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Effort is more important than so-called success because effort is a real thing. What we call “success” is just the manifestation of our mind’s ability to categorize things. This is “success.” That is “failure.” Who says? You says. That’s all. Reality is what it is, beyond all concepts of success and failure.
The body of the Buddha is like empty space. The mind of the Buddha is like a phantom city. The speech of the Buddha is like an image of the moon in still waters.
Whoever sincerely and joyfully entrusts to Amitabha’s deliverance through the exclusive practice of Name recitation “Namo Amitabha Buddha,” then Amitabha, in accord with his Fundamental Vow, will immediately embrace the aspirant and, when her life ends, receive her to be reborn in the Land of Bliss.
Having said that, it doesn’t mean that those aspirants who rely on the 18th Vow do not practice the basic Buddhist precepts in their daily life. They just do not dedicate such practices toward rebirth in the Land of Bliss. They clearly understand that, for rebirth in the Pure Land, they simply rely on Amitabha’s true merits and virtues which are contained in his six-syllable Name: “Na-Mo-A-Mi-Tuo-Fo.” Thus, the Name is perfect and all-sufficient. Nothing else is required.
Alan Kwan - Pure Land: An “Easy Path” of Practice?
There are 84,000 Dharma paths in Buddhism. Those who can develop faith in the Pure Land way have truly obtained “great benefit.” Why is that?
Because Pure Land can be practiced and Buddhahood achieved without leaving secular life. All we need to do is have faith in Amitabha’s deliverance and recite his name. It’s simple and easy. People from all circles and social strata, good or evil, rich or poor, educated or illiterate, are able to recite Amitabha’s name, whether at home or amid social activities. In this way, all Amitabha reciters can attain Buddhahood, completing their Dharma learning.
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JeroenLuminous beings are we, not this crude matterNetherlandsVeteran
“For most of us, our mother is our first teacher.”
— H. H. The Dalai Lama
ENTRUSTING OUR LIVES TO AMITABHA by Dharma Master Jingzong
Amitabha Buddha’s supremely compassionate summons is for us to entrust our lives to him
It is also a solemn instruction
Amitabha intends fully to saturate our lives and replace them with his own life so he asks us to entrust ourselves to him
It’s like an ocean calling out to drop of water
When a tiny drop merges into the ocean it is immediately suffused with all oceanic life
As we ordinary beings entrust our lives to Amitabha our hearts are promptly immersed in his life which covers the entire Dharma realm
We know from the wording alone “entrust our lives” that we can attain Buddhahood simply by reciting Namo Amitabha Buddha
No more doctrinal proof is needed
So long as we entrust ourselves to Amitabha and become one with him how can we fail to achieve Buddhahood?
Amitabha wishes thoroughly to change our fate which is samsaric, distorted, defiled and impure so he calls upon us to entrust our lives
This can be compared to the maintenance of vehicles
One must drive his car into the garage for upkeep
Amitabha does not apply other methods or materials to refurbish us
He uses his own self to fulfill and replace us, his pure and enlightened Buddha body
“Entrusting my life” means that I abandon my ego and put “myself” into the hands of Amitabha for disposal as he sees fit
It means that my ego dies and the Buddha lives
Only when the ego is dead can space be vacated for Amitabha to come alive in the domain that belonged to me
But the ego is cunning indeed
When I say “I entrust my life” and surrender myself to Amitabha my ego easily finds a substitute (virtue and meritorious deeds) and sneaks back stealthily
My ego is fully aware that it will die in the hands of Amitabha so it disguises itself and produces plausible (but incorrect) arguments to make use of goodness and merit to evade its destiny
The ploy always works and the ego muddles through every time
Some Buddhists vow daily, even all life long, to entrust themselves but never really do
We each entrust our lives to Amitabha one time
Once we do so, entrustment is accomplished and lasts forever
We must entrust entirety, not a fraction of our lives
And it must be done by “me”, in person
There is no substitute
Since nothing in this world is more precious than life, no virtue or meritorious deed can surpass the entrusting of lives
I may have no shred of virtue but I entrust myself to Amitabha Buddha
I acquire everything he possesses
A person’s positive actions, however great, can never be sufficient if he does not entrust his life to Amitabha
All of Dharma learning and practice is no more than entrusting our lives to Amitabha
If you are tired of suffering, give it to Buddha Amitabha.
