Lineage and Legitimacy

Abstract

Chapter 2 presents a very different world of Tibetan medicine, operating in an urban Chinese context, within distinct governance structures and possibilities for efficacious practice. This chapter takes place at the Arura Group, a major Tibetan medical institution in Qinghai Province, China. Located in central Xining, Qinghai’s capital, Arura’s hospital serves a large and diverse patient base. In addition to clinical practice, Arura also runs a research institution, a Tibetan pharmaceutical factory, and a major cultural museum; Arura also supports the Tibetan Medical College within Qinghai’s medical school. In contrast with the single individuals fulfilling multiple social roles described in chapter 1, in chapter 2 one moves between departments within Arura, revealing distinct domains of expertise and professional jurisdiction. One witnesses translations across medical systems—Tibetan medicine, Chinese medicine, biomedicine—as well as a certain level of standardization of practice and greater economic investments in Tibetan medicine here than in a rural community in the Nepal Himalaya. Chapter 2 illustrates multiple levels of engagement between Tibetan medicine, the biomedical sciences, and commercial pharmaceutical production.