淨土論 3
English (machine translation) 3
- Language
- English
3.1
Composed by Shi Jiacai of Hongfa Monastery in the Great Tang
3.2
Section Six: Citing the Manifestations of Persons Who Attained Rebirth in the Present [World] (That is, citing monastics and laypersons who attained rebirth to instruct learners)
3.3
Monastics and laypersons who attained rebirth in the Pure Land number roughly twenty persons (six bhikṣu monks, four bhikṣuṇī nuns, five upāsaka laymen, and five upāsikā laywomen).
3.4
Question: The citations of the two teachings of sutras and treatises above to verify the fact of rebirth in the Pure Land are truly good proof. However, the wisdom of sentient beings is shallow and does not reach the holy intention; it would be better to cite the signs of people who have attained rebirth in the present age to encourage and advance their minds, so that they may take faith this very day and rejoice as they hear and progress.
3.5
Answer: As for those people who have attained rebirth, according to the sutras and treatises, those who have all obtained extraordinary signs such as radiant platforms are innumerable. Now I will briefly cite four or five to show scholars, so that seeing them they may take faith.
3.6
Six Bhikṣu Monks Who Attained Rebirth
3.7
Dharma Master Fangqi was a native of Huayin. In the ninth year of Zhenguan, he spent a summer retreat at Wuzhen Monastery in Lantian County with Dharma Master Xuanguo, reciting [the name of] Amitābha Buddha. He then took a willow branch, placed it in the hand of the Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara, and made a vow, saying: 'If through mindfulness of the Buddha I am to attain rebirth, I pray that this willow branch will not wither for seven days.' In accordance with his vow, it did not wither for seven days. This monk further prayed on behalf of all sentient beings, saying: 'Whereas in the Mahāyānasaṃgraha it is judged to have the meaning of another time, the Guan jing says one is reborn immediately. I pray to see Amitābha Buddha in a dream to resolve this doubt.' Thereupon, that very night, while remaining in one place, he had three dreams. In the first dream, he was beside a large pond. To the southwest there was a tall tower; this monk descended from the tower and came to the northeast bank of the pond, where he saw a jewelled canopy more than twenty cubits high, with a door opening to the east. This monk suddenly flew into the canopy; half of his body was able to enter, and then came out again. Going down to the west of the canopy, there was a great hall, inside of which he saw an elder venerable who told him: 'Only practice the deeds of the Pure Land, and you will all be born within this canopy.' He then woke up, and again had another dream. On the northern bank of the pond, he saw the Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara seated facing north with feet pendant. This monk then held the Bodhisattva's feet in his hands and placed them atop his head, seeing the marks of a thousand-spoked wheel beneath the feet; the Bodhisattva's body was of Jāmbūnada gold. Suddenly he awoke, and again had another dream. On the south side of the pond, standing facing west, from the pond westward was all a great body of water, full of lotus flowers. Suddenly he saw Amitābha Buddha coming from the west, arriving before this monk. This monk touched his head and face to the ground in worship. When the worship was finished, he knelt on his right knee before the Buddha with palms joined and asked: 'If sentient beings of the Sahā world cultivate according to the scriptures, will they be able to be born in the World-Honoured One's realm, or not?' The Buddha then replied: 'Good son! All sentient beings, if they only cultivate the practices of the Pure Land, will all be born in my realm. Do not give rise to doubt.' Furthermore, on another night, this monk dreamt that his own body was in the Sahā world. Turning his head and looking to the west, he saw that Amitābha's Buddha-land was flat as a mirror, while seeing that the Sahā world was entirely mountains and rivers separated east and west. Looking southward, he saw fifteen jewelled canopies in the southern plain river valley going westward; the others were all made of the seven treasures, while only the single canopy in the centre was a white silver canopy. Beneath the canopies there was music throughout, with songs and praises. This monk asked: 'What canopies are these?' The people beneath the canopies answered: 'These are all people who have attained rebirth.' This monk was filled with joy, and leaping up into the air, he flew toward the west, stopping after a short while. Again, on another night, he dreamt he was inside a Buddha hall; directly before the Buddha there was a monk named Dharmākara driving a great chariot, who approached inside the Buddha hall to welcome him and have him board the chariot, carrying him away toward the west. Dharmākara is none other than Amitābha Buddha; the chariot is the forty-eight great vows. Again, on another night, he dreamt that his own body was seated on a lion-seat of a hundred-jeweled lotus king, facing south with feet pendant, having attained correct awakening. Again, on another night, he dreamt that Śākyamuni Tathāgata, together with Mañjuśrī, stood before this monk, praising the Lotus Sutra. Again, on another night, he dreamt there were three great paths leading straight toward the west. On the first path were exclusively monks and nuns; on the second path were entirely laypeople, a mixture of men and women; on the third path there was only a single monk. They were all going westward, and it was said they were all people who had attained rebirth. This monk is presently still alive.
