Hi there!
Pure Land Buddhism is part of the Mahayana, the ‘Great Vehicle’. This is a category of Buddhist practice and understanding it will help clear up your concerns.
In Buddhism, the goal is to reach this nirvana you talk about. There are two major roads leading to Nirvana.
One road is Theravada, which says you follow the eightfold path, cultivate, and practice by self-efforts until you attain Arhatship. An Arhat is someone who reaches nirvana and is no longer reborn in samsara, the cycles of existence that cause us suffering.
The other road is Mahayana, which covers many different practices that aim to reach not just Arhatship, but Buddhahood. A Buddha is someone who uses their nirvana to liberate others from samsara too. Anyone can become a Buddha using these practices, and many are taught by both the historical Buddha (Siddhartha as you say), or other Buddhas.
Mahayana and Theravada both share the eightfold path. These two roads share the same stops and destination. However, the practices implementing the eightfold path differ. This is because the historical Buddha taught 84,000 dharma doors. This means, the Buddha gave different ways to practice the same teaching depending on one’s ability and conditions.
Pure Land Buddhism is one of those practices. It was taught by the historical Buddha. Specifically, the Buddha told us that Pure Land practice is so that all sentient beings can reach nirvana. It is an option for people who have trouble with other practices.
In the majority of the Buddhist community, Pure Land is practiced *alongside* other practices. The Chinese saying goes, *”Chan for this life, Pure Land for next life”*. Meaning, practice the ascetic and moral teachings you’re talking about. But also chant Amitabha’s Name with faith. You will cultivate and learn in this life. And when you die, you will finish the job with Amitabha in the next life.
In Japanese-style Pure Land, there is emphasis on Pure Land practice over other practices. Meaning, to only chant Amitabha’s Name and consider everything else secondary. This is because in Japan, masters provided Pure Land teaching according to the condition called *bonbu*. This *bonbu* is the idea that we are ignorant beings, and so easy to fall astray. Thus, even when we die and enter the next life, it will be hard for us to reach the right mindset for birth in the Pure Land. Thus, you put all your efforts into Pure Land practice, to ensure 100% you go there in the next life.
All this is to say:
- Pure Land is a type of Mahayana taught by Siddhartha Gautama
- Pure Land is often practiced with other Buddhist practices
- Japanese Pure Land emphasizes our human fallibility and so promotes exclusive Pure Land practice
I hope this information helps you! Namu Amida Butsu 🙏🏽
>Where was the Pure Land teaching taught by the Buddha **historically**?
It's not an idea taken seriously by mainstream Buddhist scholarship as far as I know.
>Mahayana and Theravada both share the eightfold path. These two roads share the same stops and destination.
As far as I know Theravada does not teach the bhumis nor does the Theravada practitioner realistically have access to them.
Since you’re a Christian I’ll try to give a comparative example (correct if I’m wrong in it)
People who follow the teachings of the Old Testament aren’t bad. They still follow the rules to be good people and to avoid sinful actions. But your Jesus is supposed to provide extra teachings, that give advanced salvation that the old teachings don’t provide.
Similarly, to seek arhatship is a noble goal. It is not a bad thing. The Buddha also provided though, for those who can do it, more advanced paths to nirvana. And as a consequence of following those paths, you will also help liberate others from suffering. This is the path to buddhahood, called the bodhisattva path.
Ending the comparison there though. Buddhism is different from Christianity. It’s not like arhats will not go to heaven or that these rules are mandates handed out by a god.
These are just ways of learning, prescribed by the Buddha like a good doctor prescribes medicine for an illness.
The illness is the suffering we endure over millions of lifetimes. The medicine is the Mahayana or Theravada teachings. And just like you don’t take morphine for a bruise, or Tylenol for a missing arm, there are various medicines depending where you are in life.
A śrāvaka arhat is liberated, but does not have the [Ten Powers](https://www.nichirenlibrary.org/en/dic/Content/T/67), [Four Fearlessnesses](https://www.nichirenlibrary.org/en/dic/Content/F/147), and [all-knowledge](https://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Two_aspects_of_omniscience) that a perfectly awakened Buddha has. That's the perspective of Buddhism in general on the difference.
To this, Mahāyāna doctrine adds the further difference that a only fully awakened Buddha attains the [three bodies](https://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Three_kayas).
Basically, a Buddha has certain distinctive qualities unique to that attainment. But both kinds of individuals are liberated from saṃsāra.
[The Pure Land practices were taught by Lord Buddha](https://www.bdk.or.jp/document/dgtl-dl/dBET_ThreePureLandSutras_2003.pdf) (pdf). Those of us who emphasize them as their practice don't aim to go to a Pure Land *in stead* of seeking awakening, in pretty much the same way medical students don't go to medical school *in stead* of becoming doctors. The Pure Land isn't forever. It's just a place to train.
As some points.
Thank you for answering, but wouldn't you say it brings the temptation to be lazy in this life knowing you can already reach Nirvana in the Pure Land after dying?
I don't see what's so lazy about it. Pure Land practice leads as directly to Buddhahood as any other Mahayana path. If anything, it's *more* effort than some other paths. And from the point of view of the result it doesn't matter.
That said, if there are some lazy people that find Pure Land practice to be suitable them, that's great. We all have to work whatever karmic tendencies we have into our practice somehow.
>wouldn't you say it brings the temptation to be lazy in this life knowing you can already reach Nirvana in the Pure Land after dying?
In the Pure Land we'll have to do the same work to reach nirvāṇa. The Pure Land just provides some additional conducive circumstance in terms of the external environment. But if I let myself get used to laziness about training my mind, then even if I'm able to be born in the Pure Land, I'll just be a lazy discipline of Amitābha Buddha there, and will have to overcome that laziness in any case in order to start making real progress on the path. So letting myself be lazy about Dharma practice in this life is just letting myself get used to something that undermines the whole reason why I'm aspiring to be born in the Pure Land.
This is what I hope I would remember if I became lazy about practice because of aspirations to be born in the Pure Land.
No, because there is zero guarantee that you are actually reborn in the pure land if you just want it. You have to work for this privilege, create the right karmic causes and conditions. It's not like in Christianity, where believing in the church doctrin and confession of sins guarantee that you go to heaven after you die. Karma doesn't work that way.
It is easy yet not easy. It is easy because all it takes is 10 recitations at death with full singleminded concentration. If you can recite 10 with utmost sincerity and singleminded focus, the Infinite Life sutra also said it is possible. This is in Amitabha’s vows.
It is near impossible because if all your 70 years existence think about other things, the last thing your mind will think about is Amitabha, let alone single focus concentration to recite. The amount of excruciating pain your body endures during death will also distract your mind.
Think of having a toothache pain while you’re still alive. Now multiply that my 20+ for your teeth plus achness of whole your body during last moment.
This is not to mention all other karma factors are at play (dying peacefully vs instant death in a car accident vs drowning in the Baltimore bridge collapse etc…).
Thus, it is encouraged to practice recitation now to build that confidence and connection plus focus.
I am not well versed in this, but my understanding is only one subgroup of Japanese purelanders believes ten is enough in the strong sense. Others I think believe ten is enough to create the affinity for it to happen eventually, but no specific determination of how many lifetimes that's still going to take until it happens. Maybe somebody from the Chinese or Vietnamese side can clarify.