Whatever you hate or dislike, leave it to Amitabha Buddha. We just do what we like to do and stay in a good mood.
Since it has been handed over to Amitabha, it will be handled by Amitabha, and there will be no negotiation with him.
If you are still thinking about it in your heart and you are reluctant to give up, then you have not handed it over at all, or you have taken it back.
Physical pain, which is the result of karma, is more difficult to hand over; mental distress, which is the cause of karma, is easier to hand over.
It is really comfortable to let go of the whole body and completely lean on Amitabha Buddha.
Master Jingzong
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federicaSeeker of the clear blue sky...Its better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to speak out and remove all doubtModerator
“The teachings of Buddha are eternal, but even then, Buddha did not proclaim them to be infallible.
The religion of Buddha has the capacity to change according to times, a quality which no other religion can claim to have...
Now what is the basis of Buddhism?
If you study carefully, you will see that Buddhism is based on reason.
There is an element of flexibility inherent in it, which is not found in any other religion.”
Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar, "The Buddha and His Dhamma: A Critical Edition."
Suppose you are on a flight. The aircraft is state-of-the-art, comfortable. Beautiful sky outside the window, attentive stewards, soft music, classy passengers…everything is perfect! You are sure that the journey will be quite pleasant.
But suddenly comes the voice of the captain; “Our plane is off course and has lost contact with the ground. We have no landing point and must keep flying. We have enough fuel to do so for only ten minutes.” How would you feel then? All these wonderful things disappear instantly. “Captain, please try all means to find a safe landing spot before the fuel runs out!”
When a person is born, the plane of his life takes off. Even if one has another 40 or 50 years to live, the time is like the fuel of the plane: it only decreases and will soon be used up.
Where is the landing point of our life? Can we enjoy living at ease until we find it?
Power, status, money, career, family – are any of these the final landing point of our life?
Someone who believes that these are the aim of life is like a lost plane taking the clouds in the air as a safe landing field.
Master Jingzong
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DavidA human residing in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Ancestral territory of the Erie, Haudenosaunee, Huron-Wendat, Mississauga and Neutral First NationsVeteran
"Generations of peoples, primarily in Asia, have maintained that the historical Buddha, Gautama, invented zazen, and so was an Absolute God in zazen.
The truth is, of course, zazen was not born of, nor created by the historical Buddha; Buddha was born of the unfathomable depths of zazen.
We too may be born from the same place, as countless buddhas have in the past. We are all absolute perfection in zazen, infinite perfection — the transcendence of ourselves; the transcendence of the practice; the transcendence of all things.
Zazen is and was the mother of Buddha. We should confirm this with our own direct experience."
"The greatest magic is transmuting the passions.
The greatest generosity is non-attachment.
The greatest goodness is a peaceful mind.
The greatest patience is humility."
Atisa
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JeroenLuminous beings are we, not this crude matterNetherlandsVeteran
“Waking up is not a selfish pursuit of happiness, it is a revolutionary stance, from the inside out, for the benefit of all beings in existence.”
— Noah Levine
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JeroenLuminous beings are we, not this crude matterNetherlandsVeteran
edited September 2022
Giving in to distraction, we give up caring about the activity we are doing. When we do that we also give up caring about our self, about the value of the effort we are making with our life.
– Les Kaye, “The Time Is Now”
As a counterpoint to that, it seems to me that giving up on everything is an excellent way to emptiness.
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JeroenLuminous beings are we, not this crude matterNetherlandsVeteran
“Imagine a prune tree. In every prune of that tree there is a seed. That seed contains the prune tree and all its ancestors. Within that seed there is an infinity of prune trees. Within the seed there is an intelligence, a wisdom that know how to become a prune tree, how to make roots, a trunk, branches, leaves, blossoms and prunes. It doesn’t know this out of itself, but because it carries the wisdom and adjustments of all its ancestors. And so it is also with you. You contain the wisdom to become a full and complete human being, because you contain the wisdom of all your ancestors, not just the biological ones but also the spiritual ones.”
