January 31, 2017

The Bhutan Foundation is pleased sign a two-year project agreement with the Faculty of Traditional Medicine under the Khesar Gyalpo University of Medical Sciences of Bhutan (KGUMSB) for the establishment of a Medicinal Herb Garden and Tanadugphodrang (Paradise of Medicinal Buddha) at the institute in Thimphu.

The establishment of a Medicinal Herb Garden at the institute will greatly address the difficulty of students  and the faculty to travel to remote highlands of the country to study about medicinal plants. The garden, besides enabling daily access to student learning and training based on bSo-rig pharmacopoeia, will also house over 100 rare and threatened medicinal plant species. The project puts a special focus on conservation and sustainability of the rare and threatened medicinal plant species.

The other part of the project is the establishment of a Tanadugphodrang based on bSowa Rigpa, the Traditional Bhutanese Medicine text. In the Buddhist traditional texts, the Tanadugphodrang is the paradise in which the Buddha identified different medicinal plants in the four directions. The establishment of a physical Tanadugphodrang will enable students to practically learn and understand the origin and diversity of traditional medicine. The establishment of Tanadugphodrang will be first and one of its kind in Bhutan.

About the Faculty of Traditional Medicine:

The Faculty of Traditional Medicine (FoTM) was established in 1968 under the visionary leadership of His Majesty Jigme Dorji Wangchuck, the third king of Bhutan. This was initiated not only to provide holistic healthcare to the people of Bhutan but more importantly to preserve and promote the traditional system of health care in the country. Today, FoTM is the only training institute that offers education in gSo-ba Rig-pa, the Traditional Bhutanese Medicine.

The Bhutan Foundation extends its best wishes to the Faculty of Traditional Medicine to achieving the goals of the project.