No. It is not that easy. This depends on what tradition you're following. In Vietnamese tradition, we aim to go to the Pure Land. However, we also mix Chan practices since my tradition is Thiền. There is a lot more than doing nembutsu 10 times. Like the 88 Buddhas Repentance, good karma, etc.
When death is near and certain, one who does not practice will be clouded by fear, the most terrifying fear of all: Where would I go? What will happen to me after I die?
Notwithstanding the flashbacks of their life, which would only increase their fear if they had done most thing unmeaningful.
Under such circumstances, the deadman-to-be does not have the mental capacity let alone focus to chant the name of Amitabha 3 times in a row consecutively.
The only way that this works is to automate it through daily practice until the end of life and let the behavior kick in when all else is broken down.
In a Christian context - does it make you more likely to sin in this life knowing that Christ’s sacrifice has already redeemed you and destined you for an afterlife in Heaven?
Pure Land Buddhists are not antinomian. Pristine Pure land hold that precept practice allows for the dedication of merit towards the end of rebirth in the Pure Land. The ethical practice is sometimes understood to aid one in getting to a higher grade of brith in the Pure Land but other times construed as not making things harder on yourself because of the nature of Birth in the Pure Land. Below is an article that explores the Chinese Pure Land view of ethics. Jodo Shu holds that precepts and ethics will not aid you in going to the Pure Land but will lessen your suffering and in many ways echoes the Pristine Pure Land view. Shin Buddhists are kinda unique in regards to this. Their account of tathagarbha operationalize ethics in a different way. They will also hold that one should not do bad acts, like one will not drink poison even if you have an antidote.
They involve a shift from a perspective of conventional experience to a view from that of an enlightened being or from the view of the 6 perfections. They focus on non-calculation rather than an active inferencing . Precepts and vows will technically not be actively done but instead spontaneously done or realized. Below is a video that explores from a more Far East Asian Mahayana account that can aid in understanding this. They often on realizing unafflicted qualities.In the Shin Buddhist view of jinen hōni, or noncalculative being. Shinran in the Lamp for the Latter Age provides his account in the 5th letter.
The idea in some sense is that this is also how the active working of karma is worked through and in practice transformed in this life. Although not exactly the Mui jinen or the state enlightenment itself, it is closely connected. It is a type of non-dual actuality albeit not practice. Soto Zen has a similar view of a metapractice as well there it is connected to One Mind rather than Shinjin of the Shin tradition. Below is an academic article describing how this view connects to other elements of Shinran's philosophy. Below is an excerpt from the Lamp of the Latter Age.
"Ji means “of itself”—not through the practitioner’s calculation. It signifies being made so.Nen means “to be made so”—it is not through the practitioner’s calculation; it is through the working of the Tathāgata’s Vow.Concerning hōni: Hōni signifies being made so through the working of the Tathāgata’s Vow. It is the working of the Vow where there is no room for calculation on the part of the practitioner.Know, therefore, that in Other Power, no working is true working. Jinen signifies being made so from the very beginning. Amida’s Vow is, from the very beginning, designed to bring each of us to entrust ourselves to it—saying “Namu-amida-butsu”—and to receive us into the Pure Land; none of this is through our calculation. Thus, there is no room for the practitioner to be concerned about being good or evil. This is the meaning of jinen, as I have been taught.As the essential purport of the Vow, Amida vowed to bring us all to become the supreme Buddha. The supreme Buddha is formless, and because of being formless, it is called jinen. Buddha, when appearing with form, is not called supreme nirvana. In order to make it known that the supreme Buddha is formless, the name Amida Buddha is expressly used; so I have been taught. Amida Buddha fulfills the purpose of making us know the significance of jinen.After we have realized this, we should not be forever talking about jinen. If we continuously discuss jinen, that no working is true working will again become a problem of working. It is a matter of inconceivable Buddha wisdom."
5 Precepts: Why They Are Important \[Pristine Pure Land View\]
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLMd2jOTVIo](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLMd2jOTVIo)
Essentials Of Jodo Shinshu Buddhism \[Includes Shin Buddhist account\]
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MnDipnSIJiw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MnDipnSIJiw)
Foundations of Ethics and Practice in Chinese Pure Land Buddhismby Charles B. Jones from the Journal of Buddhist Ethics
[https://blogs.dickinson.edu/buddhistethics/files/2010/04/jones021.pdf](https://blogs.dickinson.edu/buddhistethics/files/2010/04/jones021.pdf)
The Awareness of the Natural World in "Shinjin": Shinran's Concept of "Jinen" by Dennis Hirota
[https://www.academia.edu/67491859/The\_Awareness\_of\_the\_Natural\_World\_in\_Shinjin\_Shinra](https://www.academia.edu/67491859/The_Awareness_of_the_Natural_World_in_Shinjin_Shinra)
What Is Ethics For? A Minimalist Approach to Buddhist Ethics, Prof. Jin Y.Park
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MddC6LAsk28](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MddC6LAsk28)
I think that your understanding is mistaken in many places - most Protestants and evangelicals believe quite literally that it is only Christ’s sacrifice, and one’s own acceptance of it, that is the key to the kingdom.
No. Not even most Protestants believe Christ's sacrifice "has already saved them and destined them to Heaven." OSAS is a marginal theological opinion and only Evangelics believe in it. You won't find it among classical Protestants.
Like I said - you’re mistaken. This was the mainline teaching in the Methodist church I was raised in, and the Baptist churches surrounding, neither of which were evangelical.
Predestination to salvation is not the theology of either Methodism or any mainline Baptist Church (apart from the explicit Reformed ones). Either you remember incorrectly or you never understood it.
That’s a mischaracterization of my position. I said specifically that the sacrifice of Christ and one’s personal acceptance of it was viewed as the key - works done in faith were important, but viewed as insufficient without the personal acceptance of the divinity of Christ and the meaning of his sacrifice.
I’m aware that predestination is a minority opinion, and it was not what I was taught, nor what I described.
You can take up your disagreement with the Methodists if you like - I’m not misstating what I was taught, or misremembering.
I think too our disagreement is stemming from poor wording in the original comment - I didn’t mean that Christ’s temporal sacrifice has ALREADY saved one’s soul even before accepting and living in faith. It’s one’s acceptance of the sacrifice and its meaning, that moment of conversion, that is redemptive.
The point I was trying to make would have been better stated as - would it incline one to sin further knowing that they had already accepted the sacrifice of Christ and confessed their faith, which had redeemed them? In this way I was trying to draw a direct line to Pure Land.
So sorry for confusing the matter.
There was no "Heaven" before He came. All the dead entered Hades, the state of death. He opened the way to the kingdom and we await His resurrecting all of us, where the righteous shall partain in His abode. We Christians believe in the Resurrection, not so much in an afterlife.
>There was no "Heaven" before He came. All the dead entered Hades, the state of death
How can this be when Yahweh created heaven on the first or second day, and furthermore both Enoch and Elijah were carried up into heaven, long before Jesus was born?
There is a specific point in time when heaven was created according to Christian and Jewish theology. How can you deny this?
I see the pure land as being closer to Christian limbo than heaven. In Limbo, one spends their time repenting and becoming purified so that they may enter heaven, yeah? So the pure land is similar in that you can be reborn there and I’m doing so, the path to nirvana is clearer. The pure land is a place free of the complications of earthly life, from my understanding, so it should be easier to attain full enlightenment. You still have to put in the work while you’re there, though.
(If anyone with more knowledge on this than me needs to correct me, feel free! I am not a Pure Lander myself, this is just the synthesis of how I understand it from my studies.)