3.8
Dharma Master Śramaṇa Tanluan was a native of Wenshui in Bingzhou. He was still present at the end of the Wei and the beginning of the Northern Qi. His spiritual wisdom was lofty and far-reaching, renowned across the three kingdoms; he had a penetrating understanding of the numerous sutras, walking alone beyond ordinary men. The Emperor of Liang, King Xiao, constantly bowed northward in homage to the Bodhisattva Tanluan. He annotated the Bodhisattva Vasubandhu's Wangsheng lun, arranging it into two fascicles. The Dharma Master compiled the Amitāyus Sūtra, respectfully praising it in a hundred and ninety-five lines of seven-character verses, together with one fascicle of questions and answers, which circulated widely in the world. He exhorted monastics and laypeople alike to attain rebirth definitely and behold the Buddhas. He constantly prayed to the Bodhisattva Nāgārjuna for awakening at the time of death. Truly, as he wished, when his karmic retribution in this region was exhausted, within the middle of the night the image of a holy monk appeared, suddenly entering the room and saying: 'I am Nāgārjuna.' He then spoke to him: 'A leaf that has already fallen cannot be reattached to the branch. Millet not yet bundled cannot be sought in the storehouse. A white colt passing a crack cannot be detained for a moment. What is already gone cannot return; the future cannot yet be pursued. Where is the present now? The white colt is difficult to turn back.' The Dharma Master deeply understood the meaning of the words. As he thus neared his end, in the middle of the night he dispatched messengers to announce everywhere to the white-robed disciples of the various villages and the monastic disciples within the monastery, so that around three hundred people gathered at once like raining clouds. The Dharma Master bathed, put on clean new robes, held an incense burner in his hands, sat facing directly west, and admonished his disciples to pursue the karma for the Western [Land]. At sunrise, the great assembly recited [the name of] Amitābha Buddha with one voice, and he thereupon reached the end of his life. Five li west of the monastery, there was a convent of bhikṣuṇīs, all of whom were his disciples. After dawn appeared, they gathered in the hall to eat congee, and the entire assembly heard wondrous music in the air coming from the west and going east. A wise person among them addressed the assembly, saying: 'Our master, the Dharma Master Upādhyāya, taught people throughout his life to cultivate the karma for the Pure Land. Now, this sound going eastward must surely be mostly welcoming the Dharma Master.' When the meal was over, they urged one another to go visit the Dharma Master, waiting in front of the courtyard. Before they had even left the monastery courtyard, they again heard the music far off in the sky heading west. The nuns went there together, only to find that he had passed away. Based on the sutras and treatises, he was definitely reborn in the Western [Land].
3.9
Dharma Master Deng of the Sui era resided at Xingguo Monastery in Bingzhou. He went forth from the household life in his youth, diligently cultivating his practice; his mind for the Path became ever firmer, and he lectured on the entire Nirvana Sutra. Whenever monastics or laypeople came—whether young or old, down to novices and above—he would never permit them to pay visits standing, but would immediately have them sit down, expound the wondrous Dharma to them, orally transmit the name of Amitābha Buddha to those who came, and exhort them to attain rebirth together in the Western Pure Land. Furthermore, the practice of his entire life was to purify himself, burn incense, and recite chants, producing much merit; his compassion was exceedingly great, and flying birds, doves, and pigeons would constantly come to eat from his palms. During the twelfth year of the Kaihuang reign of the Sui, he reached the end of his life at his own monastery, at which time the entire assembly smelled an extraordinary fragrance. On the day his funeral procession took to the road, fragrant clouds from the west came to welcome him; people throughout the entire settlement and below the town walls smelled them, and regardless of whether they were old, young, male, or female, all escorted him to the forest cemetery. Since there were such signs, he must have attained rebirth in the Pure Land.
3.10
Dharma Master Zhizhong, master of the private chapel of the Prince of Han in Bingzhou during the Sui dynasty, had gone forth as a palace youth before the fourth year of Renshou. Throughout his life he was diligent and energetic, never holding money in his hands, making offerings to the Three Jewels, and guiding those with karmic affinity. He also especially focused his mind on the practice of beholding the Buddha, aspiring to see Amitābha. When he was about to die, the eye of his mind was clear and bright, and he saw heavenly men and heavenly maidens from Tuṣita Heaven coming to welcome him; they then approached the Dharma Master and grasped his kāṣāya, claiming they wished to take him up to heaven. The Dharma Master rebuked them, saying: 'I did not aspire to that place,' and refused to go with them. The disciples at his side recited [the name of] Amitābha Buddha, and in an instant they saw the transformed Buddhas and bodhisattvas of the Western Pure Land coming to welcome him. He turned and told the assembly: 'The realm I aspired to, the Bodhisattvas of the Pure Land, have now arrived.' Thereupon, his life ended.
3.11
Dharma Master Sengyan was a native of Wenshui in Bingzhou. He went forth in his youth and listened and studied with diligent mind, lecturing on four scriptures and treatises: the Nirvāṇa, the Mahāyānasaṃgraha, the Daśabhūmika, and the Bodhisattvabhūmi, being thoroughly proficient in all of them. He lived to the age of ninety-six. For five or six years before his passing in the sixteenth year of Zhenguan, he focused exclusively on mindfulness of Amitābha Buddha. When he first turned his mind, in a single day and night he bowed to Amitābha Buddha with a quota of five hundred bows, gradually increasing them later on. Near his end, he bowed a thousand times day and night, and recited the name of Amitābha Buddha seventy to eighty thousand times day and night, never slacking. On the day of his death, he said to his disciples: 'Amitābha Buddha has come to bestow robes and incense upon me. The holy assemblies of Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara, Bodhisattva Mahāsthāmaprāpta, and others fill the empty sky. From here westward, it is purely the Pure Land.' Thereupon, his life ended. Previously, the Dharma Master had had no inclination toward this at all; only when he was over ninety did he encounter Master Daochuo lecturing on the Guan wuliangshou jing, and upon hearing it did he first turn his mind. During those four or five years, the visions near his death were roughly as recounted above.
