors
Zurkhar Nyamnyi Dorjé (1439-1475)47 have copied the sections on processing from each other for
the past six hundred years with little variation in terms of
We are facing one problem: in our text it is said that
basic techniques. Toru Tsénam’s modern text book instruc-
you have to do the dukdön with turquoise, coral,
tions are more detailed than those of his predecessors, but
and pearl. You have to boil them in water and in
the list of ingredients has, for the most part, remained the
many other things, for two hours, like that, but how
same. Dr. Penpa Tsering explained the dynamics between
duk is removed through dukdön is not explained.
textual and oral transmission, which clearly define the
That is difficult. Nowadays we cannot explain it.
ways tradition is called upon in contemporary situations:
Why we are using dumbu, [dum bu, a kind of fern
(see Table 1)] in the dukdön process? We can’t We consider it very important to carry out the duk-
explain. In the text it is not explained. Dr. Penpa dön according to our texts and the teacher’s laklen
Tsering (Sidhbari, March 2018) [lag len, practical experience]. We cannot only rely
on the teachers; they have to point out the method
Precious substances need to be pre-processed. They cannot
in one of the authentic texts and add their laklen
just be ground up and added to formulas. Raw substances
during practical training. Sometimes, you even get
have ‘harmful’ parts, collectively called duk, that have
a special [secret] oral instruction, men ngak. The
to be removed or transformed to become ‘beneficial’ or
texts do not give all these details. Sometimes, the
men. Practitioners follow traditional methods, but are
laklen is difficult to explain, especially with precious
often unable to explain them and consequently refer to
stones, because how can we tell the change before
scientific research as a possible solution to make tradi-
and after processing? The stone looks almost the
tion understandable, but without intending any changes
same, maybe slightly different in color. We should
to their traditional practice. As Kloos put it: “modern
do scientific research to be able to explain to our
science is reinterpreted as an ornament (rgyan) to enhance
students how this works. (Sidhbari, June 2017)
the outward appearance of Tibetan knowledge without
changing its inner substance” (Kloos 2015: 124). While Dr. Penpa Tsering calls again for scientific research,
at the same time he offers perceptual cues of how practi-
While social scientists are trying to overcome the tradi-
tioners traditionally knew that the dukdön was achieved:
tion-modernity dichotomy, it is perhaps ironic that,
the color of the precious stones changed. What in the past
although dukdön techniques have not been scientifically
was based on careful observation has been replaced by
researched in Sowa Rigpa, practitioners often state in
modern metrics. Dr. Choelothar explained that the textual
ethnographic encounters that they would consider science
phrase “the time it takes to change the color of coral” is
a legitimate way to explain their practices (cf. Neveling
a vague textual time indicator; now practitioners follow
and Klien 2010: 9; Kloos 2015). The idea of science legitimizing
clock time. Dr. Penpa Tsering agreed:
tradition has been observed in several contexts, and Sowa

We boil the precious stones by hours, not by seeing in nature. Dr. Penpa Tsering explained why the process is
how the color changes as is mentioned in some old- not easy to understand or demonstrate:
er texts. You cannot see it clearly. Some pieces of
Some of the ingredients are themselves antidotes
coral are very red, some are whitish, they come in
to poisoning. For example, when we do the specific
many different types of color. (Sidhbari, June 2017)
dukdön of lapis lazuli [mu men] we make a fire from
Recent medical texts place more emphasis on writing kyerpa wood [skyer pa, a type of barberry] and roast
down techniques, which previously were transmitted the stones in pig fat over this heat until they turn
orally. For example, Nyima Tséring (2009: 25-26) adds blackish.50 Both pig fat and kyerpa have the nüpa to
specific amounts of ingredients and hours of their cooking remove poisons. So, in this way we can explain the
time, which were earlier more loosely quantified as, for reasons a little bit. But this does not apply to all
example, “the time it takes to boil a soup” (khu ba thon ingredients. […]. The reasons are not given clearly
nges skol; see Table 1). Currents of tradition are clearly in the text. Practically, we cannot understand the
constantly being reshaped in practice and modified by difference before and after dukdön, how it has
personal experience. Historian of science Pamela Smith affected the stones. In the text it tells us that the
points out that textual time measurements reveal a kind nüpa has become ‘smooth’ and won’t harm the
of “artisanal epistemology” (2004: 59), and that we should body. But practically, we should see or show the
take seriously the “lived theory” (2010: 48) of early artisans difference of the nüpa. We cannot show that […]. We
and the underlying principles of their workings with should test it scientifically. We follow the texts and
materials. She states: “The terms of these measurements our teacher’s advice. (Sidhbari, June 2017)
sound unfamiliar, as they attempt to put into words the
My discussions on pre-processing precious substances
experiential and sensory knowledge of artisans that was
present the menjor knowledge of Men-Tsee-Khang
almost always left unarticulated” (ibid: 32). One indeed has
trained physicians in India. All three physicians inter-
to dig deep into the texts and practical skills to unravel
viewed studied under the same teachers. Their view
Sowa Rigpa ‘artisanal epistemology,’ which too easily gets
represents the institutionalized Sowa Rigpa training at the
ignored by calls for scientific evaluation.
Men-Tsee-Khang in Dharamsala since the 1990s. Small-
Discussing the dukdön with Dr. Choelothar, he explained: scale, lineage-trained amchi across the Himalayas also use
precious substances in their medicines. For them, it is
The general dukdön of turquoise, pearl, and coral is
difficult to process the small amounts of precious stones
the same. You boil it four to five hours in water with
required for their cottage industry production. I discussed
aru [a ru, myrobalan]. Then you have to throw away
this with Amchi Tenzin Bista from Dolpo in Nepal during
the water and wash [the stones] many times. The wa-
the ICTAM conference in Germany, in July 2017. On pearls
ter is so full of duk that if you give it to a dog it will
he said:
be drunk and fall asleep. You also have to add zétsa
[ze tshwa, saltpeter or potassium nitrate], aru and We do not need a lot of pearls for our medicines.
reral [re ral, a type of fern]. My teacher told me that We buy them pre-processed from the Ayurvedic
zétsa is a must in processing gems. It is the main sub- pharmacies in Kathmandu as and when needed.
stance that makes the precious gems ‘smooth.’ After Their purified pearls come in the form of a paste.
dukdön the color of the gems will be light, turquoise They have a long tradition of purifying pearls, and
will be very light, and red coral will be very light, we trust their processing.
and the pearl which sometimes has strains of color
Here, we have an example of borrowing across tradi-
will be light, but not bright. (Chontra, May 2016)
tions in the absence of having access to one’s own. These
Here, oral transmissions include considerable experien- practitioners base their trust on the long duration of an
tial knowledge such as subtle color changes. The tactile established tradition, despite processing techniques being
sensory modalities involved in perceiving the changes quite different. It shows that processing skills and prac-
in color or making a substance ‘smooth’ are certainly tices change with the environments and circumstances
not easy to learn and articulate. But they follow their practitioners find themselves in. Depending on context,
own logic. the processing of precious substances in Sowa Rigpa is
neither standardized51 nor in practice solely based on
Dr. Tenzin Thaye explained that most of the plants and
traditional Sowa Rigpa techniques. It will require further
minerals used to process gems are in themselves known to
fieldwork to understand this heterogeneity and how tradi-
treat poisoning and take out duk. Their properties have a
tion is understood in each case.
‘smoothening’ effect on other substances that are ‘rough’

