Sowa Rigpa · The science of healing
Tibetan Medicine decoded — ancient wisdom for health, longevity, and happiness
For over 2500 years, Tibetan Medicine has offered a complete understanding of health, body & mind, and how they relate to the world around us.
Many health systems tell you what to do, but very few explain why. Tibetan Medicine does. And once you understand the why, everything changes.
Hi. My name is Federica. I'm a Tibetan Medicine practitioner, and I'm here to help you understand the why according to Tibetan Medicine.
What is Sowa Rigpa?
གསོ་བ་རིག་པ་
Sowa Rigpa is one of the oldest medical systems in the world.
In Tibetan, སོ་བ་ (Sowa) means to enhance, restore, nourish, repair, nurse, cure, heal. And རིག་པ་ (Rigpa) means knowledge, awareness, science.
Together, གསོ་བ་རིག་པ་ — Sowa Rigpa — translates as "the science of healing" or "the knowledge of nourishing life."
It's one of the oldest healing traditions in the world. A living system, still practiced today across Tibet, the Himalayas, Mongolia, and increasingly, the West.
Similarly to Ayurveda and Traditional Chinese Medicine, Sowa Rigpa is a complete framework for understanding life: the body, the mind, and their relationship with the natural environment — as an inseparable whole.
It's rooted in the philosophical world of Tibetan Buddhism, where the nature of mind and the causes of suffering are seen as the deepest root of illness.
To heal the body, you must understand the mind is the foundational premise of the Four Medical Tantras, the classical text that has guided Tibetan physicians for over a thousand years.
This is why Sowa Rigpa is still relevant today, and why it offers something that modern medicine rarely does: a complete map of the human being.
Your constitutional type
What's a Nyepa — and why does it matter?
In Tibetan Medicine, every person is born with a unique combination of three principles: rLung (wind), mKhrispa (bile), and Badkan (phlegm). These are the Nyepas.
They're not just body types. They govern how you digest food, how you sleep, how you respond to stress, how you get sick, and most importantly how you heal.
When the Nyepas are balanced, health follows naturally. When they're not, illness takes hold.
Knowing your dominant Nyepa is where personalized medicine begins. It's the lens through which everything else in Sowa Rigpa becomes readable — diet, lifestyle, the seasons, your tendencies, your vulnerabilities.
Governs movement, breath, thought, and the nervous system. When balanced: clarity, creativity, joy. When disturbed: anxiety, insomnia, restlessness, scattered thinking.
Governs heat, digestion, metabolism, and transformation. When balanced: sharp intellect, decisiveness, strong digestion. When disturbed: inflammation, irritability, burnout.
Governs structure, moisture, stability, and cohesion. When balanced: patience, endurance, calm, strong joints. When disturbed: lethargy, brain fog, weight gain, stagnation.
Most people have one or two dominant Nyepas. This free Nyepa test takes just five minutes.
The curriculum
Seven modules. A complete foundation.
Everything you need to understand Tibetan Medicine from the ground up.
Module 01
History & Origins of Tibetan Medicine (Sowa Rigpa)
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Trace the roots of Sowa Rigpa from its origins through the Medicine Buddha and the ancient Bon tradition
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Explore the codification of the Four Medical Tantras and the life of Yuthok Yönten Gönpo, the father of Tibetan medicine
Module 02
Philosophical Foundations & The Five Elements in Tibetan Medicine
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Understand the deep connection between Tibetan medicine and Tibetan Buddhism
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Explore the role of ignorance and the three mental poisons as the root of all illness
Module 03
The Three Nyepas: rLung, mKhrispa, and Badkan
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Understand the three Nyepas (or humors) Tibetan medicine: rLung (Wind), mKhrispa (Bile), and Badkan (Phlegm)
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Learn the nature, five subtypes, and physiological functions of each Nyepa
Module 04
Health & Disease in Tibetan Medicine
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Learn what it means to be healthy according to Tibetan medicine and what causes that balance to break down
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Examine the four conditions that allow disease to enter the body: diet, lifestyle, seasonal forces, and spirit provocations (Don)
Module 05
The Art of Diagnosis in Tibetan Medicine
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Master the three channels of Tibetan diagnostic inquiry: asking, seeing, and touching
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Identify the 29 interrogation questions and how to read psychosomatic appearance for each Nyepa type
Module 06
Treatment Principles in Sowa Rigpa
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Explore the four methods of treatment in Tibetan medicine
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Learn how diet and lifestyle are the first and most essential tools for restoring balance in each Nyepa
Module 07
Tibetan Medicine Therapies, Herbs & External Treatments
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Understand the medicinal plants used in classical Tibetan herbal formulas and their therapeutic properties
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Learn how Tibetan medicine works with the energy channels of the body
Pricing
Start where you are.