3.12
Dharma Master Śramaṇa Daochuo was also a native of Jinyang in Bingzhou. He was a remote disciple three generations below the former master of lofty virtue, Tanluan, and had lectured on the entire Nirvana Sutra. He constantly praised Master Luan's lofty wisdom and virtue, saying himself that they were as far apart as a thousand li, yet [Master Luan] still abandoned lecturing to cultivate the Pure Land karma. 'Having already witnessed his rebirth, how much less should I, an insignificant lad—in what I know and understand—consider it sufficient, or treat this as virtue?' From the fifth year of Daye onwards, he abandoned lecturing and cultivated the practices of the Pure Land. He single-mindedly and exclusively focused on mindfulness of Amitābha Buddha, worshipping and making offerings in unbroken succession. From the Zhenguan era onward, in order to awaken those with affinity, he from time to time expounded the single fascicle of the Guan wuliangshou jing, instructing monastics and laypeople in the three counties of Bingzhou—Jinyang, Taiyuan, and Wenshui—so that all who were seven years of age and older understood mindfulness of Amitābha Buddha: those of superior diligence used small beans to keep count, reciting [the name of] Amitābha Buddha to the amount of eighty or ninety dan; those of middling diligence recited fifty dan; those of lower diligence recited twenty dan. He instructed those with affinity never to spit or relieve themselves facing west, and never to sit or lie with their backs to the west. He composed the Anle ji in two fascicles, which currently circulates in the world. In the nineteenth year of Zhenguan, the year yisi, on the twenty-fourth day of the fourth month, he bid farewell to all monastics and laypeople. Disciples from within the three counties came to bid farewell, continuously without interruption, difficult to count. On the twenty-seventh day, his life ended at Xuanzhong Monastery. At that time, a white cloud came from the west and transformed into three beams of white light, illuminating and passing through his own room, disappearing only after he passed away. Later, when his burial mound was cremated, five-coloured light again appeared in the sky in three beams, circling the solar disk and stopping only after circling it. Furthermore, purple clouds appeared three times above the mound. His surviving disciples all saw these auspicious signs. If judged according to the scriptures, these are all the power of the compassionate roots of goodness of the Buddhas that can cause sentient beings to behold such things. Furthermore, as a verse in the Avataṃsaka Sūtra says: 'Again emitting light named Seeing the Buddha, / This light awakens those whose lives are ending. / Through buddhānusmṛti-samādhi one definitely sees the Buddha, / And after life ends, is born before the Buddha.'
3.13
Four Bhikṣuṇī Nuns Who Attained Rebirth
3.14
The nun Fasheng was originally surnamed Nie and was a native of Qinghe. In the tenth year of the Yuanjia reign era, she went forth from the household at Jianfu Monastery; her virtue and practice of the Way were grand and abundant. She constantly vowed to be reborn in Sukhāvatī. She said to her fellow students Tanjin and Tan'ai: “I have established myself and practice the Way, with my aspiration set on the West.” On the twenty-seventh day of the ninth month of the sixteenth year, while worshipping the Buddha beneath a stūpa, she was consequently stricken with illness, which gradually became critical. On the final evening of that month, during a light sleep in the early night, she saw the Tathāgata descend through the empty sky, discussing the Vehicle together with two Great Beings; shortly after, riding upon fragrance and treading upon mist together with the great assembly, he approached to visit Sheng in her illness. The radiant light shone brightly, so that the entire monastery saw it. Everyone came to ask Sheng: “What kind of light and colour is this?” Sheng recounted it in full. Having finished speaking, she soon expired at the age of seventy-two. Zhang Bian of Wu Commandery, the grand administrator of Yuzhang, had always revered her and wrote an account of her.
3.15
The biography of the nun Fasheng of the South Monastery in Wu County states: After Fasheng went forth from the household and resided in the monastery, she went to the capital. There she advanced in her cultivation of meditation and the Vinaya, attained comprehensive mastery of concentration and wisdom, and probed into what is subtle and hidden; she instructed and guided her retinue, achieving order without severity. Taking mindfulness of the Buddha amid dhyāna tranquility as her practice, when her end came, she was illumined by the Buddha emitting light, and passed away.
3.16
The biography of the nun Guangjing of the Middle Monastery in Guangling states: Guangjing was surnamed Hu and was a native of Wuxing. She went forth from the household in her youth, had exalted conduct from an early age, constantly practiced meditation and wisdom, and did not eat rich or sweet delicacies. Those who studied meditation under her numbered more than a hundred. She constantly took the pure practice of mindfulness of the Buddha as her vocation. When she was on the verge of death, extraordinary fragrances and wonderful omens filled the sky to welcome her in great abundance, and she passed away.
3.17
The nun Da Mingyue was a native of Pingyao in Jiezhou. She went forth from the household in her youth and resided at Duotuo Monastery; she was nearly sixty years of age. Toward the beginning of the Zhenguan reign era, she encountered Master Daochuo of Xuanzhong Monastery lecturing on the Larger Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra, who taught the practice of mindfulness of the Buddha. Whenever that nun practiced mindfulness of the Buddha, she would first put on clean clothes, hold an aloeswood incense bead in her mouth, burn incense in a clean room, and recite, doing so continuously without interruption for three or four years. At the time of her passing, her daily movements were unimpaired. The entire assembly beheld a bright light, and within the bright light they smelled the scent of aloeswood incense coming to welcome her; she thereupon passed away. Her younger sister, Shao Mingyue, also took mindfulness of the Buddha as her practice together with her elder sister at that time; at the time of impermanence, she too was moved by extraordinary omens (and so forth). It is difficult to record all the monastics and laypeople who, upon hearing of this, all joined in practicing mindfulness of the Buddha.
