Ancient techniques

Apart from herbal medicine and prayer, Tibetan medicine has other distinctive methods of diagnosing and treating diseases. These include bloodletting and examining patients' urine samples, techniques that people unfamiliar with Tibetan culture find mystifying.

By visually examining the color, smell, bubbles and sediments in a urine sample, an experienced Tibetan doctor can tell what kind of disease the patient is suffering from, and placing the urine in different metal containers can also help finalize the diagnosis.

According to Rgyud-bzhi (Four Tibetan Medical Tantras), the most famous classics to record ancient Tibetan medical theory, there are 77 acupuncture points on the human body conducive to treatment through bloodletting.

"Tibetan medicine is more than just a way to cure disease. It also represents the Tibetan culture and belief system," Lexinjake, an official at the Qinghai Tibetan Culture Museum, told the Global Times yesterday.

As Tibetan doctors believe that the human body is connected to the natural environment, they need to calculate the best time to feel the pulse and collect herbs for making medicine in the correct seasons in order to achieve the best treatment.