CELEBRATING THE ENLIGHTENMENT DAY OF MEDICINE BUDDHA BHAISHAJYAGURU, 30/09 LUNAR CALENDAR, BUDDHIST ERA 2566
Medicine Buddha Bhaishajyaguru possesses complete understanding and mastery of all medicine, both worldly and transcendent. He is able to heal all manner of suffering and illness among sentient beings, as well as the delusions and afflictions born of greed, anger, and ignorance.
/With boundless compassion, He rescues beings lost in delusion
Delivering all sentient beings across the world from suffering
Bestowing the medicine of Dharma to dispel all misfortune
With wholehearted devotion, we bow before His sacred majesty./
Medicine Buddha, whose full title is Bhaishajyaguru Vaidūryaprabhārāja Tathāgata (Dược Sư Lưu Ly Quang Vương Như Lai), is a Buddha praised by Shakyamuni Buddha in the Sutra of the Medicine Buddha's Fundamental Vows and Merits.
The name Bhaishajyaguru Vaidūryaprabhā Tathāgata carries profound meaning: "Dược Sư" means "Master of Healing," "Lưu Ly" refers to a translucent blue gem (lapis lazuli), and "Quang" means "light" — thus "Lưu Ly Quang" signifies "the radiant light of lapis lazuli." He bears this sacred title because He possesses complete understanding and mastery of all medicine, both worldly and transcendent, and is able to heal every form of suffering and illness among sentient beings, including the delusions and afflictions born of greed, anger, and ignorance. His light is inconceivable — luminous within and without, utterly pure and free of any stain, radiating throughout all realms. Wherever this light reaches, it dispels the darkness of ignorance and extinguishes the suffering of sentient beings, guiding them away from delusion and toward awakening and liberation.
He is the sovereign Buddha of the Pure Lapis Lazuli World in the East, accompanied by two great Bodhisattvas — Sūryaprabha (Sun Light Universal Illumination) and Candraprabha (Moon Light Universal Illumination) — as His attendants in guiding and transforming sentient beings.
The fundamental vow of the Medicine Buddha is to heal all grave illnesses and afflictions of body and mind among sentient beings, and to deliver them from the cycle of birth, death, and suffering. Because of this pure and profound vow, a light of complete and unhindered purity — like lapis lazuli itself — shines forth from His body and pervades His entire Buddha-land.
Images of the Medicine Buddha are traditionally depicted with His left hand holding a bowl of healing medicine, and His right hand forming the mudra of granting wishes. According to Buddhist scriptures, there are said to be seven Medicine Buddhas. Some accounts hold that each possesses a distinct great vow and manifestation, while others hold that all are emanations arising from the single essence of Bhaishajyaguru Vaidūryaprabhā Tathāgata.
During His practice on the Bodhisattva path, He made Twelve Great Vows. According to these Twelve Great Vows of the Medicine Buddha, those who recite and hold His sacred name will receive the following blessings:
- Greed dissolved, giving arises: Through reciting the name of the Medicine Buddha, the heart opens wide, greed and selfishness fall away, and one comes to naturally share, praise generosity, and practice giving.
- Transgressions dissolved, moral discipline arises: For past faults and wrongdoings, reciting His name brings transformation and purification, while inspiring a vow to live an upright and virtuous life in accordance with the True Dharma.
- Envy dissolved, liberation arises: The karma of jealousy and envy toward others brings lowly and painful retribution. Reciting the name of the Medicine Buddha inspires practitioners to cultivate the path, extinguish suffering, and attain liberation.
- Enmity dissolved, loving-kindness arises: Thoughts of resentment and hatred that lead to mutual harm are dissolved through reciting the Medicine Buddha's name. Rather than causing harm to one another, beings come to understand, love, and respect each other.
- Rebirth in the Pure Land or other supreme realms: For practitioners who recite Amitabha Buddha's name aspiring for rebirth in the Pure Land, invoking the Medicine Buddha serves as a vital supporting condition. Furthermore, through the merit of reciting His name, practitioners accumulate abundant blessings and are reborn into peaceful and wholesome realms.
Reciting the name of the Medicine Buddha brings inconceivable benefits. Through the power of His fundamental vows, sentient beings who uphold His sacred name will have all their suffering and illness dispelled, and all their wholesome aspirations fulfilled. As the verse says:
"However heavy the burden of past debts and grievances,
Illness born of mind manifests upon the body,
Yet the Lapis Lazuli Light Buddha lends His support,
And all misfortune, greed, and anger fall away."
In celebration of the Enlightenment Day of Bhaishajyaguru Vaidūryaprabhārāja Tathāgata (Dược Sư Lưu Ly Quang Vương Như Lai), Diệu Tướng Am wishes all Venerable Monks and Nuns, fellow Buddhists, and valued customers:
"MAY YOUR DAYS BE PEACEFUL, MAY YOUR NIGHTS BE PEACEFUL,
MAY ALL SIX PERIODS OF DAY AND NIGHT BE FILLED WITH PEACE!"
