龍舒增廣淨土文 6.72

6.72

When a family gives birth to a boy, at the age of seven they send him to school, wishing him to understand literature and meaning, and to grow up to establish himself. No parents' hearts are otherwise. Yet they do not know that human life is difficult to preserve and few attain an advanced age; or that one may encounter karmic enemies and suffer an unnatural death; or that, having past karmic enmities with the parents, a child is reborn in their household to harass the parents and ruin the family estate. I respectfully advise parents that as soon as a child can speak, tell him to recite daily the names of the four sages of the Western [Pure Land] ten times, the verse of Great Compassion Bodhisattva once, and the Pure Land Dhāraṇī; this is only fifty-nine characters and very easy to recite and maintain. If completed five hundred or a thousand times daily, in less than one or two years it will amount to thirty thousand times. If one begins reciting at age six and finishes at age seven, it will not hinder entering school and learning to read. Even if in this life there are no enmities or evils, performing this great good will surely dispel calamities and increase blessings. If there should be any, through this recitation one will be able to avoid them—is this not good? If one does not believe these words, regretting it when the time comes will be of no avail. Confucius said: "If a man does not say, 'What should I do? What should I do?' there is nothing I can do with him."