From a Christian essay reminding of the expression That Jesus is called the “Great Physician”
"Twice in his biographies Jesus referred to himself as a “physician” or “doctor,” once in the sense of “spiritual healer” and once in the sense of “physical healer.”
Jesus as Spiritual Healer: His opponents once attacked him for having unsavory characters such as tax collectors and “sinners” among his disciples. Jesus reminded them that “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Mark 2:17)
Jesus as Physical Healer: When Jesus gave his first sermon in his hometown synagogue of Nazareth, he anticipated the possessive nature of the crowd when he challenged them: “Surely you will quote this proverb to me: ‘Physician, heal yourself! Do here in your hometown what we have heard that you did in Capernaum.’” (Luke 4:23)
Jesus’ role as “physician” and healer is so pervasive in his biographies and so essential to Jesus’ mission that he cannot be understood apart from it. The crowds seemed instinctively to see Jesus as a “physician.” It’s a title he clearly deserves. One has only to skim through the biographies of Jesus to note the remarkable attention he gave to healing. He was a physician, a healer whose time was consumed with encounters with people who were sick, blind, lame, deaf, leprous, paralyzed or mentally ill. Each of the biographies portrays Jesus in this way. (see Recorded Miracles of Jesus)"
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In Buddhism, the Buddha is also known as the “Great Physician”
The ultimate core of the Lotus Sutra, uses the appellation in the most revered Parable, called the “Parable of the Great Physician.”
The parable tell of a physician who return home to find his innumerable sons, deathly ill after mistakenly drinking a poison. They lay wreathing on the ground in agony.
The Physician father, prepares the most efficacious medicine, tell his poisoned sons to take the antidote. The first 1/3 of his children, believing their father, immediately take the antidote and become cured. The second third of the children, take a much longer period to decide and then also take the medicine. They also are quickly cured.
The last third of the children are the sickest and the Great Physician sees that the poison has entered the mind and body so deeply, they are delerious.
The Physician father, determined to save the sickest children, who refused to take the medicine, with the deepest wisdom, devises an “EXPEDIENT MEANS.” so that these sickest children can also be cured.
He decides to say, “I leave this correct and perfect medicine here–Now I travel to a distant country and you should take this medicine I leave here for you and you will be cured!”
The father/Physician, then departs to another country and has a messenger, bring the sick children a message, saying, “Your Father is Dead!”
The shocking news penetrates into the minds of these children, and in their tears and shock, arise and take the medicine and are instantly cured.
Then the father returns again to see all his children healthy again and everyone is joyous.
Here is the text of this parable from the scripture:
Suppose, for instance, a good physician, who is wise and perspicacious,
conversant with medical art, and skillful in healing all sorts of diseases. He has many
sons, say ten, twenty, even up to a hundred. Because of some matter he goes abroad to
a distant country. After his departure, his sons drink his other poisonous medicines,
which send them into a delirium, and they lie rolling on the ground. At this moment
their father comes back to his home. Of the sons who drank the poison, some have lost
their senses, others are [still] sensible, but on seeing their father [approaching] in the
distance they are all greatly delighted, and kneeling, salute him, asking; ‘How good it is that you are returned in safety! We, in our foolishness, have mistakenly dosed
ourselves with poison. We beg that you will heal us and give us back our lives.’ The
father, seeing his sons in such distress, in accordance with his prescriptions seeks for
good herbs altogether perfect in color, scent, and fine flavor, and then pounds, sifts,
and mixes them and gives them to his sons to take, speaking thus: ‘This excellent
medicine, with color, scent, and fine flavor altogether perfect, you may [now] take, and
it will at once rid you of your distress so that you will have no more suffering.’ Those
amongst the sons who are sensible, seeing this excellent medicine with color and scent
both good, take it immediately and are totally delivered from their illness. The others,
who have lost their senses, seeing their father come, though they are also delighted,
salute him, and ask him to heal their illness, yet when he offers them the medicine,
they are unwilling to take it. Wherefore? Because the poison has entered deeply, they
have lost their senses, and [even] in regard to this medicine of excellent color and scent
they acknowledge that it is not good. The father reflects thus: ‘Alas for these sons,
afflicted by this poison, and their minds all unbalanced. Though they are glad to see
me and implore to be healed, yet they are unwilling to take such excellent medicine as
this. Now I must arrange an expedient plan so that they will take this medicine.’ Then
he says to them: ‘You should know that I am now worn out with old age and the time
of my death has now arrived. This excellent medicine I now leave here. You may take
it and have no fear of not being better.’ After thus admonishing them, he departs again
for another country and sends a messenger back to inform them: ‘Your father is dead.’