Conclusion My translated examples of the general processing tech-
niques for turquoise, coral, and pearl show that methods
In this article, I discussed the use of three precious
and ingredients have remained largely unchanged since
substances in Sowa Rigpa—turquoise, coral, and pearl—and
the fourteenth century (although substance identifica-
their value as rare, precious, and powerful substances.
tions might vary over time). They illustrate not only the
Preliminary textual analysis shows that turquoise, coral,
extent of intertextuality in Tibetan medical writing, but
and pearl were already used as medicines during the
also represent living currents of tradition, in which oral
eleventh century or earlier, often in combination, and
and textual knowledge, lineage and authority, and manual
for various conditions. Out of the three, pearl appears
craftsmanship continuously emerge from and merge into
most frequently in formulas, followed by coral, and then
actual practice. Tradition is called upon by contemporary
turquoise. Reasons for this are difficult to establish and
practitioners to authenticate today’s practice because
might involve therapeutic demands, availability, price,
medical knowledge and skilled practices that are trans-
or preferences of wearing these precious stones rather
mitted over a long time are often difficult to explain,
than crushing them into medicines. Even though gems are
especially in a contemporary research environment domi-
appreciated and held efficacious for their beautiful colors
nated by biomedical science. More fieldwork is required
when worn, they become colorless during processing.
to further understand how practitioners’ trust in science
It appears that potency, encapsulated in the umbrella term versus tradition is shifting. How does this dynamic impact
nüpa, is also defined through rarity, price, and cultural the continuation of practice in contemporary diaspora
preciousness. Potency is referred to in numerous environments, where science is used as a tool to “achieve
medico-religious as well as socio-economic contexts, and international recognition, ensuring the long-term survival
forms an integral part of the currents of Sowa Rigpa of Tibetan medicine” (Kloos 2015: 126)?
traditions. For example, economic value impacted Dr.
Looking carefully at the underlying Sowa Rigpa episte-
Penpa Tsering’s choice to purchase expensive types of
mology, one detects reasons why certain substances are
pearls—perceived as more potent—for his precious pills.
used during dukdön, considering their anti-poisoning
The taste categorization of precious stones as ‘astrin- properties and abilities to ‘smoothen’ the ‘rough’ qualities
gent’ in post-twelfth century Tibetan medical texts was of other substances. Biomedical science easily reaffirms
possibly influenced by a similar categorization found in its hegemony in a situation where the tradition’s own
the Aṣṭāṅgahṛdayasaṃhitā. Since stones cannot be tasted, epistemology and foundational texts seem ancient and
astringency was translated to me by practitioners foreign, and ‘smoothing a roughness’ of a substance is not
basically as ‘having no taste.’ However, the absence of considered an adequate explanation.
a taste is also a sense perception, though limiting when
Many of the quotes presented here also raise questions on
compared to the more accessible olfactory perceptions of
the limits of anthropological and textual understandings
plant-based materia medica, where nüpa is largely, though
of living Asian medical traditions since the currents of
not exclusively (see van der Valk 2019), evaluated by taste.
knowledge transmitted over long periods of time are so
Consequently, in evaluating the nüpa of precious stones,
complex, fluid, and dynamic. Scheid’s conclusion that “one
practitioners rely to a greater extent on texts along with
of the most important tasks faced by any such tradition is
their teachers’ transmissions, as well as long established
to create and maintain identity, and that history is one of
cultural and economic values attributed to precious
the key tools employed for this purpose” (2007: 384) rings
stones. I conclude that a wider spectrum of aspects
true when Sowa Rigpa experts call upon their historical
beyond taste and smell needs to be considered when
texts in an attempt to authenticate medical knowledge of
researching the nüpa of precious substances in Sowa Rigpa,
the past, effectively attributing potency to tradition itself.
also including therapeutic signals that physicians receive
from their patients when using precious medicines in
clinical practice.
I am aware that practitioners might not always articu-

late the full range of their perceptual knowledge on the
potency of substances they work with. Some of it could be
retrieved through further textual study of the complex
tactile and sensory modalities involved in nüpa, such as
the modalities of the elements forming certain tastes, as
explained in the Four Tantras and its commentaries.52

Table 1. Processing turquoise, coral, and pearl, according to three Tibetan sources.
Zurkhar Nyamnyi Dorjé Kongtrül Yönten Gyatso Troru Tsénam
Fourteenth century Nineteenth century Twentieth century

Text: Bye ba ring sel Text: Gso rig zin tig yang tig Text: Bod kyi gso rig kun btus
(1993: 289/5-11) (2005: 99/5-13) (2011-12, vol. 57: 690/12-18, 691/1-5)

