淨土五會念佛誦經觀行儀卷中．下 2.272

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又如涅槃經說。佛言。善男子。善女人。能如是念佛者。若行住坐臥。若晝若夜。若明若闇。常得見佛。聖教既有明文。只說今時像末已後。濁惡世中五苦眾生。罪根深者。唯念佛力。即能除得罪根。必離憂惱。生死永斷若不念佛。何以得見阿彌陀佛極樂世界。無量壽經及諸部方等。明此方他方諸菩薩眾生彼國者。如駛雨下。不知其數。且菩薩位階聖果。尚念佛名。願生淨土。親奉彌陀。況諸具縛凡夫。煩惱一毫未能斷得。若不樂乘佛願力。自力盡未來際。沈淪惡趣。豈有出期。何得見佛。自佛滅後。龍樹天親亦修念佛三昧。皆著讚頌並往淨方。又佛法東流。晉時有廬山遠大師。與諸碩德及謝靈運。劉遺民。一百二十三人。結誓於廬山。修念佛三昧。皆見西方極樂世界。又梁時有并州玄中寺曇巒法師。亦修念佛三昧。至陳隨。廬山珍禪師。天台智者大師。長安諸大德。叡法師。乃至今時唐朝一百年前。西京善導和上。并州文水縣玄中寺道綽和上。慈慜三藏等。數百高僧。般舟方等。歲歲常行。十六妙觀。分時繫習。咸覩西方靈相極樂世界眾寶國土。難以具陳。聖教記傳。並有明文。豈虛構也。如此光德。豈非凡夫修念佛三昧。得見彼極樂世界。故觀經云。以見佛故。名念佛三昧。既有斯教。許佛滅後。苦惱眾生。但修念佛三昧者。皆見彼佛何妨。法照。今時道俗及未來一切眾生。修此念佛三昧。寧容不得見佛。斯有錯。何但依教修行。即名正觀。普告未來一切道俗眾等。及十方法界眾生。與此淨土五會念佛教門有緣。修行念佛三昧。學此淨土法事者。及修一切佛法。作大佛事。除為名利。造諸惡法。若至求菩提。為度眾生者。法照。生淨土已。誓來示為同類同學伴侶。常當守護此人。正修學時。若有諸魔鬼神及諸惡人水火毒藥如是諸難。來惱行人。行人但於爾時。至心稱念。法照。名字一聲多聲。應念即至諸行人所。而為外護立有微感。令彼諸惡應時散滅。發菩提心。稱念。

Furthermore, as the Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra says, the Buddha said: 'Good sons and good daughters, those who are able to be mindful of the Buddha in this way, whether walking, standing, sitting, or lying down, whether by day or by night, whether in light or in darkness, will always be able to see the Buddha.' Since the sacred teachings have clear textual authority, they only speak of the present age after the Semblance and Final Dharma eras, of sentient beings of the five sufferings in the defiled and evil world whose roots of offense are deep: solely through the power of mindfulness of the Buddha can the roots of offenses be eradicated, and they are certain to leave behind sorrow and affliction, cutting off birth and death forever. If one is not mindful of the Buddha, how could one be able to see Amitābha Buddha and the Land of Sukhāvatī? The Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra and the various Vaipulya scriptures clarify that the assemblies of bodhisattvas from this land and other lands who are born in that country are like falling torrential rain, beyond calculation. Moreover, even when bodhisattvas have attained the stages of noble fruition, they still recite the Buddha's name, vow to be born in the Pure Land, and personally attend upon Amitābha. How much more so for ordinary persons bound by fetters, who have not yet been able to cut off even a hair's breadth of afflictions! If they do not delight in mounting the power of the Buddha's vows, but rely on their own power to the end of future kalpas, sinking down into the evil destinies, how could there ever be a time of escape? How could they attain sight of the Buddha? Since the Buddha's passing, Nāgārjuna and Vasubandhu also cultivated the samādhi of reciting the Buddha's name, both composing praises and verses and going to the Pure Land. Furthermore, when the Buddha's Dharma flowed east, in the Jin dynasty there was Great Master Yuan of Mount Lu, who together with various eminent worthies as well as Xie Lingyun and Liu Yimin, one hundred and twenty-three people in all, formed a covenant on Mount Lu, cultivated the samādhi of reciting the Buddha's name, and all saw the Western Land of Sukhāvatī. Furthermore, in the Liang dynasty there was Dharma Master Tanluan of Xuanzhong Monastery in Bingzhou, who also cultivated the samādhi of reciting the Buddha's name. Reaching the Chen and Sui dynasties, Chan Master Zhen of Mount Lu, Great Master Zhizhe of Tiantai, various great worthies of Chang'an, Dharma Master Rui, and down to the present Tang dynasty a hundred years ago, Preceptor Shandao of the Western Capital, Preceptor Daochuo of Xuanzhong Monastery in Wenshui County of Bingzhou, Tripiṭaka Master Cimin, and several hundred other eminent monks, constantly practiced the Pratyutpanna and Vaipulya year after year, binding and cultivating the sixteen wondrous contemplations according to the divisions of time, and all witnessed the numinous signs of the West, the Land of Sukhāvatī, and the country of numerous jewels, difficult to recount in full. The records and biographies of the sacred teachings all have clear textual evidence; how could this be fabricated? With such glorious virtues, how could it not be that ordinary persons cultivating the samādhi of reciting the Buddha's name come to see that Land of Sukhāvatī? Therefore, the Contemplation Sūtra says: 'Because one sees the Buddha, it is named the samādhi of reciting the Buddha's name.' Since there is this teaching permitting that after the Buddha's passing, afflicted sentient beings who merely cultivate the samādhi of reciting the Buddha's name will all see that Buddha, what hindrance is there? Fazhao [says]: How could monastics and laypeople of the present time and all sentient beings of the future who cultivate this samādhi of reciting the Buddha's name possibly not get to see the Buddha? That would be mistaken. Why? Simply practicing in accordance with the teaching is called right contemplation. I universally announce to all monastics, laypeople, and others of the future, as well as sentient beings of the Dharma realm of the ten directions, who have affinity with this teaching gate of the Pure Land five-tempo recitation of the Buddha's name, cultivate the samādhi of reciting the Buddha's name, and learn this Pure Land ritual service, as well as those who cultivate all Buddha-dharma and perform great Buddhist services, excluding those who do so for fame and profit or create various evil dharmas: if they reach toward seeking bodhi for the sake of delivering sentient beings, after Fazhao is born in the Pure Land, I vow to come and manifest as a companion of the same kind and a fellow student, and I shall constantly protect this person. When they are properly cultivating and studying, if there are various māras, ghosts, spirits, as well as various evil persons, floods, fires, poisons, and such calamities that come to disturb the practitioner, the practitioner at that time need only call upon with the utmost mind the name of Fazhao, once or many times; in response to the thought I shall immediately arrive at the place of the practitioners to serve as an external protector, instantly producing a subtle response, causing those various evils to disperse and perish in an instant, [so they may] generate the aspiration for awakening and call upon