廬山蓮宗寶鑑 2

English (machine translation) 2

Language: English

2.1

Exposition of the Proper Teaching of Buddhānusmṛti

In the dharmadhātu there are originally no sentient beings; sentient beings arise due to false views. The Tathāgata originally had no verbal teachings; verbal teachings are provided for the sake of sentient beings. False views are the sickness of sentient beings; verbal teachings are the medicine for sentient beings. When medicine cures sickness, there is no sickness that is not cured; when words awaken one from delusion, there is no delusion that is not dispelled. Ordinary people use them daily yet remain unaware; the path of the Tathāgata is seldom understood. Therefore, our Benevolent One of Great Awakening, pitying the unawakened faculties of the multitudes, looked up to promote great compassion and bowed low to bestow wondrous models: the Avataṃsaka revealed [the truth] abruptly, yet the śrāvakas were still as if blind and deaf; the Āgamas explained it in detail, yet the bodhisattvas had not yet derived benefit; the Vaipulya praised the great, and the Prajñā swept away [attachments] into emptiness; the Nirvāṇa brought different paths to the same destination, and the Saddharmapuṇḍarīka universally bestowed predictions [of buddhahood]. Thereupon, as the multitude of sūtras stood arrayed like a dense forest, they especially extolled the Western direction. This is solely because Amitābha Buddha's vows are vast and conditions are strong, his teaching is revered, and the principle is complete. As for its teaching, it points to the Buddha-land as the ultimate refuge: jeweled ponds and jeweled ground, superbly wondrous and adorned, causing one to rejoice in that and feel revulsion toward this. As for its principle, it reveals that Amitābha is precisely one's own nature: thought after thought perfectly bright, mind after mind the true mark, like the great ocean merging the hundred rivers. As for its practice, it reveals the sixteen gates of contemplation, gathering the mind into the wondrous realm, comprehending that nature and marks are empty, like a bright mirror reflecting a face. As for its fruit, transformation birth proceeds through the nine grades, universally gathering the sharp and dull to ascend the stage of non-retrogression, reaching the unexcelled path of bodhi. Therefore, is it not entirely fitting that the sentient beings of the nine realms cultivate the wondrous practice of the Buddha-land with a mind of non-attainment? The Tathāgata's intent in appearing in the world is thoroughly expressed herein; his words of particular praise have their profound purpose. It is truly the essential gateway to hundreds of thousands of samādhis, the direct path to the realm of the One Reality. Discussing its phenomenal aspect, one repents the six sense faculties and purifies the three karmas; investigating its central tenet, one empties the myriad phenomena and comprehends the One Mind. It is called the sturdy boat crossing the ocean of suffering, the fine medicine curing acute disease. Those who have faith in this path open their original awakened mind to transcend the suffering of the five turbidities, reach the true Pure Land, and realize the Amitābha of their own nature, like the bright moon in mid-sky, like a lotus flower emerging from the water. Hence the teaching of the Lotus School is named after this. Yang Wuwei said: “The lotus grows from the mud without abandoning the realm of sentient beings. Existing in the open without defilement, it makes manifest the pure essence. Possessing fruit when in bloom, it is not the realm of Māra. Flower and fruit appearing simultaneously, cause and effect are as one. When the flower opens the lotus fruit appears, showing the expedient and revealing the real. When the flower falls the lotus fruit is complete, setting aside the expedient and establishing the real. A single lotus gives birth to immeasurable flowers, establishing all dharmas. The ten directions share the single Flower-Treasury, showing that the Buddha-realm is without distinction.” Could this not be the meaning of the Lotus Teaching? Therefore, those who give rise to loving-kindness and set compassion in motion disport in the realm of constant light; those whose jewel of precepts is an ocean of righteousness bathe in the deep pool of liberation. For this reason, devas and dragons protect and uphold it, kings and ministers pay homage to it, antiquity and modernity have not let its transformation fall, and literati and commoners look up in admiration to its legacy. Were it not for the great compassionate vow-power comforting the sorrowful and untrained, who could accomplish this? Therefore, Nāgārjuna verified it in treatises, the worthy society of the Jin cultivated it, Tiantai classified and explicated it, Ci'en comprehensively praised it, Cizhao compiled it and performed repentance, and Zongtan commented on and explained it. As for senior monks and renowned scholars who honored it, their precious jewels are gathered together; as for high worthies and accomplished gentlemen who cultivated it, their names are recorded in the bamboo slips. Alas! The Great Dharma has declined and we are ever further removed from the sages; those who serve the Buddha are many, but those who seek the Path are few. Competing for fame and profit as their skill, they view propagating the teaching as child's play, thereby causing the Dharma-gate to wither and the net of teachings to collapse. In truth, it depends on later worthies to take up this path, universally hoping that they will sacrifice their bodies for the Dharma and purify themselves to rely on their teachers. If one wishes to attain the True Vehicle, one must personally approach the scriptural teachings; only by receiving the teaching can one understand the principle; after understanding the principle, one can then cultivate practice. When practice and vows are without deficiency, the fruit of the Path can be realized. Thus know that when hearing with the ears and seeing with the eyes, one must rely on the four dharmas for contemplation and practice; if one recites with the mouth while the mind diverges, even if one understands a thousand chapters, what benefit is there? Thus, the mind is illuminated by the teaching, the Buddha is held through mindfulness, wrongdoing is guarded against through the precepts, offenses are purified through repentance, the Path is put into actual practice, and movements are conducted according to propriety. In the immediate term, one aims to establish oneself and spread one's reputation; in the long term, one hopes to transform from an ordinary person into a sage. In manifesting the Path of the Buddhas and Patriarchs, if not our generation, who else will do it? Firmly wield the sword of wisdom and tear open the net of Māra; drink the sweet dew of the True Dharma and fell the dense forest of wrong views. Avoid bad friends as one avoids tigers and wolves; serve good companions as one serves parents. Cautiously maintain one's integrity and purpose without retreating from the great resolve; correct awakening may be followed, but improper paths must not be trodden. When there are faults, make haste to correct them; when there is good, do not boast of it. Naturally one will diverge from misfortune and encounter good fortune. Residing presently in the dust of the world, humans will respect one and Heaven will protect one; on another day in the Pure Realm, sagehood can be expected and the Path can be reached. How could it depend on observing physiognomy, inquiring of fate, and flatteringly seeking times of glory and prominence? And why must one gaze at shadows and look toward lights, divining the day of final return? These are not the insights of a person of the Path; in truth, they are the deluded passions of the ordinary and mediocre. Do not follow other pursuits, but merely attend to your proper duty: in the presence of benevolence do not yield, and upon seeing the worthy think of equaling them. Fame and profit are not enough to disturb the mind; life and death are not enough to burden one's thoughts. If one wishes to achieve success and realize one's aim, one must proceed from near to far; one should verify the fruit to deduce the cause, having faith that actions bear recompense. When wisdom suffices to illuminate confusion, when brightness suffices to shine upon the hidden, words become a model to follow, actions become a joy to behold, virtue and righteousness can be honored, and advance and retreat can be measured. Discerning the false and recognizing the true is like a fine touchstone for gold; dispelling darkness and inspecting phenomena is like a true lamp illuminating the world. Such a one is a great guide, acting as an uninvited friend. Casting out the treasures of the dragon palace, he distributes them equally to all sentient beings; throwing open the gates of the patriarchs, he universally accommodates all newcomers. Cleansing corrupt diseases, he points the way back to the wondrous source, causing the dim mirror to be polished anew, like soiled garments made clean again. He causes the true style to be revived so that blessings reach the chiliocosm, and sees the sun of wisdom shine ever brighter, its radiance soaring across ten thousand ages. Such a one can truly be called a true son of the Dharma Lord, a true great man! If one reveres the teaching of the Great Sage of the West with this, what shame could there be?