And now, when those sons hear that their father is dead, their minds are greatly
distressed and they thus reflect: ‘If our father were alive he would have pity on us, and
we should be saved and preserved. But now he has left us and died in a distant
country. [Now] we feel we are orphans and have no one to rely on.’ Continuous grief
brings them to their senses, and they recognize the color, scent, and excellent flavor of
the medicine and thereupon take it, their poisoning being entirely relieved. The father,
hearing that the sons are all recovered, seeks an opportunity and returns so that they
all see him. All my good sons! What is your opinion? Are there any who could say that
this good physician had committed the sin of falsehood?"
“No, World-honored One!”
The Buddha [then] said; “I also am like this. Since I became Buddha, infinite
boundless hundred thousand myriad kotis of nayutas of asamkhyeya kalpas ago, for
the sake of all living beings, by my tactful power, I have declared that I must enter
nirvana, yet there is none who can lawfully accuse me of the error of falsehood.”
At that time the World-honored One, desiring to proclaim this teaching over spoke thus in verse:
"Since I attained buddhahood,
The kalpas through which I have passed
Are infinite thousands of myriads
Of kotis of asamkhyeya years.
Ceaselessly preached I the Law and taught
Countless kotis of creatures
To enter the Way of the Buddha;
Since then are unmeasured kalpas.
In order to save all creatures,
By tactful methods I reveal nirvana,
Yet truly I am not [yet] extinct
But forever here preaching the Law.
I forever remain in this [world],
Using all my spiritual powers
So that all perverted creatures,
Though I am near, yet fail to see me.
All looking on me as extinct
Everywhere worship my relics,
All cherishing longing desires,
And beget thirsting hearts of hope.
[When] all creatures have believed and obeyed,
In [character] upright, in mind gentle,
Wholeheartedly wishing to see the Buddha,
Not caring for their own lives,
Then I with all the Samgha
Appear together on the Divine Vulture Peak.
And then I tell all creatures
That I exist forever in this [world],
By the power of tactful methods
Revealing [myself] extinct and not extinct.
[If] in other regions there are beings
Reverent and with faith aspiring,
Again I am in their midst
To preach the supreme Law.
You, not hearing of this,
Only say I am extinct.
I behold all living creatures
Sunk in the sea of suffering,
Hence I do not reveal myself
But set them all aspiring,
Till, when their hearts are longing,
I appear to preach the Law.
In such supernaturally pervading power,
Throughout asamkhyeya kalpas
[I am] always on the Divine Vulture Peak
And in every other dwelling place.
When all the living see, at the kalpa’s end,
The conflagration when it is burning,
Tranquil is this realm of mine,
Ever filled with heavenly beings,
Parks, and many palaces
With every kind of gem adorned,
Precious trees full of blossoms and fruits,
Where all creatures take their pleasure;
All the gods strike the heavenly drums
And evermore make music,
Showering mandarava flowers
On the Buddha and his great assembly.
My Pure Land will never be destroyed,
Yet all view it as being burned up,
And grief and horror and distress
Fill them all like this.
All those sinful creatures,
By reason of their evil karma,
Throughout asamkhyeya kalpas,
Hear not the name of the Precious Three.
But all who perform virtuous deeds
And are gentle and of upright nature,
These all see that I exist
And am here expounding the Law.
At times for all this throng
I preach the Buddha’s life is eternal;
To those who at length see the Buddha
I preach that a buddha is rarely met.
My intelligence-power is such,
My wisdom-light shines infinitely,
My life is of countless kalpas,
From long-cultivated karma obtained.
You who have intelligence,
Do not in regard to this beget doubt
But bring it forever to an end,
For the Buddha’s words are true, not false.
Like the physician who with clever device,
In order to cure his demented sons,
Though indeed alive announces [his own] death,
[Yet] cannot be charged with falsehood,
I, too, being father of this world,
Who heals all misery and affliction,
For the sake of the perverted people,
Though truly alive, say [I am] extinct;
[Lest,] because always seeing me,
They should beget arrogant minds,
Be dissolute and set in their five desires,
And fall into evil paths.
I, ever knowing all beings,
Those who walk or walk not in the Way,
According to the right principles of salvation
Expound their every Law,
Ever making this my thought:
‘How shall I cause all the living
To enter the Way supreme
And speedily accomplish* their buddhahood?’"*
Many can argue over the meaning of this but between the lines it is clear who the excellent, Great Physician is referring to, and who taught this parable!
