Acharya Nagarjuna (c. 150 - 250 CE) known as ‘the Medicine Buddha’, was a great ancient philosopher, who is considered to be the founder of the Madhyamaka (Middle Path) school of Mahayana Buddhism, and was the most influential Buddhist thinker after Gautama Buddha himself. In several Buddhist monasteries, the medicine Buddha’s idol can be seen on the right side of the Buddha idol as well. Hence he is often referred to as 'the Second Buddha' also. Historians say that he was a contemporary of the historical king, of the northern Indian Satvahana dynasty, known as Gautamiputra Satakarni.

He was born into a Brahmin family in the Andhra area of South India, and was later converted to Buddhism (hence he could write in classical Sanskrit rather than Pali which was the Buddhist language). Before the age of eight he was brought to the great teacher Saraha at the renowned Nalanda monastery, which was one of the first among the very few known University-modelled education centres in the world history. He was ordained as a monk in the name Shrimantha. Later in his life he became a fully-accomplished scholar and teacher, and also the Abbot of Nalanda, which is also considered to be the educational capital of ancient India.