3.18
Five Upāsakas Who Attained Rebirth
3.19
A-tanyuan was a native of Lujiang. He was vigorous in serving the Buddha and kept the bodhisattva precepts; he was eighteen or nineteen years old. During the Yuanjia reign era of the Song dynasty, he turned his heart toward the Pure Land, hoping and praying for a spiritual resonance. He invited several monks, among whom the master in charge was named Seng-han. Yuan constantly inquired about the practice of repentance, fearing that because of sinful karmic conditions he would ultimately have no deep resonance. Seng-han encouraged him every time, urging him not to be indolent. On the night of the sixteenth day of the second month in the tenth year, having finished reciting the sūtras, the community of monks was already asleep. In the fourth watch, [Yuan] suddenly called out on his own: “Singing and chanting! Singing and chanting!” Seng-han was startled and asked him about it. Yuan said: “I see the Buddha's body of golden colour, in size and appearance like an image, with golden light surrounding his body, banners and flowers fluttering and filling the empty sky, coming from the west and calling for me to go quickly.” Tanyuan was usually frail, panting rapidly and gasping for breath. This evening he was robust and vigorous, his countenance moved with joy and delight; he then arose and invited the monks, had incense placed in his hands, and also took flowers to scatter toward the Buddha from afar. His mother said to Yuan: “If you leave now, do you not care for me?” Yuan said nothing, and shortly after lay down completely. Since the family had believed for many nights, upon faithfully hearing of these spiritual wonders, they were both joyful and solemn, overcome with grief and awe. At the fifth watch, Yuan suddenly passed away; the fragrance in the house did not dissipate for several days.
3.20
Wei Shizi was a native of Liang Commandery. The Records of Xuanxiang states that a father and his two sons—three people—attained rebirth, having been vigorous in upholding the Dharma. His sons complied and practiced; only his wife was deluded and muddled, not believing in the Buddha's teaching. In the beginning of the Yuanjia reign era of the Song dynasty, his daughter fell ill and died at the age of fourteen; after seven days she revived, saying: “A high seat may be prepared, along with the Larger Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra.” Shizi immediately prepared the seat and sūtra fully for her. Although the daughter had previously observed the vegetarian fast and worshipped, she had never read the sūtras; she thereupon mounted the seat and chanted, the sound and verses being clear and fluent. Coming down, she addressed her father, saying: “When I died, I was reborn in the land of Amitāyus. I saw that in the pond there are already large lotus flowers for three people—my father, my brother, and me; later we will be born by transformation within them. Only my mother alone has none; unable to bear this, I have returned to inform you.” Having finished speaking, she expired again. Thereupon the mother came to revere and believe in the Buddha-Dharma.
3.21
Zhang Yuanxiang was a native of Wannian County in Yongzhou. By nature pure and upright, he upheld the precepts, constantly chanted the Meditation on the Buddha of Immeasurable Life Sūtra, and took mindfulness of Amitābha Buddha as his practice. In the fifth month of the twentieth year of the Kaihuang reign era of the Sui dynasty, he fell ill. On the third day of the sixth month, at the hour of chen, he asked for food, saying: “I have observed the fast and will now depart; provide for me quickly.” Having finished eating, he purified the incense and fire and maintained correct mindfulness; thereupon he passed away. After his death, [his body] remained for two nights until he was escorted to the cemetery grove; his appearance was dignified and no different from when he was alive. Everyone marveled and praised it; it was brought about by the power of good.
3.22
Next, there was an old man of Fenyang County in Bingzhou, whose name the biographers do not record. In the fifth year of the Zhenguan reign era, hearing about the merits of attaining rebirth in the Pure Land, he thereupon brought provisions and, relying on the Faren Mountain Monastery, borrowed a room from the monks to reside in; day and night he exclusively practiced mindfulness of Amitābha Buddha, his eyes knowing no sleep. For three to five years, he cultivated the practice of mindfulness of the Buddha. When he was on the verge of death, the disciples sent a messenger to call his companion to bring his son to come and look after him together. He informed the disciples, saying: “Lately, day after day, innumerable masters and monks from the west come from the west and all go eastward, as if proceeding to a vegetarian feast for monks.” He also told his son, saying: “Tomorrow a light will come to shine upon me; do not consider it strange.” When the time arrived the next day, it was indeed as he had said: a light came to shine, pervading the interior of the room. The old man faced west, looking as though he were ascending something, and thereupon passed away.
3.23
It is heard that there was a person whose name is not known. By nature he was cunning and treacherous, nor did he believe in karmic cause and effect; he constantly took killing and hunting as his occupation. Encountering illness on the verge of death, he fully saw the instruments of suffering of hell, as well as all the sentient beings he had killed coming to demand his life. The man repented, saying: “Throughout my life I did not believe the words of masters and monks; what I see today is indeed as the sūtras explain.” Thereupon he said to his family members: “You all must save me!” His wife, children, and others replied, saying: “How can we save you?” The man said to them: “If you cannot save me, quickly send someone to a monastery to invite a master to come and save me!” Following his words, they invited a monk. Seeing the monk, the man wept sorrowfully and said: “May the master be compassionate and quickly save this disciple!” The monk replied, saying: “Dānapati, throughout your life you did not believe in the Three Jewels; now, on the brink of death, a sudden rescue is difficult to obtain.” The man said: “Indeed it is so. The master reads the Buddha's sūtras—for a sinner like this disciple, is there a method of rescue on the brink of death, or not?” The monk answered, saying: “The Contemplation Sūtra has a passage on this.” The man suddenly leaped with joy and said: “The Buddha said there is a hell, and as he said it, there indeed is one; if the Buddha said one can attain rebirth, this disciple will certainly attain rebirth!” He then said to his family members: “You may bring incense and fire.” The family lit the fire and handed him an incense burner. The man said to them: “In a short while I will enter hell, being in the caldrons and cauldrons—what use is an incense burner? You may bring the fire and place it in my hand.” He thereupon lit the fire in his left hand and held the incense in his right hand, facing the west, and with utmost mind recited the Buddha's name. Before ten recitations were completed, he immediately told the assembly: “The Buddha is coming from the west with a great retinue, and emitting bright light, he offers me a flower seat.” Having finished speaking, he immediately expired (this is rebirth through ten recitations).
