廬山蓮宗寶鑑 5.6

5.6

Now, Amitābha Buddha is the most revered among the Buddhas and the father of the four modes of birth. Those who take refuge in faith extinguish sins numerous as the sands of the Ganges; those who invoke his name obtain immeasurable merit. Whoever wishes to practice buddhānusmṛti must give rise to a faithful mind; without a faithful mind, one will gain nothing in vain. For this reason, Master Zhao stated: 'That a matter is like this is the mark of faith; that a matter is not like this is the mark of disbelief.' Faith is the initial principle for entering the Path, and wisdom is the ultimate profound art. That the sūtras begin with 'Thus' indicates faith; that they end with 'they practiced it' indicates wisdom. Therefore, the Amitābha-sūtra states: 'If there are those who believe, they should make the vow to be born in that land'—this is where our original teacher Śākyamuni exhorted faith. It also states: 'All of you should believe this praise of inconceivable merit'—this is where the Buddhas of the six directions exhorted faith. It also states: 'If someone plants good roots, through doubt the flower will not open; for one whose faithful mind is pure, when the flower opens they immediately see the Buddha'—this is where the Treatise on Rebirth exhorted faith. It also states: 'Faith is a word of accord. With faith, the principle spoken is in accord; with accord, the way of master and disciple is accomplished. Whether a sūtra is elaborate or brief, without faith it is not transmitted'—this is where Master Zhao exhorted faith. It also states: 'The Dharma-gate of buddhānusmṛti asks not whether one is monastic or lay, considers not whether one is male or female, and is not restricted by noble or base status. Those who cultivate this method require only a faithful mind'—this is where Upādhyāya Daxing exhorted faith.

Question: 'Since you speak of faith, what Dharma-gate should one believe in?'

Answer: 'The meaning of faith is to place faith in what the Buddha taught in the sūtras: that practicing buddhānusmṛti certainly leads to birth in the Pure Land; to believe that buddhānusmṛti certainly extinguishes all sins; to believe that buddhānusmṛti certainly attains the Buddha's protection; to believe that buddhānusmṛti certainly attains the Buddha's verification; to believe that in buddhānusmṛti, at the end of life the Buddha will certainly come to welcome one; to believe that buddhānusmṛti does not discriminate among sentient beings, and that all who share this faith will attain rebirth; to believe that through buddhānusmṛti, rebirth certainly brings the stage of non-retrogression; to believe that through buddhānusmṛti, birth in the Pure Land certainly prevents falling into the three evil paths. Therefore, we exhort faith in buddhānusmṛti: if one receives this Dharma and maintains this mindfulness, rebirth in the Pure Land is certain.'

Thus Upādhyāya Daxing instructed practitioners of buddhānusmṛti: when the mind solely believes in the Buddha, the Buddha knows it, because of his knowledge of the minds of others; when the mouth solely invokes the Buddha, the Buddha hears it, because of his divine ear; when the body solely bows to the Buddha, the Buddha sees it, because of his divine eye. Therefore Upādhyāya Daxing used this buddhānusmṛti method to exhort people to generate a faithful mind. Moreover, by way of metaphor: a faithful mind is like deeply planting a fruit tree; because the roots are deep, it is unmoved by the wind, and later bears fruit to relieve people's hunger and thirst. The person practicing buddhānusmṛti is also like this: they must rely on deep faith to reach the West. Without a faithful mind, one gains nothing in vain. Therefore the sūtra states: 'Once a bodhisattva of the ten abodes gives rise to a faithful mind and practices buddhānusmṛti, even if encountering evil conditions, they would rather sacrifice their life than retrogress in faith.' The Vimalakīrti states: 'Deep faith is solid like a diamond; the jewel of Dharma shines universally like a rain of nectar.' The buddhānusmṛti-samādhi arises from deep faith. Look at the Buddhas numerous as the sands of the Ganges in the Pure Land: all were people of right faith in former days.