釋氏要覽 2.284

2.284

The Mahāprajñāpāramitōpadeśa states: 'By only reciting once "Namo Buddha", this person also brings an end to suffering, and his merit is inexhaustible.' Question: 'How can merely reciting the Buddha's name in vain immediately end suffering and make one's merit inexhaustible?' Answer: 'This person has heard of the Buddha's merits, which can deliver people from old age, sickness, and death. If one makes even a small offering or recites the name, one obtains immeasurable merit, leading up to the end of suffering.' In the Śūraṅgama-sūtra, Bodhisattva Mahāsthāmaprāpta says: 'The Tathāgata Surpassing the Sun and Moon Light taught me the samādhi of mindfulness of the Buddha. For example, suppose one person exclusively remembers another, while the other exclusively forgets. If these two persons meet, it is as if not meeting; if they see each other, it is as if not seeing. If the two remember each other and their thoughts are profound like this, then from life to life they are like form and shadow, not contrary to one another. The Tathāgatas of the ten directions are compassionate toward and mindful of sentient beings, just as a mother remembers her child. If the child runs away, though she remembers him, what can be done? If the child remembers his mother as his mother remembers him, mother and child through successive lives will not be contrary or distant. If sentient beings' minds remember the Buddha and are mindful of the Buddha, in the present or in the future they will definitely see the Buddha, not far from the Buddha. Not relying on expedients, their minds will naturally open, just like a person perfumed with incense whose body bears a fragrance. This is called the adornment of perfumed light. Originally on my cause ground, with the mind of mindfulness of the Buddha, I entered into the endurance of the non-arising of dharmas. Now in this world, I gather those mindful of the Buddha and return them to the Pure Land.'