Letters

Pure Land Zen 
Reply to Hsieh Ch'ing-lien of Chiang-hsi (Kiangsi) 

In the Zen school the most crucial work in developing enlightenment is keeping the attention on a meditation topic [koan]. People who practice Pure Land Buddhism take the buddha-name as their meditation topic [contemplating the question: "Who is the one reciting the buddha-name?"]. 

You will not be able to be in accord with these subtle methods if your mind is crude and your energy is unfocused. You must immerse yourself in reflecting back [on the meditation topic]: when your effort peaks and your momentum is exhausted, then there will be a message [communicating enlightenment] from the causal ground. 


Unborn Mind 
Reply to Tung Hsun-yang Tsung-po of of Hu-chou 

Mind is basically unborn: it is born when causal conditions come together. Mind basically does not die: it dies when causal conditions disperse. There seems to be birth and death, but fundamentally there is no going or coming. 

If you can understand this, then you will be at peace through birth and death — ever still, ever aware. 

If you cannot yet [understand this], then you must wholly abandon your personal existence, and continuously recite the phrase "Amitabha Buddha," and seek birth in the Pure Land. 

Even if the causal conditions [for your existence] have not yet ended, and your life is not yet over, reciting the buddha-name over and over is very beneficial. And ancient said: 

The method of reciting the buddha-name is the eternal life of the golden immortals [Taoist deities] . 


Who is Reciting the Buddha-Name? 
Reply to Yu Ta-yen, Layman Yao-sun 

To create faith in the Pure Land, you should concentrate on the basic [Amitabha] Sutra and its commentaries when you read the scriptures, and save the other sutras for afterwards. When you read the commentaries, do not read them through at one stint. It is better to read a little at a time and take many days to finish them. Savor them in detail, and you will deepen your faith in the Pure Land. The ancients said: 

Among the most essential methods of cultivating practice in the sea of birth and death, buddha-remembrance by reciting the buddha-name is number one. 

These were not empty words. 

Also: Since you have not benefited by recitation aloud, silent recitation, or diamond recitation, but on the contrary, have been injured by them, now you must lightly bring to mind the buddha-name, right when your false thoughts are flying around in confusion. 

Once you can stay with this, then observe who it is who is reciting the buddha-name. Do this for a long time. As thoughts arise, observe: who is reciting the buddha-name? If thoughts do not arise, just go on observing [who is reciting the buddha-name?]. [As you continue observing], the work of keeping your attention on this, and the words themselves, will both cease, but this cessation will not hinder the work of keeping your attention on [who is reciting the buddha-name?]. 


Contemplation 
Reply to Te-Ch'ing, Hsu Kuang-jung, Layman Huo-ju 

You came asking about such matters as reining in the functioning of the mind, doing contemplation when sitting and when standing, and contemplating the concept and image [of buddha]. All these practices are carried out according to the occasion: there is no fixed routine. 

But to contemplate impermanence all the time is not something that can be done by those who have not finished with sensory entanglements. Even though you cannot contemplate constantly, this is still [valid] meditative work [for you]. 

Amidst sensory entanglements, the method of contemplation is hard to perfect. It would be better when you have time off from your studies and from family business to silently recite the buddha-name. What's important is that every syllable be clear and distinct, that every repetition be intimately taken to heart. Then mind will rein itself in. 

If you do this for a long time without giving up, stable concentration will be achieved: this is contemplation. 


Finding Lost Mind 
Reply to Liu Kuang-shu, Layman Shou-fu, of Hu-kuang 

Ordinary people have let their minds get lost. First they learn how to gather in their minds. Later they find their minds. 

There is not just one method to gather in the mind. Buddha-remembrance through reciting the buddha-name is foremost among such methods in terms of being highly effective and easy to make progress in. An ancient said: 

With the other methods of studying the Path, it's like an ant climbing a lofty mountain. With reciting the buddha-name and birth in the Pure Land, it's like [being in a boat] moving along with the current with wind in the sails. 

When thoughts arise, it is not necessary to do anything else to annihilate them: just put your attention on the words "Amitabha Buddha" and keep it there with all your strength. This is the meditative work of gathering in mind. Suddenly you will awaken: this is called "finding mind." 


Fear of Death 
Reply to Yuan Kuang-shou, Layman Hsin-yuan of Su-chou 

The fear of death is due to not having awakened to fundamental birthlessness. 

Fundamentally there is no birth, so how can there be death, and how can there be the fear of it? 

But after all, it is not easy to awaken to birthlessness. Right now you must devote yourself sincerely to buddha-remembrance. If you recite the buddha-name for a long time until your mind is unified and undisturbed, then you are sure to awaken. 

Even if you do not awaken, the power of a lifetime of reciting the buddha-name will give you the knowledge when you face death that you are sure to be reborn in the Pure Land after you die. It will be as if you have wandered in other towns, and then gotten to return to your old home. Amitabha Buddha will reach down to lead you into the Pure Land. Your joy will be boundless: how could there be any fear? 


Get to Work 
Reply to Layman Chang Shao-hsing 

Arrange for a quiet room and cultivate Pure Land practice there together. This would be the best thing in the world. The room does not have to be very beautiful, just big enough for making offerings to Buddha, walking, sitting, and bowing. 

And it is not necessary to wait till all the family business is done. Every day there are things to do: you may want to finish them all, but the day will definitely never come that they are all finished. 

Get to work [on remembering buddha] right away — you have already put it off too long ! 

In the sea of birth and death, the method of buddha-remembrance through reciting the buddha-name is the best. 

You should devote yourself to it singlemindedly. 


The Sutras Never Lie 
Reply to Wu Kuang-ning, Layman Po-yang of Hsiu-ning 

[You are bothered by the fact that] the Surangama Sutra distinguishes true and false, but never talks about such things as contemplating the Western Paradise [of Amitabha] and reciting the buddha-name. 

Since this Sutra has no bearing on this, why do you create waves where there is no wind and say it is false? If you say the Sutra is false, then sitting meditation is false, maintaining discipline is false, lecturing on the scriptures is false, and even attaining enlightenment and entering nirvana are false. 

What you should do is singlemindedly recite the buddha-name. Do not give rise to doubts [about the Sutra]. 


Worldly and World- Transcending 
Reply to Layman Sun Kuang-liang of T'ung-chou 

You asked this question: "According to the world-transcending absolute truth, the worldly is identical to the world-transcending, so is it then unnecessary to seek transcendence? Since the true is not outside the false, what's the use of seeking the true?" 

If you do not understand the idea here, then the best thing for you to do would be singlemindedly recite the buddha-name. When your mindfulness of buddha peaks, you will awaken, and having awakened, there will be nothing to discuss. 

