念佛鏡 2.18

2.18

Answer: "The merit of reciting Amitābha is hundreds of thousands of ten thousand times greater than reciting Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva. How is this known? According to the Guanyin jing, if a person makes offerings to bodhisattvas as numerous as the sands of sixty-two koṭīs of Ganges Rivers, even for a single moment, it is not equal to bowing to and making offerings to Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva. The Daśacakra-sūtra says: 'Reciting Avalokiteśvara for one hundred kalpas is not equal to reciting Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva for the duration of a single meal.' The Qunyi lun says: 'Reciting Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva for one great kalpa is not equal to reciting Amitābha once with a single sound.' Why is this? The Buddha is the dharmarāja, and bodhisattvas are dharma ministers; just as when a king goes forth, the ministers must follow him, the great can subsume the small. The Buddha is one whose awakening is fulfilled and whose fruit is complete, transcending all stages and grounds; therefore the merit of accumulating mindfulness of him is greatest, exceeding that of Kṣitigarbha by hundreds of thousands of ten thousand times. Bodhisattvas do not yet belong to the Buddha ground and their fruit is not yet complete, so their merit is least."