3.24
Five Upāsikās Who Attained Rebirth
3.25
The wife of County Defender Wen Jingwen—her surname is unknown—was a native of Jinyang in Bingzhou. From an early age she suffered from hemiplegia and was constantly confined to bed and pillow. Her husband said to the wife: “Lying on the ground all day long, why do you not practice mindfulness of the Buddha?” The wife said to her husband: “Mindfulness of which Buddha?” The husband said: “Mindfulness of Amitābha Buddha.” Over the course of two years, she constantly recited the Buddha's name with her mouth. Suddenly her sinful obstacles were eradicated, and she saw Amitābha Buddha's land directly manifest. Rejoicing, she thanked her husband, saying: “Having been chronically ill for a long time, I have caused you great trouble and distress. Now, having received your instruction to practice mindfulness of Amitābha Buddha, I will depart the day after tomorrow. Please inform my parents and siblings to arrange a vegetarian feast to bid farewell.” The husband said: “How could an ordinary person be able to see the Buddha's land? Is this not an insane hallucination from a wind affliction?” The wife said: “It is definitely not a wind affliction.” Thereupon she informed her parents and relatives. When the time for setting out the feast arrived, she had five rugs spread above the ordinary monks, intended for the assembly of holy ones to sit upon. When the time came, seeing from afar the holy assembly in the empty sky not descending, she said: “They dislike the impurity and disorder of the monks and are unwilling to sit together with them.” She thereupon had the rugs taken and spread out upon the flat roof, inviting them to sit there. She also brought food and presented it to them. When the collective monks finished eating, she urged the entire family to gather, expounding the Dharma and instructing them: “I will now follow closely behind the holy ones to be reborn in the West. I resolve and vow that parents, relatives, and all will practice mindfulness of the Buddha and come to be born afterward. The Pure Land of the West is inconceivable.” Facing squarely toward the west, together with the assembly reciting the Buddha's name, she thereupon passed away. Those of this caliber are truly beyond what ordinary people can match.
3.26
Furthermore, during the Daye reign era of the Sui dynasty, at Qushan in Wenshui County of Bingzhou, there was a village; in the village were an old man and an old woman, with no other sons or daughters. There were three to five people in the household, and they constantly had surplus grain from year to year to sustain themselves. Having a thorough understanding of suffering and emptiness, on the twenty-ninth day of every month they would invite two mountain monks to practice the Way for one night. About sixty households of the entire village would all come to rejoice, listen to the Dharma, and receive the precepts. On the final day of the month they would set out a vegetarian feast; it was routinely like this. Whenever the feast was prepared, the old mother kept clean and prepared it with her own hands. The old father said to the old woman: “Your physical strength is frail and weak; just give verbal directions—why must you labor with your own hands?” The mother replied to the father: “I fear that dying morning or evening, I will not be able to do it again; if I only give verbal directions, it will only be another person's merit.” Whenever she prepared the feast, she always made it herself, continuing without interruption for two or three years; the merits she cultivated and the practice of recitation she dedicated to the Pure Land. On the day of her death, the villagers universally joined together. From the initial watch onward, suddenly a light entered the house, making the lamps and torches invisible, just like broad daylight. Chanting the Buddha's name with one voice, soon afterward they saw numerous bodhisattvas upholding a jeweled canopy, exquisitely adorned, completely covering the central courtyard. The old woman then relinquished her life, with such extraordinary omens as these.
3.27
Furthermore, since the Zhenguan reign era of the Great Tang, the year and month not recorded, eight li east of Yong'an County in Luozhou, there was a village named Banlong Village. In it lived a blind old mother whose surname was Liang. Because a master urged her to be mindful of Amitābha Buddha, the old mother, having past roots of goodness, recited the Buddha's name continuously after receiving the instruction once. After three years, both of her eyes opened. Having regained her sight, she redoubled her chanting and mindfulness. When four more years were completed, her karmic retribution in Jambudvīpa was exhausted. At the time of relinquishing her life, the entire village together saw buddhas and bodhisattvas descending with banners, pennants, and jeweled canopies to welcome her, whereupon she passed away. The entire village revered her, considering her to be extraordinary, and thus did not permit her to be buried, but together erected a stūpa for her to the west of the village. The stūpa still stands exposed by the roadside today; none of the villagers passing back and forth before the stūpa fail to pay reverence, and the entire village, young and old, all recite the Buddha's name.
3.28
The woman Old Mother Pei was a native of Jinyang in Bingzhou. Formerly, since the Zhenguan era, she met a master who instructed her to use small beans to count [her recitations in] mindfulness of Amitābha Buddha, and she obtained thirteen dān of small beans. When her karmic retribution was exhausted, she knew of herself where she would be reborn; she went everywhere to take leave of monastics and laypeople, announcing a final farewell. Later, at the time of the noon meal on a certain day, she said to her family members: "Bring fire and burn incense. Amitābha Buddha has arrived bringing two lotus pedestals, and he has given me one lotus pedestal." Having finished speaking, she thereupon passed away.
