Asian Medicine

The folk medicine of the Mongolian peoples is a generally understudied phenomenon, occasionally considered by scholars in the context of ethnographic, historical and sociological problems. Such aspect of folk medicine as healing methods and medicines is no exception.
In this paper, the authors set the objective to present the most comprehensive survey of medicines of animal origin and healing methods used by Central Asian nomads. Analyzing the health of the indigenous population of Siberia and Central Asia, such as Yakuts, Evenks and Buryats scholars and travelers of the past (J. Georgi, M. Bogdanov, G. M. Osokin, V. L. Seroshevsky) arrive at a conclusion that the population of the region was generally healthy. The most typical diseases, such as fever, gastrointestinal diseases, ocular diseases
(cataract), and rheumatism were mostly caused by the specific features of economic activity, specificities of everyday life and food ration. Geographical and climatic features of the region also contributed to preservation of good health of the local population. The conditions conducive to the preservation of good health are, undoubtedly, supplemented by the traditional nutrition complex of the Mongolian peoples. For instance, dairy food was widely used in the folk medicine. It also formed a considerable part of the Mongolian ration. Aarsa – a nutritious tasty milk beverage, a product of further distilling of arkhi, the milk alcohol, considered a highly useful medicine for gastrointestinal disorders and was believed to help strengthen the skeletal system of a man. Exceptional therapeutic qualities of mare’s milk were long known
to Turks and Mongols since times immemorial. Since meat dishes were the kernel of the nomadic ration, medicines of animal origin occupied the central positions in folk medicine. It was, first of all, meat of the most valued and respected cattle – sheep and horses. Meat of practically all wild animals, birds, some reptiles and fishes considered medicinal. Besides meat blood, fat, hides, wool and horns of animals used in this or that way. Of special interest is such an effective ancient healing method as placing a patient into a raw animal hide, which used even nowadays. The efficiency of some healing methods of nomads confirmed by modern medical studies.

Ethnopharmacological relevance: Geological materials, such as minerals, have a long history of usage as ingredients in multicompound formulations of Himalayan Sowa Rigpa medicine – as well as in its localized form of Bhutanese traditional medicine (BTM) – for treating various disorders for over thousand years. Yet, hardly any scientific research has been done on their ethnopharmacological efficacy and chemistry.
Aim of the study: This study documents and correlates the rarely explored ethnopharmacological and chemical identification of various minerals and their ethnomedicinal uses in BTM formulations for the first time.
Material and methods: A five stage cross-disciplinary process was conducted as follows: (1) a review of classical literature of Sowa Rigpa texts (Tibetan medical texts, pharmacopoeias and formularies) that are still in use today; (2) listing of mineral ingredients according to Sowa Rigpa names, followed by identification with common English and chemical names, as well as re-translating their ethnomedical uses; (3) cross-checking the chemical names and chemical composition of identified Sowa Rigpa minerals with various geological mineral databases and mineral handbooks; (4) authentication and standardization of Sowa Rigpa names through open forum discussion
with diverse BTM practitioners; (5) further confirmation of the chemical names of identified minerals by consulting different experts and pharmacognosists.
Results: Our current study lists 120 minerals as described in Sowa Rigpa medical textbooks most of which we were able to chemically identify, and of which 28 are currently used in BTM herbo-mineral formulations. Out of these 28 mineral ingredients, 5 originate from precious metal and stone, 10 stem from earth, mud and rocks, 8 are salts, and 5 concern ‘essences’ and exudates.
Conclusions: Our study identified 120 mineral ingredients described in Sowa Rigpa medical textbooks, out of which 28 are currently used. They are crucial in formulating 108 multicompound prescription medicines in BTM presently in use for treating more than 135 biomedically defined ailments.

"Contents
- Meulenbeld / Reflections on the basic concepts of Indian pharmacology 1
- Das / On the identification of a Vedic plant 17
- Comba / Carakasamhita Sarirasthana I and Vaisesika philosophy 39
- Emmerick / Epilepsy according to the Rgyud-bzi 57
- Winder / Vaidurya 85
- Rosu / Les carres magiques dans la medecine indienne 95
- Laping / On Madhavacikitsita 105
- Patterson / Indian and European practitioners of medicine from the sixteenth century 111
- Wujastyk / "A pious fraud": The Indian claims for pre-Jennerian smallpox vaccination 121
- Ernst / The establishment of "Native Lunatic Asylums" in early nineteenth-century British India 155
- Labadie and De Silva / Centella asiatica (L.) Urban in perspective: an evaluative account 191
- von Schmaedel and Hochkirken / The results of an analysis based on a video of consultations in five ayurvedic medical practices 207
- Carstairs / Contrasting treatment of witches in three communities in Mewar 215
- Laping / Dialogue in research on traditional Indian medicine 219 "