First, except for the two, diamonds and
amber, all other precious substances are first
cleaned of dirt in order to compound them.
Each precious substance is first boiled for a
long time in water [soaked with] small car-
damom or in natron water, then washed till
clean. Then, pearls, turquoise, coral, mother
[Take] old turquoise, coral, of pearl, lapis, etc., are crushed individually
Take the precious pearl, etc. whatever you with a pestle. […] With regard to grinding it
substances [you want] [have to process], just loose- coarse and fine: It is useless to grind it very
to process. ly crush [them]. fine like mustard seeds, since it will be wast-
(rin chen gang gtong (g.yu rnying bye ru mu tig sogs ed during the washing and cooking. (dang po/
de dang) gang yin khrol tsam brdungs pha lam dang/ sbur len gnyis las gzhan pa’i rin po
pa’i) che rnams thog mar sngar gyi dreg pa sbyong phy-
ir rin po che so sor sug chu’am bul tog gi chur yun
ring btsos nas bkru bshal dag par bya/ de nas mu
tig g.yu/ byu ru/ nya phyis/ mu men sogs rin po
che rnams so sor khram khrum brdungs/ de’ang
rtsing zhib nas dang ’bras/ yungs dkar tsam las
shin tu zhib na bkru bzhal skabs chud zos su ’gro
bas de las zhib mi nyan/)
[Take] salt and saltpeter of Mix the individual amounts according to the
[add] saltpeter of equal weight [of equal weight [of the pre- measurement. At the same time, add salt and
the precious substances], cious substances], saltpeter of equal weight [of the precious
substances], (so so’i mang nyung sbyor tshad ltar
(ljid mnyam pa’i ze tshwa/) (ljid dang mnyam pa’i tsha la phyogs gcig tu bsdoms pa’i ljid dang mnyam pa’i
dang ze tshwa/) tsha la dang ze tshwa/)
[Add] ldum bu re ral [a type of fern, [Add] a third of the

sweet and astringent, that is used saltpeter [amount] of su-
to treat meat and compounded perior be ljang re ral, if not [Add] a third of the precious substance
poisoning], the essence of be ljang, available then ldum bu re ral [amount] of the essence of be ljang [and] be
[and] gentian [a bitter, cooling and gentian, ljang re ral and gentian,
plant, antidote to poison], [of these] (ze tsha’i sum cha be ljang re (rin po che’i sum cha be ljang bdud rtsi ste be ljang
three, [take] a third, (ldum bu re ral mchog yin kyang ma rnyed re ral dang gang ga chung/)
ral/ be ljang bdud rtsi/ gang ga chung na ldum bu re ral dang gang
gsum/ de‘i sum cha/) ga chung/)
[add] a little musk for fragrance, quite a bit of syrup of [the [and] quite a bit of syrup of [the sour berries
[add] genuine pulverized salt, sour berries of] of] seabuckthorn.
in equal amounts, (gla rtsi dri seabuckthorn.
thon tsam/ tsha la dul ma dngos
dang mnyam/) (star bu’i khaṇḍa mang tsam/) (star bu’i khaṇḍa mang tsam/)

Table 1. (cont.)
golden colored myrobalan, Mix it with chebulic myro- Mix it with chebulic myrobalan [without
balan [without removing removing the seeds], and
the seeds],53 and
(a ru ra gser mdog) (a ru ra rus pa bcas pa dang/) (a ru ra rus pa dang bcas pa dang/)
[sprinkle] the ash of cowry shells, [sprinkle] the ash of cowry

[sprinkle] the ash of cowry shells, [as if you
[as if you would add] a little salt. shells, [as if you would add]
would add] a little salt. (mgron bu lbo can gyi
a little salt. (mgron bu lde can
(’gron thal tsha ’debs tsam/) thal ba tshwa ’debs tsam/)
gyi thal ba tshwa ’debs tsam/)
common seabuckthorn, Add a little musk for You must add a little musk for fragrance.
fragrance. Those ingredients are like a supplementary
procedure. (gla rtsi dri thon tsam bcas dgos/ de
(star bu che na dga’/) (gla rtsi dri thon tsam bcas) rnams kyi sbyor tshad lag len zur gsal ltar)
After a while, pour [everything] in the urine of

an eight-year old or, if you cannot get it, mix it
with pure water, boil it in a little bigger vessel
for the amount of time it takes to boil a soup.54
Throw out the liquid twice; drain the essential
Soak it half a day in urine of liquids through a filter, and pour the precious
[and] add the urine of an ordained an eight-year old, boil until substances into a small cotton sack,55 bind it
monk or an eight-year old to the coral color has changed. tight and gradually grind it completely and
the liquid. boil [in] the medicinal liquid until the coral
(lo brgyad pa’am dge slong gi chu la (lo brgyad dri chur btab la nyi color has changed. (thang tsam brdungs nas lo
khu ba byas la/ ) ma phyed tsam mam bye ru brgyad dri chu rkyang pa’am/ ma ’dzom chu gtsang
mdog ’gyur tsam du btso/) dang bsres par btab ste snod che tsam zhig tu khu
ba thon nges skol/ khu ba thengs gnyis phyung te
tshags su drangs pa’i khu ba dwangs ma’i nang du
rin po che rnams ras khug nang blugs te kha dam
por bsdam la byi ru’i mdog ma ’gyur bar du sman
khu ’thag rim bzhin gsab ste btsos)
Then throw the medicinal liquid and wash

and rinse. After that boil [the ground sub-
stances] for two hours in strong [old] chang.
Crush the precious substances, After that add good chang Rinse and wash them in cold water till clear.
pour and boil for one morning; and boil it, then wash Again, boil three times in clean water. After
then boil in clean water; then boil clean with cold water, then that wash and rinse with water [soaked with]
in good chang; after that wash with cleanse by boiling it three small cardamom, and cold water until it is
clean water. times in clean water. very clear; the harmful parts (dug) and smell
(rin chen khram khrum brdungs pa (de rjes chang bzang po bsnan disappear, and the potency will be excellent.
blugs la snga dro zhig btso/de nas chu nas btso/ de rjes chu grang (rjes sman khu dor la bkru bshal bya/ de nas
gtsang la btso/ de nas chang bzang bo gis dag par bkru/ de rjes chu gar chang du chu tshod gnyis tsam btsos te/ chu
la btso/ de rjes chu gtsang gis bkru ba gtsang nang du lan gsum btsos grang gis bkru bshal dag par bya/ slar chu gtsang
gnad yin no/) la bzhal lo/) du lan gsum btso ba dang/ de rjes sug chu dang/
chu grang gis bkru bshal shin tu dag par byas pas
dug dang dri ma thon zhing nus pa phul du byung
ba ’byung ngo/)

