A Brief Account of Full and Clear Annotations on Eighty Pieces of Colour

Hanging Paintings for Illustrating Four---Volume Medical Tantras
Byamba Chilai(Jham--pa Tri-ley)
Hospital of Traditional Tibetan Medicine of Tibet Autonomous Region

Traditional Tibetan medicine is one of China's excellent medicines with a long history and substantial content.According to documents' records,it has a history of more than 2000 years, and made great contributions to the existence,growth,multiplying and the production's development of the Tibetan ethnic group living on the"roof of the world ".Especially during the reign of King Khri-srong-lde-btsan(755-797), traditional Tibetan medicine and pharmacology achieved unprecedented progress,at the same time,Yutok Yonten Gonpo(708-833),the originator of traditional Tibetan medicine an pharmacology,compiled Foue-Volume Medical Tantras(Rg yud-bzi)on the basis of collecting earlier Tibetan medical knoulege and assimilating essences of medicines in different places;the monumental work was the earliest source of the 80 pieces of tangkas (colour hanging paintings).Serial Hanging Paintings(Tangkas)for Illustrating Four-Volme Medical Tantras,with the form of a series of colour hanging paintings and closely coordinating the concrete expounding in the 156 chapters in Four-Volume Medical Tantras, systematically illustrate basic theories of traditional Tibetan medicine and pharmacology,human body's anatomic structure and physiological functions,causes of diseases,pathologies and symptoms, diagnosing methods and therapeutic principles, etc.These Tangka paintings with lively pictures made carefully are rich and varied in content.However, so far there is no any motes in explanation of these hanging paintings, many doctors can not understand the contents of these paintings, sok,the book of Full and Clear Annotations on the 80 pieces of Hanging Paintings for Illustrating Four-Volume Medical Tantras has been compiled,which explains the prefound in simple terms and is easy to understand.With its help,content of each chapter in Four-Volume Medical Tantras will be as clear as a diaphanous fruit of phyllanthus emblica in the palm to the researchers.It is not only unique in China's medical history but aslo seldom seen in medical history of the world to imtroduce medical and hygienical scientific theories and practical skills with a vast accumulation of picture scrolls.Serial Hanging Paintings(Tangkas)for Illustrating Four-Volume Medical Tantras are both treasures in the Tibetan ethnic cultural treasure-house and gems in the motherland's medical treasure-house.
The finalized Four-Volume Medical Tantras is divided into four parts: Part One is entitled Rtsa-rgyud,or a general survey of medicine,it is composed of six chapters;Part two is entialed Shad-rgyud,or expositions ,including 31 chapters in total,dealing willh anatomy,physiology,causes of disdeases,pathology,diet,daiy life,pharmaceuticals,medical appliances,diagnosing methods and therapeutic principles respectively; part Three is entitled Men-ngag-rgyud,or keys to successes in clinical practice,which includes 92 chapters expounding symptoms,diagnoses and thrapeutic metods of medical,surgical,gynaecological,paediatric,and ENT diseasesr espectively;Part Four is entitled Chima-rgyud,or follow-up section,which includs 25 chapters mainly giving acunts of the making up and usage of various pharmaceuticals besides adding the diagnoses by feeling the pulse and observing urine,and therapies of bloodletting and moxibustion, in addition,there are 2 supplemented chapters after the 25 chapters,one is a summing-up,the other is a chapter on philanthropic deeds;thus Part Four is composed of 27 chapters in total.The work of four-Volume Medical Tantras expounds all of the content of traditional Tibetan Medicine and pharmacology through the mutual questioning and answering by the Buddha of Medicine and his five incarnations.