Even if you do not have great awakening, you will still leave this world "Endurance" and be born in the Pure Land. This is transcending the world. Dissolving away mixed mindfulness and purifying correct mindfulness is the absolute truth. 

For now do not concern yourself with transcending or not transcending, or with what's real and what's not. Just do the work [of buddha-remembrance] until your mind is unified: then naturally you will comprehend properly. 


Gaining Power 
Reply to Layman Wu Ta-ch'e 

Reciting the buddha-name is equivalent to upholding a mantra. After you have gained power by reciting the buddha-name, you will face objects with equanimity. The first gate to liberation is feeling weary [with the mundane world] and becoming detached from it. But how can you handle what's before your eyes in order to get independent of it? If you keep on reciting the buddha-name for a long time, the time when you accord [with reality] will naturally arrive. 


Investigate Right Where You're Standing 
Reply to Chang Kuang-ching, Layman Hsing-yuan 

No need to investigate the saying of Yun-men's that you asked about. He was speaking of [Zen, sometimes called] "the separate transmission outside the scriptural teachings." [Instead,] you should just contemplate this saying of Yun-men's: 

You must turn back to what's beneath your own feet and investigate to see what truth it is. 

This investigation will not be difficult, since you believe in reciting the buddha-name. Just observe who the one reciting the buddha-name is. This is investigating what's beneath your feet right where you're standing. Do this for a long time, and it will be as I said in Correcting Errors: no need to worry that you will not attain the ultimate, primal, most subtle thing. 


Luminous Awareness 
Reply to Layman Chin Kuang-chu 

In your questions you spoke of "the final crucial barrier," "the most profound meaning," "accord with the fundamental ground," "directly pointing out this matter." Crucial, profound, fundamental, direct — these are all important questions. But it is just a matter of considering what is close at hand. Apart from this luminous awareness blazing up, everything is unimportant, shallow, peripheral, circuitous. 

This [luminous awareness] is where the mindfulness in buddha-remembrance arises. When you see through it, I guarantee that you will complete the great matter [of enlightenment] . 

After you read this, you must not start thinking and pondering and trying to figure it out, seeking comprehension through rationalizations. If you do this, you will lose it. Just investigate from moment to moment. When you have really accumulated power for a long time, you will spontaneously get it: only then will you witness enlightenment. 


Simple and Economical and Direct 
To Sun Kuang-i, Layman Wu-kao of Chia-hsing 

Let me add a brief note to your daily lessons. 

Since at present you are still occupied with your studies for the official examinations, in your Pure Land work the important thing is to be simple and economical and direct. A lot of complications will not do. You do not have any spare time to recite Kuan-yin's vows or the Diamond Sutra, so just recite the buddha-name consistently. There is still quite a bit of merit in this. 


Medicine and Disease 
To Chang Pai-hu Kuang-t'ien 

False mindfulness is the disease. Mindfulness of buddha is the medicine. 

A long-term sickness cannot be cured by a little bit of medicine. A great accumulation of falsity cannot be removed by a short period of mindfulness [of buddha]. The principle is the same [in both cases] . 

Don't worry about those false thoughts flying around in confusion: what's important is to recite the buddha-name intently. Every syllable should be clear and distinct, with every repetition following on the last. (15) 

Maintain the recitation with your utmost strength: only then will you become qualified to go toward [the Pure Land]. Of this we say, "Truly accumulate power for a long time, and one morning you will empty out." It is like grinding down a pestle until it becomes a needle, like forging iron into steel. This is certainly no lie. 

There are many gates for entering the Path, but this gate [of buddha-remembrance] is the quickest and most direct. You must not neglect it! 


Shortcut 
Reply to Wu Ta-chou, Layman Chi-li of Hui-chou 

You do not need to worry about how deep your evil karma is or how dull your basic nature is. The sutra says: 

A single perfectly sincere repetition of the name "Amitabha Buddha" obliterates the grave wrongdoings of eighty trillion eons of birth and death. (16) 

Why worry that your [evil] karma is too deep? 

An ancient sage also said: 

There is a shortcut to cultivating practice: it is just reciting "Amitabha Buddha." Why worry that your basic nature is too dull? 

When you see your friends, tell them this. 


A Moment of Mindfulness 
To Layman Liu Lo-yang of Su-chou 

For a long time I have respectfully urged you to devote yourself to reciting the buddha-name and seeking birth in the Pure Land. 

This Path is the most primal and the most subtle and wondrous. It is also the simplest. Because it is simple, those of high intelligence overlook it. 

Birth and death are not apart from a single moment of mindfulness. Consequently, all the myriad worldly and world-transcending teachings and methods are not apart from a single moment of mindfulness. 

Right now take this moment of mindfulness, and be mindful of buddha, remember buddha, recite the buddha-name. How close and cutting! What pure essential energy, so solid and real! If you see through where this mindfulness arises, this is the Amitabha of our inherent nature. This is the meaning of the patriarch coming from the West, [the meaning of Zen]. 

Even if you do not awaken, if you take advantage of the power of this mindfulness [of buddha], you will be reborn in the Land of Ultimate Bliss. Cutting off birth and death "horizontally" [by rebirth in Amitabha's Pure Land], not being subject to cyclical existence, in the end you will awaken to great enlightenment. (17)

My dear old man, I hope you will put aside the myriad things entangling you, and recite the buddha-name and keep your attention on Buddha twenty-four hours a day. This is my hope for you. 


Where's the Reality?
To Layman P'eng Chun-chu of Chiang- yin 

Few people live much past seventy — how long can our lives possibly last? Now in this evening time [of your life], you better put aside all your worries and concerns, and see through this world. It's like a play. Where's the reality? 

Just pass the time with the one sound: "Amitabha Buddha." Make the world of ultimate bliss in the west your own home. [Think to yourself]: "If I recite the buddha-name and practice buddha-remembrance now, later I will be born in the Western Paradise. How fortunate!" Generate great joy, and stop feeling vexed and afflicted. 

If you encounter things that do not go as you wish, immediately push your mind to this one sound, the buddha-name, and quickly focus on reciting it. Turn the light around [onto the source of your own awareness] and reflect back. [Think to yourself:] "[In essence] I am an inhabitant of the world of Amitabha Buddha. Why then do I have the same views and consciousness as a worldly person, creating feelings of anger and joy one after another?" 

Singlemindedly recite the buddha-name. This is the peaceful, blissful Dharma-gate of great liberation for people who live in wisdom. 


Break Through Delusion 
To Chu Kuang-chen, Layman Hsi-tsung, of Chia-hsing 

This is the way people are in the world. When they encounter pleasing situations, they feel happy and content. When they encounter situations that go against them, they feel worried and endangered. 