— Thich Nhat Hanh, Fear
"This world is shrouded in darkness. Here, only a few can see their way free. These few birds escape from the net, and fly away to the heavens."
Dhammapada
"The Bodhisattva Vow, the sacred aspiration and practice of opening and clarifying oneself in order to be of unhindered service to others, is the zeitgeist we cultivate and celebrate here."
-Jogen Sensei
May you contemplate the Dharmarāja.
The dharmas of the Dharmarāja are thus:
(they are) physical manifestations without limit
everywhere emanating into the lokas.
Each strand of hair on this Buddha’s body
emits an inconceivable web of illumination
which, like the sun, pure and clear,
brightens the lokas (that are) in the ten directions.
The godly psychic powers of this Buddha
pervade the entirety of all of the lokas.
In the presence of living beings,
he manifests countless bodies.
The sound of this Buddha preaching the Dharma
is never unheard in the ten directions.
According to the types of beings,
he gives relief to hearts.
The masses see the Sage, the Lord,
dwelling in the world (and dwelling) in the palace.
For the sake of all living beings,
he is expounding the great Dharma (while in those places).
In the vortex of this ocean of dharmas,
with all kinds of different meanings,
with doors (made) of various appropriate techniques,
he teaches endlessly.
With his boundless appropriate techniques,
this Buddha responds to all of those (dwelling) in all lands.
Those who meet with the Buddha's light
all see the Buddha's body.
Having served all Buddhas,
as many as atoms in a billion lands,
his virtue is vast like the expanses of empty space,
and is looked up to by all.
His godly psychic power is impartial.
He appears in all lands.
While sitting at rest in the sublime bodhimaṇḍa,
he appears before all beings.
Blazing clouds illuminating all
with various hues of light;
they extend throughout the lokas
showing where the Buddha practices.
The immense, vast buddhakṣetras adorned by this Buddha
are equal in number to all of the atoms in the many lokas.
Pure children of the Buddhas fill them all,
raining the inconceivable, most sublime Dharma.
Just as, in this Saṃgha, we see the Buddha seated,
he is also similarly seated in every atom.
Thus, the Buddha's body has no coming or going
and he freely appears in all abodes.
Demonstrating the practices cultivated by the bodhisattvas,
the various implementations of the innumerable approaches to their bhūmis,
and expounding as well the inconceivable truth,
he causes the children of the Buddhas to enter into reality.
He produces emanated Buddhas as numerous as the atoms
and corresponding to the inclinations of all minds.
The doors into the profound realm of truth,
boundlessly vast, all he expounds.
This Buddha's names are equal in number to the lokas,
and fill the lokas of the ten directions.
None of his methods are employed in vain.
He tames living beings and purifies all.
This Buddha, in every atom,
displays his godly psychic powers.
Sitting in all of the bodhimaṇḍas,
he nonetheless speaks of past Buddhas' attainment of Bodhi.
All of the innumerable aeons of the three times
this Buddha knows in a single moment.
All of the events of formation and decay,
his inconceivable wisdom fully perceives.
The congregation of this Buddha's children is endlessly vast.
They all wish to fathom the nature of the many Buddhas.
The Buddhas’ dharma-doors are without limit.
To thoroughly know them all is most difficult.
The body of this Buddha is like empty space: it is without differentiation,
it is equal to the real, and it is dependent upon nothing.
His emanated manifestations appear everywhere.
They all sit upon bodhimaṇḍas and attain true Bodhi.
This Buddha teaches extensively and with a wonderous voice.
All of the bhūmis of Bodhi are made thoroughly clear by it.
Appearing before all beings,
he gives all of them all of the Tathāgata's truths impartially.
This Buddha has always known what all Buddhas have always realized.
Unhindered, like in space, his illumination is unobstructed.
His light pervades the countless lokas everywhere.
He sits amidst all Saṃghas, adorning and purifying them.
This Buddha's field of merit cannot be measured.
It fills the lokadhātus of the ten directions.
He sits under every Bodhi tree,
and all mahāsattvas congregate (to him) like clouds.