2.3

The Buddha Explains Buddhānusmṛti for His Royal Father

2.4

The Ratnakūṭa-sūtra says: “The World-Honoured One's royal father bowed his head at the Buddha's feet, single-mindedly joined his palms, and addressed the Buddha, saying: ‘How should one practice to attain the path of the Buddhas?’ The Buddha said: ‘All sentient beings are themselves Buddhas. You should now be mindful of Amitābha Buddha of the Western World, constantly diligent and vigorous, and you will attain the Buddha-path.’ The king said: ‘How are all sentient beings Buddhas?’ The Buddha said: ‘All dharmas are unproduced, devoid of movement, devoid of grasping and rejecting, devoid of marks, and devoid of self-nature. You may settle your mind within this Buddha-dharma and not trust in others.’ At that time, the royal father and seventy thousand Śākya kinsmen heard this teaching, rejoiced with faithful understanding, and awakened to the forbearance of the unproduced. The Buddha showed a smile and spoke a verse, saying:
‘The Śākyas have resolute wisdom; / Therefore in the Buddha-dharma, / With resolute faith their minds are settled. / Having ended their lives among humans, / They will obtain rebirth in the Land of Peace and Bliss; / Serving Amitābha face-to-face, / Fearlessly they will accomplish bodhi.’”

2.5

Sudhana's First Visit among the Fifty-Three Inquiries, Seeing the Bhikṣu Meghasvara Who Explains the Gateway of Buddhānusmṛti

2.6

The “Entry into the Dharmadhātu” chapter of the Avataṃsaka-sūtra says: “The bhikṣu Meghasvara told Sudhana: ‘Good son! I have attained the power of sovereign and resolute understanding; my eye of faith is pure and illuminated by the light of wisdom. Universally observing the realms, free from all obstacles, endowed with pure practice, I go to the ten directions to make offerings to all Buddhas. I am constantly mindful of all Buddhas and Tathāgatas, hold fast to the true Dharma of all Buddhas, and constantly see all Buddhas. In accordance with the various mental inclinations of all sentient beings, they manifest various gateways to the realization of correct awakening, roaring the lion's roar amid the great assemblies. Good son! I have only attained this gateway of the wisdom-light universally beholding the realm of recollecting all Buddhas, namely: the buddhānusmṛti gateway of wisdom-light universally illuminating; the buddhānusmṛti gateway of causing all sentient beings to be mindful of the Buddha; the buddhānusmṛti gateway of causing [sentient beings] to dwell peacefully in power; the buddhānusmṛti gateway of causing [sentient beings] to dwell peacefully in the Dharma; the buddhānusmṛti gateway of illuminating all directions; the buddhānusmṛti gateway of entering invisible places; the buddhānusmṛti gateway of abiding in all kalpas; the buddhānusmṛti gateway of abiding in all times; the buddhānusmṛti gateway of abiding in all lands; the buddhānusmṛti gateway of abiding in all worlds; the buddhānusmṛti gateway of abiding in all realms; the buddhānusmṛti gateway of abiding in extinction; the buddhānusmṛti gateway of abiding in transcendence; the buddhānusmṛti gateway of abiding in the vast; the buddhānusmṛti gateway of abiding in the subtle; the buddhānusmṛti gateway of abiding in adornment; the buddhānusmṛti gateway of abiding in capability; the buddhānusmṛti gateway of abiding in the sovereign mind; the buddhānusmṛti gateway of abiding in one's own karma; the buddhānusmṛti gateway of abiding in supernatural transformations; and the buddhānusmṛti gateway of abiding in empty space.’”

