How to work with the Medicine Buddha?

[sephera]

Please help me with some understanding of how to work with the medicine Buddha to get some lasting results.

[C T]

You don't work with the Medicine Buddha, you invite & allow the Medicine Buddha to work on you.

[Apech]

You need the initiation and the sadhana instructions.

[rex]

Since the Medicine Buddha was taught by Shakamuni Buddha in the sutras you don't need transmission or empowerment to make a connection - just sincerity and faith. It's always good to get empowerment and tranmisssion if you can but it's not essential for starting out. A Google search on Medicine Buddha sutra practices brings up a few pdfs. Very basically you can visualise the Medicine Buddha in front of you and recite the mantra. Who knows, doing a simple practice may get you into a position where you can receive formal teachings.

 

Here's a site on the Medicine Buddha, http://www.dharma-haven.org/tibetan/medicine-buddha.htm and the issue of the empowerment is mentioned by quoting Thrangu Rinpoche's teaching on a particular Medicine Buddha sadhana:

 

"With regard to the empowerment, you should understand that the Medicine Buddha practice is not solely a vajrayana practice.... this practice of the Medicine Buddha is a combination of what the Buddha taught about the Medicine Buddha in the sutras of the Medicine Buddha and in various tantras. Because it is connected with vajrayana, it is most appropriate to receive the empowerment to enhance the practice; but because it is also connected with the sutras, it is acceptable to do the practice without the empowerment as well."

Edited August 18, 2014 by rex

[Apech]

Since the Medicine Buddha was taught by Shakamuni Buddha in the sutras you don't need transmission or empowerment to make a connection - just sincerity and faith. It's always good to get empowerment and tranmisssion if you can but it's not essential for starting out. A Google search on Medicine Buddha sutra practices brings up a few pdfs. Very basically you can visualise the Medicine Buddha in front of you and recite the mantra. Who knows, doing a simple practice may get you into a position where you can receive formal teachings.

 

Here's a site on the Medicine Buddha, http://www.dharma-haven.org/tibetan/medicine-buddha.htm and the issue of the empowerment is mentioned by quoting Thrangu Rinpoche's teaching on a particular Medicine Buddha sadhana:

 

"With regard to the empowerment, you should understand that the Medicine Buddha practice is not solely a vajrayana practice.... this practice of the Medicine Buddha is a combination of what the Buddha taught about the Medicine Buddha in the sutras of the Medicine Buddha and in various tantras. Because it is connected with vajrayana, it is most appropriate to receive the empowerment to enhance the practice; but because it is also connected with the sutras, it is acceptable to do the practice without the empowerment as well."

 

Ah sorry to OP I was only aware of the vajrayana practice ... sutra Sanje Menla then ...