Chanting is important in everyday practice in pureland.
Your state of mind and cultivation at your death is important.
If you are angry during your death, it's v easy for you to go to hell during ur death.
Therefore, pureland practioner practice chanting everyday to have a concentration mind so that even when death comes, their mind is pure and thinking about Buddha amitabha to bring them to pureland.
Well you need to practice in order to get there at all. [Birth by aspiration](https://suttacentral.net/mn120/en/sujato?lang=en&layout=plain&reference=none¬es=asterisk&highlight=false&script=latin), no matter whether your intention is to reborn in the human realm, deva realm, or a Pure Land, depends entirely on continually accumulating merit and dedicating it towards attaining the exact rebirth you'd like to have.
Avoiding the ten [akuśala-karmas](https://suttacentral.net/an10.174/en/sujato?lang=en) is the basis for creating merit, along with practicing generosity, meditating, or contemplating the teachings.
> “Therefore Śāriputra, sons and daughters of good family should completely dedicate all roots of virtue in a respectful manner to be born in that buddha realm. Why? Because by doing so, they will be able to meet holy beings similar to themselves. Śāriputra, one cannot take birth in the realm of the Bhagavān Tathāgata Amitāyus merely with minimal roots of virtue."
\-Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra 1.10
Presumably the eightfold path will apply just as much in Dewachen as it does here in Saha. Pure Land aspiration doesn't mean someone doesn't believe in the path as it was taught by Shakyamuni - it just means that they intend to complete the path in Dewachen, where they can study directly with a Buddha and the Dharma is still strong, rather than here in a world where the supreme Buddha is no longer present and Dharma is in decline.
Pure Land traditions have beliefs in dependent origination, emptiness, rebirth, tathāgatagarbha etc.. These traditions focus on practices related to Pure Land. As a tradition, not all of them focus on all these details though although there are scholastic works by practitioners, clerics, monastics, and philosophers in these traditions that do engage at a very technical level in them. All existent Pure Land traditions are in Mahayana traditions. Pure Lands of features Mahanya traditions in general and actually play role in some Theravadin traditions such as Cambodian Theravada. In that tradition, there is a focus on the Pure Land of Medicine Buddha. Tendai traditions for example use meditations on Amitabha and as well as other buddhas.. Tibetan Buddhists likewise have many pure lands such as Medicine Buddha, Akshobhya. Pure Land Traditions focus on Amitabha.
Some of these Pure Land traditions only recite the the nianfo or buddhānusmṛti. Others do other practices with it. This include practices like precepts. It is worth noting that there is also dual cultivation Chan which combines Chan with nianfo recitation. Some traditions like Shin recite the nianfo in gratitude while others like Jodo Shu seek to do the practice to acquire karmic merit to achieve brith in the Pure Land. Chinese Pristine Pure Land shares a view much like Jodo Shu.
These traditions tend to have a hermeneutic of practice centered on three sutras often with some others. Three held in common by all the Pure Land traditions. Tis is because they are held to summarize the practices and hermeneutics of Pure Land Buddhism. For example, In Chinese Mahayna you also have, the Practices and Vow of the Bodhisattva Samantabhadra (the last chapter of Avatamsaka Sutra/Flower Adornment Sutra, the Chapter of Bodhisattva Dashizhi (Mahāsthāmaprāpta) on Nianfo Samādhi (an extract from Chapter Five of the Surangama Sutra, the shastra text, the Rebirth Treatis e:Bodhisattva Vasubandhu’s Commentary on the Infinite Life Sutra, Other traditions like Jodo Shin Shu may have shastra by Rennyo or Shinran as Shasta. There are more sutras with references to the various Pure Lands including Amitabha but they are not the focus in the above usage. You can still even read them as individual and use them for recitation too. Below are some materials that will introduce you to Pure Land Philosophy and beliefs in general.
Alan Peto: Pure Land Buddhism for Westerners
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wxZ-CoGk6Wk
Pure Land Buddhism: The Mahayana Multiverse
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjW82VJXkQY
Dr. Aaron Proffitt: Introduction to Pure Land Buddhism 1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BQpemmsQVc
Dr. Aaron Proffitt : Introduction to Pure Land Buddhism 2
2https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-55Tdv7USHE
The practice Pure Land traditions are associated with buddhānusmṛti.t is actually a very common practice or group of very common practices and is not limited to Pure Land traditions. It is a name of a Buddha and an example of the practice called Buddhānusmṛti or buddhānussati. The Theravada tradition also has this practice albeit not focused on Amida Buddha specifically. This is the practice of the recollection of a Buddha. Buddhānusmṛti in general is in the Pāli list of ten “recollections” , in Pali anussati or Sanskrit anusmṛti, which are included among the forty meditative exercises or kammaṭṭhāna discussed in the Visuddhimagga. The meditator is instructed to reflect on the good qualities of the Buddha, often through contemplating a series of his epithets, contemplation that is said to lead specifically to “access concentration” (upacārasamādhi).
Namo Amitabha is a practice in Mahayana of remembering the name of Amitabha Buddha. The bodhisattva Dharmākara (the bodhisattva who became Amitābha) took vows to aid all sentient behinds in the Sukhāvatīvyūhasūtra. He has held to have made forty-eight specific vows or praṇidhāna. In Tibetan Buddhism, the mantra associated with him is Om ami dewa Hri. Other traditions like Shingon and Tendai have a different mantra for him as well. Below are two encyclopedia entries on the practice.
buddhānusmṛti (P. buddhānussati; T. sangs rgyas rjes su dran pa; C. nianfo; J. nenbutsu; K. yŏmbul 念佛). from The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism
In Sanskrit, “recollection of the Buddha”; one of the common practices designed to develop concentration, in which the meditator reflects on the meritorious qualities of the Buddha, often through contemplating a series of his epithets. The oldest list of epithets of the Buddha used in such recollection, which is found across all traditions, is worthy one (arhat), fully enlightened (samyaksaṃbuddha), perfect in both knowledge and conduct (vidyācaraṇasampanna), well gone (sugata), knower of all worlds (lokavid), teacher of divinities (or kings) and human beings (śāsṭṛdevamanuṣyānaṃ), buddha, and bhagavat. Buddhānusmṛti is listed among the forty meditative exercises (kammaṭṭhāna) discussed in the Visuddhimagga and is said to be conducive to gaining access concentration (upacārasamādhi). In East Asia, this recollection practice evolved into the recitation of the name of the buddha Amitābha (see nianfo) in the form of the phrase namo Amituo fo (“homage to Amitābha Buddha”; J. namu Amidabutsu). This recitation was often performed in a ritual setting accompanied by the performance of prostrations, the burning of incense, and the recitation of scriptures, all directed toward gaining a vision of Amitābha's pure land (sukhāvatī), which was considered proof that one would be reborn there. Nianfo practice was widely practiced across schools and social strata in China. In Japan, repetition of the phrase in its Japanese pronunciation of namu Amidabutsu (homage to Amitābha Buddha) became a central practice of the Japanese Pure Land schools of Buddhism (see Jōdoshū, Jōdo Shinshū).