With the spreading of Four-Volume Medical Tantras, some physicians often gave lectures with paintings an auxiliary means. In the 12th century, Yutok Sarma Yonten Gonpo,who had the reputation of "deity of medicine in man's world",had personally drawn paintings depicting how toset a broken bone when he passed on the knowledge in Four-Volume Medical Tantras,in addition,he had cpmpiled A Set of Anatomic Pictures of Internal Organs.In the 13th century,the famous physician of the Sakya local regime Chamdi Bandantsorje,who was of great attainments in painting pictures of anatomy and pharmaceuticals,had compiled A Bright Lamp for Studying Anatomy and Blueprint of Medicines.After the 14th century,Tibetan medicine's Southern and Northern schools was gradually evolved;the Southern school was skilled in depicting pharmaceucals while the Northern school was good at figures'depiction.The large number's pictures of pharmaceuticals and medical hanging paintings drawn by physicians of different schools for passing on Four-Volume Medical Tantras laid a solid foundation for the coming into being of Serial Hanging Paintings (Tangkas)for Illustrating Four-Volume Medical Tantras.
In the 17th century,directed by Ddesrid Sangye Gyatso personally, all of the famous physicians,pharmacologists and painters in different areas of tibet were convended together, and finally a set of Serial Hanging Paintings(Tangkas)for illustrating Four-Volume Medical Tantras including 60 pieces of paintings draferd by Lodra Norbugyatso and coloured by Heipa Dgenie were completed in 1688,which took the paintings for teaching Four-Volume Medical Tantras drawn by lhunding Dudtsi jigmtd, a famous plysician of the Northern shool,as the foundation,necessary supplements were made according to various school' s drafts.Afterwards,according to the medical treatise Yue Wang Yao Zhen and other Tibetan medical classics,several paintings on the diagnosis of observing the urine and pictures illustrating the moxibustion points were supplemented,in addition,some paintings of Tibetan medicinal herbs were addea thus making the number of this set of hanging paitings increased to 79 pieces,together with the painting of the famous physicians of successive dynasties,this set of paintings were composed of 80 pieces of Tangkas(colour hanging paintings),which were the standard original paintings of the existing Serial Hanging Paintings for illustrating Four-Volume Medical Tantras.
As to the purpose to compile such a set of hanging paintings,Desrid Sangye Gyatso mentioned in History of Traditional Tibetan Medicine written by him:In order to make Four-Volume Medical Tantras easy to understand both forscholars of great learning and for apupil ,"we began to compile a set of paintings.With the help of these paintings,the content of each chapter in Four-Volume Medical will be as clear as a diaphanous fruit of phyllathus emblica in the palm for the researchers and learmers."
This set of Tangka paintings can be divided into four groups.The first group includes 4pieces of paintings,which illustrate the content of Part One of Four-Volume Medical Tantras(A General Survey of Medicine );the second group includes 35 pieces of paitings,which illustrate the content of part Two (Expositions);the third group includes 16 pieces of paintings, which illustrate dthe content of Part Three (Keys to Successes in clinical practice);and the fourth group includes 24 pieces of paintings, which illustrate the content of Part Four(Following-up Section);apart from the 79 pieces of Tangka paintings there is a piece of painting of famous physiciaus of the successive dynasties which is the 80th piece Tangk.
