A simple daily practice of refuge, bodhicitta, visualization, mantra, meditation, and dedication inspired by the practice of Medicine Buddha.
Medicine Buddha—Bhaiṣajyaguru, the Buddha of Healing—is one of the most beloved figures in Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism. Traditionally depicted with a deep lapis-blue body, he embodies the awakened activity of healing: the alleviation of physical and mental suffering, the purification of harmful tendencies, and ultimately liberation from the deeper causes of suffering.
Medicine Buddha practice is not limited to praying for physical health. It can also become a contemplation of the ways suffering arises within the mind and of the wisdom and compassion through which it may be transformed.
This simple practice brings together refuge, bodhicitta, visualization of Medicine Buddha, mantra recitation, meditation, and dedication.
It may be approached as a contemplative daily practice and is not intended to replace lineage-based instruction or medical care.
Before You Begin
Find a quiet place where you can sit comfortably.
If you wish, place an image or statue of Medicine Buddha before you. A candle or butter lamp, flowers, incense, clean water, or other simple offerings may also be placed on the altar.
Sit quietly for a few moments.
Take several slow breaths and allow the body and mind to settle naturally.
I. Refuge and Bodhicitta
1. Taking Refuge
Bring to mind the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha as sources of awakening, wisdom, and guidance.
Recite:
In the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Supreme Sangha,
I take refuge until I reach full enlightenment.
Recite 3 times.
Allow refuge to become more than words. Feel that you are turning the mind toward awakening and toward freedom from the causes of suffering.
2. Generating Bodhicitta
Now expand the intention beyond yourself.
Bring to mind all beings who experience illness, fear, grief, confusion, pain, and suffering.
Recite:
Through the merit of practicing generosity and the other virtues,
May I attain Buddhahood for the benefit of all living beings!
Recite 3 times.
Allow the wish for healing to become inseparable from compassion.
May this practice ultimately benefit not only yourself, but all beings.
II. Visualization and Recitation
1. Resting in Purity
Recite:
Oṃ Svabhāva-Śuddhāḥ Sarva-Dharmāḥ Svabhāva-Śuddho 'Haṃ
All phenomena are inherently pure; I am inherently pure.
Then rest quietly for a few moments.
Allow thoughts, sensations, and emotions to arise without struggling against them.
There is nothing that needs to be forced away.
Simply rest in spacious awareness.
2. Visualizing Medicine Buddha
From this openness, imagine a beautiful lotus appearing in the space before you.
Upon the lotus rests a moon disc.
Seated upon this radiant seat is Medicine Buddha—Bhaiṣajyaguru.
His body is a magnificent lapis-lazuli blue, luminous and translucent like a clear blue jewel filled with light.
He wears the robes of a Buddhist monk and sits peacefully in the meditation posture.
His expression is serene, compassionate, and completely free from fear.
His right hand rests upon his knee in the gesture of supreme generosity, holding the stem of the healing myrobalan plant.
His left hand rests in meditation posture, holding a bowl filled with healing nectar.
Imagine that his body is not heavy or solid.
It appears vividly yet transparently, like a rainbow appearing in clear space.
Around him is an atmosphere of profound stillness.
You do not need to visualize every detail perfectly.
Simply allow the presence of Medicine Buddha to become clear enough to support your attention.
3. Prayer to Medicine Buddha
With sincerity, bring to mind your own suffering and the suffering of others.
You may quietly pray:
Medicine Buddha, embodiment of healing wisdom and compassion,
May the suffering of body and mind be pacified.
May the causes of suffering be purified.
May fear and confusion give way to wisdom.
May all beings discover the path that leads beyond suffering.
Pause for a moment.
Allow the prayer to include anyone who may be struggling with illness or difficulty.
Then gradually extend it outward until it embraces all beings.
4. Medicine Buddha Mantra
At the heart of Medicine Buddha, imagine a radiant blue light.
From this light, countless rays of deep blue luminosity stream outward.
They touch you gently.
Imagine this light filling the entire body—from the crown of the head to the soles of the feet.
Where there is tension, imagine spaciousness.
Where there is fear, imagine calm.
Where there is confusion, imagine clarity.
Where there is suffering, imagine the compassionate presence of awakened wisdom.
Then recite the Medicine Buddha mantra:
Tadyathā Oṃ Bhaiṣajye Bhaiṣajye Mahābhaiṣajye Bhaiṣajya-Samudgate Svāhā
Recite 108 times, 21 times, or for as long as your practice period allows. There is no need to rush.
Allow the mantra, breath, visualization, and awareness to gradually come together.
You may also imagine the blue light radiating beyond you toward family, friends, those who are ill, those who are suffering, and eventually toward beings everywhere.
The entire world becomes gently illuminated by the blue light of healing compassion.
III. Dissolution and Meditation
When the recitation is complete, allow the visualization to become increasingly subtle.
Medicine Buddha radiates brilliant blue light.
His form gradually dissolves into this luminosity.
The blue light flows toward you and enters through the crown of your head.
It descends gently through the body and comes to rest at the heart.
Medicine Buddha then dissolves completely into light.
For a moment, let go of the distinction between the Buddha being visualized and the awareness within which the visualization appeared.
Rest quietly.
Do not search for a special experience.
Do not try to hold onto the visualization.
Simply remain present.
Let thoughts come and go naturally.
Rest in open awareness for several minutes.
IV. Dedication
When you are ready to conclude the meditation, bring to mind all beings who are experiencing suffering.
Remember those who are sick.
Those who are frightened.
Those caring for others.
Those experiencing emotional pain.
Those approaching death.
And the countless beings whose suffering remains unseen.
Dedicate whatever merit or positive intention has arisen through the practice toward their welfare and awakening.
The Aspiration of Shantideva
For as long as space endures,
And for as long as sentient beings remain,
Until then, may I too abide,
To dispel the suffering of the world!
General Dedication
By this merit, may all beings attain omniscience,
And defeat the enemy of delusion and wrongdoing!
From the stormy waves of birth, old age, sickness, and death,
May I liberate all beings from the ocean of samsara!
Remain quietly for a few breaths.
Then gently return to ordinary awareness.
A Practice of Healing Compassion
Medicine Buddha practice reminds us that healing and awakening are deeply connected.
Sometimes healing means recovery.
Sometimes it means receiving the right treatment, support, or circumstances.
Sometimes it means developing the courage to live with what cannot immediately be changed.
And at the deepest level, Buddhist practice points toward freedom from the ignorance, attachment, and aversion that continually recreate suffering.
For this reason, Medicine Buddha should not be understood merely as a divine physician who removes every difficulty.
His blue radiance can also be contemplated as the clarity of awakened wisdom—the wisdom that sees suffering clearly while responding to it with compassion.
Some days you may practice for yourself.
Some days you may practice while holding someone who is ill in your heart.
And some days you may simply recite the mantra while imagining its blue light extending toward beings everywhere.
Whatever form the practice takes, return to its central intention:
May suffering be alleviated.
May its causes be understood.
May compassion deepen.
May all beings ultimately discover freedom.
A Note on Practice
This practice is offered as a simple contemplative and devotional approach inspired by the Medicine Buddha tradition. It does not constitute a Vajrayana empowerment, initiation, or transmission, nor is it a substitute for teachings received from a qualified lineage teacher.
Medicine Buddha practice may support reflection, compassion, and spiritual well-being, but it is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you are experiencing a physical or mental health concern, please seek appropriate care from a qualified healthcare professional.
Approach the practice gently, sincerely, and within your own level of experience.