2.7

Bodhisattva Jñānaśrī Explains Buddhānusmṛti

2.8

The Avataṃsaka-sūtra says: “In all deportments, / Constantly be mindful of the Buddha's merit. / Day and night without brief interruption, / Such karma should be performed.”

2.9

The Great Being Nāgārjuna Exhorts Buddhānusmṛti

2.10

The Mahāprajñāpāramitopadeśa says: “The Buddha is the unexcelled Dharma King, and the great bodhisattvas are his Dharma ministers. That which all the ministers revere is solely the Buddha, the Dharma King; therefore, bodhisattvas should be mindful of the Buddha.” It also says: “There are bodhisattvas who, reflecting upon their past slandering of prajñā, fell into the evil destinies for immeasurable kalpas; although they cultivated other practices, they were unable to escape. Later, meeting a good spiritual friend who taught them to practice the buddhānusmṛti-samādhi, they were immediately able to eliminate their sinful obstacles simultaneously, and only then attained liberation.” It also says in a verse: “If a person vows to become a Buddha, / And in mind is mindful of Amitābha, / He will immediately manifest his body for them; / Therefore I take refuge and bow in homage.”

2.11

The Merits of Buddhānusmṛti Have Seven Kinds of Excellence

2.12

The Ganlu shu says: “First, the excellence of few words and easy practice: because one only recites the single phrase ‘Namo Amitābha Buddha,’ all people can practice mindfulness. Second, the excellence of mindfulness taking the Buddha's realm as its object: because with single mind one takes the Buddha's physical marks and excellent features and the Pure Land as object. Third, the excellence of leaving difficulties and attaining peace: because all Buddhas and bodhisattvas protect and support those who are mindful of the Buddha, they are free from all afflictions and disasters, and are peaceful, auspicious, and blessed. Fourth, the excellence of reciting the name and extinguishing offenses: reciting the Buddha['s name] once extinguishes the heavy offenses of birth and death of eighty kotis of kalpas. Fifth, the excellence of upholding mindfulness and obtaining blessings: reciting the Buddha['s name] once surpasses offering the seven treasures of the four continents to Buddhas and arhats. Sixth, the excellence of the fruit evoking the vision of the Buddha: when sentient beings are mindful of the Buddha, they will definitely see the Buddha. Seventh, the excellence of being personally welcomed for rebirth: transformed Buddhas and bodhisattvas emit light to welcome the practitioner to be reborn in the Buddha-land.”

2.13

The Dharma-Gate of Cultivation and Practice

2.14

Now, the unconditioned realm is utterly beyond names and words, yet the defiled body and mind must rely on cultivation and realization. True Suchness completely contains the multitude of virtues, while expedients offer many gateways. From transcending marks in equality at the highest, down to reciting the name ten times at the lowest, in sum they do not depart from the three vehicles, and their rebirth silently accords with the nine grades. Having thoughts ultimately returns to no-thought; having birth leads directly to no-birth. It can truly be called the single phrase ‘Amitābha’ universally responding to all faculties.

2.15

The Unfixed Dharma-Gate of Buddhānusmṛti-samādhi Transcending Marks

2.16

Patriarch Cizhao said: "Regarding the buddhānusmṛti-samādhi of abandoning marks, wise persons of superior faculties awaken to this profound principle, constantly exercising an empty, equal mind, free from the marks of self, person, sentient being, or life span." A sūtra says: "To be free from all marks is called the Buddhas." A treatise states: "'Self' is conceived internally; 'person' is conceived externally; 'sentient being' has the function of continuing what came before; 'life span' has the meaning of continuing what comes after. Since there is no grasping mind of internal or external, before or after, all marks whatsoever are entirely empty and quiescent." Therefore a sūtra says: "When one knows there is neither self nor person, who undergoes transmigration?" Nor are there body and mind undergoing that birth and death—this is called the buddhānusmṛti-samādhi of abandoning marks. This means seeing that the original nature of all sentient beings is identically Amitābha: neither grasping the two extremes of possessing marks and lacking marks, nor holding views of annihilation or permanence. From this, in thought after thought Amitābha appears in the world, and in place after place Sukhāvatī manifests before one. One who recites in this way engages in the mindfulness of non-mindfulness, and mindfulness is then true suchness; the birth of non-birth, and birth is then the real mark. Therefore know that non-mindfulness is being free of thought, and the real mark is marklessness; marklessness is non-abiding, and non-abiding is entering the realm of the Buddhas. This is the unsurpassed, truly authentic Great Bodhi path. If one arrives at this stage, there is neither cultivation nor realization, no birth-and-death to escape, no nirvāṇa to seek; nature and marks are both empty, saint and ordinary being are equal; there is no Buddha-path to accomplish, no sentient beings to deliver, and no personal spirit to attain. A single thought of non-action cuts off the ten directions; not a single phenomenon exists fundamentally, nor is a single phenomenon newly accomplished. Self and other mutually subsume; principle and phenomena are unhindered; every dust mote is complete, every realm is fully manifest. The Dharma is originally thus, beyond thought and discussion. It may indeed be called: 'The Bhagavāns of the ten directions have one single path to the gate of nirvāṇa.'"

2.17

The Tiantai Buddhānusmṛti-samādhi Dharma Gate of the Three Contemplations

2.18

Kneaded, it forms no ball; pushed, it will not part; / Looking back and forth at it, one turns utterly dumb. / If everyone reached this state of being dumb, / The Three Contemplations would turn out to be the root of calamity!