6. For exceptions see Hsu (2008) on qigong and types of
Barbara Gerke (D.Phil., M.Sc., University of Oxford) is
acupuncture and Farquhar (1994) and Scheid (2002) on
a social and medical anthropologist currently leading a specific TCM diagnostic practices.
three-year FWF (Austrian Science Fund) project (2018–2021)
on ‘Potent Substances in Sowa Rigpa and Buddhist Ritual’ 7. Tibetans settled in India largely as refugees after the
at the University of Vienna, where she also held a Lise- Chinese occupation of Tibet in the late 1950s.
Meitner senior research fellowship (2015-2018) researching
biographies of Tibetan precious pills. She is the author
8. Sowa Rigpa was officially recognized by the
Government of India in 2010 and has since undergone
of Long Lives and Untimely Deaths: Life-Span Concepts
various forms of standardization.
and Longevity Practices among Tibetans in the Darjeeling
Hills, India (Brill 2012) and Taming the Poisonous: Mercury, 9. The PRC contexts would be quite different (see, for
Toxicity and Safety in Tibetan Medical Practice (Heidelberg example, Adams 2002; Adams, Dongzhu, and Le 2010) and
University Publishing, forthcoming). cannot be discussed here in detail.
The research for this chapter was carried out during the Lise-
10. Knowledge here is typically passed along Buddhist
Meitner senior research fellowship M1870, and the writing was
lines of ‘oral transmission’ (lung), ‘explanations’ on the
completed during the FWF project P30804-G24, both funded by
the Austrian Science Fund (FWF) through the University of Vienna.
actual practice (khrid), and ‘empowerments/initiations’
The author is indebted to the Men-Tsee-Khang in Dharamsala (dbang). See Tidwell (2017) and Gerke (2015: 871-72) on
and especially the Tibetan physicians Dr. Choelothar, Dr. Tenzin ways of medical knowledge transmission.
Thaye, and Dr. Penpa Tsering for sharing their time and Sowa Rigpa
expertise. The author thanks Florian Ploberger, Tawni Tidwell, 11. Textual formulas are reformulated in practice (Gerke
Melanie Vandenhelsken, Jan van der Valk, and the anonymous 2018) and adapted to changing social and local ecologies
reviewers for their discussions and useful suggestions. (see van der Valk 2019).
12. In Tibetan, these are gser, dngul, zangs, lcags, g.yu, mu

tig, nya phyis, dung, byu ru, and mu men respectively. Yutok
Yönten Gönpo (1982: 66/12–17).
Endnotes
13. This work is titled A Lump of Crystal and its commentary
1. Here, he refers to complex forms of knowing that A Rosary of Crystal, in Tibetan briefly called Shelgong
involve deeper realizations, expressed in Tibetan as the Sheltreng (Shel gong shel ’phreng). See Tendzin Püntsok (2009:
‘all-knowing (mind)’ (tham chad shes pa). 4/6-6/5; 70/7-100/14).
2. The Men-Tsee-Khang is the largest Tibetan medical 14. Together, they appear in published formulas of the
institute in India. On its expansion, see Kloos (2011). precious pills Rinchen Drangjor, Ratna Samphel, Old
Turquoise 25, Jumar 25, and Rinchen Wangril Shelkar;
3. An example here is the processing of types of coral and pearl appear together with lapis lazuli in
calcite (cong zhi) during a particular full moon. Rinchen Mangjor Chenmo; and pearl and old turquoise
are both ingredients of Chakril Chenmo formulas (Troru
4. Since they are explained in more detail in Tidwell and Tsénam 2011-2012: 696-728). We can assume variations
Nettles (2019), I am not repeating them here. in ingredients across geographic regions and medical
traditions.
5. These eight types refer to (1) nüpa of power/
temperature (tobs kyi nus pa), (2) nüpa of taste and similarly 15. Pearl is also used in the semi-precious pill Samnor
classified (ro dang phyogs mthun gyi nus pa), (3) nüpa of (Blaikie 2015).
smell (dri’i nus pa), (4) nüpa of antidotes (gnyen po’i nus pa),
(5) nüpa consistent with type (rigs mthun gyi nus pa), (6) 16. He refers here to the eleventh chapter in the last of the
nüpa consistent with shape (dbyibs mthun gyi nus pa), (7) Four Tantras. See Gerke and Ploberger (2017).
nüpa of dependent arising (rten ’brel gyi nus pa), and (8)
nüpa of aspirational prayers/blessings (smon lam gyi nus pa); 17. This term is polysemous and can mean ‘post-
Tendzin Püntsok (2009: 64/5-66/6). See also Dawa Ridak therapeutic complications’ and also ‘antidote,’ which is
(2003: 13/5-22). Various types of nüpa are currently being used to combat poisoning caused by the wrong intake of
studied textually and ethnographically by Gerke, Tidwell, processed mercury (Gerke and Ploberger 2017). See Simioli
and van der Valk (see also the Introduction, Gerke and van (2016) on mercury as a loknön.
der Valk 2019).