3.29
The woman Old Mother Yao was a native of Liquan County in Yongzhou. She was favored with a master's instruction to make mindfulness of Amitābha Buddha her practice. Formerly, at the time of her impermanence on the twentieth day of the seventh month in the twenty-second year of Zhenguan (648 CE), Amitābha Buddha arrived to welcome her, together with Avalokiteśvara, Mahāsthāmaprāpta, and immeasurable bodhisattvas. Because she had not yet been able to take leave of her original spiritual friend, Old Mother Fan, she requested the Buddha to wait for a short while, and the Buddha consented. In a moment, Old Mother Fan arrived; after she spoke to Old Mother Fan and took her leave, she passed away.
3.30
Section Seven: Comparing and Assessing the Merits and Demerits of the Western [Pure Land] and Tuṣita
3.31
Question: The heavenly palace of Tuṣita and the pure land of Amitābha are both scriptures praised by the Buddha. It is not yet known which of these two is superior and which is inferior.
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Answer: These two places each have three aspects. I do not know which you are asking about. The three aspects are: first, the master of transformation, meaning the Buddha; second, the locus, meaning the realm; third, the sentient beings to be transformed, meaning those who are reborn there. As for the master of transformation, they are equally kings of Dharma and both called Sugata; their bodies are replete with myriad virtues, and their lands abound in all excellences. Both act to transform sentient beings: whether dwelling in an impure land where mounds and ruins fill the wilderness, or abiding in a pure realm where rare jewels fill the country. If one wishes to compare the virtues of their buddhas, there is neither superiority nor inferiority. If one discusses their loci, then each has advantages and disadvantages. For example, the Tuṣita heaven palace stands suspended in empty space, whereas the world of Sukhāvatī rests upon the ground; thus one is in the sky and one on the solid [earth], differing as heaven and human realms. Taking this land as a basis, discussing it at first glance, the heavens are superior and the human [realm] is inferior. But if one discusses their purity and impurity: although Tuṣita is a heavenly palace, because there are women, it is called impure; although Sukhāvatī is an earthly realm, because there are no women, it is called pure. Now, this purity and impurity have ten kinds of differences: First, the difference of having women or having no women: in Tuṣita, men and women dwell together; in Sukhāvatī, there are only men and no women. Second, the difference of having desire or lacking desire: in Tuṣita, there is active desire and attachment to sensory realms; in Sukhāvatī, there is no active desire, hence they constantly arouse bodhicitta. Third, the difference of retrogressing or not retrogressing: the place of Tuṣita is [subject to] retrogression; the place of Sukhāvatī is non-retrogression. Fourth, the difference of lifespan: the lifespan in Tuṣita is four thousand years, and there is still premature death; the lifespan in Sukhāvatī is immeasurable asaṃkhyeya kalpas, with none who dies prematurely. Fifth, the difference of the minds of the three natures: in Tuṣita, the minds of the three natures arise alternately, hence an evil mind causes one to fall into the hells; in Sukhāvatī, only wholesome minds arise, hence one is forever free from evil destinies. Sixth, the difference of the minds of the three feelings: in Tuṣita, the three feelings arise mutually; in Sukhāvatī, there is only pleasant feeling. Seventh, the difference of the realms of the six dusts: in Tuṣita, the six dusts cause people to become heedless; in Sukhāvatī, the six dusts cause people to arouse bodhicitta. Eighth, the difference of receiving birth: receiving birth in Tuṣita, males are on the father's knee and females on the mother's knee; receiving birth in Sukhāvatī, one is born within lotuses in pools of the seven jewels. Ninth, the difference of preaching the Dharma: in Tuṣita, only buddhas and bodhisattvas preach the Dharma; in Sukhāvatī, water, birds, trees, and forests are all able to preach the Dharma. Tenth, the difference of obtaining fruits: for those born in Tuṣita, some obtain the noble fruits and some do not; for those born in Sukhāvatī, they are definitely assured of obtaining unexcelled bodhi. Judging by these points, the Western [Pure Land] is greatly superior, and Tuṣita is extremely inferior. If one discusses the people who are reborn there, going to the Western [Pure Land] is easy, while ascending to Tuṣita is difficult. This difficulty and ease also have seven kinds of distinctions: First, the distinction of place: Sukhāvatī is human, and Tuṣita is heavenly; thus heaven is difficult and human is easy. Second, the distinction of causes: for Sukhāvatī, one merely upholding the five precepts may also obtain rebirth; for Tuṣita, one must fully cultivate the ten good deeds before one can ascend. Third, the distinction of practice: for Sukhāvatī, even accomplishing ten recitations allows one to obtain rebirth, which comes from the Contemplation Sūtra; for Tuṣita, one must fully possess the three kinds of giving, precepts, and cultivation before one can ascend (this comes from the Maitreya Sūtra). Fourth, the distinction of self-power and other-power: Sukhāvatī relies on Amitābha Buddha's forty-eight great vows as other-power for rebirth; Tuṣita has no vows to rely upon, relying solely on self-power to ascend. Fifth, the distinction of having spiritual friends or lacking spiritual friends: for Sukhāvatī, there are Avalokiteśvara and Mahāsthāmaprāpta who constantly come to this land to encourage and guide toward rebirth, and at the end of life they hold a diamond pedestal and come to welcome the practitioner, praising and encouraging their mind with various means, whereupon they obtain rebirth; because Tuṣita lacks these two bodhisattvas, one only ascends through self-effort. Sixth, the distinction of the greater or lesser number of passages in sūtras and treatises that encourage birth: for the passages describing Sukhāvatī, sūtra after sūtra praises it, and treatise after treatise encourages it; for the passages describing Tuṣita, not only are sūtra praises rare, but treatise encouragements are also few. Seventh, the distinction of the greater or lesser number of past virtuous masters who aspired to it: for Sukhāvatī, from high antiquity onward, renowned monks of great wisdom who aspired to it have been many; for Tuṣita, from high antiquity onward, virtuous masters who aspired to it and delighted in it have been few. Due to these reasons, rebirth in the Western [Pure Land] is easy, whereas ascending to Tuṣita is somewhat difficult.
