Garang Zhuoma, Zhaxi Gebai, Suonan Zhuoma, La Mejia, Luo Rizhun, Bai Bai, Lizhen Lame, Zhang Jingwen, Nhamdriel Tsedien, Jiangyong Silang, Zeweng Yongzhong, Mi Ma, Wang Zhang
College of Ethnomedicine, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, China.
School of Foreign Language and Literature, Southwest Minzu University, Chengdu, China.
Front Pharmacol. 2025 Sep 2;16:1595646. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2025.1595646. eCollection 2025.
In 2023, the classic work of Tibetan medicine, the , was successfully inscribed on the Memory of the World Register. The was also introduced to Tibet in the 10th century A.D. and translated into Tibetan. Although many scholars at home and abroad have shown interest in the historical exchange between the two texts, no quantitative and objective comparative research results have yet been published.
This study aims to reveal and compare the use of diets, medicinal materials and preparations as therapeutic means in the and the , and to explore their historical exchanges between these two traditional medical system.
① Data mining: Relevant information on diets, medicinal materials, and preparations was extracted from the and the , and entered into a Microsoft Excel 2010 table to establish the datasets, respectively. ② Statistical analysis: IBM SPSS statistics 27.0, SPSS Modeler 18.0 and Gephi 0.9.2 were used to analyze the contents of diets, medicinal materials, and preparations, such as frequency, association rules, and complex networks. ③ Comparative study: The Mann-Whitney test, a non-parametric method, and the intuitive comparison method were used to analyze the similarities and differences in terms of therapeutic means of diets, medicinal materials, and preparations documented in the and the .
① Foods: The document 153 kinds, categorized into five major types, mainly meat. The documents 392 types, categorized into six major types, mainly vegetables. There are 49 shared food types between the two texts. ② Drinks: The document 65 kinds, categorized into three major types. The documents 81 kinds, categorized into five major types (including more sugar cane- and sesame oil-based types), and includes South Asian specialty drinks such as yellow cow urine, camel urine, and elephant urine. Among them, 18 drink types are shared. ③ Medicinal materials: The document 1,115 species, mainly animal-based medicines, with 388 recorded efficacies classified into 17 disease types. The documents 762 species, mainly plant-based, with 40 recorded efficacies classified into 30 disease types. Among them, 227 medicinal materials are shared, with 21 overlapping recorded efficacies. ④ Preparations: The document 2,678 types, with combinations following the principle of "coolness in warmth, and warmth in coolness," reflecting Tibetan medical characteristics. The documents 2,240 types, commonly using pepper, ghee, and honey, embodying Ayurveda's principle of "combining food and medicine" and reflecting its characteristics approach to medication.
This study found both differences and commonalities in their therapeutic content. The both texts differ markedly in the total amount and classification of therapeutic content, with particularly striking differences in dietary types and sources of medicinal materials, reflecting the different ecological and cultural characteristics of the Tibetan Plateau and South Asia. At the same time, there is a partial overlap between the both texts, such as 9.9% of foods, 14.1% of drinks, and 13.8% of medicinal materials are shared, with a 48% similarity in their recorded efficacies. These findings provide an empirical basis for understanding the similarities and differences between Tibetan medicine and the Ayurvedic medical system, and open new perspectives for comparative studies of traditional medicine.
2023年，藏医学经典著作《四部医典》成功入选《世界记忆名录》。《四部医典》于公元10世纪传入西藏并被翻译成藏文。尽管国内外许多学者对这两部文献之间的历史交流表现出兴趣，但尚未发表定量和客观的比较研究成果。
本研究旨在揭示和比较《四部医典》和《阿育吠陀》中作为治疗手段的饮食、药材和制剂的使用情况，并探讨这两种传统医学体系之间的历史交流。
①数据挖掘：从《四部医典》和《阿育吠陀》中提取有关饮食、药材和制剂的相关信息，并分别录入Microsoft Excel 2010表格以建立数据集。②统计分析：使用IBM SPSS statistics 27.0、SPSS Modeler 18.0和Gephi 0.9.2分析饮食、药材和制剂的内容，如频率、关联规则和复杂网络。③比较研究：采用非参数方法曼-惠特尼检验和直观比较法分析《四部医典》和《阿育吠陀》中记载的饮食、药材和制剂治疗手段的异同。
①食物：《四部医典》记载了153种，分为五大类，主要是肉类。《阿育吠陀》记载了392种，分为六大类，主要是蔬菜。两部文献共有49种共享食物类型。②饮品：《四部医典》记载了65种，分为三大类。《阿育吠陀》记载了81种，分为五大类（包括更多以甘蔗和芝麻油为原料的类型），并包括黄牛尿、骆驼尿和象尿等南亚特色饮品。其中，有18种饮品类型是共享的。③药材：《四部医典》记载了1115种，主要是动物类药材，有388种记载的功效分为17种疾病类型。《阿育吠陀》记载了762种，主要是植物类药材，有40种记载的功效分为30种疾病类型。其中，共享227种药材，有21种功效重叠。④制剂：《四部医典》记载了2678种，其组合遵循“寒中求温，温中求寒”的原则，体现了藏医学特点。《阿育吠陀》记载了2240种，常用胡椒、酥油和蜂蜜，体现了阿育吠陀医学“食物与药物结合”的原则，反映了其独特的用药方法。
本研究发现它们在治疗内容上既有差异又有共性。两部文献在治疗内容的总量和分类上存在显著差异，在饮食类型和药材来源方面差异尤为明显，反映了青藏高原和南亚不同的生态和文化特征。同时，两部文献存在部分重叠，如9.9%的食物、14.1%的饮品和13.8%的药材是共享的，其记载的功效相似度为48%。这些发现为理解藏医学与阿育吠陀医学体系之间的异同提供了实证依据，并为传统医学的比较研究开辟了新的视角。