Serial Hanging paitings for illustrating Four-Volume Medical Tantras authentically reflect the contents of Four-Volume Medical Tantras and illustrate traditional Tibetan medicat system that came into being more than 1000 years ago and reached quite high level as a scientific system then.For example,in anatomic aspect, the set of paintings carefully depict skeleton structure of human body holding that there are 360 pieces of bones, 24 pieces of ribs and 32 teeth in human body.(See Paintings 11,12)As to internal organs,the five vital organs of heart, liver,spleen,lungs and kidneys,and the six hollow organs of stomach, duodenum(lun),intestines,gallbladder,bladder and samsieu(testis and ouary)are all depicted in this set of paintings.In the paintings, blood vessels are marked"black veins" including Ru-ma(artery)that can pulsate and Jiang-ma(vein)that do not pulsate.Nerves in these paintings are marked "white veins"including two kinds that control people's sense perception and human boby'smovement respectively.It was quite terrific to have such an understanding of nerves more than 1000 yars ago although the description the number and distribution of nerves was not exact.(See painting 15)
In physiological aspect,this set of hanging paintings depict in detail embryo's growth, pointing pointing out that when a couple have aexual interxourse the male's semina enter the female's womb and mix her menses blood,thus,she will be impregnated,the pregnancy will last for 38 weeks.The discriptions in these paintings of childbirth are relatively close to those by modern medicine.The description 38 weeks' pregnancy is quite correct.At the same time the descriptions of the order of fish,turtle and pig periods in the growing course of a embryo coincide whith the order of human kind's evolution of vertebrae amimal from the class of fish through reptile to mammals so these figures of speech used at the time of more than 1000 years ago were quite scientific and proper.These paintings also applied metaphors to describe the physiological functions of human body.For example,the heart was metaphored as the king while lungs were metaphored as ministers,"If ministers get killed,it would cause the king's passing away too"means "The stop of one's breathing will lead to the cease of his heart's pulsation";the metaphors with rice cooker for stomach,with water pitcher for bladder,with treasure-house for testis or ovary,etc. are all quite reasonable,though they can not expound functions of various organs perfectly.(See Painting 8)
In the aspect of basic theories, these paintings describe th three mauor elements,seven kinds of substances and three excrements,holding that all o them are the material basis for maitaining one's life. Among the three major elements, rlung means vital energy gathering in brains, heart,lungs and bones,it controls one's breathing,the circulatory system,sense perception and movements;mkhris-pa means fire scattering in the liver and blood with functions to promote digestion, assimilation,and the produce of heat energy and wisdom;badkan means water and earth,which exist in one's spleen, stommach and bladder, with functions of adjusting digestion and water supersession,it can influence people's bodyweight and disposition.The seven kinds of substances include chyle, blood,flesh,fat,bones,marrow and seminal fluid,all of these substances,under the action of heat energy produced by mkhris-pa,can gradually becone"essence of life"that scatters in the whole of human body and makes one to grow up and keep in good health. The three excrements include faeces,urine and sweat,through which the waste material in human body can be drained off.
rLung, mkhris-pa and badkan are used both to explain physiological functions and to distinguish the types of people.According to physique, colour of skin,and characteristics of disposition,people can be divided into the types of rlung,mkhris-pa, badkan and of various miztures respectively.People of rlung type have slim physique,darker skun and lively disposition;they are sentimental,have strong sexual desire and are fond of recreational activities.People of mkhris-pa type have moderate physique,yellowish skin and impetuous disposition;they are bright,capable,but also often jealous of others' achievements and fond of fighting.People of badkan type have big and tall physique, white and smooth skin and gentle disposition;they are steady in bearing,gentle and refined, and always have a good idea of how things stand.(See Painting 18)These hanging paintings tell us the internal causes leading to diseases are dedcided by people's type and age, and the external causes are the changes of seasons,climate, environment,daily life and diet.Any imbalance among the three major elements, seven kinds of substances and dthree excrements can lead to diseasses.