18. kha cig grub cha dang ro nus kho na tsam ma yin par rten eleventh century (McGrath 2017: 503-04). In this text, old
’brel gyi nus pa dang / smon lam gyi nus pa/ kha dog gi nus pa/ turquoise appears in chapter 79 on medicinal powders and
’od kyi nus pa la sogs pas nad dang gdon sel zhing/ srung ba’i turquoise in chapter 103 on curing limbs. See Hashang
nus pa dang ldan pas lus la ’chang bas kyang rung ngo (Kelden Mahāyāna and Vairocana (1994: 214/3, 285/8).
Nyima 2010: 7/12-14, my translation).
32. One could speculate about a link to Chinese medicine
19. Examples are manifold: taking refuge in ‘the three where the liver (gan) is associated with blue-green (qing),
jewels’ (the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha), revering the wood (mu), and the spring season. Eating green foods
‘Diamond vehicle’ (Vajrayāna), or Buddhas being born from strengthens the liver, liver disorders lead to greenish eyes,
jewels such as the ‘jewel-born’ Ratnasambhava, and so on. and so on. Thanks to Jan van der Valk for pointing this out.
20. Open access image source: <https://www.flickr.com/ 33. These three Tibetan types are pale (drug dkar), red-
photos/wonderlane/5914004056> (accessed on 29 March 2019). tinted (drug dmar), and perky [bright] (g.yu spyang); the
latter is superior and more blue. Deumar also classifies two
21. In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), such a quality- kinds of ‘intermediate turquoise’ (bar g.yu) and three types
location concept is called daodi, which defines the best of ‘new turquoise’ (g.yu gsar). Tendzin Püntsok
places of origin for particular herbs. Thanks to Jan van der (2009: 79/8-15).
Valk for pointing this out.
34. byu rus mchin tshad rtsa tshad dug tshad sel. Yutok
22. For example, Sangyé Gyatso (1982: 253/20, 254/11-12, Yönten Gönpo (1982: 66/16).
254/20) and Tendzin Püntsok (2009: 78/17, 90/15, 95/2).
35. Identification unclear. A possibility is Mukut, a place
23. See Czaja (2013: 86) for an historical example on the on Tioman island in Malaysia that has coral reefs.
competition between the Gelukpa and Kagyüpa Buddhist
schools to make precious pills. 36. dmar po ni sing ga la dang mu ku Ta la sogs pa’i gling nas
byung/ deng sang ka smir dang nee pa la’i tshong pa rnams kyis
24. g.yu yis dug dang mchin pa’i tsha ba sel. See Yutok Yönten mang du khyer yong. Tendzin Püntsok (2009: 91/6-8).
Gönpo (1982: 66/14-15).
37. di dag ni mtha’i rgya mtsho’i ’gram gyi brag dang bye ma
25. According to Walker-Watson (1983: 16), turquoise is las shing ltar skye bas rgyu dngos rdo yin kyang/ skye lugs kyis
sourced from the vicinity of Lhasa and near Chamdo, the shing yang zer te. Tendzin Püntsok (2009: 91/3-4).
Gangschan Mountains of Ngari-Khorsum in Western Tibet,
Draya to the west of Bathang, and the mountainous region 38. mu tig klad pa ’dzag gcod dug nad sel. Yutok Yönten
of Derge in Eastern Tibet. For a special online issue on Gönpo (1982: 66/15).
Tibetan turquoise see Bellezza (2013).
39. Tibetan nobility also bought pearls from China (Martin
26. See Rechung Rinpoche (1973: 183-185) on a translation 2014: 134, note 109; 595), but China is not mentioned as a
of this story and Yang Ga (2019) on a historical analysis of source by Deumar.
its authorship.
40. Pearl bhasmas are made from pre-processed pearls
27. Deumar writes: “[Turquoise is] perceived as the king of that are repeatedly heated in a crucible, powdered and
precious substances or the king of stones” (rin po che’i rgyal triturated into calcined ash. For pisti, pearls are boiled and
po’am rdo’i rgyal po la ’jug). Tendzin Püntsok (2009: 78/18). ground up in plant juice, dried, and triturated.
28. These names appear in Tendzin Püntsok (2009: 78/17) 41. For Tibetan versions (with variations) of these types
and Lozang Chödrak (1997: 16/4) respectively. see, for example, Tendzin Püntsok (2009: 95/6-96/2),
Lozang Chödrak (1997: 19/20-20/11), or Sangyé Gyatso
29. In early sources, the terms lha (deity) and la seem to be (1982: 254/1-11).
used synonymously, such as in kula (sku bla), which means
‘personal guardian deity.’ Karmay (1996) points 42. Their Tibetan medical usage is strikingly different
to the existence of a la of a (royal) family, or even a from the Aṣṭāṅgahṛdayasaṃhitā, where pearls are largely
whole nation. used to treat eye disorders (Hilgenberg and Kirfel 1941:
568.34, 575.22, 579.64, and 586.31), while coral is mentioned
30. Recorded during a lecture the author presented on this in an external paste to treat urinary disorders (ibid 400.13).
paper at the University of Oxford, in November 2017. Coral and pearl appear in the same chapter but in separate
ointment formulas to treat weakness of eyesight (ibid
31. This text, in Tibetan Sman dpyad zla ba’i rgyal po, has 586.31 and 32), and together only once in an external
a controversial history of perhaps Chinese or Sanskrit ointment formula to treat the eczema visarpa (ibid 452.14).
origins and was likely composed during the eighth to The Aṣṭāṅgahṛdayasaṃhitā is of course an early work, and
later centuries, when bhasmas became more popular (see 54. khu ba thon nges skol here is a traditional Tibetan time
Wujastyk 2019) might very well show different usages. indicator of about fifteen to twenty minutes (Personal
communication, Dr. Choelothar, March 2018).
43. In chapter 66 on treating tripa (mkhris pa) (Hashang
Mahāyāna and Vairocana 1994: 170/5), in chapter 69 on 55. This functions like a tea bag and makes it easy
treating reproductive fluids (bsam se’u; ibid 178/13), in to remove the liquid that contains the duk (Personal
chapter 75 on treating swelling in the throat (gag lhog; ibid communication, Dr. Penpa Tsering, June 2017).
195/3), and in chapter 76 on treating poisoning (dug nad;
ibid 205/13).
44. In chapter 79 on powdered medicines (phye ma; References

