龍舒增廣淨土文 6.14

6.14

To practice Chan and attain great awakening, thereby transcending birth, death, and saṃsāra, is indeed superior; yet not even two or three out of a hundred reach this. If one cultivates the Western direction, one goes straight out of saṃsāra and is at ease with birth and death, without a single failure in ten thousand. Therefore, I wish to exhort monks: those of superior faculties, besides practicing Chan, should cultivate the Western direction every day during their brief leisure moments. If you practice Chan and attain great awakening, thereby transcending saṃsāra, you are still extremely far from the Buddha ground; going further to see Amitābha Buddha and pay your respects—what could be wrong with that? If you have not yet attained great awakening and your lifespan suddenly ends, go straight to the Western direction, see the Buddha, and hear the Dharma; why worry that you will not attain great awakening? If you do not cultivate the Western direction, you cannot avoid following karmic conditions. Even masters like Chan Master Jie of Qingcaotang and Zhenru Zhe sank into saṃsāra—truly something to be feared; details appear in Fascicle 7. If you do not neglect this Path, cultivate and progress with focused mind, and in turn transform others, having them mutually exhort and transform one another, then because you are a famous monk, people will certainly be glad to follow your words; the benefits will be boundless, and you yourself will certainly attain rebirth in the highest level of the highest grade.