Excerpt 56-60 (Lecture Notes on the Essence of the Infinite Life Sutra)

Excerpt Fifty-Six

Wherever the Buddha goes, whether to a country, a city, or a village, people will be moved and will benefit. All the lands will be enveloped in peace and harmony. The sun and moon will shine clear and bright. Wind and rain will come when needed. Disasters and epidemics will not occur. The country will flourish and the people will enjoy peace. There will be no need for soldiers or weapons. Virtue will be revered and benevolence will be promoted. People will practice courtesy and humility. There will be no thieves or robbers in the country. There will be neither injustice nor resentment. The strong will not dominate the weak. Everyone will naturally get their fair reward.

“Wherever the Buddha goes, whether to a country, a city, or a village, people will be moved and will benefit.” “The Buddha” here refers to the Buddha’s teachings. “Goes” refers to implementation. “Wherever the Buddha goes” refers to the places where the Buddha’s teachings are implemented. From a place as large as a country to a place as small as a village, if the people there truly practice the Buddha’s teachings, they will change for the better. Those who receive the Buddha’s teachings will have a change in disposition, go from being evil to being virtuous, from being defiled to being pure, and from being improper to being proper. This is the achievement from implementing the Buddha’s teachings.

“All the lands will be enveloped in peace and harmony.” “Peace” means to acquiesce and not go against. Specifically, it means that people understand and accord with the teachings. When everyone abides by and follows the laws, society will naturally be harmonious.

“The sun and moon will shine clear and bright. Wind and rain will come when needed. Disasters and epidemics will not occur.” These describe the presence of favorable climatic, geographical, and social conditions.

Nowadays, natural disasters occur more and more frequently around the world. It is worthwhile for us to reflect deeply on this. Where do disasters come from? The Buddha said: “Dependent rewards change according to proper rewards.” Proper rewards refers to the human mind. Dependent rewards refers to the environment. When the human mind is good, wind and rain will come as they are needed. When the human mind is not good, disasters will occur frequently. Therefore, if we can accept the Buddha’s teachings and practice accordingly, it is certain that “the sun and the moon will shine clear and bright, and wind and rain will come when needed.”

In Chinese history, we read that when there was a major disaster in the nation, the emperor would cleanse his mind of impurities, abstain from all enjoyments, and maintain a vegetarian diet. He would seriously reflect on himself, “What faults do I have? Why has such a major disaster occurred?” When a disaster occurred, the emperor reflected on himself, thought about his faults, diligently ended wrongdoings, practiced virtuous conduct, corrected his wrong ways, and made a fresh start, all in the hope of changing the will of Heaven. This makes sense. This is absolutely not superstitious action. It is very rational.

If everyone accepts the Buddha’s teachings and practices accordingly, cleansing one’s mind and changing one’s behavior, all the lands will naturally be harmonious and peaceful.

Only after people live in harmony, will we have a favourable climate. Then nature will also be harmonious and peaceful. “The sun and the moon will shine clear and bright. Wind and rain will come when needed.”

During Great Master Lianchi’s lifetime, there was a drought one year in Hangzhou. The governor of Hangzhou requested Great Master Lianchi to pray for rain for the local people. Great Master Lianchi said, “I do not know how to pray for rain. I only know Buddha-name chanting.” But since praying for rain was for the benefit of the public, he had to do his best. Playing an instrument called a wood fish and leading the followers, he walked in the fields, mindfully chanting “Amituofo.” As it is said, “Sincerity will receive a response.” A pure, sincere mind will naturally obtain a response. Indeed, it rained wherever the great master walked! This is a wondrous benefit from truly learning and practicing according to the Buddha’s teachings. This is also the best proof.

“The country will flourish and the people will enjoy peace.” “Flourish” means that manufactured goods and food are abundant. People will have sufficient food and clothing, so body and mind will be at peace, and everyone will be at ease and happy.

“There will be no need for soldiers or weapons.” There will be no wars.

“Virtue will be revered and benevolence will be promoted.” “Virtue” is morality. “Revered” means to respect and follow. “Benevolence” means putting oneself in others’ positions: “Do not do to others what you would not want to be done to you.” When everyone praises morality highly, and abides by laws and follows rules of conduct, society will naturally be peaceful.

