Mongolian buddhist scholars’ works on infectious diseases (Late 17th century to the beginning of the 20th century)

Abstract

The Qing period saw both the flowering of Buddhism in Mongolia as well as the arrival of new infectious diseases such as smallpox and syphilis which had reached epidemic levels by the 17th to early 20th centuries. During that critical period, a considerable number of Mongolian Buddhist scholars produced a substantial amount of works dedicated to the ways of fighting epidemics. This paper explores the efforts of Mongolian Buddhist scholars in countering this new threat, within the unique social and political milieu of the time. Smallpox spread severely reduced the Mongolian population and could have influenced the change of political control in the region, as several prominent Mongolian leaders who fought against Qing domination were themselves victims of smallpox epidemics. Similarly, at the beginning of the 20th century, around half the Mongolian population was infected by syphilis and, as a result, the population further declined in numbers. Tibetan Buddhist medicine, which was introduced to Mongolia from Tibet, was enriched by Mongolian traditional medical practices and fused with traditional Mongolian and Chinese medical knowledge during Mongolian scholars’ search for preventive methods against infectious diseases. This article examines the works of three renowned Mongolian Buddhist scholars who dealt with issues of infectious diseases: Ye shes dpal ‘byor, Chakhar Géshé Lobsang Tsültim, and Lobsang chos ‘phel.