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Section Eight: Clarifying the Seasons and Times for the Arising of the Teaching (Meaning that the Present Is Precisely the Time for Repentance and Mindfulness of the Buddha)
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Question: The Buddha's Path is vacuous and profound, and must be attained through wisdom; nirvāṇa is subtle and unadorned, and must be generated by means of concentration. Thus concentration and wisdom are the foundation of the myriad practices, and the myriad practices are the root of the Great Path. Now you exclusively extol mindfulness of the Buddha and concentrate your thoughts on the West. Hesitating over this, I request you to explain it.
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Answer: The Buddha's teachings unfold widely, with more than a single origin; sentient beings are unequal, with myriad differences in their faculties and natures. Not only are dharmas differentiated according to the person, so that the teachings have distinctions of shallow and deep; people also differ according to the times, so that faculties have distinctions of sharp and dull. For this reason, the teachings open into eighty-four thousand, and time is divided into five kinds of periods. Under this explanation, when a practitioner cultivates the Path, it is necessary to examine the time: if the time and the teaching accord, then the Buddha's Path is easy to realize; if the time and the teaching diverge, then the bodhisattva [path] is difficult to realize. Therefore the Saddharmasmṛtyupasthāna Sūtra says: "When a practitioner with single-mindedness seeks the Path, they should constantly observe the expedients of the time. If one does not attain the time and lacks expedients, this is called a loss, not a gain." As for the five periods, as the Candragarbha Section of the Mahāsaṃnipāta Sūtra says: "In the first five hundred years after the Buddha's parinirvāṇa, my disciples who study wisdom will be steadfast, while concurrently cultivating other practices. In the second five hundred years, those who study concentration will be steadfast, while concurrently cultivating other practices. In the third five hundred years, those who study hearing much, reciting, and chanting will be steadfast, while concurrently cultivating other practices. In the fourth five hundred years, those who construct stupas and monasteries, cultivate merit, and practice repentance will be steadfast, while concurrently cultivating other practices. In the fifth five hundred years, the white dharmas will be hidden and obstructed, there will be much contention and dispute, and slight wholesome dharmas will be steadfast." According to this sūtra, now is beyond the fourth five hundred years; since we lack the capacity for concentration and wisdom, we must only cultivate merit and repentance. Among the most essential aspects of cultivating merit and repentance, examining the various sūtras and treatises, paying homage to the Buddha, mindfulness of the Buddha, and contemplating the Buddha's marks and characteristics are the most supreme. Therefore the Contemplation Sūtra says: "If one can with an utmost mind be mindful of Amitābha Buddha, in each recitation one will eradicate the heavy karmic transgressions of birth and death spanning eighty kotis of kalpas." Now, since according to the time and according to faculties practitioners have no capacity for concentration and wisdom, they need only exclusively be mindful of Amitābha Buddha and seek rebirth in the Pure Land; this is the essential path. If people know themselves to have the capacity for concentration and wisdom, then they cultivate the Path in this realm and seek unexcelled bodhi; if people know themselves to lack the capacity for concentration and wisdom, then they must cultivate Pure Land practices and seek unexcelled bodhi within the Pure Land. Therefore the Dazhidulun says: "For practitioners seeking avaivartika, there are two kinds of paths: first, the path of difficult practice; second, the path of easy practice. Like overland and water routes, cultivating the Path in this realm is difficult, like an overland route; being born in the pure land to cultivate the Path is easy, like a water route." Furthermore, as for the Buddha delivering sentient beings, there are four kinds. As said in the Saddharmasmṛtyupasthāna Sūtra: "First, delivering sentient beings by preaching the Dharma; second, delivering sentient beings by radiant light, marks, and characteristics; third, delivering sentient beings by supernormal powers and the power of the Path; fourth, delivering sentient beings by means of names and titles." Among these four, the marks and characteristics and the names and titles precisely correspond to the present time of contemplating the marks and characteristics of Amitābha Buddha and reciting the Buddha's name. As said in the Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra: "For the sake of future sentient beings who suffer the five pains, the five agonies, and the five burnings, I wish to cause sentient beings to cultivate Pure Land practices." And as said in the Contemplation Sūtra: "For the sake of all future ordinary persons who are afflicted by the thief of afflictions, I preach the Pure Land practices." As said in the Shorter Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra: "For the sake of sentient beings of the five defilements, I preach the Pure Land practices." The Qingjing jue jing, the Drum-Sound King Sūtra, and the Mahāsaṃnipāta Sūtra all state this. According to these sūtras, all are for the future; thus we know that the present time is precisely the time for mindfulness of the Buddha and cultivating Pure Land practices. If one is born in the pure land, not only will one be forever free from the evil destinies, but one will also swiftly attain unexcelled bodhi (this is the general import of the sūtras and treatises).
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Section Nine: Teaching People Aspiration and Revulsion to Encourage and Advance Their Minds (Meaning Causing Them to Feel Revulsion for the Impure and Aspiration for the Pure)
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Question: Since the present is now the fourth five hundred years, when sentient beings have no capacity for concentration and wisdom and only repentance and mindfulness of the Buddha are steadfast, how should one teach people aspiration and revulsion to encourage and advance their minds, universally causing all sentient beings to feel revulsion toward the Sahā world and attain rebirth in the Pure Land?
