Practices & Therapies
External therapies, diagnostic methods, and healing practices of Tibetan medicine — pulse reading, urine analysis, moxibustion, golden needle therapy, medicinal baths, and Ku Nye massage.
Bloodletting
The most intensive of Sowa Rigpa's external therapies, bloodletting involves controlled venesection at specific points to remove pathogenic blood (khrag-ngan) from the body. Reserved for heat-dominant and blood-toxicity conditions that have not responded to less invasive treatments.
Compresses
The application of heated or cooled medicinal substances wrapped in cloth to specific body areas, delivering targeted therapeutic action through a combination of temperature, pressure, and transdermal absorption of herbal compounds.
Cupping
The Tibetan practice of applying heated horn or copper cups to the skin to create suction, drawing stagnant blood and pathogenic factors to the surface for removal. Me-bum addresses blood stagnation patterns and complements the channel-focused work of Ku Nye and moxibustion.
Golden Needle Therapy
A specialized Sowa Rigpa therapy using heated gold needles applied to the skin surface at specific points to conduct therapeutic warmth deep into the rtsa (energy channels), particularly for rlung (wind) disorders resistant to massage and moxibustion.
Interrogation
Systematic questioning of the patient about symptoms, diet, lifestyle, emotional state, the diagnostic method that reveals the subjective experience and behavioral causes that physical examination cannot detect.
Ku Nye Massage
The primary external therapy of Sowa Rigpa, Ku Nye is a comprehensive Tibetan healing massage system that combines herbal oil application, deep tissue manipulation, and energy channel work to restore balance among the three nyes pa (rlung, mkhris pa, and bad kan).
Medicinal Baths
Therapeutic immersion in water infused with specific medicinal herbs, minerals, or hot springs, used to treat skin conditions, joint disorders, and systemic toxicity by delivering therapeutic substances through the skin while simultaneously addressing the nyes pa imbalance through temperature and herbal action.
Moxibustion
The therapeutic application of burning Artemisia cones on specific body points to generate deep, penetrating heat that disperses cold-natured disorders and restores the flow of rlung through blocked channels.
Pulse Reading
The primary diagnostic art in Sowa Rigpa, where the physician reads radial pulses at two depths across three finger positions on each wrist, mapping 12 organ systems and identifying nyes pa imbalances before symptoms appear.
Tongue Diagnosis
Examination of the tongue's color, coating, moisture, and texture to reveal the current state of nyes pa balance, digestive function, a fast-responding visual indicator that complements pulse and urine findings.
Urine Analysis
Tibetan medicine's most distinctive diagnostic method, examining nine characteristics of morning urine across three temperature stages to determine the hot or cold nature of disease and identify specific nyes pa imbalances.
Visual Observation
The systematic visual examination of the patient's eyes, complexion, skin, nails, and body form to identify nyes pa patterns, a diagnostic method that begins the moment the patient enters the room.