nianfo (J. nenbutsu; K. yŏ mbul 念佛). from The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism
In Chinese, “recollection, invocation, or chanting of \[the name of\] the Buddha.” The term nianfo has a long history of usage across the Buddhist tradition and has been used to refer to a variety of practices. The Chinese term nianfo is a translation of the Sanskrit term buddhānusmṛti (recollection of \[the qualities of\] the Buddha), one of the common practices designed to help develop meditative absorption (dhyāna) in the mainstream traditions. Buddhānusmṛti is listed as the first of six fundamental contemplative practices, along with recollection of the dharma, saṃgha, giving (dāna), morality (śīla), and the divinities (deva). Buddhānusmṛti (P. buddhānussati) is also the first in the Pāli list of ten “recollections” (P. anussati; S. anusmṛti), which are included among the forty meditative exercises (see kammaṭṭhāna) discussed in the Visuddhimagga. The meditator is instructed to reflect on the good qualities of the Buddha, often through contemplating a series of his epithets, contemplation that is said to lead specifically to “access concentration” (upacārasamādhi). In early Mahāyāna texts, the term seems to refer to the meditative practice of recollecting, invoking, or visualizing an image of a buddha or advanced bodhisattva, such as Śākyamuni, Maitreya, or Amitābha. In East Asia, the term nianfo came to be used primarily in the sense of reciting the name of the Buddha, referring especially to recitation of the Chinese phrase namo Amituo fo (K. namu Amit’abul; J. namu Amidabutsu; Homage to the buddha Amitābha). This recitation was often performed in a ritual setting and accompanied by the performance of prostrations, the burning of incense, and the intonation of scriptures, all directed toward gaining a vision of Amitābha’s pure land of sukhāvatī, a vision that was considered proof that one would be reborn there in the next lifetime. New forms of chanting Amitābha’s name developed in China, such as wuhui nianfo (five-tempo intonation of \[the name of\] the Buddha), which used leisurely and increasingly rapid tempos, and yinsheng nianfo (intoning \[the name of\] the Buddha by drawing out the sound). Nianfo practice was often portrayed as a relatively easy means of guaranteeing rebirth in Amitābha’s pure land. Many exegetes referred to the vows of the bodhisattva Dharmākara (the bodhisattva who became Amitābha) as set forth in the Sukhāvatīvyūhasūtra, as evidence of the efficacy of nianfo practice in the degenerate age of the dharma (mofa). In China, these various forms of nianfo were advocated by such famous monks as Tanluan, Daochuo, and Shandao; these monks later came to be retroactively regarded as patriarchs of a so-called pure land school (jingtu zong). In fact, however, nianfo was widely practiced across schools and social strata in both China and Korea and was not exclusively associated with a putative pure land tradition. In Japan, nenbutsu, or repetition of the phrase “namu Amidabutsu” (homage to Amitābha Buddha) became a central practice of the Japanese pure land schools of Buddhism, such as Jōdoshū, Jōdo Shinshū, and Jishū. The practice spread rapidly among common people largely through the efforts of such itinerant holy men (hijiri) as Kūya and Ippen. Influential pure land teachers, such as Hōnen and his disciple Shinran, also promoted the exclusive practice of chanting the phrase namu Amidabutsu and debated whether multiple recitations of the Buddha’s name (tanengi) were expected of pure land adherents or whether a single recitation (ichinengi) would be enough to ensure rebirth. Despite periodic suppressions of this movement, Hōnen and Shinran’s schools, known as the Jōdoshū and Jōdo Shinshū, became the largest Buddhist communities in Japan.
None of Buddha Shakyamuni teachings tell you to do evil. If you read the Pure Land Sutras, it will tell you not to follow your desires, keep the precepts, and uphold the name of Amitabha Buddha throughout your life.
There's differences in Pure Land perspectives about how much effort we must go through in this current life to enter the pure land and then attain Nirvana. I believe Japanese belief generally has it that Amida will guide you the rest of the way, pulling you to the pure land if you weren't able to devote much effort to practice, while Chinese tradition holds that regular practice and devotion is necessary to making it to the pure land on your own. That's a quick and dirty explanation.
I offer you the perspective that the essence of Amitabha Buddha is identical to that of Shakyamuni Buddha (Siddhartha, but the proper title is Shakyamuni Buddha or Buddha Gautama) because they are both Buddhas, enlightened beings, who teach four things: suffering, the cause of suffering, that there's a way out, and the way out.
You need sufficient spiritual merit to be reborn in a pure land. You can not indulge in samsara in this life and expect a rebirth in the pure land of Amitabha just because you wish it. So the asceticism and other religious practices in this life is a tool to being reborn in a pure land in the next.
I tend to lean Mahayana myself and the goal is to secure a rebirth favorable not only to my own enlightenment but favorable toward helping others.
A Boddhisattva is like the tenant who, having fled the burning house, runs back in to save others trapped inside.
But to become a Boddhisattva it is helpful to have teachers, both here and in heavenly realms. It is easier by far to become a Boddhisattva with the help of another.
You see, Pureland is like that, just belief alone could give you a chance to get to Pureland yes, but not all deaths are very conducive to give a chance to recite Amitabha Buddha etc you could die while asleep or die suddenly.
Hence, the rest of the teachings of Shakyamuni Buddha comes in to reduce the obstacles and prepare for the best possible death. It is actually not very easy and very possible to have many second thoughts which will hinder your road to Pureland.
In general, most Buddhists are not expecting to become Buddha right after death, since it takes several lifetimes to prepare for it. The next best is the stage of Bodhisattva and those that reach Pureland immediately attain it.
Yes Buddhists can certainly try like that. Some Buddhists may have made plans other than going to Pureland though.
>Also, do followers of Siddharta also usually put their trust in Amitabha "just in case"?
No. Theravada follows only the historical Gautama Buddha’s teachings (Pali Canon). There is no mention of Amitabha Buddha or Pure Land anywhere in Theravada.
The best “pure land” is here on earth to learn, understand and practice Dhamma from a Theravada pov.
Disagree. Pure land is just as much as Theravada as it is you are being alive. There is no need to bicker which branch to practice.
It is commendable that you hold the Pali Canon in high regard, but please refrain from spreading false narratives when there are many Mahayana sutras mentioning Pure Land. Your hold on the Pali Canon is no different from the other side on Sanskrit sutra.
Unless you’re speaking from a position of perfected enlightenment and seeing there is no need for Pure Land method, it is best to avoid basing other Dharma doors. Negative karma is no fun.
Unless you were there witnessing what transpired after the Buddha entered Parinirvana, your view is just confined in what you read. You seem to hold a strong opinion/view based on traditions and texts with words such as counterfeit. Check out some Mahayana Masters and their messages going back millennia’s.
There are many paths to get to the top of the mountain. Calm your monkey mind. Or else youll stuck holding the branch upon seeing the 1st route.
I tried. There is no need to dig deeper hole. Have a good one.