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Answer: I will now cite the sūtras, treatises, and reasoned principles to teach revulsion and aspiration. If sentient beings accept the Buddha's admonition, revile the Sahā world to the utmost and generate aspiration for the world of Sukhāvatī, and are thus able to generate the bodhicitta and single-mindedly be mindful of Amitābha Buddha, they will universally attain rebirth in the pure land. If sentient beings do not generate faith and delight in this teaching, being difficult to instruct, difficult to awaken, difficult to save, and difficult to liberate, then they cannot be rescued. Thus the Wuliang qingjing jue jing says: 'If a good man or good woman, upon hearing the pure land teaching explained, gives rise to sorrow and joy in their heart, with their bodily hairs standing on end as if plucked out, know that this person has already practiced the Buddha Path in past lives. If someone, upon hearing the pure land teaching revealed, gives rise to no faith or delight at all, know that this person has just come from the three evil destinies; their calamities and faults are not yet exhausted, and I say that this person cannot yet attain liberation.' Now, relying on the Nirvāṇa Sūtra and other texts, I encourage and advance later students. A wise person, in the quiet of the night, sitting cross-legged, should reflect to themselves: 'This present body of mine is fragile as a bubble, not pausing for a single thought-moment; moreover, it abides in the burning house, an insecure place—how can it be at ease? Not self-aware, without alarm or fear, completely devoid of terror?' Again they should reflect: 'What stage or ground is this present body of mine in? What do its bodily, verbal, and mental karmas constantly do? When impermanence suddenly arrives, in which destiny will I be born? As beginningless evil karmas vie for places of rebirth, from morning to evening I am already a person of the hells—how much time can I sleep peacefully on my bed? In the past, immeasurable and boundless buddhas and bodhisattvas appeared in the world to deliver and liberate sentient beings; where did I go that I did not receive the Buddha's transformation? It is entirely because since beginningless time I have not revered the Three Jewels, not drawn near to good people, and not obeyed the words of good spiritual friends, constantly dwelling in the three evil destinies and never meeting the buddhas. The pure lands of the ten directions are free of suffering and afflictions—why was I not born there, but constantly remain in this defiled land, a place of abundant suffering and distress? This present body of mine is hard to obtain and easy to lose, as the Nirvāṇa Sūtra says: "A human body is as hard to obtain as soil on a fingernail; bodies in the three evil destinies are like the soil of the great earth." Since beginningless time, the bodies I have received over kalpas are countless. Within each kalpa, the bodies are countless. In each body, the karma created is like dust, and the karma is countless. Each evil karma brings retribution, and the retributions are countless. In each retribution, suffering ten thousand kinds of misery, the suffering is countless. Such miseries are all because of lacking wisdom and not obeying the words of good spiritual friends. Constantly dwelling in the hells, having already suffered in the past, currently suffering in the present, and bound to suffer in the future, there is never a time of cessation. Furthermore, ever since this present body was born, seeking food and clothing—if a layperson, feeding a wife and raising children; if a monastic, seeking fame and pursuing profit—it constantly creates all kinds of evil karma. For such karmas, even the light ones result in five hundred births, and the heavy ones in several kalpas. If one does not generate bodhicitta and repent with shame and conscience for such evil karmas, once entering the evil destinies there will be no time of emergence. Between morning and evening, one immediately enters the caldrons and cauldrons, the forest of blades and trees of swords, undergoing all deep, heavy, and protracted sufferings for hundreds and thousands of kalpas. The physical and mental sufferings already endured in the past and the sufferings to be experienced in the future are likewise without limit, hard to abandon and hard to part from without being aware of it. That ordinary beings are like this is truly pitiable.' A wise person making this reflection should feel their heart breaking—how could they remain complacent, indulging body and mind without self-awareness? Again they should further reflect: 'This present body of mine has meager merit and dull faculties, born after Śākyamuni and before Maitreya. Is this not due to my past arrogance, indolence, lack of reverence for the Three Jewels, slighting of good people, and failure to accept the admonitions of good spiritual friends, so that I was constantly born in the three evil destinies and eight difficulties, foolish and without wisdom? In this body, again slighting the Three Jewels, scorning good people, and not obeying the words of good spiritual friends, how in future lives can I again meet the Three Jewels and be born in a good place? Furthermore, even if this body wishes to cultivate the Path, it cannot find peace, because living in this Sahā world, human life is short, evil companions are numerous, and one is anxious to the end. Either food and clothing are insufficient, or one is oppressed by kings and ministers, or deceived by others, or slandered by others, constantly disturbed and unable to be at peace; no sooner does a wholesome thought arise than it immediately regresses and is lost. Moreover, this body is formed merely of thirty-six impure substances; from its nine apertures impurities constantly flow like a walking latrine, not to be loved or delighted in. It is also pursued by the suffering of birth, suffering of aging, suffering of sickness, suffering of death, suffering of separation from the beloved, suffering of meeting the hated, suffering of not getting what is sought, and the suffering of the flourishing of the five aggregates.' A wise person should contemplate this body, regarding it as an enemy, regarding it as a heap of dung; regarding houses and bedding as graves and human skin; regarding food and drink as maggots and pus-water; and regarding wives, children, and family as rākṣasas and evil ghosts. If the mind can contemplate and reflect in this way, it should generate the greatest revulsion toward this body, vowing never to receive this body throughout life after life, and never to dwell with this body again. This body is my enemy, constantly leading me toward the three evil destinies; how could any wise person cling with delight to this body? As the Teachings Bequeathed Sūtra says: 'This is a sinful and evil thing that ought to be cast off, provisionally called a body, submerged in the great ocean of aging, sickness, birth, and death. What wise person, being able to eliminate it, would not rejoice?' (Here ends the gate of revulsion.)
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- 淨土論 — Classical Chinese