These hanging paintings give us exquisite descriptions of various diseases symptoms;the descriptions of the causes of diseases such as dropsy,pulmonary emphysema,prolapse of the anus,haemorrhoids,anthrax, snow blindness, etc.are quite scientific even according to today's standards.These hanging paintings show that traditional Tibetan physicians mainly rely on the methods of diagnosis through intrrdogation,inspection of the patient's complexion,tongue,expression ,behaviour, etc.,and pallkpation.Special attention was paid to the quality of and coating on the tongue and dthe colour and smell of urine and the foam,sediment or float in the urine in observation.(See Paiting 65)Diagnosis by feeling the pulse is important in palpation,pulse conditions are different in different diseases.Febrile pulseconditions include six kinds:fast pulse, full pulse,hesitant pulse,wiry pulse, slippery pulse and hard pulse;while pulse conditions as symptoms caused by cold factors also include six kinds:deep pulse(which can be felt only by pressing hard),retarded pulse (less than 60 beats per minute), weak pulse, thready pulse,floating pulse and feeble pulse.(See Painting 62)
According to the descriptions by these hanging paintings,methods for curing diseases in traditional Tibetan medicine can be divided into two kinds:taking medidcine orally and external treatments.The former depends on taking pharmaceuticals of various forms such as pill,powder, electuary or liquid drugs(See Painting 69)while the latter inalude massage,moxibustion,cupping,hot compres,cold bath,meddicinal bath,hot spring bath,eye,drops,nasal and auriculjar dripping,rubbing,famigation enema,catheterization,puncture,bloodletting,etc.(See Paintings 71,72, 73)The development of extenal treatments have promoted the manufacture of medical appliances.These hanging paintings show us almost 100 pieces of medical appliances in ancient times.(See Painting 36)
In the aspect of meddicines,Four-Volume Medical Tantras redcords more than 900 kinds of medicines, of which two fith are made from animals, tow fifth from plants,and one fifth from minerals.The descrikptions of conch, annonite,Chinese blister,bear's bile,musk,bezoar,the bulb of fritillary, the rhizome of Chinese goldthread,peacock's feather, saline cistanche,arisaema consanguineum,etc.are really true to life.(See Painting 31)These dpaintings also describe 119 kindsmedicinal herbs that are special products of Tibet such as dellpphinium ajacis, saxifraga stolonifera, Himalayan purple jasmine,etc.which add new gems into the treasure-hlouse of the motherland's medicine and pharmacology. (See Painting29)
As to the the guiding principles in medical treatment,these paintings reflect that traditional Tibetan medicine not only pays much attention to making a diagnosis and giving treatment,but also stresses paying attention to the adjustment of daily life and diet,advocates to build up a good physique through physical training,keep sanitation and hygiene,and prevent diseases.Through these paintings people can know theproperties and nutrition value of various food.In addition,dietetic hygient is also specially emphasized.(See Painting 24)Traditional Tibetan medicine pays special attention to maternity and child hygiene, does not evade to disdcuss sex,stresses hygiene in menstrual period, and points out theat in pregnancy, natural albour and dystoria,skills for deliver a child and taking a good care after chldbirth.(See Painting 47,48)
Being limited by the times and because of the influence of the religious thought,there are also somedrosses,such as attributing some diseases to the haunts of ghosts and monsters,holding that chanting scriptues and driving out monsters of all kind are necessary before medical treatment is undertaken.However,one flaw acnnot obscure the splendour of the uade, the defects cannot obscure the virtues.Four- Volume Medical Tantras and Serial Hanging Paintings for illustrating Four-Volume Medical Tantras are still the essences among the theoretical works of traditional Tibetan medicine, meanwhile, they are also the most outstanding medical classics of an ethnic minority among the theoretical medical works of China.
In short,justas everything in the world is of dual nature, Four- Volume Medical Tantras and Serial Hanging Painting for illustrating Four-Volume Medical Tantras were compiled in the form of questioning and answering among the Buddha of Medicine and his five incarnations from the beginning to the end, but in fact the questioning and answering were carried out between Yutok Sarma Yonten Gonpo and his student Sondon Yeshes, and the real author of Four-Volume Medical Tantras(Rgyud-bzi)was Yutok Yonten Gonpo, the personal doctor of a Tibetan king ,Khri-sorong-lde-btsan.Born in 708, Yutok Yonten Gonpo is revered in Tibet as the forerunner of the traditional Tibetan medicine and pharmacology.
With the aim that traditional Tibdetan medicine and pharmacology can achieve a further carrying on and development in the 21st century,we have to closely grasp the great opportunity that today's China has entered times of peace and prosperity and work hard according to the principles of making the past serve the present and foreign things serve China, and weeding through the old to bing the new,so as to make our cause to have a clear conscience towards ancestral creations and the 21st century.