SHANG SHUNG INSTITUTE

International Institute for Tibetan Studies

School of Tibetan Medicine

FOR IMMEDIATE  RELEASE

AMHERST COLLEGE AND SHANG SHUNG INSTITUTE HOST HISTORIC U.S. TIBETAN MEDICINE SYMPOSIUM JUNE 14-15

Speakers include members of the America Tibetan Medical Association and visiting Tibetan physicians

Amherst, MA - This June, the Department of Asian Languages and Civilizations at Amherst College and Shang Shung Institute are honored to sponsor Tibetan Medicine in America, a historic symposium featuring speakers from the American Tibetan Medical Association (ATMA) and Tibetan doctors from around the world.

"It is important for the study and practice of Tibetan Medicine to have a stable foundation in American society. For that reason Shang Shung Institute’s school and ATMA were formed. SSI's role is to keep the lineage of the medicine alive, spread the knowledge and benefit people with it. In order for that to function, ATMA's role is to help establish regulations for new doctors and standards of education in the field so that it can be a protected practice in America. This symposium is a milestone for these aims in presenting this knowledge openly to the public and bringing Tibetan doctors who live in America together to discuss the future of its practice in this society. We are grateful that the Department of Asian Languages and Civilizations at Amherst College is generously supporting these important aims to preserve Tibetan culture for future generations." - Dr. Phuntsog Wangmo, president of the American Tibetan Medical Association and director of the Shang Shung Institute’s School of Tibetan Medicine

All symposium sessions are free and open to the public, and will be held at Amherst College, in Pruyne Hall, Fayerweather. Sponsors include the American Tibetan Medical Association; the Department of Asian Languages and Civilizations, the Dean’s Office, the Hamilton Fund, the President’s Office, and the Tagliabue Fund, Amherst College; and by the International Shang Shung Institute.

Scroll down or click here for symposium speakers schedule.

ABOUT THE SYMPOSIUM

Opening day will feature a keynote lecture by Chögyal Namkhai Norbu, the internationally renowned Tibetan scholar and former professor at the University of Naples, Italy who founded the International Shang Shung Institute. 

On Saturday the following speakers will lecture: 

Dr. Yang Ga will lecture on the history of Tibetan Medicine, one of the world’s oldest continuously practiced healing systems. Dr. Ga is an assistant professor of Tibetan medicine at the Tibetan Medical College in Lhasa. He is a Ph.D degree candidate at Harvard University and currently serves as a board member of the American Tibetan Medical Association.

Dr. Kunchok Gyaltsen will introduce the basic medical theory underlying Tibetan Medicine: better health results from a naturally balanced constitution. Dr. Gyaltsen is a doctoral student at the UCLA School of Public Health, an ordained Tibetan Buddhist monk, and is currently serving as a board member of the American Tibetan Medical Association.

Dr. Tenzin Darje and Dr. Phuntsog Wangmo will introduce Tibetan Medicine’s approach to preventive medicine with an emphasis on balancing the Western diet and lifestyle and present-day clinical practice. Dr. Darje is a professor at the Lhasa Medical School in Tibet. Dr. Wangmo is director of Shang Shung Institute’s 4-year Tibetan Medicine program and is currently serving as the president of the American Tibetan Medical Association.

Dr. Tenzin Dapka and Dr. Chimed Rabten will discuss the current situation of Tibetan medicine in Tibet, its country of origin, and  in India, which is now home to the largest school of Tibetan Medicine outside of Tibet. Dr. Dapka is a professor of Tibetan Medicine currently teaching at Shang Shung Insitute and a publisher. Dr. Rabten was a professor at Sichuan State Tibetan College in China, chief physician at the school’s affiliated medical center and is currently serving as a board member of the American Tibetan Medical Association.

On Sunday the following speakers will lecture:

Dr. Chodying Phuntsog, and Dr. Tashi Rabten will talk about the current situation of Tibetan Medicine in the United States focusing on legality, licensing, standards and preservation of Tibetan Medicine through its practice in the United States. Dr. Phuntsog is a former faculty member and director of the pharmacy at the Tibetan Medical and Astrological Institute in Dharamsala, India. Dr. Rabten is a graduate from the Tibetan Medical School in Lhasa, the president of the International Tibetan Medical Association, and founder of the Tibetan Green Health Center in New York.

SPEAKERS SCHEDULE

FRIDAY, JUNE 13

Pruyne Hall, Fayerweather, Amherst College

4:30 | Chögyal Namkhai Norbu

Welcoming remarks by Professor Paola Zamperini, Department of Asian Languages and Civilizations, Amherst College 

Opening remarks, Dr. Phuntsog Wangmo

Keynote lecture by Chögyal Namkhai Norbu

SATURDAY, JUNE 14

Pruyne Hall, Fayerweather.

