[Pramāṇa](https://indike.org/pramana/) › [Indian literature](https://indike.org/pramana/in) › [Buddhist Literature](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha) › [Taishō Tripiṭaka (Chinese Buddhist canon)](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho) › [樂邦文類](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.1969a) › 1.5 # 樂邦文類 1.5 樂邦文類 1.5 - **Language:** Classical Chinese ### [1.5](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.1969a.1.5) 周道既往，百家各以其說爭衡於世。久之浸息，獨儒老釋三之教幾於並行，大率皆主於勸善戒惡，其言不同而其歸則一。然釋宗比道家為尤盛。余未甞讀佛書，初無心佞佛，惟是諸惡莫作、眾善奉行之戒，不敢須臾去心。佛之本意似不出此。世有習西方淨土之教者，其說曰：凡夫生於五濁惡世，業網縈覆，生死不能出、苦海不能停。大雄氏不得已，而偏指一方，使人繫心專注。果由是而之，則達無方所矣。雖然，不得其門而入，亦徒為耳。曾不知此法本乎一心，一心所主必見於善，故佛指示曰「是心作佛、是心是佛。」諸佛正遍知海從心想生，是故應當一心繫念。若因是而論，則彌陀果覺即我性是，極樂遐方即我心是，一念到處應用無虧，亦何高下遠近之有哉？比丘宗曉，留心教典，類成此書。其大藏經論、古今儒釋所著，無非西方淨土教門，或闡揚奧義以警未達、或明示顯應以誘方來，至於長行短偈片言隻字，無一不備。其善用身心可尚矣。一日持以示余，且有請曰：「某留心於此有年，將以刊板，化一為多，廣示學者。儻得一言冠其首，使人起信起修，則某克苦編鏤不為枉矣。」余取其書讀之，諸家所示頗有深趣，真可以發明往生大旨、啟迪人之善心。徐復究其理，蓋人固有之性本自明白，無始迷妄不貪則悋，緣此病根是生眾苦。若令離苦惱而獲安隱，當以是而對治之。譬如神醫用藥，病根既去則本體如初。又如明鏡受塵，揩摩有力則本明如舊。夫如是，則此書真復性還元之策，豈可寢之哉。嗚呼！道在邇不必求諸遠，事在易不必求諸難。昔無著師禮五臺見文殊說偈有曰「寶塔畢竟化為塵，一念淨心成正覺。」佛法無量，斯言蔽諸。佛土既以心為本，其務西歸者惟當善淨其心而已矣，斷無它術焉。 > Once the Way of the Zhou had passed away, the hundred schools each contended in the world with their doctrines. In time these gradually subsided, and only the three teachings of Ruism, Laozi, and Śākya ran nearly parallel. For the most part they all take exhorting goodness and restraining evil as their primary aim; their words differ, but their goal is one. Yet the school of Śākya is even more flourishing than that of Daoism. I have not often read Buddhist books, and originally had no intention of flattering the Buddha; only with regard to the precepts "commit no evil, practice all goods" have I not dared to let them depart from my mind for an instant. The Buddha's original intent seems not to go beyond this. In the world, there are those who practice the teaching of the Western Pure Land. Their doctrine says: Common mortals are born in the evil world of the five turbidities; entangling networks of karma envelop them, so that they cannot escape birth and death or halt \[their drifting on\] the sea of suffering. Mahāvīra, out of necessity, specifically pointed to a single direction, causing people to tie their minds and focus single-mindedly. If one truly proceeds by this means, one reaches that which has no directional location. Even so, if one does not find the gate and enter it, it is all in vain. Little do they know that this teaching is rooted in the one mind; what the one mind directs will necessarily manifest in good. Thus the Buddha pointed out, "This mind creates the Buddha; this mind is the Buddha." The ocean of the correct and universal knowledge of all Buddhas arises from mental contemplation; therefore one should single-mindedly tie one's thoughts to it. If one considers it on this basis, then Amitābha's fruition-awakening is precisely my nature, and the distant land of Ultimate Bliss is precisely my mind. Where a single thought reaches, its functional application is without deficiency; what question could there be of high and low, far and near? The monk Zongxiao turned his attention to the scriptural teachings and arranged them into this book. The scriptures and treatises of the great canon and the writings of Ruists and Buddhists past and present contained therein are all teachings of the Western Pure Land: some elucidate profound meanings to awaken those who have not yet understood; some demonstrate clear responses to encourage those who are to come; down to long prose passages, short verses, fragments of words, and single characters, none are not fully provided. His skillful use of body and mind is indeed commendable. One day he brought it to show me, and made a request, saying: "I have devoted my attention to this for years, and now intend to carve it on printing blocks to turn the one into the many, displaying it widely to scholars. If I could obtain a word to crown its head and lead people to give rise to faith and give rise to practice, then my painstaking compilation and engraving will not have been in vain." I took the book and read it: what the various masters show possesses considerable depth of interest, truly capable of clarifying the great purport of rebirth and inspiring goodness in people's minds. Deliberating and investigating its principle, I see that the inherent nature of human beings is originally clear in itself; beginningless delusion and falsehood, if not greedy, then stingy, is the root of the illness from which all sufferings arise. If one is to be made to leave suffering and distress behind and obtain peace and stability, one must apply this remedy to cure it. It is like an extraordinary physician using medicine: once the root of the illness is removed, the original constitution is as before. It is also like a bright mirror gathering dust: if rubbed and polished with vigor, its original brightness is restored as of old. Being so, this book is truly a strategy for restoring one's nature and returning to the origin; how could it be set aside? Alas! The Way is near at hand, one need not seek it afar; the matter is easy, one need not seek it through difficulty. In former times, when Master Wuzhuo paid homage at Mount Wutai, he saw Mañjuśrī speak a verse saying: "The jeweled stupa ultimately turns to dust; / With a single thought of pure mind one achieves right awakening." The Buddhadharma is limitless, but this saying covers it all. Since the Buddha-land takes mind as its root, those who seek the western return should solely and skillfully purify their minds, and nothing more; there is decidedly no other method. > — English (machine translation) (machine translation) - [Previous: 1.4](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.1969a.1.4) - [Next: 1.6](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.1969a.1.6) - [Up: 1](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.1969a.1) ## Translations (1) - [English (machine translation)](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.1969a~en-mt.1.5) — English, machine translation --- Source: [https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.1969a.1.5](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.1969a.1.5) · Pramāṇa