2.19

Great Master Zhizhe said: "Once the teachings of the Buddhas are understood, without the practice of contemplation there is no way to return to one's nature. Therefore, relying on the principle of the three truths in one mind, he demonstrated the three cessations and three contemplations, where in each and every contemplative mind, thought after thought cannot be grasped. First emptiness, next the provisional, and afterward the middle: leaving the two extremes to contemplate the one mind. Like the moon beyond the clouds—this is the aspect of practice of the distinct teaching." He also said: "For shattering all delusion, nothing is more potent than emptiness; for establishing all phenomena, nothing is more potent than the provisional; for exhausting all natures, nothing is greater than the middle. Therefore, when one is middle, all are middle; there is neither provisional nor empty that is not middle. The same is true for emptiness and the provisional; this is the aspect of practice of the perfect teaching. Like the three dots of the Sanskrit letter i, or the three eyes of the god Maheśvara, arrayed neither vertically nor horizontally. Therefore, when the three contemplations are perfectly fulfilled, the dharmakāya is not bare, and one avoids being like the poor son." Bodhisattva Nāgārjuna's verse says: "Phenomena arisen through causes and conditions, I explain as being empty; they are also called provisional names, and are also the meaning of the middle way." Although the names differ from the three contemplations of śamatha, samāpatti, and dhyāna taught in the Śūraṅgama and Perfect Enlightenment sūtras, their purport is one. They are also called the natural virtues of the nature of the three truths: the middle truth integrates all phenomena, the real truth obliterates all phenomena, and the conventional truth establishes all phenomena; to raise one is to raise all three, not in sequence. Sentient beings fundamentally possess them; they are not obtained through purposeful contrivance. The secret treasury is not revealed only because it is covered by the three delusions: fundamental ignorance darkens the Dharma-nature, dust-and-sand delusions obstruct transforming and guiding [others], and delusions of view and thought impede emptiness and quiescence. Yet these three delusions are merely false unrealities on the substance. Therefore, the three contemplations are established to shatter the three delusions, realize the three wisdoms, and accomplish the three virtues. The contemplation of emptiness shatters the delusions of view and thought, realizes all-knowledge, and accomplishes the virtue of prajñā. The contemplation of the provisional shatters the dust-and-sand delusions, realizes the knowledge of the paths, and accomplishes the virtue of liberation. The contemplation of the middle shatters the delusion of fundamental ignorance, realizes all-aspect knowledge, and accomplishes the virtue of the dharmakāya. They are not separate, nor at different times, because the natural principle contains all phenomena. Yet these three truths are naturally so of their own nature, exhausting principle and fulfilling nature; therefore they differ yet do not differ from the Chan school. When a practitioner engages in buddhānusmṛti, the mental faculty is the direct cause, and the round light of the white curl of hair between the brows is the condition; the thought that arises is the produced phenomenon. Carefully contemplating the arising of the mind mindful of the Buddha: it is a provisional name; substantializing it, it is empty. Penetratingly inspecting this mind, the Tathāgatagarbha is present, leaving extremes and revealing the middle; whether sense faculties or sense dusts, all are the dharmadhātu; Buddhas and sentient beings universally respond in a single thought. Reaching the middle right through the extremes, there is neither Buddha nor mindfulness. This is the Mahāyāna buddhānusmṛti of the perfect cultivation of the three contemplations. It may be called: 'Lacking marks, lacking emptiness, yet nothing that is not empty—this is the true and real mark of the Tathāgata.'"

2.20

The Emptiness-Contemplation Buddhānusmṛti-samādhi Dharma Gate of Non-Thought

2.21

Regarding the emptiness-contemplation buddhānusmṛti-samādhi, as the ancestral master's preface states: "When thought is concentrated and reflection is quiescent, the resolve is unified and unswerving; the qi is void, the spirit is lucid, and there is no subtlety that is not penetrated. One who enters this absorption unconsciously forgets knowing; worldly burdens are suddenly dispelled, and stagnant sentiments melt into lucidity. Were it not the most wondrous under heaven, who could participate in this?" Great Master Zhizhe swept away all phenomena through the contemplation of emptiness, hence he said that when one is empty, all are empty, and there is neither provisional nor middle that is not empty; one who enters this contemplation investigates and verifies the real truth. Now, wishing to make practitioners turn away from delusion and return to truth, it is called the contemplation of entering emptiness from the provisional. For the provisional is the vehicle for entering emptiness: first contemplate all phenomena as provisional, up to the four elements, five aggregates, six sense faculties, six sense objects, six consciousnesses, and the mountains, rivers, and great earth throughout the ten directions of the world as completely lacking a single thing. Comprehending that they are false and unreal, one is able to unite with the real; hence it is called the contemplation of the two truths. One who cultivates this must first gather the mind and sit quietly, thoroughly sweeping away all false and unreal worldly spheres without abiding or clinging to anything, contemplating only emptiness. Therefore the Prajñā-sūtra says: "Internal emptiness, external emptiness, internal-external emptiness, emptiness, and even the emptiness of emptiness cannot be attained." In this way one suddenly enters the Tathāgata's ocean of precious, luminous emptiness, the true emptiness of nature's awakening, because the empty nature of the Tathāgatagarbha is perfectly luminous and its numinous light universally illuminates the nature of the dharmadhātu. Like a maṇi jewel, it produces things at will; like the vast ocean, it deeply and broadly encompasses all. The wisdom of equality is called the vision and knowledge of the Buddha. It may be called: 'All conditioned things are impermanent and entirely empty—this is the Tathāgata's Great Perfect Enlightenment.'"