“People will practice courtesy and humility. There will be no thieves or robbers in the country. There will be neither injustice nor resentment.” These are the few requirements in terms of human affairs that must be fulfilled for families to be happy, societies to be harmonious, and countries to be prosperous. “Courtesy” means that people respect and yield to one another. Social order will naturally be good. As it is said, “No doors are shut at night.”41 “There will be neither injustice nor resentment” means that judicial trials are fair.

“The strong will not dominate the weak.” This sentence means that everyone is able to respect one another regardless of status, wealth, or academic achievement.

“People will naturally get their fair reward.” Everyone will be happy with their roles.
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41 From Great Learning.— Trans.


Excerpt Fifty-Seven

Ajita, you should know that doubt and delusion will do bodhisattvas great harm and cause them to lose great benefit. Therefore, you should understand and believe the supreme wisdom of all Buddhas.

“Ajita” is Maitreya Bodhisattva. At the discourse on the Infinite Life Sutra, there were two primary beneficiaries: Elder Ananda in the first part of the discourse and Maitreya Bodhisattva in the latter part. The significance of this is very profound. As Maitreya Bodhisattva will be the next Buddha in this world, the Buddha exhorted him, that when he attained Buddhahood in the future, to be sure to speak the Infinite Life Sutra and to urge people to mindfully chant the Buddha-name and seek rebirth in the Western Pure Land.

“You should know that doubt and delusion will do bodhisattvas great harm and cause them to lose great benefit.” “Doubt” refers to having doubts about the Dharma door of seeking rebirth in the Pure Land — of “belief, vow, and mindfully chanting the Buddha-name.” Consequently, this loss is too immense. For example, if a bodhisattva believes in “belief, vow, and mindfully chanting the Buddha-name,” sincerely chants “Amituofo,” and seeks rebirth in the Pure Land, he will attain Buddhahood in one lifetime. He does not need to go through three asamkheya kalpas.[42] This is why here the Buddha said that not believing the Pure Land method is an immense loss.

We usually do not have true confidence in Buddhas and bodhisattvas. We still have doubts. Although we learn Buddhism, we continue to consult with fortune-tellers and feng shui experts. This means that we do not have confidence in Buddhas and bodhisattvas. Our minds are contaminated with impurities. The loss is enormous. The purpose of learning Buddhism is to seek a pure mind — One Mind Undisturbed.

“Therefore, you should understand and believe the supreme wisdom of all Buddhas.” The three Pure Land sutras contain the teachings of being mindful of Buddha and seeking rebirth in the Western Pure Land. We will still not completely understand this even if we have the help of the Buddhas’ causal vows.

In this lifetime, we have encountered the Pure Land method. If we can truly believe and vow to seek rebirth in the Western Pure Land, then this is supreme wisdom. Not only is our wisdom supreme, our good fortune is also supreme. If we do not have the highest wisdom and good fortune, we will not practice this method.
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42 Since asamkheya means uncountable, exact measurements of time are not known. But some common values are 1051, 1059, and 1063 years.— Trans.


Excerpt Fifty-Eight

The Buddha said: “They plant the good roots, and they are unable to detach from form. They do not seek the Buddha’s wisdom. They are deeply attached to worldly pleasures and the good fortune of the human world. Although they repeatedly cultivate good fortune, the rewards they seek are in the human and heavenly paths. When they obtain the rewards, everything will be abundant, but they are unable to leave the prison of the Three Realms.”

“The Buddha said: ‘They plant the good roots, and they are unable to detach from form.’” This is cultivation with attachment to form. When one has wandering thoughts, discriminations, and attachments, and aspires to do good deeds, one will receive good rewards in the future. But having the thought of seeking the good fortune of the human and heavenly paths is a great obstacle.

“They do not seek the Buddha’s wisdom.” “Buddha’s wisdom” is mentioned in the previous excerpt: “You should understand and believe the supreme wisdom of all Buddhas.” To seek the Buddha’s wisdom is to seek rebirth in the Western Pure Land. The Pure Land is “the supreme wisdom of all Buddhas.”