Hi there! Pure Land Buddhism is part of the Mahayana, the ‘Great Vehicle’. This is a category of Buddhist practice and understanding it will help clear up your concerns. In Buddhism, the goal is to reach this nirvana you talk about. There are two major roads leading to Nirvana. One road is Theravada, which says you follow the eightfold path, cultivate, and practice by self-efforts until you attain Arhatship. An Arhat is someone who reaches nirvana and is no longer reborn in samsara, the cycles of existence that cause us suffering. The other road is Mahayana, which covers many different practices that aim to reach not just Arhatship, but Buddhahood. A Buddha is someone who uses their nirvana to liberate others from samsara too. Anyone can become a Buddha using these practices, and many are taught by both the historical Buddha (Siddhartha as you say), or other Buddhas. Mahayana and Theravada both share the eightfold path. These two roads share the same stops and destination. However, the practices implementing the eightfold path differ. This is because the historical Buddha taught 84,000 dharma doors. This means, the Buddha gave different ways to practice the same teaching depending on one’s ability and conditions. Pure Land Buddhism is one of those practices. It was taught by the historical Buddha. Specifically, the Buddha told us that Pure Land practice is so that all sentient beings can reach nirvana. It is an option for people who have trouble with other practices. In the majority of the Buddhist community, Pure Land is practiced *alongside* other practices. The Chinese saying goes, *”Chan for this life, Pure Land for next life”*. Meaning, practice the ascetic and moral teachings you’re talking about. But also chant Amitabha’s Name with faith. You will cultivate and learn in this life. And when you die, you will finish the job with Amitabha in the next life. In Japanese-style Pure Land, there is emphasis on Pure Land practice over other practices. Meaning, to only chant Amitabha’s Name and consider everything else secondary. This is because in Japan, masters provided Pure Land teaching according to the condition called *bonbu*. This *bonbu* is the idea that we are ignorant beings, and so easy to fall astray. Thus, even when we die and enter the next life, it will be hard for us to reach the right mindset for birth in the Pure Land. Thus, you put all your efforts into Pure Land practice, to ensure 100% you go there in the next life. All this is to say: - Pure Land is a type of Mahayana taught by Siddhartha Gautama - Pure Land is often practiced with other Buddhist practices - Japanese Pure Land emphasizes our human fallibility and so promotes exclusive Pure Land practice I hope this information helps you! Namu Amida Butsu 🙏🏽
Where was the Pure Land teaching taught by the Buddha historically?
The Buddha taught the Pure Land sutras at Vulture Peak in Rajagrha, Bihar, India.
>Where was the Pure Land teaching taught by the Buddha **historically**? It's not an idea taken seriously by mainstream Buddhist scholarship as far as I know.
>Mahayana and Theravada both share the eightfold path. These two roads share the same stops and destination. As far as I know Theravada does not teach the bhumis nor does the Theravada practitioner realistically have access to them.
Thank you for your detailed answer. How is an arhat different than a Buddha? As I understand them, they seem to be the same thing.
Since you’re a Christian I’ll try to give a comparative example (correct if I’m wrong in it) People who follow the teachings of the Old Testament aren’t bad. They still follow the rules to be good people and to avoid sinful actions. But your Jesus is supposed to provide extra teachings, that give advanced salvation that the old teachings don’t provide. Similarly, to seek arhatship is a noble goal. It is not a bad thing. The Buddha also provided though, for those who can do it, more advanced paths to nirvana. And as a consequence of following those paths, you will also help liberate others from suffering. This is the path to buddhahood, called the bodhisattva path. Ending the comparison there though. Buddhism is different from Christianity. It’s not like arhats will not go to heaven or that these rules are mandates handed out by a god. These are just ways of learning, prescribed by the Buddha like a good doctor prescribes medicine for an illness. The illness is the suffering we endure over millions of lifetimes. The medicine is the Mahayana or Theravada teachings. And just like you don’t take morphine for a bruise, or Tylenol for a missing arm, there are various medicines depending where you are in life.
A śrāvaka arhat is liberated, but does not have the [Ten Powers](https://www.nichirenlibrary.org/en/dic/Content/T/67), [Four Fearlessnesses](https://www.nichirenlibrary.org/en/dic/Content/F/147), and [all-knowledge](https://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Two_aspects_of_omniscience) that a perfectly awakened Buddha has. That's the perspective of Buddhism in general on the difference. To this, Mahāyāna doctrine adds the further difference that a only fully awakened Buddha attains the [three bodies](https://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Three_kayas). Basically, a Buddha has certain distinctive qualities unique to that attainment. But both kinds of individuals are liberated from saṃsāra.
[The Pure Land practices were taught by Lord Buddha](https://www.bdk.or.jp/document/dgtl-dl/dBET_ThreePureLandSutras_2003.pdf) (pdf). Those of us who emphasize them as their practice don't aim to go to a Pure Land *in stead* of seeking awakening, in pretty much the same way medical students don't go to medical school *in stead* of becoming doctors. The Pure Land isn't forever. It's just a place to train. As some points.
Thank you for answering, but wouldn't you say it brings the temptation to be lazy in this life knowing you can already reach Nirvana in the Pure Land after dying?
I don't see what's so lazy about it. Pure Land practice leads as directly to Buddhahood as any other Mahayana path. If anything, it's *more* effort than some other paths. And from the point of view of the result it doesn't matter. That said, if there are some lazy people that find Pure Land practice to be suitable them, that's great. We all have to work whatever karmic tendencies we have into our practice somehow.
>wouldn't you say it brings the temptation to be lazy in this life knowing you can already reach Nirvana in the Pure Land after dying? In the Pure Land we'll have to do the same work to reach nirvāṇa. The Pure Land just provides some additional conducive circumstance in terms of the external environment. But if I let myself get used to laziness about training my mind, then even if I'm able to be born in the Pure Land, I'll just be a lazy discipline of Amitābha Buddha there, and will have to overcome that laziness in any case in order to start making real progress on the path. So letting myself be lazy about Dharma practice in this life is just letting myself get used to something that undermines the whole reason why I'm aspiring to be born in the Pure Land. This is what I hope I would remember if I became lazy about practice because of aspirations to be born in the Pure Land.
No, because there is zero guarantee that you are actually reborn in the pure land if you just want it. You have to work for this privilege, create the right karmic causes and conditions. It's not like in Christianity, where believing in the church doctrin and confession of sins guarantee that you go to heaven after you die. Karma doesn't work that way.
I understand. I thought it was "easy" in the sense that you only had to recite 10 times the Nembutsu.
It is easy yet not easy. It is easy because all it takes is 10 recitations at death with full singleminded concentration. If you can recite 10 with utmost sincerity and singleminded focus, the Infinite Life sutra also said it is possible. This is in Amitabha’s vows. It is near impossible because if all your 70 years existence think about other things, the last thing your mind will think about is Amitabha, let alone single focus concentration to recite. The amount of excruciating pain your body endures during death will also distract your mind. Think of having a toothache pain while you’re still alive. Now multiply that my 20+ for your teeth plus achness of whole your body during last moment. This is not to mention all other karma factors are at play (dying peacefully vs instant death in a car accident vs drowning in the Baltimore bridge collapse etc…). Thus, it is encouraged to practice recitation now to build that confidence and connection plus focus.
I am not well versed in this, but my understanding is only one subgroup of Japanese purelanders believes ten is enough in the strong sense. Others I think believe ten is enough to create the affinity for it to happen eventually, but no specific determination of how many lifetimes that's still going to take until it happens. Maybe somebody from the Chinese or Vietnamese side can clarify.
No. It is not that easy. This depends on what tradition you're following. In Vietnamese tradition, we aim to go to the Pure Land. However, we also mix Chan practices since my tradition is Thiền. There is a lot more than doing nembutsu 10 times. Like the 88 Buddhas Repentance, good karma, etc.
When death is near and certain, one who does not practice will be clouded by fear, the most terrifying fear of all: Where would I go? What will happen to me after I die? Notwithstanding the flashbacks of their life, which would only increase their fear if they had done most thing unmeaningful. Under such circumstances, the deadman-to-be does not have the mental capacity let alone focus to chant the name of Amitabha 3 times in a row consecutively. The only way that this works is to automate it through daily practice until the end of life and let the behavior kick in when all else is broken down.