Nevertheless, pleasing things should not be considered lucky, and adversity should not be considered unlucky. If you are sunk in things that your conceptual mind considers convenient, the intention of transcending the world will never arise. If you are sad and do not get what you aim for, then you will grow weary of the fetters of the world of physical existence, and therefore seek to transcend the world. 

Thus, when the myriad sufferings extend before you, just contemplate them with correct wisdom. 

[Ask yourself]: Where does suffering come from? It is born from physical existence. Where does physical existence come from? From karma. Where does karma come from? It is born from delusion. On the basis of delusion, you create karma. On the basis of karma, physical existence forms. On the basis of physical existence, you incur suffering. Just manage to break through delusion, and all of this is empty and still. 

You may venture to ask, "What is the method for breaking through delusion?" 

Just go to the fundamental meditation point and understand: Who is the one reciting the buddha-name? Who is the one mindful of buddha? 

Take hold of your doubts over this, take hold and defeat them: then all delusion will be smashed. Think this over! Don't neglect it! 


Three Cures 

I hear news that you are sick, so now I will explain three methods [to cure yourself]. 

The first is called "the cure by opposites." 

Since your sickness comes from overwork and anxiety, you should use leisure to cure overwork, and relaxation to cure anxiety. 

Leisure does not mean being lazy and indifferent. What I mean by "leisure" is doing away with all entanglements, and being like a newborn child, with the conceptual mind not operating. 

Relaxation does not mean dissipation and lack of proper restraint. What I mean by "relaxation" is to know that the world of physical existence is like an illusion, like a dream; to go along with it according to circumstances, not being deceived by objects; and to abandon all your concerns about whether you will recover from your present illness or not, and whether you will live or die. 

The second method is called "temperance." 

Temperance is a matter of regulating what you drink and eat, and being careful with what medicines you take. Regulating what you drink and eat goes without saying. It is not right to take too many medicines. Some medicines may injure your stomach before they cure you, so that you cannot swallow any food, and there is a danger of ulcers. You should discuss [any use of medicine] with an expert. 

The third method is called "correct mindfulness." 

This is what I talked to you about before: suffering comes from physical existence, physical existence comes from karma, and so on. Sickness is one form of suffering: the basis upon which it develops is the same. 

You must work carefully and continuously, investigating day and night [how suffering arises]. 

If you cannot find out, just put your attention on the question, Who is the one reciting the buddha-name? This is the basic koan, the fundamental meditation point in reciting the buddha-name. 

Turn the light around and observe for yourself, until you know the ultimate locus of this mindfulness of buddha. Then delusion will spontaneously break up. When delusion breaks up, that which develops from it is obliterated the same way. 

You should work hard to carry out these three methods. 


Throw Everything into the Ocean 

You must believe that everything is due to past causes. Throw everything into the ocean: not only favorable events and adversities, and your failures and successes, but even life and death. 

Do not be worried or afraid. Gather up your body and mind, turn your awareness around and reflect within on the fundamental meditation point: Who is reciting the buddha-name? This is the most important thing to remember! 


Mindfulness to Cure Sickness 

Mindfulness of buddha through reciting the buddha-name is not merely illuminating mind. It also cures all sicknesses. If there are people urging you to enter into Taoist magical arts, do not believe them. [If you do] I'm afraid you will lose your correct knowledge. I'm making a special point of telling you this in advance. 


No Time Left for Minor Matters 

Your illness has reached the stage where it is very dangerous. You should take everything you want to say, write it all down in a letter, and send it to your sons and your mother, so that there are no concerns left in your breast, and you can singlemindedly practice correct mindfulness. (18)

If you had been able to believe fully in the method of reciting the buddha-name in the days gone by, then [by now] you would be able to reflect inwardly in the mind's eye on the buddha-name in perfect clarity without any interruption. 

Then it would be alright even if you were to go today or tomorrow, or alright if you lived to be a hundred and twenty. 

These are crucial words. We have been friends our whole lives. Now that you are at this point, you have no time left for any other minor matters. You should not long for life and fear death, and miss the great matter [of enlightenment] . 


Since You are Sick 
To Layman Wang Ta-cho 

Since you are sick, you should take all your outside concerns, and your concerns for your body and physical health, and wholeheartedly abandon them — make yourself totally empty. 

If there is anything you cannot [completely] put aside, I urge you to put it aside for the time being, and deal with it later. When false thoughts blaze up uncontrollably, you must recite the buddha-name a few times and subdue them. 

Worldly glory and wealth and rank are things that do not last more than a little while. Likewise, difficulties and pains are things that do not last more than a little while. Before long they are gone. 

All sorts of things that happen are due to past causes. They are not things that our human power can do anything about. Wholeheartedly abandon them, and singlemindedly recite the buddha-name. I urge you to do this ! 


To Illuminate Mind 
To Layman Ch'in Ming-chung 

There are countless gates to the Dharma: what's important is to illuminate mind. Of the essential gates for illuminating mind, none equals reciting the buddha-name. 

When you have spare time from your reading and writing, or when your mind is troubled, sit quietly and recite the buddha-name. This is very beneficial. 

When your mindfulness is on buddha, mixed mindfulness retreats and stops. With mind empty, objects are quiescent: what will you do with the subtle wonder? 

I hope you will not neglect this by taking it too casually. 


Open Up the Darkness 
To Ch'in Kuang-liang, Layman Jen-nan of Wu-chiang 

The saying goes, "Open up the darkness, and release the karmic bonds." 

If you understand, then the darkness is the light, and the karmic bonds are nothing but liberation. 

If you do not understand, then constantly gather in the mind and recite the buddha-name. After a long time you will become quiet and steady, and you will spontaneously be able to generate wisdom. 


Pure Land and Zen Methods 
To Wu Kuang-i, Layman Nien-tz'u of Nan-ch'eng 

There are many ways to enter the Path, but for directness and simplicity, none matches reciting the buddha-name. 

The method of buddha-remembrance through reciting the buddha-name brings salvation to those of the most excellent capacities, and reaches down to the most stupid and dull. In sum, it is the Path that reaches from high to low. Do not be shaken or confused by vulgar views [that Pure Land is only for those of lesser abilities]. 

Since ancient times, the venerable adepts [of the Zen school] have taught people to contemplate meditation topics [koans], to arouse the feeling of doubt, and thus proceed to great awakening. Some contemplate the word "No." Some contemplate "The myriad things return to one: what does the one return to?" The meditation topics are quite diverse, and there are quite enough of them. 

Now I will try to compare [Zen and Pure Land methods] . 

