Rime Buddhist Center

Monastery & Tibetan Institute of Studies
"Achieving Peace Through Compassion"
700 West Pennway
Kansas City, Missouri 64108
(816) 471-7073
Lama Chuck Stanford
www.rimecenter.org

The following is Lama Chuck's monthly column that appeared in the Kansas City Star
newspaper on October 9, 2004.

QUESTION: "Do you believe miraculous healing of the body can take place
today."

ANSWER: I think all of us have either heard of someone or have known someone who has experienced a miraculous cure. The difference depends on whom or what you attribute the miraculous cure to. Those from the monotheistic religions would most likely attribute the cure to God, while those from the non-theistic religions would probably attribute the cure to karma.

The interesting thing to note is that you find miraculous cures across all cultural and faith traditions. So this leads us to conclude that miraculous cures are not dependent on only one faith or belief. Well controlled studies have shown that intercessory prayer has a decidedly positive affect when prayers are directed toward those who are ill.

In Tibetan Buddhism there is a type of spiritual practice called "Medicine Buddha" which is similar in some respects to intercessory prayer. The differences are that Medicine Buddha practice is directed toward the person who is ill, rather than to God. And, more importantly, we try not to be attached to the outcome of a cure. We recognize there is a difference between a cure and healing. Many times there is no cure if we lose a limb or suffer a chronic illness, but that doesn't mean we can't heal. Regardless of our current situation, it is always possible for us to heal.

So changing our view through visualization or meditation may not be able to "cure" our illness but it can change how we relate to that illness. And that can make all the difference.

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