樂邦文類 2.163

2.163

In ancient times, Dharma Master Yuan of Mount Lu, joined by Huichi and Tanshun, formed an association with eighteen men including Liu Yimin, Lei Cizong, and Zhou Xuzhi, together with one hundred and twenty-three like-minded companions, to cultivate pure karma, taking returning to the West as their covenant, and named it the White Lotus Society. From then on, those who felt aversion toward the Sahā world and joy toward the Pure Realm followed in their footsteps to cultivate it. Thus, from the Jin and Song down to the Sui and Tang eras, eminent monks and worthy scholars practiced it generation after generation. Because of this, at the approach of death, some saw themselves mounting a purple-gold dais; some had a silver dais or a golden lotus; some witnessed auspicious lights and extraordinary omens; some heard voices in the void praising them; some smelled rare fragrances filling the room; and some even fixed their eyes upon Amitābha walking forward to welcome them. The verifications and responses were manifold, detailed in their biographies. Therefore, under our Imperial Dynasty, the eminent recluses among the groves and the worthy philosophers of the cities and capitals who joyfully and diligently cultivated it have been particularly abundant. How much more so in this small hermitage, where the sound of the stream encircles the cottage and the green of the pines condenses at the gate; the pool is pure with red lotuses, the water embraces the bright moon; the environment is quiet and the place secluded, untouched by the dust of carts and horses! One can thus urge oneself forward to make this body entrust its substance to be conceived within a blue lotus. Respectfully abiding by the ancient model, I solicit eighteen people to form the Lotus Society for Returning to the West through the buddha-mindfulness samādhi. Those who are upright, loyal, and luminous, never altering their integrity from beginning to end, are invited to participate. Respectfully solicited by the founder of the society and master of the hermitage, (Xingyin). An exhortation written by Yuetang (Huidan), abbot of Yanqing Monastery.