Take for example [the koan] "The myriad things return to one: what does the one return to?" This is very similar to [the koan] "Who is the one reciting the buddha-name?" If you can break through at this "Who?" then you will not have to ask anyone else what the one returns to: you will spontaneously comprehend. 

This was precisely what the ancients meant when they said that those who recite the buddha-name and wish to study Zen should not concentrate on any other meditation topic but this. 

Recite the buddha-name several times, turn the light around and observe yourself: who is the one reciting the buddha-name? If you employ your mind like this, without forgetting, without any other help, after a long time you are sure to have insight. 

If you cannot do this, it is also alright simply to recite the buddha-name. Keep your mindfulness from leaving buddha, and buddha from leaving your mindfulness. When your mindfulness [of buddha] peaks, your mind empties: you will get a response and link up with the Path, and buddha will appear before you. According to the inner pattern, it must be so. 


Repentance 
To Wang Chih-ti, Tzu-ou Hsiao-lien of T'ai-ts'ang 

Your family has practiced [Buddhism] for generations and is full of virtue. So why have you been afflicted with this severe illness? Can it be that there is no past karma to make it so? The origin of sickness usually comes from killing living beings. That's why I emphasize releasing living beings. 

There is another thing I want to explain to you now. The merit of having a monk from outside perform rites of repentance for you is poles apart from the merit of doing repentance for yourself in your inner mind. (19) 

Therefore I hope you will empty your mind, and put an end to all entangling circumstances. With your mind empty, concentrate your mindfulness on the sound "Amitabha Buddha." 

As it is said, for buddha-remembrance through buddha-name recitation, it is not necessary to move the mouth and tongue. Just reflect back in silence with the mind's eye, so that each and every syllable [of the buddha-name] is distinct and clear, and the repetitions continue one after another. Go on from morning to evening and from evening to morning, from mind-moment to mind-moment without interruption. If you are in pain, be patient and endure it: pay singleminded attention to your recitation of the buddha-name. The Sutra says: 

One wholehearted invocation of the buddha-name wipes out the sins of eighty trillion eons of birth and death. 

This is why the merit earned [by this] is poles apart [from hiring monks to perform rituals for you] . 
...................................................
15. See also Buddhism of Wisdom and Faith, sect. 30.4. 

16. See note 1. 

17. See note 13. 

18. According to Buddhist teachings, if there were another obstruction as strong as love-attachment, no cultivator could ever hope to attain Buddhahood. 

19. To be truly effective in dedicating merit to others, the practitioner must be utterly sincere and singleminded in his recitation. Even so, the sutras teach that the recipient can only obtain a small part of this merit. Furthermore, since the crucial conditions of sincerity and singlemindedness are seldom achieved in full, most intercessions are, at best, partially effective and can seldom erase a lifetime of bad karma. Thus, it is imperative for the practitioner himself to cultivate, and not rely entirely on monks and nuns. 

Source Of Information:
《Pure Land Pure Mind 心净佛土净》, by Master Chu-hung and Tsung-pen, translated by J.C.Cleary, distributed by: Persatuan Penganut Agama Buddha Amitabha Malaysia, 90 & 92, Jalan Pahang, Gombak, 53000 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.)
*** The information provided above does not contain personal opinion of this blog.

Warnings to the Assembly

Plain Talk 

After I left home, I went everywhere studying and paying visits [to teachers]. At the time Master Pien-jung's teaching center was flourishing, so I went to the capital to call on him. 

[When I met him,] I got down on my knees and asked him again and again [to instruct me]. He said to me, "You should hold to your fundamental obligations. Don't go hankering after fame and pursuing profit. Don't go clinging to those you think will help you. Just be clear about cause and effect, and singlemindedly practice buddha-remembrance." I accepted his teaching and left. 

My fellow travellers laughed at me, thinking, "Anyone could say these few sentences. You came from so far away, and this is all Pien-jung told you! Where's the loftiness, the subtlety? Actually [this advice] is not worth half a cent!" 

I said, "This shows precisely what's good about him. We were thirsting [for knowledge], looking up to him, expecting to revere him, and so we came here from afar. But he did not trick us with talk of the primal source and subtle wonders. Instead, he just instructed us in the plainest, most sincere way with the close-at-hand, pure and genuine work that he himself has personally known. This is what's good about him." 

From then on, up till now, I have in fact kept to [what Pien-jung taught me], and never abandoned it. 


Belief (Faith) 

Of the essential gates for entering the Path, belief (faith) is number one. (13) Without belief, the essential things will not get accomplished, nor will anything good at all be accomplished. 

Here is a worldly metaphor. When robbers are denounced and apprehended, the government always punishes them severely. If these robbers were let go and pardoned after their arrest, they would continue as before and not repent. Why? Because they would then believe that they did not have to pay back a cent for their nefarious conduct, and would get to keep for themselves profits beyond reckoning. Therefore they are made to suffer pain, so they will definitely not go back on their repentance. 

These days people recite the buddha-name, but they are unwilling to get serious and really exert themselves at it. This is because they have not deeply pondered [the Buddhist Teaching] and come to believe in it truly. 

I don't want to say that you do not believe in the Pure Land. [But remember], the World Honored One said, "Human life [may only last] from one breath to the next." The meaning of this sentence is not hard to understand. You have personally seen and heard [of the fragility of human life] with your eyes and ears, and you have experienced many examples of it. But right now when I demand that you believe in this statement, you are unable to do so. If you really and truly believed in this statement, I would not have to spend all my energy warning you a thousand times to practice the method of buddha-remembrance. 

But [the natural course of impermanence] is like water flowing into a gully: no force can hold it back. The day before yesterday when we had a funeral for a dead monk, you saw an example [of the impermanence of life that Buddha was talking about], and you were sad and unhappy. 

Let me warn you all and urge you on by telling you this: Today we hold a funeral for one monk, tomorrow a funeral for another. Before you know it, it will be your turn, and then it will be too late for regrets. 

You must get busy with buddha-remembrance. Don't waste any time. 

I see you saying to yourselves that time is precious, and saying to other people that time is precious; but when you are in the monks' hall chattering, you are talking and laughing and taking it easy as usual. In fact you do not [act as if you genuinely] believe that human life [can end] from one breath to the next. 


Gathering In The Mind 

I see new students and young people who stick the word "Buddha" in their minds to block off worries and false thoughts - which they then feel bubbling up even more - and think that this is the work of buddha-remembrance. They cannot rein in their minds. They do not know that the root-source of birth and death over countless eons cannot be instantly cut off. 

But the moment when myriad thoughts are flying around in confusion is precisely the time to do the work. The more you gather [your mind] in, the more it scatters. The more it scatters, the more you gather it in. After a long time the work becomes pure and ripe, and false thoughts naturally do not arise. 

