It is designed, rather, to provide the interested non-academic reader with a brief overview of the subject.

During the Heian period (794–1185), Yakushi’s cult spread to all regions of Japan, evidenced by an explosive increase in the production of Yakushi images in the ninth and tenth centuries.

Some of the collection, such as the Samhitas, are known to date back to at least 1700 BC, although it is believed that many go back much further.

The subject of ‘flying machines’ has been a popular subject among ancient astronaut theorists, who argue that some extracts are evidence of extra-terrestrial visitations: “The Pushpaka (flowery vimana) chariot that resembles the Sun and belongs to my brother was brought by the powerful Ravana; that aerial and excellent chariot going everywhere at will…

Practices of Buddhism include taking refuge in the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha, study of scriptures, observance of moral precepts, renunciation of craving and attachment, the practice of meditation (including calm and insight), the cultivation of wisdom, loving-kindness and compassion, the Mahayana practice of bodhicitta and the Vajrayana practices of generation stage and completion stage.

In Theravada the ultimate goal is the cessation of the kleshas and the attainment of the sublime state of Nirvana, achieved by practicing the Noble Eightfold Path (also known as the Middle Way), thus escaping what is seen as a cycle of suffering and rebirth.