2.22

The Sun-Contemplation Buddhānusmṛti-samādhi Dharma Gate of Concentrated Reflection

2.23

The Guan Wuliangshou jing says: "The Buddha told Vaidehī: 'You and sentient beings should concentrate your minds, fix your thoughts on a single place, and reflect upon the western direction. How should one form this reflection? All sentient beings, unless blind from birth, possess eyes and can see the setting sun. You should give rise to the thought, sit upright facing west, and carefully contemplate the sun, causing the mind to abide firmly in concentrated reflection without wavering. When the sun is about to set, its shape is like a suspended drum. Once you have seen the sun, whether your eyes are open or closed, let it be clearly distinct. This is the reflection on the sun, called the first contemplation.'" When a practitioner enters this contemplation, they must cut off external conditions in a quiet place, sit upright and collect the mind, carefully contemplating the solar orb manifest before their eyes, focusing the mind on a single realm in still quiescence, as if facing a bright mirror and seeing one's own facial reflection. If the mind scatters, restrain it and bring it back. When mind and breath abide in stillness, samādhi is attained. It may be called: 'The golden crow at the bottom of the sea, the sun in the sky; the pupil in the eye, the person before one's face.'

2.24

The Chan-Investigation Buddhānusmṛti-samādhi Ultimate Dharma Gate

2.25

The ancestral master [Hui]yuan's Preface to the Chan Scripture says: "Without wisdom, Chan cannot exhaust its quiescence; without Chan, wisdom cannot deepen its illumination. Chan and wisdom refer to illumination and quiescence. They assist each other: illumination is not separate from quiescence, and quiescence is not separate from illumination. Responding, they travel together; answering, they head toward the same destination." Cizhao said: "Quiescent yet constantly illuminating, illuminating yet constantly quiescent. Constantly quiescent and constantly illuminating is called the Constant Quiescent Light." When a person who recites the Buddha's name wishes to investigate Chan and see their nature, they need only rely on this method: in a quiet room, sit upright with a straight body, sweep away conditioned burdens, cut off emotional defilements, keep the eyes wide open without clinging to external realms, and do not abide in internal stillness; turn the light around to illuminate, and internal and external are both quiescent. Then intimately and continuously raise the recitation 'Namo Amitābha Buddha' three to five times, turn the light around to look at oneself, and say: "Seeing one's nature, one becomes a Buddha; ultimately, which one is my original nature Amitābha?" Then again illuminate and watch closely: from where does this single thought currently raised arise? Having seen through this single thought, again see through who this is that is watching closely. 〇 Investigate for a good while, then raise the recitation 'Namo Amitābha Buddha' again, and watch closely like this again. Investigate like this, working urgently without letting there be any interruption. Clear and unclouded, like a hen brooding on an egg, raise it, observe it, and investigate it like this without restriction in all four postures. Suddenly, while walking, standing, sitting, or lying down, upon hearing a sound or seeing a form, one is suddenly and completely awakened, directly seeing the Amitābha of one's original nature. Inside and outside, body and mind, all are penetrated and shed at once; the entire universe and great earth is itself the West, and all myriad phenomena are nothing other than oneself. In stillness there is no illumination omitted; in movement there is no departure from quiescence. Thereafter, one gives rise to loving-kindness and exercises compassion to guide the unawakened; with compassion and wisdom perfectly fused, one enters non-purposive action, attains birth in the highest grade called the Land of True Reward and Adornment, and obtains all-aspect knowledge. It may be called: 'The moon in the empty realm over the eternal emerald pool; only after scooping again and again does one come to know it.'"

2.26

The Mind-Gathering Buddhānusmṛti-samādhi Breath-Regulation Dharma Gate

2.27

The Mahāsaṃnipāta-sūtra's 'Bhadrapāla Chapter' says: "Those who seek unsurpassed bodhi should cultivate the buddhānusmṛti-dhyāna-samādhi. A verse says: 'If a person concentrates on recollecting Amitābha Buddha, it is called the unsurpassed, profound, and wondrous dhyāna; when one visualizes and sees the Buddha with utmost sincerity, that is the unarisen and unceasing Dharma.'" The Zuochan sanmei jing says: "When a bodhisattva sits in dhyāna, they do not think of anything; recollecting only one Buddha, they attain samādhi. When beginners practice, they inevitably suffer from the two afflictions of torpor and distraction, and must rely on remedies." The Rentian baojian says: "Whenever cultivating dhyāna-concentration, enter a quiet room, sit upright, and count the inhalation and exhalation of breaths: count from one to ten, from ten to a hundred, and from a hundred to thousands and ten thousands. This body is steadfast and this mind is quiescent, equal to empty space, needing no anxious restraint. Continuing like this for a long time, a single breath naturally abides, neither exiting nor entering; at that time, one feels this breath rising from the eighty-four thousand pores like steaming clouds and rising mist. The various ailments from beginningless time are naturally eliminated, the various obstacles naturally vanish, and one naturally attains clear awakening. It is like a blind person suddenly gaining eyes: at that moment, seeing thoroughly, they have no need to seek someone to point out the road." Now, in this mind-gathering buddhānusmṛti, if one wishes to quickly accomplish samādhi, counting the breaths is paramount as a method to remedy torpor and distraction. Whenever wishing to sit, first visualize one's own body within a halo of light, silently contemplate the tip of the nose, and visualize the incoming and outgoing breaths. With each breath, silently recite 'Namo Amitābha Buddha' once, skillfully regulating the breath so it is neither slack nor hurried. Mind and breath depend on each other, following the coming and going; this can be practiced whether walking, standing, sitting, or lying down, without letting it be interrupted. Constantly and intimately maintain this practice until one enters deeply into dhyāna-concentration, where both breath and thought are forgotten, and this very body and mind become equal to empty space. With prolonged and thorough practice, the eye of the mind opens, and samādhi suddenly manifests before one: this is the Mind-only Pure Land.