Still, [the very fact that] you are able to become aware that false thoughts are a serious matter, is due to this one word "Buddha." If you did not practice buddha-remembrance, false thoughts would surge on and on without stopping for an instant, but you would never manage to notice. 


Reciting the Buddha-Name to Rein in the Mind 

In buddha-remembrance through reciting the buddha-name, there is reciting the buddha-name silently, there is reciting it in a loud voice, and there is diamond recitation. 

When you recite it in a loud voice, it feels like too much exertion. When you recite it silently, it is easy to sink into a torpor. It is called diamond recitation when you recite it closely and continuously with the sound between your lips and teeth. 

But do not cling to this as a fixed rule. If you feel you are expending too much effort, then go ahead and recite silently. If you feel you are sinking into a torpor, then go ahead and recite in a loud voice . . . 

Every repetition of the sound should come out of your mouth and enter your ears, and awaken your inherent mind. It's like a man fast asleep: another man calls, "Hey you!" and he immediately wakes up. This is why reciting the buddha-name is the best means for reining in the mind. 


The Death Toll 

People today are unwilling to recite the buddha-name. They scorn the Western Paradise. They do not know that [the Pure Land teaching of] rebirth in the West is the expedient by which worthy sages of great merit and wisdom transform our mundane world [called] "Endurance" into the Pure Land [of Amitabha Buddha]. They do not know that, as a causal basis [for enlightenment], this [Pure Land method] is not for those of little ability. 

Just look around at how many people die in this city in a day and a night. [For most of them,] it's not a question of birth in the Western Paradise: out of the hundreds and thousands [who die every twenty-four hours], scarcely one is reborn in heaven. Those among them who credit themselves with cultivating Buddhist practice accomplish nothing more than to avoid losing their human bodies [in their next incarnation].(14) 

This is why our [Buddha], the World Honored One, with great compassion, taught this method [of buddha-remembrance]. [In showing us this method] his merit surpasses heaven and earth, and his benevolence goes beyond that of our parents. Even having our bones pulverized and our bodies broken to pieces would not be enough to repay Buddha's benevolence. 


Dying Well 

When I was young, I did not yet know of buddha-remembrance. In a neighbor's house I happened to see an old woman who recited the buddha-name several thousand times every day. I asked her, "Why do you do this?" She said, "My late husband recited the buddha-name in days past, and [when he died] he departed very well. Therefore I recite the buddha-name like this. When my late husband departed, there was no sickness. He just invited people over and said goodbye." 

[Given that laypeople can achieve such constancy in Pure Land practice], how can someone who has left home [to be a monk or nun] not recite the buddha-name? 

related post: Letters
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13. Three factors, faith, vows and practice, are the cornerstones of Pure Land Buddhism. If they are present, rebirth in the Pure Land is assured. Faith means faith in Amitabha Buddha's Vows to rescue all who recite His name, as well as faith in one's own Self-Nature, which is intrinsically the same as His (to recite the Buddha's name is to recite the Mind). Vows are the determination to be reborn in the Pure Land - in one's pure mind - so as to be in the position to save oneself and others. Practice generally means reciting the Buddha's name to the point where one's mind and that of Amitabha Buddha are in unison - i.e., to the point of singlemindedness. Samadhi and wisdom are then achieved. 
Please note that all Buddhist teachings are expedients, dividing the one and indivisible Truth into many parts. Faith, vows and practice, although three, are really one. Thus, it can be said that rebirth in the Pure Land depends on three conditions or two conditions (faith and vows) or even one condition (faith), as the one contains all and all are contained in the one. The formula to be used depends on the audience and the times. The aim is to enable sentient beings to achieve rebirth in the Pure Land as a steppingstone toward Buddhahood. 

14. According to Buddhist teaching, keeping the five precepts results in rebirth in human form, while keeping the ten precepts results in rebirth as a deva (deity). Since the human and celestial realms are still subject to birth and death, however, rebirth there is not the goal of Pure Land Buddhists. They seek rebirth in the Land of Amitabha Buddha, a realm transcending birth and death. 

Source Of Information:
《Pure Land Pure Mind 心净佛土净》, by Master Chu-hung and Tsung-pen, translated by J.C.Cleary, distributed by: Persatuan Penganut Agama Buddha Amitabha Malaysia, 90 & 92, Jalan Pahang, Gombak, 53000 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.)
*** The information provided above does not contain personal opinion of this blog.

General Advice

Remembering Buddha 

The Pure Land teaching began with the World Honored One Shakyamuni Buddha, and has been disseminated through the generations of sage worthies. 

They have divided the one gate of buddha-remembrance into four types: buddha- remembrance through reciting the name [of Amitabha Buddha], buddha-remembrance through contemplating the image [of Amitabha Buddha], buddha-remembrance through contemplating the concept [of Buddha], and reality- aspect (real mark) buddha-remembrance. 

Though there are differences among the four types, ultimately they all go back to reality- aspect buddha-remembrance. Moreover, the first three types can be grouped as two: contemplating the concept, and reciting the name. [Buddha-remembrance through] contemplating the concept is explained in detail in the Sixteen Contemplations Sutra (Meditation Sutra). Here I will discuss reciting the name. The Amitabha Sutra says: 

If a person recites the name of Amitabha Buddha singlemindedly for [a period of from] one or two up to seven days without allowing anything to confuse the mind, at the end of that person's life Amitabha Buddha and a multitude of holy ones will appear before him. As the person dies, his mind will not be deluded, and he will attain rebirth in Amitabha Buddha's land of ultimate bliss. 

This is the great [scriptural] source from which for myriad generations has come [the practice of] buddha-remembrance by reciting the name, the wondrous teaching personally communicated from the golden mouth [of Buddha] . An ancient worthy said: 

As they contemplate the subtleties of the inner truth of phenomena, the minds of sentient beings are mixed [with other concerns than truth]. Since they practice contemplation with mixed minds, the contemplative state of mind is hard to achieve. The Great Sage [Buddha] took pity on them, and encouraged them to concentrate on the recitation of the buddha-name. Because it is easy to invoke the buddha-name, there starts to be some continuity [to their buddha-remembrance]. 

This teaches that the work of buddha-remembrance through reciting the name is most essential for being born in the Pure Land. If by reciting the name one arrives at the reality-aspect, then this has the same efficacy as subtle contemplation. Beings of the highest caliber must not doubt this. 