ibid 214/3).
Adams, Vincanne, Renqing Dongzhu, and Phuoc V. Le.
45. In chapter 99 on teaching the descending pulse (rtsa’i 2010. Translating Science: The Arura Medical Group at the
babs bstan pa; ibid 279/13). Frontiers of Medical Research. In Studies of Medical Pluralism
in Tibetan History and Society (Proceedings of the
46. In chapter 87 on treating poisoning (Yutok Yönten
11th Seminar of the International Association for Tibetan
Gönpo 1982: 543/11-13, 548/8, and 553/12).
Studies, Bonn 2006), edited by Sienna Radha Craig, Mingji
47. g.yu dang mu men mu tig sogs/ brtan g.yo bzhu dang mi Cuomu, Frances Garrett and Mona Schrempf, 111-136.
bzhu ba’i/ khams las grub pa’i rin chen kun/ dug dang phral Andiast, Switzerland: International Institute for Tibetan
la gtang bar bya/ ma phral phan las gnod pa che. Zurkhar and Buddhist Studies GmbH.
Nyamnyi Dorjé (1993: 289/1-4, my translation).
Adams, Vincanne. 2002. Establishing Proof: Translating
48. Such meta-discursive practices involved in this discourse Science and the State in Tibetan Medicine. In New Horizons
of invented traditions have been pointed out, among others, in Medical Anthropology: Essays in Honour of Charles Leslie,
by Briggs (1996). On approaches of science to legitimize edited by Mark Nichter and Margaret Lock, 200-220.
traditional Sowa Rigpa practices see Adams (2002), Adams, New York: Routledge.
Dhondup, and Le (2010), and Kloos (2011, 2015).
Anand, Dibyesh. 2000. (Re)imagining Nationalism: Identity
49. How these substances have been identified or and Representation in the Tibetan Diaspora of South Asia.
substituted in practice over time is a different question Contemporary South Asia 9(3): 271-287.
that cannot be addressed here.
Bellezza, John Vincent. 2013 (August). Tibetan Turquoise:
50. This specific method is briefly mentioned by Deumar Beaming Stone of Life. In Flight of the Khyung. <http://
for the processing of pearls and lapis lazuli: mu tig mu www.tibetarchaeology.com/august-2013/> (accessed on 18
men gnyis la phag tshil byug/ skyer pa’i me la ngam nag song March 2019).
tsam bsreg. Tendzin Püntsok (2009: 588/20). Dr. Penpa
Tsering uses this specific method when processing lapis Blaikie, Calum. 2013. Currents of Tradition in Sowa Rigpa
lazuli for common formulas (e.g. Gawa 16, Khyunga Nyila). Pharmacy. East Asian Science, Technology and Society: An
The processed lapis can be kept in stock and used when International Journal 7(3): 426-451.
formulas are made. Precious pills are not made so often;
thus all the precious stones are processed together at the . 2015. Wish-fulfilling Jewel Pills: Tibetan Medicines
time, and the general method of dukdön is applied. from Exclusivity to Ubiquity. Anthropology & Medicine
22(1): 7-22.
51. Exceptions might be large-scale pharmacies in the PRC
that follow GMP-standardized practices. Briggs, Charles L. 1996. The Politics of Discursive Authority
in Research on the ‘Invention of Tradition.’ Cultural
52. This is beyond the scope of this paper but part of the Anthropology 11(4): 435-469.
author’s current FWF project at the University of Vienna.
Cardi, Francesca. 2005-2006. Principles and Methods of
53. For use in medicines the seeds of myrobalan fruits are Assembling Tibetan Medicaments. The Tibet Journal XXX &
removed, which is very work-intensive. For processing XXXI(4 & 1): 91-108.
this is not necessary, and the entire myrobalan fruit can be
used (Personal communication, Dr. Choelothar, Czaja, Olaf. in preparation. Rethinking the Base of Tibetan
March 2018). Drugs. A Study of Tibetan Pharmacology.

