Name of Element: Tibetan Medicine (Lum Medicinal Bathing of Sowa Rigpa)

Date of Inclusion: June 2008

Serial No.: 448

Category No.: IX-9

Nominated by: Qinghai Tibetan Medical Hospital

Competent body responsible for local safeguarding: Qinghai Tibetan Medical Hospital

Description:

The Lum Medicinal Bathing of Sowa Rigpa consists of the traditional knowledge and practices concerning life, health and illness prevention and treatment. It has been developed by Tibetan people under extremely cold and oxygen-poor living conditions. The element has been transmitted from generation to generation in the relevant communities inhabited in Xining, Tsoshar, Tsolho, Malho, Tsojang, Yulshul and Golog in Qinghai Province.

The element is practiced in two ways: one is bathing in Five Types of Hot Springs, the other is bathing with Five Medicinal Nectars. The bathing helps to relax meridians and collaterals, promote blood circulation, remove blood stasis, and dispel wind and eliminate dampness from the body. It is good for treating rheumatism, rheumatoid arthritis, and skin disease.

The element is characterized by local and ethnic practices. Its compounding formula, diagnosis prior to taking bath, and synthetical treatments have been developed under the guidance of the epistemology of Tibetan medical theories. The medicinal herbs used for Lum bathing all come from local plants growing in the ecological environment of the Qinghai plateau. The procedures and methods of Lum bathing, the selection of climates and seasons, and the nursing knowledge and skills associated herewith reflect the humanistic tradition adhered by the Tibetan people. In the process of bathing, a synthetical application of Tibetan medical pharmacology, Tibetan medical diagnosis, and Tibetan medical nursing knowledge is required. The element has been playing a significant role in ensuring life, health, illness prevention and treatment for the agricultural and pastoral communities and urban residents.