2.28

The One-Reflection Buddhānusmṛti-samādhi Concentrated Mindfulness Dharma Gate

2.29

The Mahāprajñāpāramitā-sūtra says: 'Mañjuśrī addressed the Buddha, saying: "By practicing what Dharma may a bodhisattva swiftly realize unsurpassed bodhi?" The Buddha said: "If a bodhisattva is able to properly cultivate the samādhi of single-characteristic adornment, they will swiftly realize bodhi. One who cultivates this practice should leave clamour and confusion, not contemplate multiple characteristics, single-mindedly tie mindfulness to one Tathāgata, carefully apprehend the name, and properly contemplate the physical appearance; this constitutes universally contemplating all Buddhas of the three periods of time, and one will attain all wisdom of the Buddhas."' The Tiantai Shiyi lun says: 'All Buddhas are entirely equal, but sentient beings mostly have dull faculties and are turbid and confused. If they do not single-mindedly tie mindfulness to one Buddha, their minds will be scattered and samādhi will be difficult to accomplish; therefore, having them exclusively practice buddhānusmṛti of Amitābha Buddha is precisely the single-characteristic samādhi.' The Baowang lun says: 'One who cultivates and maintains the single-characteristic buddhānusmṛti-samādhi should tie mindfulness without forgetting while walking, standing, sitting, and lying down. Even when sleeping in stupor, they should also sleep with mindfulness tied [to the Buddha]; upon awakening, they immediately continue it, neither allowing other karma to interrupt it nor allowing greed, anger, and the like to intervene. As soon as a transgression occurs, immediately repent it; without intermediate thoughts and without divergent thoughts, without skipping a day and without skipping an hour, thought after thought constantly never departing from the Buddha, thought after thought pure, complete, and bright—this is attaining the single-characteristic samādhi.' This can truly be called: 'If one understands the One, the ten thousand matters are finished.'

2.30

The Dharma Gate of the Merit and Dedication of Buddhānusmṛti at the Six Times of the Day

2.31

When Patriarch Master Yuan established the society at Donglin, monks and laity cultivated together. Those of great wisdom and superior virtue penetrated deeply into dhyāna-contemplation and attained the buddhānusmṛti-samādhi; persons of middling caliber cultivated worship of the Pure Land at the six times of the day, dedicating [merit] toward the West. A Tang poem says: 'Master Yuan alone carved the lotus-flower water clock, / Still in the mountains worshiping at the six times.' Whenever practicing this method, one first sets up a Buddha statue in a clean room, making offerings of incense, flowers, lamps, and candles according to one's means; bathes away dust and defilement, wears clean robes, and every day at sunrise, midday, sunset, early night, midnight, and late night, personally faces the Three Jewels, straightens the body, joins the palms, and faithfully bows toward the West. At each time, beholding the compassionate countenance with one's eyes, recite the holy name of 'Namo Amitābha Buddha' one thousand times, perform forty-eight prostrations to the Buddha, and recite the Western prayer text to make vows and dedication. Practicing the path at the six times—thrice by day and thrice by night—every day, focused, concentrated, and tireless in mindful practice, with resolve and vows firm, one's pure karma will be fully accomplished, and in a future day one will certainly attain rebirth in the middle grade of the middle rank.

2.32

The Dharma Gate of the Merit of Repenting Sins and Buddhānusmṛti with Tied Mindfulness

2.33

The Da Mituo jing says: 'When I become a Buddha, if the devas and humans of immeasurable worlds in the ten directions, hearing my name, burn incense, scatter flowers, light lamps, hang banners, offer food to śramaṇas, erect stupas and monasteries, observe pure fasting precepts, and increase the practice of all wholesome deeds, single-mindedly tying their thoughts to me—even if for only one day and one night without interruption—they will certainly be born in my land. If this vow is not fulfilled, I will not attain Buddhahood.' It also says: 'When I become a Buddha, if the devas and humans of immeasurable worlds in the ten directions, down to flying insects and crawling creatures, who have committed evil in previous lives, upon hearing my name, immediately repent and practice good, uphold the sūtras and precepts, and vow to be born in my land, then at the end of their lives they will not pass through the three evil paths and will proceed straight to rebirth, with all their wishes fulfilled according to their desires. If this vow is not fulfilled, I will not attain Buddhahood.' Whenever a practitioner undertakes this, they should first cleanse and purify the bodhimanda, burn incense, light lamps, set out extensive offerings, and invite a monk and superior good people to serve together as venerable witnesses at the altar. One states one's intention to the Buddha, cuts off worries, abandons cares, does not engage in household affairs, and stays away from women. Observing the fast and precepts, tie mindfulness to that Buddha's name. For one day and one night, recite one thousand times for each Buddha, and chant one fascicle of the Amitābha-sūtra. Doing so three times, sincerely repent and dedicate [merit], saying: 'I now recall the various evil karmas created since my birth. I pray that through this merit of buddhānusmṛti I may enter the vast ocean of the Tathāgata's great vows; relying on the Buddha's compassionate power, may all my sins be eliminated and all resentments and blames dissolved. May all wholesome roots generated by the three karmas adorn my pure vows, and may blessings and wisdom manifest. May I know the arrival of my time when approaching the end of life, with body free from painful illness, mind not disordered, as if entering dhyāna, and in an instant be born directly into the Western Realm of Sukhāvatī, see the Buddha welcoming me, receive the Buddha's prophecy on a lotus pedestal in the pond of seven jewels, hear the sūtras and Dharma, instantly awaken to the Buddha's wisdom, and broadly deliver sentient beings, fulfilling the vow of bodhi.' This can truly be called: 'Water flows beside the stone and comes out cold; / Wind passes through the flowers and becomes fragrant.'

