[Studies on Yakushi Buddha and its medicinal container]

In Japan, there are about 250 Yakushi Buddha (i.e., Buddha of Healing) statues in Buddhist temples. They are listed as Important Cultural Properties and 14 of them are National Treasures. Belief in Yakushi Buddha was especially prevalent from the 7th to the 13th centuries in Japan. The oldest wooden Yakushi Buddha statue is in Horin-ji Temple in Nara. Among the approximately 250 Yakushi Buddha statues, about 200 have medicinal containers-or rarely, a bowl-in the palm of the left hand. However, these medicinal containers are wooden blocks. Very recently, it was found that the Yakushi Buddha statue in the Suho-Kokubun-ji Temple in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan has a medicinal container in the palm of his left hand, in which an offering (i.e., 220 g of materials) was found. The date on the reverse side of the lid places the offering at October 12, 1699. The offering is composed of five cereals (rice, barley, wheat, soybean and azuki bean), five medicinal plants (Acori graminei, Acori calami, Ginseng, Flos caryophylli and Lignum santali albi) and six minerals (rock crystals, purple and blue lead glass, CaCO3 particles, and silver and golden foils). Recently, the pharmacy educational program was extended from four to six years in order to meet clinical pharmacy requirements for patients. From studying the Buddha of Healing and its medicinal container described above, the author suggests that, in addition to pharmaceutical bioscience, philosophical concept be studied as part of the history of pharmacy in the future.