True wisdom is not to be sought.[43] It is the complete understanding of everything. When the Buddha taught all beings, he answered questions as they were raised, without thinking or contemplating the answer. This is because true wisdom is the innate ability of the true nature. It is innate in the true nature and is not acquired from learning. This is why Ashvaghosha Bodhisattva taught us to be free of the mark of speech, the mark of terms, and the mark of mental cognition.

Being free of the mark of speech means not being attached to the words when one listens to the lectures on the sutras. Being free of the mark of terms means not being attached to terminology. Being free of the mark of mental cognition means not using the sixth consciousness to think and contemplate.

Listening to lectures on the sutras without being attached to the mark of speech, the mark of terms, and the mark of mental cognition is cultivating meditative concentration. Listening clearly and understanding perfectly is cultivating wisdom. Listening to the lectures on the sutras in this way is the simultaneous practice of meditative concentration and wisdom.

“They are deeply attached to worldly pleasures.” Being deeply attached to worldly pleasures is a hindrance that arises from afflictions. One is deeply attached to the Five Desires and the Six Dusts, and to riches and honor and is unwilling to let go of them. “Not seeking the Buddha’s wisdom” is a hindrance that arises from the attachment to knowledge. These two hindrances are extremely serious.

“Although they repeatedly cultivate good fortune, the rewards they seek are in the human and heavenly paths.” This is saying that if one truly observes the precepts and practices goodness, one will have the karmic result of being reborn in the human or heavenly path. If one practices good deeds but transgresses the precepts, one will have the karmic result of being reborn in the Three Evil Paths.

When one who practices good deeds but transgresses the precepts is reborn in the path of hungry ghosts, one will be a king of the ghosts or a deity. Generally the spirits that the Chinese people worship have great influence, are rich, powerful, and have many followers. If one is reborn in the animal path, one will be a pet in a wealthy family and enjoy good fortune in that path. These are examples of those who cultivate good fortune but transgress the precepts.

“When they obtain the rewards, everything will be abundant.” When one receives the good fortune in the human and heavenly paths, one may be a high government official, a general, or belong to a rich family. But which one of them has not created negative karmas or wronged people since ancient times? When one uses up one’s good fortune, one will probably go to the Three Evil Paths in the next lifetime. Even if one does not go to the Three Evil Paths, one will not be that rich in the human path. Each lifetime will become worse and worse than the previous one.

When we realize this, how can we not go to the Western Pure Land?

When we look at the conduct and actions of the powerful or influential people in today’s society, then we know that we do not want to come back to this human world again. If we do come to the human path again, we should come as a Buddha or a bodhisattva manifested as a being. If we do not come as a Buddha or a bodhisattva manifested as a being, it is still karmic retribution — this is terrible!

We should be constantly vigilant: enjoying the good fortune in the human path is very frightening, but enjoying the good fortune in the heavenly path is not the ultimate either. Although there are few opportunities for us to commit evil deeds in heaven, we will still fall into a lower path when the good fortune is used up. As it is stated in the Lotus Sutra: “There is no peace in the Three Realms, just like a house on fire.”
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43 Wisdom comes by letting go of attachments, discriminations, and wandering thoughts. From deep concentration, wisdom arises. It cannot be sought by thinking that one wants wisdom. The thought about seeking wisdom is a wandering thought.— Trans.


Excerpt Fifty-Nine

There are beings who plant good roots and create immense fields of good fortune. But they hold on to form, discriminate, and have a deep and strong attachment to feelings. They seek to transcend samsara but ultimately will be unable to do so.

The previous excerpt talks about people who “are unable to detach from form. They do not seek the Buddha’s wisdom.” This excerpt talks about those who “hold on to form, discriminate, and have a deep and strong attachment to feelings.” This is a criterion for cultivation — if one commits all these, one will not be able to transcend the Three Realms. At most, one will only enjoy imperfect good fortune in the Three Realms. In this world, one who has great wealth or prestige is one who cultivated in past lifetimes but was unable to eliminate attachment to feelings. Consequently, one obtains their good fortune in the human and heavenly paths.

Therefore, if one truly learns and practices Buddhism and wants to transcend samsara, one must correct one’s past wrongs and cultivate good karma for one’s future, and cleanse one’s mind and change one’s behavior. Whether one does a good deed, great or small, one absolutely should not hold on to form, discriminate, or even be attached to it. One should always maintain a pure mind, always be mindful of Amitabha Buddha, and seek rebirth in the Pure Land — everything else should be cleansed.