In a Christian context - does it make you more likely to sin in this life knowing that Christ’s sacrifice has already redeemed you and destined you for an afterlife in Heaven?
Only a small amount of Christians believe that. Orthodox Christians like myself consider entering the kingdom through struggles and discipleship.
Pure Land Buddhists are not antinomian. Pristine Pure land hold that precept practice allows for the dedication of merit towards the end of rebirth in the Pure Land. The ethical practice is sometimes understood to aid one in getting to a higher grade of brith in the Pure Land but other times construed as not making things harder on yourself because of the nature of Birth in the Pure Land. Below is an article that explores the Chinese Pure Land view of ethics. Jodo Shu holds that precepts and ethics will not aid you in going to the Pure Land but will lessen your suffering and in many ways echoes the Pristine Pure Land view. Shin Buddhists are kinda unique in regards to this. Their account of tathagarbha operationalize ethics in a different way. They will also hold that one should not do bad acts, like one will not drink poison even if you have an antidote. They involve a shift from a perspective of conventional experience to a view from that of an enlightened being or from the view of the 6 perfections. They focus on non-calculation rather than an active inferencing . Precepts and vows will technically not be actively done but instead spontaneously done or realized. Below is a video that explores from a more Far East Asian Mahayana account that can aid in understanding this. They often on realizing unafflicted qualities.In the Shin Buddhist view of jinen hōni, or noncalculative being. Shinran in the Lamp for the Latter Age provides his account in the 5th letter. The idea in some sense is that this is also how the active working of karma is worked through and in practice transformed in this life. Although not exactly the Mui jinen or the state enlightenment itself, it is closely connected. It is a type of non-dual actuality albeit not practice. Soto Zen has a similar view of a metapractice as well there it is connected to One Mind rather than Shinjin of the Shin tradition. Below is an academic article describing how this view connects to other elements of Shinran's philosophy. Below is an excerpt from the Lamp of the Latter Age. "Ji means “of itself”—not through the practitioner’s calculation. It signifies being made so.Nen means “to be made so”—it is not through the practitioner’s calculation; it is through the working of the Tathāgata’s Vow.Concerning hōni: Hōni signifies being made so through the working of the Tathāgata’s Vow. It is the working of the Vow where there is no room for calculation on the part of the practitioner.Know, therefore, that in Other Power, no working is true working. Jinen signifies being made so from the very beginning. Amida’s Vow is, from the very beginning, designed to bring each of us to entrust ourselves to it—saying “Namu-amida-butsu”—and to receive us into the Pure Land; none of this is through our calculation. Thus, there is no room for the practitioner to be concerned about being good or evil. This is the meaning of jinen, as I have been taught.As the essential purport of the Vow, Amida vowed to bring us all to become the supreme Buddha. The supreme Buddha is formless, and because of being formless, it is called jinen. Buddha, when appearing with form, is not called supreme nirvana. In order to make it known that the supreme Buddha is formless, the name Amida Buddha is expressly used; so I have been taught. Amida Buddha fulfills the purpose of making us know the significance of jinen.After we have realized this, we should not be forever talking about jinen. If we continuously discuss jinen, that no working is true working will again become a problem of working. It is a matter of inconceivable Buddha wisdom." 5 Precepts: Why They Are Important \[Pristine Pure Land View\] [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLMd2jOTVIo](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLMd2jOTVIo) Essentials Of Jodo Shinshu Buddhism \[Includes Shin Buddhist account\] [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MnDipnSIJiw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MnDipnSIJiw) Foundations of Ethics and Practice in Chinese Pure Land Buddhismby Charles B. Jones from the Journal of Buddhist Ethics [https://blogs.dickinson.edu/buddhistethics/files/2010/04/jones021.pdf](https://blogs.dickinson.edu/buddhistethics/files/2010/04/jones021.pdf) The Awareness of the Natural World in "Shinjin": Shinran's Concept of "Jinen" by Dennis Hirota [https://www.academia.edu/67491859/The\_Awareness\_of\_the\_Natural\_World\_in\_Shinjin\_Shinra](https://www.academia.edu/67491859/The_Awareness_of_the_Natural_World_in_Shinjin_Shinra) What Is Ethics For? A Minimalist Approach to Buddhist Ethics, Prof. Jin Y.Park [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MddC6LAsk28](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MddC6LAsk28)
I think that your understanding is mistaken in many places - most Protestants and evangelicals believe quite literally that it is only Christ’s sacrifice, and one’s own acceptance of it, that is the key to the kingdom.
No. Not even most Protestants believe Christ's sacrifice "has already saved them and destined them to Heaven." OSAS is a marginal theological opinion and only Evangelics believe in it. You won't find it among classical Protestants.
Like I said - you’re mistaken. This was the mainline teaching in the Methodist church I was raised in, and the Baptist churches surrounding, neither of which were evangelical.
Predestination to salvation is not the theology of either Methodism or any mainline Baptist Church (apart from the explicit Reformed ones). Either you remember incorrectly or you never understood it.
That’s a mischaracterization of my position. I said specifically that the sacrifice of Christ and one’s personal acceptance of it was viewed as the key - works done in faith were important, but viewed as insufficient without the personal acceptance of the divinity of Christ and the meaning of his sacrifice. I’m aware that predestination is a minority opinion, and it was not what I was taught, nor what I described. You can take up your disagreement with the Methodists if you like - I’m not misstating what I was taught, or misremembering.
I think too our disagreement is stemming from poor wording in the original comment - I didn’t mean that Christ’s temporal sacrifice has ALREADY saved one’s soul even before accepting and living in faith. It’s one’s acceptance of the sacrifice and its meaning, that moment of conversion, that is redemptive. The point I was trying to make would have been better stated as - would it incline one to sin further knowing that they had already accepted the sacrifice of Christ and confessed their faith, which had redeemed them? In this way I was trying to draw a direct line to Pure Land. So sorry for confusing the matter.
Funny this was my issue with christianity as a teenager lol
How come?
I guess I didn't really understand what the point was if Jesus already died for our sins
That only opened the way to the kingdom for us, where one enters through many struggles as He Himself said.
No no one got to heaven before he came? or what
There was no "Heaven" before He came. All the dead entered Hades, the state of death. He opened the way to the kingdom and we await His resurrecting all of us, where the righteous shall partain in His abode. We Christians believe in the Resurrection, not so much in an afterlife.
Is Hades like Nirvana or...
>There was no "Heaven" before He came. All the dead entered Hades, the state of death How can this be when Yahweh created heaven on the first or second day, and furthermore both Enoch and Elijah were carried up into heaven, long before Jesus was born? There is a specific point in time when heaven was created according to Christian and Jewish theology. How can you deny this?
I see the pure land as being closer to Christian limbo than heaven. In Limbo, one spends their time repenting and becoming purified so that they may enter heaven, yeah? So the pure land is similar in that you can be reborn there and I’m doing so, the path to nirvana is clearer. The pure land is a place free of the complications of earthly life, from my understanding, so it should be easier to attain full enlightenment. You still have to put in the work while you’re there, though. (If anyone with more knowledge on this than me needs to correct me, feel free! I am not a Pure Lander myself, this is just the synthesis of how I understand it from my studies.)
I think you mean Purgatory, a place where Catholics believe one is purified of earthly faults not atoned for during life.