2.34

The Dharma Gate of the Merit of Morning and Evening Buddhānusmṛti with Faith and Vow

2.35

Lay bodhisattvas serve the Buddha and uphold the precepts, managing household responsibilities daily; if they are unable to cultivate with single-minded devotion, they must rise early, burn incense, pay reverence to the Three Jewels, and practice buddhānusmṛti as circumstances allow; every day at dusk they should likewise worship and recite in this manner, taking it as a regular daily practice. If due to business they miss the time, on the following day they should personally repent and explain before the Buddha. This Dharma gate importantly does not interfere with one's fundamental occupation: scholars are not hindered from studying, farmers are not hindered from plowing, artisans are not hindered from crafting, and merchants are not hindered from trading. Besides the morning attendance and evening worship, if one can also seize moments throughout the twelve two-hour periods of the day to uphold the Buddha's name for one hundred or one thousand recitations, taking sincere devotion as practice, one can look forward to rebirth in the Pure Land. Dedicate [merit] saying: 'May the merit of your disciple [Name]'s worship and recitation grant that at the end of life I may be born directly by the lotus pond of the Pure Land, personally see Amitābha, and meet good companions amid the rows of jeweled trees. I dedicate this universally so that parents, teachers, and sentient beings of the dharmadhātu may together fulfill this vow.' This can truly be called: 'Accumulating specks of dust forms a giant mountain; / Dropping water gradually becomes a river.'

2.36

The Dharma Gate of the Merit of the Direct and Short Path of Ten Recitations in Buddhānusmṛti

2.37

Repentance Master Ciyun Zunshi said: 'Laypeople are busy with worldly affairs. Every day in early morning, having dressed, face west, join the palms, and recite "Namo Amitābha Buddha," taking one full breath as one recitation. In this way do ten recitations, simply following the length of the breath, taking the exhaustion of breath as the measure; let the sound of buddhānusmṛti be neither high nor low, harmonized in moderation. With these ten recitations continuous and unbroken, the purpose is to keep the mind unscattered and take focused dedication as the practice; it clearly relies on the breath to restrain the mind.' Dedicate [merit] saying: 'I, [Name], single-mindedly take refuge in Western Amitābha Buddha, praying that you gather me with pure light. I now recite the Tathāgata's name for the span of ten recitations, seeking birth in the West. The Buddha previously made a fundamental vow: "If there are sentient beings who wish to be born in my land and recite my name ten times, if they should not be born in my land, I vow not to become a Buddha." Now through the merit of these ten recitations, I pray that at the end of life my mind will not be disordered, that in a single thought-moment I will be born in the Realm of Sukhāvatī, and hearing the Buddha's wondrous Dharma, swiftly realize bodhi.' This can truly be called: 'If faith does not regress, / One is certain to worship the Golden Immortal.'

2.38

Preface to the Chart of the Selection of Buddhas through the Perfect Fusion of the Four Lands by Patriarch Cizhao

2.39

Indeed, Tranquil Light and Common Abode are of one wisdom without distinction; yet when emotional attachments arise between this and that, views develop closeness and distance. Directly confronting and understanding form, the nature of emptiness is suchness; fundamentally there are no two paths, yet one naturally perceives the subtle and the crude. I am not like this; Vairocana is of one substance, and one must first know the source to avoid being muddled. Practice has the characteristics of practice; wisdom has the pattern of wisdom; vows have the power of vows; progress has its stages. Lucid yet tranquil, like a pure bright jewel illuminating the essence of the mind, ordinary and holy walk the same path. The four lands thoroughly unite, the three bodies are a single suchness; everything is the Pure Land, and everywhere is Amitābha. Moreover, because this mountain monk saw that the four lands were confused and disorderly without coherent arrangement, with wisdom revolving and practice melting away, leading to sharp and dull faculties being unseparated and both causes and effects being lost—people only speak of the Pure Land without knowing its heights and depths, and only speak of Mind-only without knowing the mind's depth and shallowness. Hence I see various houses slandering one another, each clinging to one side, unaware that they are destroying their own ancestral style, not something that demons could ruin. Now, therefore, I slightly open a path and present four charts, eliminating deluded sentiments and suddenly illuminating the ground of the mind; thereafter, the river-sand dharmadhātus are entirely subsumed within a single sheet of paper, and the measureless Dharma gates issue forth from within the heart.

2.40

Amitābha Buddha of one's own nature,
Is the vehicle of the Mind-only Pure Land;
Upon awakening, it is but a single thought,
When deluded, one passes through three asaṃkhyeyas.
The two gates of subjugation and gathering are established,
Holy and ordinary return along one single road;
Worldly sentiment watches the cold and the warm,
Human faces follow the high and the low.

2.41

Land of Common Abode of Ordinary and Holy Beings

2.42

Like rising in status through ancestral privilege

2.43

Sentiments differ between ordinary and holy, and wisdom has disparities;
One must rely on cultivation and realization to accord with Vairocana.
Fearing that man's strength is small and he will tire on the journey,
[The Buddha] provisionally points to the West to lodge halfway along.

2.44

Few know the horizontal transcendence of the three realms;
It is easy to cultivate and easy to go to—do not harbor doubts.
With dust and defilements not yet removed, seeking liberation,
Single-mindedly, with faith and vow, be mindful of Amitābha.
At the end of life, depart with right mindfulness clear and distinct;
Know the time in advance three days or seven days prior.
Once born in the Pure Land, constantly hearing the Dharma,
Why worry that one will not awaken to the mind's workings?

