by Tien Tai Patriarch Chih I
Translated by Master Thich Thien Tam
There are many Buddhas and Pure Lands in all the ten directions. Even if sentient beings in this world have polluted, scattered minds and dispositions, so that focussing on many Buddhas makes it difficult for them to attain samadhi, why should they not recite the name of any Buddha, as they wish, and seek rebirth in any Pure Land, in accordance with their vows? Why concentrate specifically on Amitabha Buddha and seek rebirth in the Land of Ultimate Bliss?
Answer
Common people lacking in wisdom should follow the teaching of the Buddha rather than acting arbitrarily on their own. This is why, from time immemorial, Pure Land practitioners have all diligently recited Amitabha Buddha’s name.
What does it mean to follow the Buddha’s teaching?
During his entire preaching career, Buddha Sakyamuni constantly enjoined sentient beings to focus on Amitabha Buddha and seek rebirth in the Land of Ultimate Bliss. This is mentioned in such sutras as the Longer Amitabha Sutra, the Meditation Sutra, the Amitabha Sutra, the Lotus Sutra, the Avatamsaka Sutra ... In numerous sutras, the Buddha constantly urged us to seek rebirth in the Western Land. This is not only true of the sutras; in their commentaries, the Bodhisattvas and Patriarchs unanimously advise us to seek rebirth in the Land of Ultimate Bliss.
Moreover, Amitabha Buddha possesses the power of His forty-eight compassionate vows to rescue sentient beings.（42） The Meditation Sutra states:
“Amitabha Buddha possesses 84,000 signs of perfection, each sign has 84,000 minor marks of excellence and from each minor mark 84,000 rays of light shine forth, illuminating the entire Dharma Realm (cosmos) to gather in, without exception, all sentient beings who practice Buddha Recitation. If any sentient being recites His name, there will be correspondence between cause and response, and he will surely be reborn.”
Furthermore, the Amitabha Sutra, the Longer Amitabha Sutra, etc., teach that when Sakyamuni Buddha preached these sutras, the Buddhas of the ten directions, numerous as the grains of sand in the River Ganges, all “extended their tongues to cover the entire universe”, bearing witness to the truth that any sentient being who recites Amitabha Buddha’s name shall be assured of rebirth in the Land of Ultimate Bliss, thanks to the great, compassionate vow-power of the Buddha.
We should know that Amitabha Buddha has great affinities (causes and conditions) with this world. As the Longer Amitabha Sutra states:
“In the Dharma-Ending Age, when all other sutras have disappeared, only this sutra will remain for another hundred years to rescue sentient beings and lead them to the Western Pure Land.”
This demostrates that Amitabha Buddha has strong affinities with sentient beings in this defiled world.
Although one or two sutras have, in a general way, urged rebirth in other Pure Lands, this cannot be compared to the fact that numerous sutras and commentaries have earnestly pointed to the Land of Ultimate Bliss as the focus of rebirth.（43）
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42. See following quote:
“Invisible assistance — provided by the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas of Healing — can be a potent aid in this process [of elimination of the three poisons of lust, anger and delusion]. This assistance often is described as stemming from the force of their fundamental vows, which they made when they dedicated their lives to spiritual work. The vows to heal all beings and alleviate various sufferings served as special motivating factors in their spiritual development. Upon fruition of their spiritual work… they then truly became able to fulfill these vows.” (Raoul Birnbaum, The Healing Buddha, p.xv.)
* See also Note 12.
43. In the Encyclopedia of Buddhism, Vol. I, G.P. Malalasekera quoted a Japanese author who found two hundred texts referring to Amitabha Buddha and His Pure Land (thirty-one of the texts are in Sanskrit).
related post: Question 5 （Ten Doubts about Pure Land）
Source Of Information:
《Pure Land Buddhism (Dialogues with Ancient Masters)》, by Tien Tai Patriarch Chih I, translated with annotations by Master Thich Thien Tam, printed and donated for free distribution by: The Corporate Body of the Buddha Educational Foundation (11F, 55, Hang Chow South Road Sec 1, Taipei, Taiwan), printed in February 2023.
*** The information provided above does not contain personal opinion of this blog.
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