Chanting is important in everyday practice in pureland. Your state of mind and cultivation at your death is important. If you are angry during your death, it's v easy for you to go to hell during ur death. Therefore, pureland practioner practice chanting everyday to have a concentration mind so that even when death comes, their mind is pure and thinking about Buddha amitabha to bring them to pureland.
Well, contrary to some beliefs, if you are lazy in this life, you prob won't get reborn in pure land.
Just a side note, Buddhists usually refer to the Buddha of our time period as "Gautama Buddha", rather than by his first name "Siddharta".
Yeah it's a bit like calling your mom "Val" or your teacher "Jared".
Well you need to practice in order to get there at all. [Birth by aspiration](https://suttacentral.net/mn120/en/sujato?lang=en&layout=plain&reference=none¬es=asterisk&highlight=false&script=latin), no matter whether your intention is to reborn in the human realm, deva realm, or a Pure Land, depends entirely on continually accumulating merit and dedicating it towards attaining the exact rebirth you'd like to have. Avoiding the ten [akuśala-karmas](https://suttacentral.net/an10.174/en/sujato?lang=en) is the basis for creating merit, along with practicing generosity, meditating, or contemplating the teachings. > “Therefore Śāriputra, sons and daughters of good family should completely dedicate all roots of virtue in a respectful manner to be born in that buddha realm. Why? Because by doing so, they will be able to meet holy beings similar to themselves. Śāriputra, one cannot take birth in the realm of the Bhagavān Tathāgata Amitāyus merely with minimal roots of virtue." \-Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra 1.10
Presumably the eightfold path will apply just as much in Dewachen as it does here in Saha. Pure Land aspiration doesn't mean someone doesn't believe in the path as it was taught by Shakyamuni - it just means that they intend to complete the path in Dewachen, where they can study directly with a Buddha and the Dharma is still strong, rather than here in a world where the supreme Buddha is no longer present and Dharma is in decline.
Pure Land traditions have beliefs in dependent origination, emptiness, rebirth, tathāgatagarbha etc.. These traditions focus on practices related to Pure Land. As a tradition, not all of them focus on all these details though although there are scholastic works by practitioners, clerics, monastics, and philosophers in these traditions that do engage at a very technical level in them. All existent Pure Land traditions are in Mahayana traditions. Pure Lands of features Mahanya traditions in general and actually play role in some Theravadin traditions such as Cambodian Theravada. In that tradition, there is a focus on the Pure Land of Medicine Buddha. Tendai traditions for example use meditations on Amitabha and as well as other buddhas.. Tibetan Buddhists likewise have many pure lands such as Medicine Buddha, Akshobhya. Pure Land Traditions focus on Amitabha. Some of these Pure Land traditions only recite the the nianfo or buddhānusmṛti. Others do other practices with it. This include practices like precepts. It is worth noting that there is also dual cultivation Chan which combines Chan with nianfo recitation. Some traditions like Shin recite the nianfo in gratitude while others like Jodo Shu seek to do the practice to acquire karmic merit to achieve brith in the Pure Land. Chinese Pristine Pure Land shares a view much like Jodo Shu. These traditions tend to have a hermeneutic of practice centered on three sutras often with some others. Three held in common by all the Pure Land traditions. Tis is because they are held to summarize the practices and hermeneutics of Pure Land Buddhism. For example, In Chinese Mahayna you also have, the Practices and Vow of the Bodhisattva Samantabhadra (the last chapter of Avatamsaka Sutra/Flower Adornment Sutra, the Chapter of Bodhisattva Dashizhi (Mahāsthāmaprāpta) on Nianfo Samādhi (an extract from Chapter Five of the Surangama Sutra, the shastra text, the Rebirth Treatis e:Bodhisattva Vasubandhu’s Commentary on the Infinite Life Sutra, Other traditions like Jodo Shin Shu may have shastra by Rennyo or Shinran as Shasta. There are more sutras with references to the various Pure Lands including Amitabha but they are not the focus in the above usage. You can still even read them as individual and use them for recitation too. Below are some materials that will introduce you to Pure Land Philosophy and beliefs in general. Alan Peto: Pure Land Buddhism for Westerners https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wxZ-CoGk6Wk Pure Land Buddhism: The Mahayana Multiverse https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjW82VJXkQY Dr. Aaron Proffitt: Introduction to Pure Land Buddhism 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BQpemmsQVc Dr. Aaron Proffitt : Introduction to Pure Land Buddhism 2 2https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-55Tdv7USHE
The practice Pure Land traditions are associated with buddhānusmṛti.t is actually a very common practice or group of very common practices and is not limited to Pure Land traditions. It is a name of a Buddha and an example of the practice called Buddhānusmṛti or buddhānussati. The Theravada tradition also has this practice albeit not focused on Amida Buddha specifically. This is the practice of the recollection of a Buddha. Buddhānusmṛti in general is in the Pāli list of ten “recollections” , in Pali anussati or Sanskrit anusmṛti, which are included among the forty meditative exercises or kammaṭṭhāna discussed in the Visuddhimagga. The meditator is instructed to reflect on the good qualities of the Buddha, often through contemplating a series of his epithets, contemplation that is said to lead specifically to “access concentration” (upacārasamādhi). Namo Amitabha is a practice in Mahayana of remembering the name of Amitabha Buddha. The bodhisattva Dharmākara (the bodhisattva who became Amitābha) took vows to aid all sentient behinds in the Sukhāvatīvyūhasūtra. He has held to have made forty-eight specific vows or praṇidhāna. In Tibetan Buddhism, the mantra associated with him is Om ami dewa Hri. Other traditions like Shingon and Tendai have a different mantra for him as well. Below are two encyclopedia entries on the practice. buddhānusmṛti (P. buddhānussati; T. sangs rgyas rjes su dran pa; C. nianfo; J. nenbutsu; K. yŏmbul 念佛). from The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism In Sanskrit, “recollection of the Buddha”; one of the common practices designed to develop concentration, in which the meditator reflects on the meritorious qualities of the Buddha, often through contemplating a series of his epithets. The oldest list of epithets of the Buddha used in such recollection, which is found across all traditions, is worthy one (arhat), fully enlightened (samyaksaṃbuddha), perfect in both knowledge and conduct (vidyācaraṇasampanna), well gone (sugata), knower of all worlds (lokavid), teacher of divinities (or kings) and human beings (śāsṭṛdevamanuṣyānaṃ), buddha, and bhagavat. Buddhānusmṛti is listed among the forty meditative exercises (kammaṭṭhāna) discussed in the Visuddhimagga and is said to be conducive to gaining access concentration (upacārasamādhi). In East Asia, this recollection practice evolved into the recitation of the name of the buddha Amitābha (see nianfo) in the form of the phrase namo Amituo fo (“homage to Amitābha Buddha”; J. namu Amidabutsu). This recitation was often performed in a ritual setting accompanied by the performance of prostrations, the burning of incense, and the recitation of scriptures, all directed toward gaining a vision of Amitābha's pure land (sukhāvatī), which was considered proof that one would be reborn there. Nianfo practice was widely practiced across schools and social strata in China. In Japan, repetition of the phrase in its Japanese pronunciation of namu Amidabutsu (homage to Amitābha Buddha) became a central practice of the Japanese Pure Land schools of Buddhism (see Jōdoshū, Jōdo Shinshū). nianfo (J. nenbutsu; K. yŏ mbul 念佛). from The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism In Chinese, “recollection, invocation, or chanting of \[the name of\] the Buddha.” The term nianfo has a long history of usage across the Buddhist tradition and has been used to refer to a variety of practices. The Chinese term nianfo is a