All you children of Buddha here today, [I tell you this]: in the gate of repentance, everyone must repent - even the sages of the vehicles of the disciples [sravakas] and the solitary [pratyeka] buddhas, even the great beings of complete mind [bodhisattvas], even those of enlightenment equal to the buddhas, all must still repent. Since they all must equally repent, don't they all have to be born in the Pure Land? How much the more so for those at the stage of ordinary mortals and those in the stages of study! 

To all of you here today, disciples and others, whatever plane of existence you are in, I respectfully offer [this teaching] to you: all of you must wholeheartedly invoke the buddha- name, and seek birth in the Pure Land. I hope that Buddha's compassion will extend down specially to you, and gather you in and save you. 


A General Call to Remember Buddha 

The Amitabha Sutra says: 

If people are mindful of Buddha, at death they are sure to be born in the Pure Land. 

The Sixteen Contemplations Sutra (Meditation Sutra) says: 

People in all categories who practice buddha-remembrance are born in the Pure Land. 

Thus with this method of buddha-remembrance, it does not matter whether you are male or female or a monk or nun or layperson, it does not matter whether your social status is high or low, or whether you are virtuous or stupid. As long as the singleminded [remembrance of buddha] is not confused, all categories of people will go to the Pure Land, according to how much they practice [buddha-remembrance] . So we know that there is not one person in the world unworthy of buddha-remembrance. 

If people are rich and high ranking, receiving the use of everything ready-made, they should practice buddha-remembrance. 

If people are poor and destitute, with small families and few relations, they should practice buddha-remembrance. 

If people have children to remember them at their clan shrines, they should practice buddha-remembrance . 

If people are childless, and live alone on their own, they should practice buddha- remembrance. 

If people's children are filial, so they are secure receiving their support, they should practice buddha-remembrance. 

If people's children are rebellious, and feel no gratitude or love, they should practice buddha-remembrance . 

If people are free from sickness, they should take advantage of their good health to practice buddha-remembrance. 

If people are infirm, and closely pressed by impermanence, they should practice buddha- remembrance. 

If people are old, and do not have much time left, they should practice buddha- remembrance. 

If people are young in years, with spirit still pure and sharp, they should practice buddha- remembrance. 

If people are at leisure, without cares to trouble their minds, they should practice buddha- remembrance. 

If people are busy, and can only steal a little free time from the press of business, they should practice buddha-remembrance. 

If people have left home [to become monks or nuns], and wander free of outside material considerations, they should practice buddha-remembrance. 

If people are living as householders, then knowing that [worldly life is as impermanent as] a house on fire, they should practice buddha-remembrance. 

If people are intelligent, and clearly understand the Pure Land, they should practice buddha-remembrance . 

If people are stupid and dull, and can do nothing else, they should practice buddha- remembrance. 

If people maintain discipline, the discipline which is the order of the Buddha, they should practice buddha-remembrance. 

If people read the sutras, the sutras which are the words of the Buddha, they should practice buddha-remembrance. 

If people study Zen, Zen which is the mind of the Buddha, they should practice buddha- remembrance. 

If people awaken to the Path, the awakening that must be witnessed by the Buddha, they should practice buddha-remembrance. 

I encourage all people everywhere as a matter of great urgency to practice buddha- remembrance. All categories of people will be born in the Pure Land: the [lotus] flower will open and they will see Buddha. 

Seeing the Buddha, hearing the Dharma, in the end they will become enlightened. Only then will they know that their own inherent mind was all along fundamentally Buddha. 


Universal Encouragement to Buddha-Remembrance 

Studying Buddhism is not a matter of adornments and formalistic practices: the only thing that is important is genuine cultivation of practice. Buddhist laypeople who live at home do not need to dress like monks and nuns. People who keep their hair can make a constant practice of buddha-remembrance: they do not need to abide by the daily schedules of monks and nuns. 

People who like quiet can practice buddha-remembrance [alone] in silence: they do not have to form groups and create associations [for the purpose]. 

People who fear untoward events can practice buddha-remembrance [at home] behind closed doors: they do not have to go to temples to hear the scriptures. 

People who know how to read can practice buddha-remembrance according to the scriptural teachings. 

Burning incense [in temples] far and wide is not as good as sitting peacefully in a hall at home practicing buddha-remembrance. 

Serving misguided teachers is not as good as being obedient and filial to one's parents and practicing buddha-remembrance. 

Making widespread connections with deluded friends is not as good as preserving one's purity alone and practicing buddha-remembrance. 

Storing up merit for future lives is not as good as creating merit in the present by practicing buddha-remembrance. 

Making vows and promising expiation [of wrongdoings] is not as good as repenting past faults, undergoing self-renewal and practicing buddha-remembrance. 

Studying non-Buddhist books and texts is not as good as being totally illiterate and practicing buddha-remembrance. 

Engaging in false talk about the principles of Zen without knowledge is not as good as genuinely maintaining discipline and practicing buddha-remembrance. 

Seeking demonic spiritual powers is not as good as having correct faith in cause and effect and practicing buddha-remembrance. 

To express the essential point, an upright mind annihilates evil. If you practice buddha- remembrance like this, you are called a good person. If you practice buddha-remembrance while reining in the mind and eliminating scattering, you are called a worthy person. If you practice buddha-remembrance while enlightening your mind and cutting off delusion, you are called a sage. 

I urge people who are completely at leisure to practice buddha-remembrance. You have finished arranging marriages for your daughters. Your sons and grandsons are taking care of family business. You are secure and at leisure with no concerns. You should practice buddha- remembrance with your whole mind and your whole strength. Every day recite the buddha-name several thousand times, or even several tens of thousands of times. 

I urge people who are half at leisure and half busy to practice buddha-remembrance. You are half through, half not through: sometimes you are busy, sometimes you are at leisure. Though you are not totally at leisure, when you are busy you should take care of business, and when you have free time, you should practice buddha-remembrance. Every day recite the buddha-name several hundred times, or several thousand times. 

I urge people who are completely busy to practice buddha-remembrance. You are working on government affairs, or else running around taking care of family business. Though you have no free time, you still must steal a bit of free time amidst your busy life and practice buddha-remembrance. Every day recite the buddha-name ten times in the morning, and several hundred times during the day. 


Essentials for Reading the Sutras 

What is explained in the sutras of the great canon is no more than discipline, concentration, and wisdom. 

In reading the scriptures, there are two kinds of mistakes. 

One mistake is to cling to the literal text and miss the inner principles. 

The second mistake is to recognize the principles but not apply them on your own mind, so that you waste time and just make them into causes of entanglement. 

If you can fully comprehend the practice of discipline, concentration, and wisdom, this in itself is what is called constantly abiding from moment to moment in the scriptural teachings of the great canon, and being mindful of thousands and millions of volumes of sutras. 