In “create immense fields of good fortune,” “create” is more wondrous than “plant.” “Plant” means that one plants the field alone. “Create” means that one allows all beings to come and plant.

For example, giving wealth and possessions and making offerings to the Three Jewels are fields of good fortune. If we build a cultivation center, we “create immense fields of good fortune,” as we allow many beings to come and plant good fortune. The larger the cultivation center, the greater the field of good fortune.

Another example is being filial and providing for parents — this is a field of good fortune. If we run a retirement home, this is also to “create immense fields of good fortune.”

Charitable undertakings like these are great fields of good fortune. We should sincerely and wholeheartedly engage in these undertakings, but we should not “hold on to form, discriminate.” Otherwise, we will not be able to handle things fairly and our minds will not be pure.

Having impure minds and handling things unfairly — doing good deeds this way, ultimately, we will not be able to succeed in seeking to transcend samsara.


Excerpt Sixty

Be filial to the Buddha and be constantly mindful of the teachers’ kindness. Let this teaching stay in this world for the longest time and do not let it die out. Firmly uphold it and do not let it be destroyed or lost.

“Be filial to the Buddha.” What do we do to be filial to the Buddha? We follow his teachings and practice accordingly. If our minds, vows, understanding, practices, and virtues are the same as those of the Buddha and we become one with him, this is being filial to the Buddha.

The Avatamsaka Sutra says: “Sentient and non-sentient beings all have the same Buddha-wisdom.” This is the showing of filial piety being practiced to perfection. In this sutra, filial piety is an impartial mind and an awakened mind. When one has discriminations and attachments, one is not impartial. When one is free of all discriminations and attachments, the entire Dharma Realm will be one entity. At that time, the pure Dharma Body will manifest. Filial piety arises therefrom. Phenomenally, filial piety is an impartial, greatly compassionate mind. Great wisdom and great compassion are filial piety at work.

One should “be constantly mindful of the teachers’ kindness.” “Teachers” refers to good teachers. After the Buddha entered parinirvana, the past patriarchs and eminent masters passed down the Buddha’s teachings. Thus, we are able to hear the Dharma. Therefore, we should be constantly mindful of the kindness of the Buddha and the past great teachers who passed down the Dharma.

How do we repay their kindness? By practicing the teachers’ teachings and propagating them extensively! This is repaying the teachers’ kindness.

The Buddha’s original vow teaches us “to provide all manner of sentient beings the benefit of escaping the long night [44] and not let them fall into the five paths of rebirth and undergo sufferings.” We should wholeheartedly and diligently put in our utmost effort to fulfill this.

“Let this teaching stay in this world for the longest time and do not let it die out” This action truly fulfills filial piety to the Buddha and mindfulness of the teachers’ kindness. “Let this teaching stay in this world for the longest time and do not let it die out” also refers specifically to the Dharma door of mindfully chanting the Buddha-name and seeking rebirth in the Western Pure Land as taught in this sutra. We should diligently practice it and do our best to propagate it so that it will not die out.

“Firmly uphold it.” We should firmly hold on to our belief and vow and diligently propagate the Buddha’s teachings.

There are two ways to look at “not let it be destroyed or lost.” The first: we misunderstand the teachings, so our learning and practice do not accord with the teachings. The teachings are thus destroyed and lost.

The second is that we use our worldly intelligence and do not propagate the teachings according to the true Dharma. As a result, the people who listen misunderstand the teachings, and they cannot attain rebirth in the Western Pure Land. This is also destroying and losing the teachings.

Therefore, we should learn and practice according to the Buddha’s teachings. We should also propagate the Dharma in accordance with how the Buddha taught us. In this way, we will not cause the Buddhas’ and patriarchs’ teachings to be destroyed or lost by us.

This Dharma assembly comes to a perfect completion now.
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44 “Long night” refers to the cycle of rebirth and death within the Five Paths. There are sufferings in the Five Paths.— Trans.

Source Of Information:
《Lecture Notes on the Essence of the Infinite Life Sutra》
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