Medicine Buddha Teachings: Paperback – April 7, 2004

Editorial Reviews

One of the key deities in the intricate pantheon of Vajrayana Buddhism is the Medicine Buddha. A person who appropriately venerates this figure is promised to experience an “increase in healing powers… and a decrease in physical and mental illness and suffering.” In 1999, Thrangu (Everyday Consciousness and Buddha-Awakening) led a retreat in Washington State where he explicated the Medicine Buddha Sadhana (traditional liturgy) and the Sutra of the Medicine Buddha. Chapters in the book are edited transcripts of his teaching sessions at this retreat. The first portion of the book is largely a detailed, verse-by-verse commentary on and guide to practicing the sadhana, highlighting such topics as the importance of visualization, making offerings to the deity and why certain symbolic objects are auspicious. The next section is the text of the sadhana itself, in Sanskrit and in translation. Thrangu then exegetes the sutra (scripture) underlying the liturgy, explaining the Medicine Buddha’s 12 “aspirations”-the vows he made to illuminate, benefit, heal and prosper all beings-and describing the benefits of “recollecting” and supplicating him. Thrangu rounds out the book with a discussion of the Vajrayana view of gods and spirits. This is no introduction to Vajrayana Buddhism: a working knowledge of basic concepts is assumed, and the text is dense and often extraordinarily detailed. Yet the book is informative and conversational in tone, and may benefit advanced students specifically seeking to understand the Medicine Buddha practice.
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“Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche is among the wisest and most compassionate Buddhist masters alive today.” —Pema Chödrön, author of When Things Fall Apart

In this rare gem from Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoce, we learn more than just the details of this particular medicine Buddha practice: Rinpoche has kindly included many basic principles of tantric theory and practice in general. Anyone engage in any Vajrayana practice will find this teaching extremely useful.

Presents the stages of practice of the Medicine Buddha Sadhana. Rinpoche elucidates the details of the practice and many principles of tantra: deities and buddha realms, samayasattva and jnanasattva, the principles of emanating and gathering, the use of offerings, mudras, and the five aspects of intrinsic awareness.

Rinpoche then gives teachings on the Medicine Buddha Sutra–he explains the twelve aspirations, the benefits of reciting the Medicine Buddha’s name, the meaning of deity, nature of the four maras and the transcendence of obstacles. Included is the Medicine Buddha Sadhana along with two shorter versions.

“…the text is dense and often extraordinarily detailed…informative and conversational in tone.”– Publisher’s Weekly

“Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche has a unique ability to bring forth the central issues of a text and make them available to a contemporary audience.”— H.H. the Gyalwang Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje

“Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche is among the wisest and most compassionate Buddhist masters alive today.”— Pema Chödron, author of When Things Fall Apart and The Places that Scare You

Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche, tutor to H.H. the 17th Karmapa, travels and teaches extensively in Europe and North America. He is the author of Pointing out the Dharmakaya; Essential Practice; Everyday Consciousness and Buddha-Awakening; and The Ninth Karmapa’s Ocean of Definitive Meaning.

In this rare gem from Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoce, we learn more than just the details of this particular medicine Buddha practice: Rinpoche has kindly included many basic principles of tantric theory and practice in general. Anyone engaged in any Vajrayana practice will find this teaching extremely useful.

Presents the stages of practice of the Medicine Buddha Sadhana. Rinpoche elucidates the details of the practice and many principles of tantra: deities and buddha realms, samayasattva and jnanasattva, the principles of emanating and gathering, the use of offerings, mudras, and the five aspects of intrinsic awareness.

Rinpoche then gives teachings on the Medicine Buddha Sutra–he explains the twelve aspirations, the benefits of reciting the Medicine Buddha’s name, the meaning of deity, nature of the four maras and the transcendence of obstacles. Included is the Medicine Buddha Sadhana along with two shorter versions.

“…the text is dense and often extraordinarily detailed…informative and conversational in tone.”– Publisher’s Weekly

“Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche has a unique ability to bring forth the central issues of a text and make them available to a contemporary audience.”– H.H. the Gyalwang Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje

“Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche is among the wisest and most compassionate Buddhist masters alive today.”– Pema Chödron, author of When Things Fall Apart and The Places that Scare You

“Understanding the profound relationships between body, mind, and spirit is part of the deep, subtle teachings presented in this treatise on sickness and health. Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche, a Tibetan Buddhist teacher, belongs to a lineage of spiritual instructors stretching back at least a thousand years. Thrangu shares ancient, timeless wisdom with Westerners in this and other books, presenting original Tibetan texts alongside English translation and commentary…Detailed instructions are complemented by vivid dialogues between teachers and disciples. Place this Vajrayana gem in your meditation and health sections.”– Brita Adkinson, National Review Network

“…deep, subtle teachings… reveals techniques for the development of consciousness that a few decades ago were still inaccessible to most Westerners.”–New Age Retailer

Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche, tutor to H.H. the 17th Karmapa, travels and teaches extensively in Europe and North America. He is the author of Pointing out the Dharmakaya; Essential Practice; Everyday Consciousness and Buddha-Awakening; and The Ninth Karmapa’s Ocean of Definitive Meaning.

Khenchen Thrangu was born in Tibet in 1933. He has founded numerous monasteries and nunneries, schools for Tibetan children, and medical clinics. He has taught extensively throughout Europe, Asia, and the United States, and is the abbot of Gampo Abbey. He was appointed by the Dalai Lama to be the personal tutor for the Seventeenth Karmapa.