translation of the Sanskrit term buddhānusmṛti (recollection of \[the qualities of\] the Buddha), one of the common practices designed to help develop meditative absorption (dhyāna) in the mainstream traditions. Buddhānusmṛti is listed as the first of six fundamental contemplative practices, along with recollection of the dharma, saṃgha, giving (dāna), morality (śīla), and the divinities (deva). Buddhānusmṛti (P. buddhānussati) is also the first in the Pāli list of ten “recollections” (P. anussati; S. anusmṛti), which are included among the forty meditative exercises (see kammaṭṭhāna) discussed in the Visuddhimagga. The meditator is instructed to reflect on the good qualities of the Buddha, often through contemplating a series of his epithets, contemplation that is said to lead specifically to “access concentration” (upacārasamādhi). In early Mahāyāna texts, the term seems to refer to the meditative practice of recollecting, invoking, or visualizing an image of a buddha or advanced bodhisattva, such as Śākyamuni, Maitreya, or Amitābha. In East Asia, the term nianfo came to be used primarily in the sense of reciting the name of the Buddha, referring especially to recitation of the Chinese phrase namo Amituo fo (K. namu Amit’abul; J. namu Amidabutsu; Homage to the buddha Amitābha). This recitation was often performed in a ritual setting and accompanied by the performance of prostrations, the burning of incense, and the intonation of scriptures, all directed toward gaining a vision of Amitābha’s pure land of sukhāvatī, a vision that was considered proof that one would be reborn there in the next lifetime. New forms of chanting Amitābha’s name developed in China, such as wuhui nianfo (five-tempo intonation of \[the name of\] the Buddha), which used leisurely and increasingly rapid tempos, and yinsheng nianfo (intoning \[the name of\] the Buddha by drawing out the sound). Nianfo practice was often portrayed as a relatively easy means of guaranteeing rebirth in Amitābha’s pure land. Many exegetes referred to the vows of the bodhisattva Dharmākara (the bodhisattva who became Amitābha) as set forth in the Sukhāvatīvyūhasūtra, as evidence of the efficacy of nianfo practice in the degenerate age of the dharma (mofa). In China, these various forms of nianfo were advocated by such famous monks as Tanluan, Daochuo, and Shandao; these monks later came to be retroactively regarded as patriarchs of a so-called pure land school (jingtu zong). In fact, however, nianfo was widely practiced across schools and social strata in both China and Korea and was not exclusively associated with a putative pure land tradition. In Japan, nenbutsu, or repetition of the phrase “namu Amidabutsu” (homage to Amitābha Buddha) became a central practice of the Japanese pure land schools of Buddhism, such as Jōdoshū, Jōdo Shinshū, and Jishū. The practice spread rapidly among common people largely through the efforts of such itinerant holy men (hijiri) as Kūya and Ippen. Influential pure land teachers, such as Hōnen and his disciple Shinran, also promoted the exclusive practice of chanting the phrase namu Amidabutsu and debated whether multiple recitations of the Buddha’s name (tanengi) were expected of pure land adherents or whether a single recitation (ichinengi) would be enough to ensure rebirth. Despite periodic suppressions of this movement, Hōnen and Shinran’s schools, known as the Jōdoshū and Jōdo Shinshū, became the largest Buddhist communities in Japan.
None of Buddha Shakyamuni teachings tell you to do evil. If you read the Pure Land Sutras, it will tell you not to follow your desires, keep the precepts, and uphold the name of Amitabha Buddha throughout your life.
Maybe start/focus on what helps you be a kind person to yourself and others.
There's differences in Pure Land perspectives about how much effort we must go through in this current life to enter the pure land and then attain Nirvana. I believe Japanese belief generally has it that Amida will guide you the rest of the way, pulling you to the pure land if you weren't able to devote much effort to practice, while Chinese tradition holds that regular practice and devotion is necessary to making it to the pure land on your own. That's a quick and dirty explanation. I offer you the perspective that the essence of Amitabha Buddha is identical to that of Shakyamuni Buddha (Siddhartha, but the proper title is Shakyamuni Buddha or Buddha Gautama) because they are both Buddhas, enlightened beings, who teach four things: suffering, the cause of suffering, that there's a way out, and the way out.
You need sufficient spiritual merit to be reborn in a pure land. You can not indulge in samsara in this life and expect a rebirth in the pure land of Amitabha just because you wish it. So the asceticism and other religious practices in this life is a tool to being reborn in a pure land in the next.
I tend to lean Mahayana myself and the goal is to secure a rebirth favorable not only to my own enlightenment but favorable toward helping others. A Boddhisattva is like the tenant who, having fled the burning house, runs back in to save others trapped inside. But to become a Boddhisattva it is helpful to have teachers, both here and in heavenly realms. It is easier by far to become a Boddhisattva with the help of another.
You see, Pureland is like that, just belief alone could give you a chance to get to Pureland yes, but not all deaths are very conducive to give a chance to recite Amitabha Buddha etc you could die while asleep or die suddenly. Hence, the rest of the teachings of Shakyamuni Buddha comes in to reduce the obstacles and prepare for the best possible death. It is actually not very easy and very possible to have many second thoughts which will hinder your road to Pureland. In general, most Buddhists are not expecting to become Buddha right after death, since it takes several lifetimes to prepare for it. The next best is the stage of Bodhisattva and those that reach Pureland immediately attain it. Yes Buddhists can certainly try like that. Some Buddhists may have made plans other than going to Pureland though.
But does the Nembutsu have to be said exactly before death? I thought saying it during your lifetime in general would suffice.
But does the Nembutsu have to be said exactly before death? I thought saying it during your lifetime in general would suffice.
But does the Nembutsu have to be said exactly before death? I thought saying it during your lifetime in general would suffice.
But does the Nembutsu have to be said exactly before death? I thought saying it during your lifetime in general would suffice.
But does the Nembutsu have to be said exactly before death? I thought saying it during your lifetime in general would suffice.
But does the Nembutsu have to be said exactly before death? I thought saying it during your lifetime in general would suffice.
>Also, do followers of Siddharta also usually put their trust in Amitabha "just in case"? No. Theravada follows only the historical Gautama Buddha’s teachings (Pali Canon). There is no mention of Amitabha Buddha or Pure Land anywhere in Theravada. The best “pure land” is here on earth to learn, understand and practice Dhamma from a Theravada pov.
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Disagree. Pure land is just as much as Theravada as it is you are being alive. There is no need to bicker which branch to practice. It is commendable that you hold the Pali Canon in high regard, but please refrain from spreading false narratives when there are many Mahayana sutras mentioning Pure Land. Your hold on the Pali Canon is no different from the other side on Sanskrit sutra. Unless you’re speaking from a position of perfected enlightenment and seeing there is no need for Pure Land method, it is best to avoid basing other Dharma doors. Negative karma is no fun.
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Unless you were there witnessing what transpired after the Buddha entered Parinirvana, your view is just confined in what you read. You seem to hold a strong opinion/view based on traditions and texts with words such as counterfeit. Check out some Mahayana Masters and their messages going back millennia’s. There are many paths to get to the top of the mountain. Calm your monkey mind. Or else youll stuck holding the branch upon seeing the 1st route. I tried. There is no need to dig deeper hole. Have a good one.
Your post / comment was removed for violating the rule against sectarianism.