Bundles or the full course. The depth is up to you.
Bundles
Choose the bundle that fits your focus.
Foundations Bundle
€215The essential starting point. Understand where Tibetan Medicine comes from and the core framework that underpins everything.
- M1History & Origins of Tibetan Medicine (Sowa Rigpa)
- M2Philosophical Foundations & The Five Elements in Tibetan Medicine
- M3The Three Nyepas: rLung, mKhrispa, and Badkan
Health & Diagnosis Bundle
€265Go deeper into how the body falls out of balance and how Tibetan physicians learn to read its signals.
- M4Health & Disease in Tibetan Medicine
- M5The Art of Diagnosis in Tibetan Medicine
Treatments Bundle
€195Explore the treatment principles and the full therapeutic toolkit of Sowa Rigpa.
- M6Treatment Principles in Sowa Rigpa
- M7Tibetan Medicine Therapies, Herbs & External Treatments
All bundles include:
- •Video lessons
- •Module slides
- •Module notes
- •Lifetime access
Full Course
All seven modules. The complete picture.
Everything you need to understand Sowa Rigpa from its ancient roots to clinical application.
The full course includes:
- •All 7 modules, lifetime access
- •Video lessons & downloadable slides
- •Module notes for each topic
- •Learn at your own pace
Includes exclusive reference materials
Designed to support your studies and become tools you return to long after the course ends.
- –3 Nyepa comparison table
- –Deep dive table on Nyepa's qualities
- –Deep dive table on foods, qualities & tastes
- –Deep dive table on pulse types
- –The 24 Therapeutic Points in Sowa Rigpa
One-on-one
Not sure where to start? Begin here.
If you've been feeling off (low energy, digestive sluggishness, restless sleep, a vague sense that something is out of balance) Tibetan Medicine has a precise language for what you're experiencing. And it starts with understanding your constitutional type (Nyepa).
A one-hour online consultation is the most direct way to apply the principles of Sowa Rigpa to your own body and life through a personalised reading of your current state, grounded in a 2500-year-old medical tradition.
What does the Tibetan Medicine consultation consist of?
During the consultation, I'll ask you about your diet, sleep, digestion, energy levels, habits, and medical history to assess your dominant Nyepa and identify your main imbalances. You'll then receive specific guidance on diet, daily routine, and lifestyle adjustments tailored to your constitution and current condition.
The cost of the consultation is €60.
Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Your teacher
About Federica Girola, Tibetan Medicine Practitioner
Hi, my name is Federica. I'm a Tibetan Medicine practitioner.
For over 2,500 years, Tibetan Medicine — known as Sowa Rigpa — has offered a complete understanding of health, the body, and the mind, and how they relate to the world around us.
My path to this tradition began through years of nutrition & holistic studies, and Buddhist meditation. I further deepened my knowledge during a year spent living in Kathmandu, a central hub of Tibetan culture, medicine, and language. The more I applied Sowa Rigpa to my daily life, the more I felt its benefits in my own body and mind.
I created Tibetan Medicine Pills to translate these precious teachings into clear, practical guidance for modern life. Not simplified — just clear. This foundational course is designed for those who want to dive deeper into Tibetan Medicine, understand the root causes of health and disease, and view their body and mind through a more complete, interconnected lens.
Thank you for being here. May this be of benefit.