Social and philosophical aspects of the Tibetan medicine (in the view of western researchers)

The social and philosophical aspects of the Tibetan medicine in the modern Western countries are considered in the article. Analyzing the process of the dissemination and development of this tradition in the West, the author comes to the following conclusions: firstly, spiritual and philosophical aspects make the Tibetan medicine unique which is consistently stated in terms of Buddhist philosophy and metaphysics. So, according to the Buddhist concept, the illness in the Tibetan medicine is considered as private expression of feature of existence - suffering, the reasons of which are the consequences of the acts made during the previous lives according to the law of karma. Secondly, there are two tendencies of reception of the Tibetan medicine in the West: 1) the practical use of definite methods of the Tibetan medicine. It is observed both in pharmacological researches and in production of medicinal preparations on the basis of the Tibetan formulas and their application. 2) The holistic approach to the Tibetan medical tradition as a part of Tibetan Buddhist culture. Such direction is inherent to psychologists who study the state of mind and mental condition of a person. Thirdly, the Tibetan medicine in the West is considered first of all as an additional and alternative type of treatment. The holistic and individual approaches, methods of diagnostics, natural pharmaceutical means, variety methods of treatment (massage, cauterization, ritual therapy etc.) attract the Western people.