We must also recognize that this discipline, concentration, and wisdom are equivalent to the method of buddha-remembrance. How so? 

Discipline means preventing wrongdoing. If you can wholeheartedly practice buddha-remembrance, evil will not dare to enter - this is discipline. 

Concentration means eliminating the scattering [characteristic of ordinary mind]. If you wholeheartedly practice buddha-remembrance, mind does have any other object - this is concentration. 

Wisdom means clear perception. If you contemplate the sound of the buddha-name with each syllable distinct, and also contemplate that the one who is mindful and the one who is the object of this mindfulness are both unattainable - this is wisdom. 

Thus buddha-remembrance is discipline, concentration, and wisdom. What need is there to follow texts literally when reading the scriptures? 

Time passes quickly, life does not remain solid forever. I hope all of you will make the work of Pure Land practice your urgent task. Do not think that what I say is false and fail to heed it. 


A Talk to Householders 

Human life: mothers and children, husbands and wives. A person's family and dependents are all there due to the nexus of causal factors from past lives. Temporarily they join together, but in the end they must be parted. This in itself is not sad or painful. What is sad and painful is to pass a lifetime in vain, without being mindful of buddha, without practicing buddha-remembrance . 

Today let us simply abandon the myriad entanglements, turn the light around and reflect back. 

Buddha-remembrance is the most important thing in life. There's not much more to say. Just be concerned with purifying your mindfulness of buddha. 

As you recite the buddha-name, reflect clearly in your mind on every syllable. Be serious every moment: do not let any false thoughts mix in. Every morning and evening as you bow to the buddha-image, make a most earnest vow to seek birth in the Pure Land. 

If you persist in this [throughout your life] until you are on the brink of death, correct mindfulness will appear before you spontaneously, and you will go to be reborn in Amitabha Buddha's Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss, reborn transformed in the Lotus Treasury World, forever removed from all suffering. 


To a Sick Person 

The ancients had a saying: 

Sickness is the best medicine for sentient beings. When sick, a person should be very happy. When everything goes against your will, do not feel afflicted. 

Another saying goes: 

Life and death are fated. When sick, a person should give rise to great liberation. Let life and death go on, without being afraid. 

Again: The past is like an illusion. The present is like an illusion. The future is like an illusion. Abandon them utterly with all your feelings, and just uphold correct mindfulness. In the midst of your sickness, be peaceful and patient. Do not think restlessly of a quick cure. This is the best prescription for a fast recovery. 

Also: Put aside all your household affairs. Abandon the myriad causes of entanglement. Empty your mind and be mindful of the buddha-name. Do not forget it for a minute, and your karmic barriers will dissolve by themselves. When your karmic barriers have dissolved, naturally you will sleep peacefully at night, and your body and mind will get healthy and strong. 

The person practicing buddha-remembrance must vow to abandon this evil world, and be born in [Amitabha's Pure Land,] the land of bliss. 


To an Elderly Layperson 

The body of form inevitably declines and weakens, but reality-nature never decays or perishes. Remove all entanglements, and purify and unify your mind. Pure mind, pure land - this is how to achieve birth in the Pure Land, and spontaneously arrive at birthlessness. 


To a Good Woman on the Brink of Death 

Although the bodies of men and women differ, their luminous real nature does not. Why talk of the five impurities [that afflict bodily life]? All that is important is the one mind. If you invoke Amitabha with your whole mind, you are sure to be reborn in the land of peace and bliss. 


The Esoteric Secret 
To Ta-t'ung 

The ancients taught us to approach enlightened teachers, and seek spiritual friends, [that is], men and women of knowledge. But enlightened teachers do not have any means to transmit mind or impart secret methods: all they do for people is release sticking points and remove bonds. This is the esoteric secret. 

Today we just recite the buddha-name with unified mindfulness without confusion. This formulation is the esoteric method for releasing sticking points and removing bonds. This is the grand highway out of birth and death. 

Recite the buddha-name morning and night. Recite it when you are walking and when you are sitting. When your mindfulness [of Buddha] is continuous, then it spontaneously becomes a samadhi, that is, a stable state of concentration. Then you will not seek further elsewhere. 

Also: The mind which has long been in confusion is hard to settle down all at once. If your mindfulness of buddha as you recite the buddha-name is not pure, do not worry. All you have to do is deepen your effort, reciting every syllable of the buddha-name clearly in your mind. 


Emptying Body and Mind 
To Wang Chih-ti 

If your mind is empty, then your karma is emptied. If your body is empty, then your sickness is emptied. If there is any doubt, you should wholeheartedly abandon it. 

The sutra says, "Whatever has form is empty falsity." Belonging to the realm of empty falsity, [forms] are like optical illusions, like bubbles on water, like things in a dream. How can you think they exist [in any absolute sense]? 

Reduce your thoughts and worries, curb your annoyance and anger, regulate your drinking and eating, be careful in your conduct. Every hour, every minute, simply make buddha- remembrance your meditation topic. 

Don't neglect it! 

Then enlightened awareness will always be present, and you will be fully awake and undimmed. 


Too Many Concerns 
To Ming Ta-hsiao 

You have too many concerns that preoccupy your mind too urgently. That's why you develop all these illnesses. 

Just work continuously [on buddha-remembrance] without any breaks, without mixing in any other thoughts. This is the work [for you]. Excessive austerities are not needed. 

False thoughts are powerful, but after a long struggle they will submit. Have no doubts about this. 


Do Not Concern Yourself 
To Wu Ta-chun 

Do not concern yourself with whether or not you will become enlightened. 

Do not concern yourself with existence and non-existence, with inside and outside and in-between. 

Do not concern yourself with "stopping" [shammata/samatha] and "observing" [vipashyana/vipasyana] . 

Do not concern yourself with whether [this method of reciting the buddha-name] is the same or not the same as other Buddhist methods. 

If the feeling of doubt does not arise, do not concern yourself with who it is or who it is not [who is reciting the buddha-name]. Simply go on reciting the buddha-name with unified mind and unified intent without a break, pure and unmixed. 


Mindfulness of Buddha is the Medicine 
To Yu Kuang-hui
 
An ancient said: 

Mixed mindfulness is the disease. Mindfulness of buddha is the medicine. 

When buddha-remembrance is correct, it cures mixed mindfulness. If you cannot cure it, it is because your mindfulness is not keen. 

When miscellaneous thoughts arise, then use your mind to increase your effort to be mindful of buddha. When your spirit is unified and undivided on every syllable [of the buddha- name], miscellaneous thoughts will cease by themselves. 


Penetrate Through 
To Wang Kuang-ti 

Nothing is better than simply reciting the phrase "Amitabha Buddha." Recite it with your whole mind, with your whole strength, without any other thoughts at all. 

