勅修百丈清規 6.23

6.23

Whenever there is a sick monk, fellow townsmen and old acquaintances in the Way arrange incense, candles, and a Buddha image in front of the patient's couch. They perform the recitation praising the Buddha, saying: (When the water is clear, the autumn moon appears; / when one prays with earnest devotion, the field of merit arises. / Only the Buddha's bodhi / is the true refuge. / This morning, on behalf of the sick bhikṣu So-and-so, / to resolve animosities over many lifetimes / and repent of faults over kalpas past, / we specially arouse utmost sincerity and look up to the pure assembly / to praise the sacred names and wash clean profound misfortunes. / We respectfully rely on the venerable assembly to chant: / "The pure Dharma-body Vairocana, the ten epithets..." and so forth.) Dedication of merit: (We humbly pray: / may his single mind be pure and the four elements at ease; / may his lifespan and wisdom-life be extended; / may his physical body be as firm as the Dharma-body. / We again trouble the venerable assembly to chant: / "In the ten directions and three times..." and so forth.) If the illness is severe, perform the ten recitations of Amitābha Buddha. When chanting, first declare the praise, saying: (Amitābha Buddha is of pure golden color; / his major marks and secondary signs are serene and peerless. / The white curl curls round like five Mount Sumerus; / his dark blue eyes are clear like four great seas. / In his light are countless billions of transformed Buddhas, / and the assembly of transformed bodhisattvas is also limitless. / His forty-eight vows deliver sentient beings, / causing all nine grades to ascend to the other shore. / This morning, on behalf of the sick bhikṣu So-and-so, / to resolve animosities over many lifetimes / and repent of faults over kalpas past, / we specially arouse utmost sincerity and look up to the pure assembly / to praise the sacred names and wash clean profound misfortunes. / We respectfully rely on the venerable assembly to chant: / "Namo Amitābha Buddha" one hundred times, / Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva, Mahāsthāmaprāpta Bodhisattva, / and the Bodhisattvas of the Pure Great Ocean-wide Assembly ten times each.) Dedication of merit: (We humbly pray that for the sick bhikṣu So-and-so, / if his diverse conditions are not yet exhausted, he may quickly attain comfort and ease; / if his great destiny cannot be escaped, he may go straight to birth in the Land of Ease. / "In the ten directions and three times..." and so forth.) When chanting the Buddha's name, the assembly should gather their minds in purity, and must not entertain scattered thoughts or external grasping.