9 - 10:30 AM | Dr. Yang Ga

The Historic Roots of Medical Knowledge in Tibet

10:45 AM - 12:15 PM | Dr. Kunchok Gyaltsen

Understanding the Basis of the Tibetan Healing Science

2 - 3:30 PM | Dr. Tenzin Darje and Dr. Phuntsog Wangmo

Preventative Measures and Practical Applications of Tibetan Medicine

3:45 – 5:00  |  Dr. Tenzin Dakpa and Dr. Chimed Rabtan 

Modern Day Study and Practice of Tibetan Medicine in Tibet and India

SUNDAY, JUNE 15

Pruyne Hall, Fayerweather, Amherst College

9 - 10:30 AM | Dr. Chodying Phuntsog and Tashi Rabten

Tibetan Medicine in America

10:45 AM - Noon | Concluding Remarks

Dr. Yang Ga, Dr. Kunchok Gyaltsen, Dr. Tenzin Darje, Dr. Chodying Phuntsog and Tashi Rabten

Moderators: Dr. Phuntsog Wangmo and Professor Paola Zamperini, Department of Asian Languages and Civilizations, Amherst College

ABOUT TIBETAN MEDICINE

Regarded as science, art and philosophy, Tibetan medicine is an ancient form of holistic heath care indigenous to the Tibetan people that integrates the core Buddhist principles of altruism, karma and ethics. Originating from early indigenous Tibetan society, traditional Tibetan medicine evolved into a synthesis of thousands of years of accumulated empirical knowledge from China, Persia, India and Greece.  It has been practiced continuously in Tibet and is now practiced today wherever Tibetans live in exile.

ABOUT CHöGYAL NAMKAI NORBU

An internationally renowned Tibetan scholar and the founder of the Shang Shung Institute for Tibetan Studies, Namkhai Norbu has lived in the west since 1960, when he went to Italy at the invitation of Professor Giuseppe Tucci, as a staff member of the Institute for Middle and Far Eastern Studies of Rome (today ISIAO). He was Professor of Tibetan and Mongolian Language and Literature from 1964 to 1992 at the Oriental Institute of the University of Naples. A leading authority on Tibetan civilization, particularly expert in the fields of history, literature, and medical and astrological science, Chögyal Namkhai Norbu is widely known for his innovative and ground-breaking scholarship.

SPONSORS

ABOUT ATMA

The American Tibetan Medical Association (ATMA) is dedicated to the promotion and preservation of Tibetan Medicine and is a national organization representing the Tibetan Medical profession in The United States of America..

ABOUT THE DEPARTMENT OF ASIAN LANGUAGES AND CIVILIZATIONS, AMHERST COLLEGE

Asian Languages and Civilizations promotes an interdisciplinary exploration of the histories and cultures of the peoples of Asia. Through a systematic study of the languages, societies, and cultures of the major civilizations that stretch from the Arab World to Japan, this department aims at expanding knowledge and challenging presuppositions about this large and vital part of the world. Students in this discipline learn about cultural difference and its social and political implications, both within Asia and between Asia and the West.

ABOUT THE INTERNATIONAL SHANG SHUNG INSTITUTE

The International Shang Shung Institute was founded in Italy in 1989 by Chögyal Namkhai Norbu, and inaugurated in 1990 by His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama. It's aim is to deepen the knowledge and understanding of Tibetan cultural traditions in order to ensure their survival and preservation. The International Institute currently has three main branches, located in Italy, Austria, and the USA, which work together as one to promote all initiatives to this end.

The American branch, Founded at Tsegyalgar in 1994 by Chögyal Namkai Norbu, currently offers the only full-time, four-year Traditional Tibetan Medicine certification program in the West.  The program follows a recent revival of Traditional Tibetan Medicine in the East and marks one of the most significant advances for its preservation and practice in the West.

The first-of-its kind in English, the innovative program is attracting a new generation of medical students interested in the integration of ancient healing systems with modern medicine. The institute is currently on the path of becoming the first fully accredited school of Traditional Tibetan Medicine in the West.

Under the direction of Dr. Wangmo, the four-year program closely parallels traditional training rooted in the Gyud Zhi, the fundamental text of Traditional Tibetan Medicine, better known as The Four Tantras in English.  The ancient Tantras classify an amazing 1600 types of disease and corresponding treatments using more than 3,000 medicinal plants.

# # #