Clarifying Doubts About the Pure Land (I)
淨土釋疑(一)
Question 11 (see post yesterday)
Answer (continued 2/5):
Other-powered recitation, on the other hand, is recitation in accordance with the Eighteenth Vow. This is the true “ten-recitation” practice of Amitabha-recitation. It is what Master Shandao referred to as “single-mindedly reciting the name of Amitabha.” This kind of recitation is completely unconditional. It is the wholehearted acceptance of Amitabha’s compassionate deliverance, without calculation, scheming, or reliance on personal effort.
If someone believes that they must reach a certain level in their practice, such as: attaining “unified mindfulness of phenomena and principle,” or “phenomenal one-pointedness,” or that their practice must be consistent and undisturbed, and include dreaming of Amitabha Buddha even while asleep. If they believe their practice must fulfill all of these requirements just to have confidence at the time of death, then that is a self-powered view. They might say, “If I don’t cultivate such deep mindfulness now, how can I expect to have right mindfulness at death? Only with such right mindfulness will the Buddha come to greet me. Without it, he won’t come…”
This is a misunderstanding of the nature of the six-character Name (Namo Amituofo) and of Amitabha’s vow. In fact, this kind of thinking is like taking a knife and stabbing it into Amitabha Buddha’s heart.
Why? Because Amitabha’s intention is not like that at all. If such conditions were truly required, very few sentient beings in the ten directions could meet the standard. Amitabha’s compassion is boundless and universal—he sees us as no different from himself. His vow to save us is already fulfilled and his work is complete. He only asks us to accept his deliverance. How could he impose such strict conditions?
(to be continued tomorrow)
11問：剛才聽師父講，《觀經》的眼目就在「一向專稱彌陀佛名」，稱名定往生， 但是，這種稱名，它和有一種理論解釋的，就是要稱到什麼樣子才能獲得不 退，是否一樣？請師父再把這兩種稱名具體的含義解釋一下。
續答2：
他力的稱名，就是第十八願的稱名念佛，就是真正的「乃至十念」的念佛，也 就是善導大師所解釋的「一向專稱彌陀佛名」的念佛。這種念佛，完完全全是 沒有條件的，完完全全是領受彌陀救度的念佛，念佛的本身沒有盤算，沒有 籌量、計度。
如果認為「應該念到『事理一心』，不能『理一心』也要『事一心』，否則的話，至 少功夫成片、夢寐一如、淨念相繼，這樣的話，臨終的時候就更有把握了。不然，現生如果沒有那個功夫，臨終怎麼會有正念呢？所以，平時先培養『不 亂』的功夫，等到臨終，就會有正念，那個時候，佛就會來迎接，否則，臨終沒 有正念，佛就不會來迎接……」，這種就是自力的觀念，這是完全不瞭解六字 名號的原理、彌陀的救度。這種觀念，等於是拿一把小刀插在阿彌陀佛的胸 膛上。
因為阿彌陀佛的本意完全不是這樣的（如果是這樣的話，十方眾生能夠達到 這個標準的很少很少），阿彌陀佛無緣大慈、同體大悲，他是把我們看成他自 己，而且救度我們的功德已經完成好了，只求我們讓他救，他怎麼會給我們 提出這種條件呢？
Namo Amituofo!
