Buddhist Medicine

I was asked, "What health system arises from Buddhism. Other than Qi Kung and maybe Tai Qi.  Do you know?"

Good question, but there is no single answer. Just as the practice and philosophy of Buddhism itself evolved over time and was influenced by the culture of the people who adopted the practices, there is no single Buddhist medical practice.

For example, check out the excellent Wikipedia article on Traditional Tibetan medicine: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traditional_Tibetan_medicine  

Regardless of the culture, Buddhist medical practice is based on the belief that all illness ultimately results from the three poisons of the mind: ignorance, attachment and aversion. These three poisons are the primary causes that keep sentient beings trapped in samsara.

The root poison is ignorance. From ignorance, attachment and aversion arise. Not knowing the real nature of phenomena, we are driven to generate desire for what we like and hatred for what we do not like and for what blocks our desires.

The Buddhist idea of ignorance is equivalent to the identification of a self as being separate from everything else. It consists of the belief that there is an "I" that is not part of anything else.

Therefore, the cure for all disease, the antidote to three poisons of the mind, and the ultimate cause for happiness is to dispel the belief in an independently existing self. This is referred to as anattā or anātman, the notion of "not-self." The Buddha taught that all things perceived by the senses (including the mental sense) are not really "I" or "mine," and for this reason one should not cling to them.

Furthermore, there are some very good Buddhist teachings regarding antidotes for what ails us. Personally, my favorite is the THE SEVEN POINTS OF MIND TRAINING or Lojong. The practice involves refining and purifying one's motivations and attitudes. There are 7 Points to Lojong, which consist of the 59 Slogans. The root text of the mind training practice are designed as a set of antidotes to undesired mental habits that cause suffering.

They Lojong methods expand one's viewpoint towards absolute bodhicitta (enlightened mind), such as "Find the consciousness you had before you were born." and "Treat everything you perceive as a dream.", and methods for relating to the world in a more constructive way with relative bodhicitta, such as "Be grateful to everyone." and "When everything goes wrong, treat disaster as a way to wake up."

You may find a listing of the  7 Points of Mind Training root text at:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mind_training#Root_text