. 2013. On the History of Refining Mercury in Tibetan Post-Soviet Uzbekistan. China and Eurasia Forum Quarterly
Medicine. Asian Medicine 8(1): 75-105. 8(3): 129-148.
Dawa Ridak (Zla ba ri brag). 2003. Bod kyi gso ba rig pa las Hsu, Elisabeth. 2008. The History of Chinese Medicine in the
sman rdzas sbyor bz’i lag len gsang sgo ’byed pa’i lde mig. Delhi: People’s Republic of China and its Globalization. East Asian
Rig Drag Publications. Science, Technology and Society: An International Journal 2: 465-484.
Dodin, Thierry and Heinz Räther. 2001. Imagining Tibet: Janes, Craig R. and Casey Hilliard. 2008. Inventing
Perceptions, Projections, & Fantasies. Boston: Tradition: Tibetan Medicine in the Post-Socialist
Wisdom Publications. Contexts of China and Mongolia. In Tibetan Medicine in the
Contemporary World: Global Politics of Medical Knowledge and
Farquhar, Judith. 1994. Knowing Practice: The Clinical
Practice, edited by Laurent Pordié 35-61.
Encounter of Chinese Medicine. Boulder: Westview.
New York: Routledge.
Gerke, Barbara, and Florian Ploberger. 2017. Jewels in
Jansen, Jan, Sabine Luning, and Erik de Maaker, eds. 2009.
Medicines: On the Processing and Efficacy of Precious Pills
Traditions on the Move: Essays in Honour of Jarich Oosten.
According to the Four Treatises. In Buddhism and Medicine:
Amsterdam: Rozenberg Publishers.
An Anthology, edited by Pierce Salguero, 583-592. New York:
Columbia University Press. Kelden Nyima (Skal ldan nyi ma). 2010. Rin po che dang sa
rdo’i sman gyi ngos ’dzin gsal ston me long. Beijing: Mi rigs dpe
Gerke, Barbara, and Jan M. A. van der Valk. 2019.
skrun khang.
Introduction: Approaching Potent Substances in Medicine
and Ritual across Asia. HIMALAYA 39(1). Karmay, Samten. 1996. The Tibetan Cult of Mountain
Deities and its Political Significance. In Reflections of the
Gerke, Barbara. 2015. Biographies and Knowledge
Mountain. Essays on the History and Social Meaning of the
Transmission of Mercury Processing in Twentieth Century
Mountain Cult in Tibet and the Himalaya, edited by Anne-
Tibet. Asiatische Studien/Etudes Asiatiques 69(4): 867-899.
Marie Blondeau and Ernst Steinkeller. Wien: Verlag der
. 2017. Tibetan Precious Pills as Therapeutics Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften.
and Rejuvenating Longevity Tonics. History of Science in
Khazeni, Arash. 2014. Sky Blue Stone: The Turquoise Trade in
South Asia [Proceedings of AyurYog Workshop, Rejuvenation,
World History. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Longevity, Immortality. Perspectives on rasāyana, kāyakalpa and
bcud len practices, Vienna 2016] 5(2):204-233. Kloos, Stephan. 2011. Navigating ‘Modern Science’ and
‘Traditional Culture’: The Dharamsala Men-Tsee-Khang in
. 2018. The Signature of Recipes: Authorship,
India. In Medicine Between Science and Religion: Explorations on
Intertextuality and the Epistemic Genre of Tibetan
Tibetan Grounds, edited by Vincanne Adams, Mona Schrempf,
Formulas. Revue d’Etudes Tibétaines 45: 178-220.
and Sienna Radha Craig, 83-105. New York: Berghahn Books.
Gyatso, Janet. 2015. Being Human in a Buddhist World: An
. 2015. Impotent Knowledges: Preserving
Intellectual History of Medicine in Early Modern Tibet. New
‘Traditional’ Tibetan Medicine through Modern Science.
York: Columbia University Press.
In Fugitive Knowledges: The Preservation and Loss of Knowledge
Hashang Mahāyāna (Hwa shang ma hwa ya na) and in Cultural Contact Zones, edited by Andreas Beer and Gesa
Vairocana (Bai ro tsa na) (fl. ninth century CE?), transl. Mackenthun, 123-142. Münster & New York: Waxmann.
1994. Sman dpyad zla ba’i rgyal po. Dharamsala: Bod gzhung
. 2017. The Politics of Preservation and Loss: Tibetan
sman rtsis khang.
Medical Knowledge in Exile. East Asian Science, Technology
Hilgenberg, Luise, and Willibald Kirfel. 1941. Vāgbhata‘s and Society: An International Journal 11(2): 135-159.
Aṣṭāngahrdayasamhitā: Ein altindisches Lehrbuch der Heilkunde,
Kongtrül Yönten Gyatso (Kong sprul Yon tan rgya mtsho,
aus dem Sanskrit ins Deutsche uebertragen mit Einleitung,
1813-1899) et al. 2005. Gso rig zin tig yang tig. Beijing: Mi rigs
Anmerkungen und Indices. Leiden: Brill.
dpe skrun khang.
Hobsbawm, Eric, and Terence Ranger. 1983. The Invention
Lacey, Pippa. 2016. The Coral Network: The Trade of
of Tradition. Cambridge [Cambridgeshire]; New York:
Red Coral to the Qing Imperial Court in the Eighteenth
Cambridge University Press.
Century. In The Global Lives of Things: The Material Culture
Hohmann, Sophie. 2010. National Identity and Invented of Connections in the Early Modern World, edited by Anne
Tradition: The Rehabilitation of Traditional Medicine in Gerritsen and Giorgio Riello, 81-102. London,
New York: Routledge.
Langford, Jean M. 2002. Fluent Bodies: Ayurvedic Remedies Rechung Rinpoche. 1973. Tibetan Medicine. Illustrated in
for Postcolonial Imbalance. Durham and London: Duke Original Texts. London: Welcome Institute of the History
University Press. of Medicine.
Lozang Chödrak (Dar mo Sman rams pa Blo bzang chos Salvini, Mattia. 2016. Ratna: A Buddhist World of Precious
grags, 1638–1710). 1997. Bshad pa’i rgyud kyi le’u nyi shu Things. In Soulless Matter, Seats of Energy. Metals, Gems
pa sman gyi nus pa bstan pa’i tshig gi don gyi ’grel ba mes po’i and Minerals in South Asian Religions and Culture, edited by
dgongs rgyan. Lanzhou: Kan su’u mi rigs dpe skrun khang. Fabrizio Ferrari and Thomas Dähnhardt, 219-254. Sheffield
and Bristol: Equinox.
Martin, Emma 2014. Charles Bell’s Collection of ‘Curios’:
Sangyé Gyatso (Sde srid Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, 1653-
Negotiating Tibetan Material Culture on the Anglo-Tibetan
1705). 1982. Gso ba rig pa’i bstan bcos sman bla’i dgongs rgyan
Borderlands (1900-1945). Ph.D. Dissertation, Department
rgyud bzhi’i gsal byed bai dur sngon po’i ma lli ka. 2 vols. Lhasa:
of History of Art & Archaeology, University of
Bod ljongs mi dmangs dpe skrun khang.
London, London.
. 2010. A Mirror of Beryl: Historical Introduction to
McGrath, William. 2017. Vessel Examination in the Medicine
Tibetan Medicine. Translated by Gavin Kilty. Somerville, MA:
of the Moon King. In Buddhism and Medicine: An Anthology,
Wisdom Publications: In association with the Institute of
edited by Pierce Salguero, 501-513. New York: Columbia
Tibetan Classics.
University Press.
Scheid, Volker. 2002. Chinese Medicine in Contemporary China:
McKay, Alex. 2018. The View from the Palace: The Sikkim
Plurality and Synthesis. Durham: Duke University Press.
Royal Archives. Unpublished paper delivered at University
of Vienna, May 3, 2018. . 2007. Currents of Tradition in Chinese Medicine 1626–
2006. Seattle: Eastland.
Murthy, P. Himasagara Chandra. 2008. Rasaśāstra: The
Mercurial System. Vol. 49, Banaras Ayurveda Series. Varanasi: Schwabl, Herbert and van der Valk, Jan. 2019. Challenging
Chowkhamba Sanskrit Series Office. the Biomedical Notion of ‘Active Substance’: The Botanical
Plasticity of Tibetan Medical Formulas. HIMALAYA 39(1).
Nappi, Carla. 2009. The Monkey and the Inkpot: Natural History
and its Transformations in Early Modern China. Cambridge MA: Sehnalova, Anna. 2019. Medicinal Mandala: Potency in
Harvard University Press. Spatiality. HIMALAYA 39(1).
Neveling, Patrick, and Susanne Klien. 2010. Introduction: Simioli, Carmen. 2016. The ‘Brilliant Moon Theriac’ (Zla
Tradition within and beyond the Framework of Invention. zil dar ya kan): A Preliminary Study of Mercury Processing
In Tradition within and beyond the Framework of Invention: according to the Vase of Amrita of Immortality (’Chi med bdud
Case Studies from the Mascarenes and Japan, edited by Patrick rtsi bum pa) and its Influence on Tibetan Pharmacological
Neveling and Susanne Klien, 1-51. Halle-Wittenberg: Literature. Revue d’Etudes Tibétaines 37: 391-419.
Centre for Interdisciplinary Area Studies.
Smith, Pamela H. 2004. The Body of the Artisan: Art and
Nyima Tséring (Nyi ma tshe ring). 2009. Dngul chu btso Experience in the Scientific Revolution. Chicago: University
bkru chen mo’i lag len. Lhasa: Bod ljongs mi dmangs dpe of Chicago Press.
skrun khang.
. 2010. Vermilion, Mercury, Blood, and Lizards:
Polo, Marco, August Bürck, and Karl Friedrich Neumann. Matter and Meaning in Metalworking. In Materials
1845. Die Reisen des Venezianers Marco Polo im dreizehnten and Expertise in Early Modern Europe: Between Market and
Jahrhundert. Leipzig: Teubner. Laboratory, edited by Ursula Klein and Emma Spary, 29-49.
Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Ranger, Terence. 1993. The Invention of Tradition
Revisited: The Case of Colonial Africa. In Legitimacy and Sönam Döndrup (Bsod nams don grub) and Bod rang
the State in Twentieth Century Africa: Essays in Honour of A. skyong ljongs sman rtsis khang. 2006. Bod sman sbyor sde
H. M. Kirk-Greene, edited by Terence Ranger and Olufemi chen mo. Lhasa: Bod ljongs mi dmangs dpe skrun khang.
Vaughan, 62-111. Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire,
London: Macmillan Press. Souren Melikian-Chirvani, Assadullah. 2011. Iran to Tibet.
In Islam and Tibet—Interactions along the Musk Routes, edited
RDLM (Research Department Lhasa Mentsikhang), eds. by Anna Akasoy, Charles Burnett, and Ronit Yoeli-Tlalim.
1985. Gso rig snying bsdus skya rengs gsar pa. Lhasa: Bod Farnham: Ashgate.
ljongs mi dmangs dpe skrun khang.

