Medicine Buddha Mantra - Dr Todd Caldecott.

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Recently I had the opportunity to attend an empowerment in theMedicine Buddha teachings with the Very Venerable Thrangu Rinpoche.Similar to Lord Dhanvantari, the Medicine Buddha (in Sanskrit"Bhaishajyaguru") is the patron "deity" of Tibetan AyurvedicPhysicians, considered as an emanation of the great spiritualphysician, Lord Buddha himself. There is a very close similaritybetween Tibetan and Indian Ayurveda, and even more similarity betweenAyurveda and Traditional Bon medicine. From an Ayurvedicperspective, the Medicine Buddha is like an emanation of the buddhi,our innate wisdom, that relates to our native healing intelligence.Tibetan physicians invoke the Medicine Buddha prior to practicingeach day and also to energize their medicines by chanting thefollowing mantra (rendered here in Sanskrit):Om Namo Bhagavate Bhaishajyaguru Vaidūryaprabharaajaaya TathaagataayaArhate Samyaksambuddhaaya Tadyathaa Om Bhaishajye

BhaishajyeMahaabhaishajye Raaja Samudgate Svaahaameaning:Namo (I take refuge in) bhagavate (the honored one) bhaisajyaguru(the teacher of medicine) vaidurya (the lapis lazuli colored ) prabha-rajaya (king of light) tathagataya (the one thus gone) arhate (todestroy suffering) samyaksambuddhaya (the perfectly enlightened)Tadyatha (speak as follows) OM bhaisajye (divine medicine) bhaisajye(divine medicine) mahabhaisajyaraaja (the great king of medicine)samudgate (perfectly awakened) svaha! (hail)The short version is:OM bhaisajye (divine medicine) bhaisajye (divine medicine)mahabhaisajyaraaja (the great king of medicine) samudgate (perfectlyawakened) svaha! (hail)This mantra can be chanted freely by anyone, without harm orhinderance, and does not require empowerment to practice (it's justconducive to get it!). Traditionally, the mantra is chanted 108times to empower a medicament and add

potency to its effects, whilepreparing or consuming it.While some folks might think this mantra has no part in Ayurveda, themantra is clearly found in the Ashtanga Hrdaya, sutrasthana 18:17,and thus may considered an important practice in Ayurveda.the (romanized) sanskrit text can found here (just scroll down to thecorrect location in the text):http://www.sub.uni-goettingen.de/ebene_1/fiindolo/gretil/1_sanskr/6_sastra/7_ayur/vagaah_u.htmin lapis light... todd caldecottPS - the tibetans believe that chanting this mantra instantlyliberates any being that is harmed in the processing or consumptionof food or medicine "Our ideal is not the spirituality that withdraws from life

but the conquest of life by the power of the spirit." - Aurobindo.

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