2.45

┌─────────┐

2.46

│ Non-retrogression of vow │

2.47

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2.48

│ Deluded regarding the three virtues │

2.49

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2.50

│ Substance, function, and principle │

2.51

├─────────┤

2.52

│ Superior and inferior nirmāṇakāyas │

2.53

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2.54

│ Emotional views not yet eliminated │

2.55

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2.56

│ Possessing afflictions │

2.57

├─────────┤

2.58

│ Rebirth accomplished through ten recitations │

2.59

├─────────┤

2.60

│ Horizontal transcendence of the three realms │

2.61

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2.62

│ Seen by srotaāpannas and devas/humans │

2.63

├─────────┤

2.64

│ Body of eight cubits │

2.65

├─────────┤

2.66

│ Abode of ordinary and holy beings │

2.67

└─────────┘

2.68

In this land, as long as there is faith, vow, and buddhānusmṛti, without severing afflictions, without renouncing household ties, and without cultivating dhyāna, when approaching the end of life, Amitābha will come to welcome and guide them, and all will attain rebirth in the Pure Land, immediately obtaining supernatural faculties and attaining non-retrogression straight up to bodhi. The Land of Common Abode of Ordinary and Holy Beings is endowed with the three lights of self-enjoyment and enjoyment for others, universally subsuming the four lands and the nine grades of transformed rebirth according to principle; the subsequent three lands are all included within it. The reason [the diagram] does not cite them separately but only adduces the lowest grade of the lowest rank is that the Patriarch wished to make clear that it is easy to cultivate and easy to reach. As for the rest of the ranks, whether high or low, each is accomplished in accordance with one's practice, vows, cultivation, and realization.

2.69

Land of Expedient Remainder

2.70

Like rising in status through frontier military merit

2.71

Severing and eliminating afflictions, cutting off all traces,
Extinguishing wisdom and turning the heart to ashes, one ceases and rests;
Unable to advance toward the jeweled place,
The Tathāgata by expedient means therefore detains them.
Vertically transcending the three realms is the nature of the śrāvaka;
Afflictions and defiling toil are hastily cut off.
Entering samādhi in the four dhyānas, repeatedly contemplating and refining,
Forever transcending the ordinary world, never returning.

2.72

┌─────────┐

2.73

│ Non-retrogression of practice │

2.74

├─────────┤

2.75

│ Virtue of liberation │

2.76

├─────────┤

2.77

│ Substance, function, and principle │

2.78

├─────────┤

2.79

│ Superior nirmāṇakāya │

2.80

├─────────┤

2.81

│ All-knowledge │

2.82

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2.83

│ Shattering illusions of view and thought │

2.84

├─────────┤

2.85

│ Rebirth through the eight precepts, etc. │

2.86

├─────────┤

2.87

│ Vertical transcendence of the three realms │

2.88

├─────────┤

2.89

│ What is seen by disciples such as the śrāvakas of the four fruits │

2.90

├─────────┤

2.91

│ The sixteen-foot golden body │

2.92

├─────────┤

2.93

│ The dwelling of arhats │

2.94

└─────────┘

2.95

This land contains entirely those of fixed Hīnayāna disposition, who fear the three realms like tigers, ghosts, dragons, and serpents; who have shattered the delusions of view and thought and slain greed, anger, and delusion; who have severed the Tathāgata's lineage like a roe deer leaping alone, ignoring the herd behind it; who stubbornly cling to minor views, sinking into emptiness and stagnating in quiescence, born in the expedient land, where the Tathāgata purely expounds the Great Vehicle to subdue them.

2.96

Land of True Reward and Adornment

2.97

Like one born through passing the civil service examinations

2.98

The subtle dharmas of mind have not yet been dispelled;
one should know that only when sentiment is exhausted are roots eradicated.
Since the undershirt hugging the flesh has not yet been removed,
a minute speck of dust still obstructs the great cosmos.
Neither horizontal nor vertical, the principle is exceptionally fitting;
clarifying the mind in the three contemplations, advance without doubt.
If one's single strength cannot yet cross to the other shore,
one still falls back into the capacity of the sages and worthies.

2.99

┌───────────┐

2.100

│ Non-retrogression of wisdom │

2.101

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2.102

│ Virtue of prajñā │

2.103

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2.104

│ Function, doctrine, essence │

2.105

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2.106

│ Complete saṃbhogakāya │

2.107

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2.108

│ Knowledge of the aspects of the path │

2.109

├───────────┤

2.110

│ Shattering the delusions of dust and sand, partially shattering ignorance │

2.111

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2.112

│ Born with the three minds fully attained │

2.113

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2.114

│ Transcending the three realms neither horizontally nor vertically │

2.115

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2.116

│ Eighty-four thousand marks and signs │

2.117

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2.118

│ What is seen by those of one lifetime remaining and the great beings │

2.119

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2.120

│ The dwelling of bodhisattvas │

2.121

└───────────┘

2.122

This land contains entirely the Mahāyāna great beings of the dharmakāya who have completely cultivated the three contemplations—of the ten abodes, ten practices, ten dedications, ten stages, and virtual enlightenment—as numerous as dust motes and sands. Each has partially shattered ignorance, manifest bodies in the ten directions, accomplished the eight phases of attaining awakening, and delivered sentient beings, yet none has reached the ultimate. The teachings of Tiantai and Xianshou explain this in detail.

Linked texts (1)

廬山蓮宗寶鑑 — Classical Chinese