Tendzin Püntsok (De’u dmar Dge bshes Bstan ’dzin phun
tshogs, b. 1672). 2009. Shel gong shel phreng. Dharamsala:
Men-Tsee-Khang.
Tidwell, Tawni, L. 2017. Imbibing the Text, Transforming the

Body, Perceiving the Patient: Cultivating Embodied Knowledge for
Tibetan Medical Diagnosis, Ph.D. Dissertation, Anthropology,
James T. Laney School of Graduate Studies of Emory
University, Atlanta.
Tidwell, Tawni L. and Nettles, James H. 2019. Conceptions

of Potency, Purity, and Synergy-by-Design: Toward devel-
oping a Sowa Rigpa Medical Theory-based Approach to
Pharmaceutical Research. HIMALAYA 39(1).
Troru Tsénam (Khro ru Tshe rnam, 1928-2004). 2011-2012.

Gangs dkar bdud rtsi’i khye’u bsdus las rin chen ril bu khag
gi sbyor thabs lag len. In Bod kyi gso rig kun btus, edited
by Otsang Tsokchen (O tshang tshogs chen) and Mtsho
sngon zhing chen bod kyi gso rig zhib ’jug gling gis bsgrigs,
677-731. Beijing: Mi rigs dpe skrun khang.
Walker-Watson, M. N. 1983. Turquoise - The Gemstone of

Tibet. Tibetan Review XVIII(6-7): 16-18.
Wujastyk, Dagmar. 2019. Iron Tonics: Tracing the

Development from Classical to Iatrochemical Formulations
in Ayurveda. HIMALAYA 39(1).
Yang Ga. 2010. The Sources for the Writing of the Rgyud bzhi,
Tibetan Medical Classic. Ph.D. Dissertation, Inner Asian and
Altaic Studies, Harvard University, Cambridge MA.
. 2019. A Preliminary Study on the Biography of

Yutok Yönten Gönpo the Elder: Reflections on the Origins
of Tibetan Medicine. In Knowledge and Context in the Tibetan
Medical Tradition. PIATS 2016: Tibetan Studies: Proceedings
of the Fourteenth Seminar of the International Association for
Tibetan Studies, Bergen, 2016, edited by William A. McGrath,
59-84. Leiden: Brill.
Yutok Yönten Gönpo (G.yu thog Yon tan mgon po). 1982.
Bdud rtsi snying po yan lag brgyad pa gsang ba man ngag gi
rgyud. Lhasa: Bod ljongs mi dmangs dpe skrun khang.
Zolla, Elémire, and Cristina Del Mare. 1997. Il corallo nella

gioielleria etnica della Mongolia (Coral and Mongolian Ethnic
Jewelry). Naples: Electa Napoli.
Zurkhar Nyamnyi Dorjé (Zur mkhar Mnyam nyid rdo rje,

1439-1475). 1993. Man ngag bye ba ring bsrel pod chung rab
’byams gsal ba’i sgron me. Lanzhou: Kan su’u mi rigs dpe
skrun khang.

Gerke Pildora - Preciosa Nov20 PDF

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Gerke Pildora - Preciosa Nov20 PDF

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Gerke Pildora - Preciosa Nov20 PDF

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

HIMALAYA, the Journal of the

Association for Nepal and

The Potency of Tradition: Turquoise, Coral, and

Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.macalester.edu/himalaya

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-

HIMALAYA Volume 39, Number 1 | 91

92 | HIMALAYA Spring 2019

HIMALAYA Volume 39, Number 1 | 93

94 | HIMALAYA Spring 2019

HIMALAYA Volume 39, Number 1 | 95

The contemporary PRC-based author Kelden Nyima pres-

They [rinpoché men] not only have the nüpa of cer-

96 | HIMALAYA Spring 2019

HIMALAYA Volume 39, Number 1 | 97

98 | HIMALAYA Spring 2019

Figure 2. Dr. Penpa Tsering

HIMALAYA Volume 39, Number 1 | 99

100 | HIMALAYA Spring 2019

HIMALAYA Volume 39, Number 1 | 101

I am aware that practitioners might not always articu-

102 | HIMALAYA Spring 2019

Zurkhar Nyamnyi Dorjé Kongtrül Yönten Gyatso Troru Tsénam

Fourteenth century Nineteenth century Twentieth century

(1993: 289/5-11) (2005: 99/5-13) (2011-12, vol. 57: 690/12-18, 691/1-5)

[Add] ldum bu re ral [a type of fern, [Add] a third of the

HIMALAYA Volume 39, Number 1 | 103

[sprinkle] the ash of cowry shells, [sprinkle] the ash of cowry

After a while, pour [everything] in the urine of

Then throw the medicinal liquid and wash

104 | HIMALAYA Spring 2019

12. In Tibetan, these are gser, dngul, zangs, lcags, g.yu, mu

HIMALAYA Volume 39, Number 1 | 105

44. In chapter 79 on powdered medicines (phye ma; References

HIMALAYA Volume 39, Number 1 | 107

HIMALAYA Volume 39, Number 1 | 109

Tidwell, Tawni, L. 2017. Imbibing the Text, Transforming the

Tidwell, Tawni L. and Nettles, James H. 2019. Conceptions

Troru Tsénam (Khro ru Tshe rnam, 1928-2004). 2011-2012.

Walker-Watson, M. N. 1983. Turquoise - The Gemstone of

Wujastyk, Dagmar. 2019. Iron Tonics: Tracing the

. 2019. A Preliminary Study on the Biography of

Zolla, Elémire, and Cristina Del Mare. 1997. Il corallo nella

Zurkhar Nyamnyi Dorjé (Zur mkhar Mnyam nyid rdo rje,

110 | HIMALAYA Spring 2019

You might also like