This is equivalent to the [Zen method of contemplating] the meditation topic "No." You do not need to keep in mind "No" or any other meditation topic. 

If you purify and unify your buddha-remembrance, and penetrate through in your recitation of the buddha-name, you will penetrate through in all places. 


The Place Where Buddhas are Chosen 
To Kuang-ch'i 

The Zen master Layman P'ang said in verse: 

From the ten directions we gather together 
Each and every one of us learns not-doing 
This is the place where buddhas are chosen 
Minds empty, having made the grade, 
we return home. 

If you cannot yet empty your mind, for the time being diligently practice buddha- remembrance. When it becomes continuous from moment to moment without a stop, then your mind will spontaneously empty out. 


Why Are You So Afraid? 
To Wu Kuang-shou 

If you do not doubt birth and death, if you do no doubt the public cases [koans] of the ancient worthies, then why are you so afraid? Why has the arrow of anxiety entered your mind? Of this it is said, "The one who does not doubt still has doubts." 

In olden times two monks had committed adultery and murder, but after a single word from [the enlightened layman] Vimalakirti, their wrongdoings were totally dissolved away. (6) 

If you could be like those two monks right now, we would not have to talk about it. Since you are not this way, there is another method. The sutra says: 

Reciting the buddha-name wholeheartedly once wipes away the serious sins of eight billion eons of birth and death. (7) 

If you recite the buddha-name sincerely eighteen thousand times, all your sins will be wiped away. The evils which you have committed will then be like the clouds blown away by the wind, like the frost melted by the sun, like a drop of water thrown into the ocean, like a snowflake on a red-hot stove: cleansed away utterly and obliterated without a trace. 


To a Buddhist Layperson 

Firmly uphold the five precepts (8), and singlemindedly practice buddha-remembrance. Be filial and care for your parents, [to be sure,] but I still urge you to unify your mind and practice buddha-remembrance. Vow that both mother and son will be born together in the Pure Land. Pass your days according to circumstances. If people come with offerings, accept them, but do not go about soliciting donors. Do not form associations for buddha-remembrance. Keep to what's proper and cultivate practice. Then you will be a man of great goodness, a true Buddhist layman, in this age of the end of the Dharma (Dharma-Ending Age). 


Ambition 
To Mr. Shih of Weng-men on Tung-t'ing Mountain, who seeks to become an official in a future life 

Though it may be good to be an official, if having been an official, in a future life you fall from [that position], you will experience measureless suffering. (9) You must singlemindedly practice buddha-remembrance and seek birth in the Pure Land. Even if you were to ascend to the highest rank of officialdom, it is not as good as ascending to the Lotus Treasury World among the nine classes of beings [born in the Pure Land]. Practicing buddha-remembrance and seeking birth in the Pure Land is far, far superior to being an official. 


Being Near a True Buddha 
To Mr. Shih of Xu-men on Tung-t'ing Mountain, who seeks to become a monk in a future life 

Though being a monk is good, if a monk does not cultivate practice, in his future life he will fall from [that position], and receive measureless suffering. (10) 

You must singlemindedly practice buddha-remembrance and seek birth in the Pure Land. 

Being near false images of carved and decorated metal and wood is not as good as being near the true Buddha who is preaching the Dharma right now. 

It is far, far better to be a monk in the Pure Land than to be a monk here in this world. 


To Students 

These days many people like to talk about studying enlightenment and finally comprehending birth and death. They do not realize that in this world complete enlightenment is extremely difficult. They think of it as [direct, sudden] "vertical" transcendence of the Triple World [of desire, form, and formless states]. 

But even [someone who has overcome desire and reached the stage of] a "once-returner" (11) still has to go [to his death] and come back once more [through rebirth]: how much the more so, for an ordinary person! Most of the sentient beings in this world will have to be reborn in the West [in the Pure Land] first before they can be completely enlightened. The [Pure Land] gate to the West is called "horizontal" transcendence: (12) not one in ten thousand misses it. 

related post: Warnings to the Assembly
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6. This passage refers to a story in which Vimalakirti reassured two monks that they had committed adultery and "murder" involuntarily, without intent. Therefore, since their minds were not polluted, they could repent their transgressions and remain within the Order. 

7. See note 1. 

8. See Glossary, "Five Precepts." 
Five Precepts. The precepts taken by lay Buddhists, prohibiting i) killing, ii) stealing, iii) lying, iv) sexual misconduct, v) ingesting intoxicants. See also "Ten Precepts." 

9. See Glossary, "Third Lifetime." 
Third Lifetime. In the first lifetime, the practitioner engages in mundane good deeds which bring ephemeral worldly blessings (wealth, power, authority, etc.) in the second lifetime. Since power tends to corrupt, he is likely to create evil karma, resulting in retribution in the third lifetime. Thus, good deeds in the first lifetime are potential "enemies" of the third lifetime. 
To ensure that mundane good deeds do not become "enemies," the practitioner should dedicate all merits to a transcendental goal, i.e., to become Bodhisattvas or Buddhas or, in Pure Land teaching, to achieve rebirth in the Pure Land - a Buddha land beyond Birth and Death. 
In a mundane context, these three lifetimes can be conceived of as three generations. Thus, the patriarch of a prominent family, through hard work and luck, amasses great power, fortune and influence (first lifetime). His children are then able to enjoy a leisurely, and, too often, dissipated life (second lifetime). By the generation of the grandchildren, the family's fortune and good reputation have all but disappeared (third lifetime). 

10. A monk or nun who does not cultivate while receiving offerings from the laity has betrayed the latter's trust and, in effect, stolen the offerings. He has, therefore, incurred immense suffering for the future. The Buddha referred to such monks or nuns as "bald-headed thieves." 

11. See Glossary, "Once-Returner." 
Once-returner. A sage who has only one rebirth left before reaching Arhatship and escaping birth and death. 

12. "Horizontal" and "vertical" are figures of speech, which can readily be understood through the following example. Suppose we have a worm, born inside a stalk of bamboo. To escape, it can take the "hard way" and crawl all the way to the top of the stalk. Alternatively, it can look for or poke a hole near its current location and escape, "horizontally" into the big, wide world. The horizontal escape, for sentient beings, is to seek rebirth in the Pure Land of Amitabha Buddha. 

Source Of Information:
《Pure Land Pure Mind 心净佛土净》, by Master Chu-hung and Tsung-pen, translated by J.C.Cleary, distributed by: Persatuan Penganut Agama Buddha Amitabha Malaysia, 90 & 92, Jalan Pahang, Gombak, 53000 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.)
*** The information provided above does not contain personal opinion of this blog.