This Buddha has such godly psychic powers,
that he manifests infinite emanated bodies simultaneously.
The realms and the natures of the Tathāgata are limitless.
Individuals witness them according to their individuality.
Since the beginningless past, past oceans of aeons,
this Tathāgata has diligently practiced in all (manner of) existences.
He teaches living beings by various means
and has them embrace and cultivate the dharmas of the Buddhas.
This Vairocana Buddha is replete with all perfections.
He sits in the Lotus Vault upon his Lion Throne.
All of the assembled Saṃghas convey their purity (to him).
Silently, all gaze upon him.
Many maṇis emit brilliant light in his house.
Everywhere, they emit endless clouds of fragrant flames.
Countless interwoven avataṃsakas drape down it:
on such a throne is this Buddha enthroned.
Many maṇis decorate his door.
Everywhere, they emit rays of light and clouds of flame.
They are immense, vast, blazing, and they illuminate all.
They augment the adornments of the house of the Sage.
Many maṇis beautify his walls,
with draped lotus blossoms of pure maṇi hanging
that produce sublime sounds, delighting all who hear.
The Buddha is enthroned therein: the most-illuminated of manifestations.
Wheels of maṇis bear his throne, shaped like crescent moons.
It is a platform of vajras the colour of a fiery light
and Bodhisattvas with topknots constantly circle it.
Amidst (that circle), this Buddha is the brightest radiance.
Many emanations fill the ten directions
expounding the extensive great oaths of the Tathāgatas.
All of these impressions appear reflected in it.
On such a throne is this Buddha serenely enthroned.
The Tathāgata is in samādhi in the Palace of the Dharma.
He is a dazzling presence within the palace.
According to the whims of sentient beings,
he is manifested throughout the lokas of the ten directions.
The Tathāgata's palace is inconceivable,
It is adorned with a treasury of maṇis.
The ornaments shine and dazzle, one and all.
Amongst them enthroned, this Buddha is the brightest radiance.
Many maṇis form pillars of many hues.
Pure gold bells like clouds are spread.
His jeweled staircases line the four sides
and the door that opens opens in every direction.
Among silken banners adorned with lotuses,
there are ornamental jeweled branches
and maṇis draped on all four sides,
for the Ocean of Jñāna is serenely enthroned.
Nets of maṇis and pillars of wondrous fragrance
bright as blazing lamps and arrayed in cloud-like formations
hang above the assorted ornaments.
This Buddha in enthroned in their midst.
Clouds appear throughout the ten directions.
These clouds rain down the Dharma for all lokas.
They tame and subdue all living beings.
All this is manifested from the Buddha’s palace.
Blossoms bloom on the tree of maṇis.
Nothing in the ten directions can compare.
The adornment of the lokas of the three times
is entirely revealed by these lights.
Clusters of maṇis are everywhere to be found,
blazing with infinite kinds of brilliance.
Well-spaced doors and windows are open in every direction.
The entire building is elegant and of the utmost beauty.
This Tathāgata's palace is inconceivable,
pure, luminous, and filled with every kind of image.
All other palaces appear within it,
each with a Tathāgata enthroned inside.
This Tathāgata's palace is limitless in size.
The Buddhas naturally dwell within it.
The multitudes throughout the ten directions
all gather with the Buddhas without fail.
This Buddha cultivated an ocean of merits
as numerous as all of the atoms in all of the lokas.
His godly psychic powers and oaths made this possible.
His bodhimaṇḍa is adorned, pure, and unsullied.
The roots of his tree are made of wish-fulfilling maṇis.
The body of his tree is made of vajra and maṇi.
Jeweled nets cover it from high above.
A mist of sublime fragrance circulates around it.
Many maṇis adorn the branches of his tree.
Its trunk of maṇi vigorously stretches upward.
The dense covering of branches resembles layered clouds.
The Buddha sits in the bodhimaṇḍa below.
The bodhimaṇḍa is vast beyond conception,
but is covered entirely by the shade of the tree.
Its flourishing leaves and flowers guard and reflect one another.
A fruit grows in each blossom.
Shimmering rays shine between the branches,
lighting up the entire bodhimaṇḍa.
Such pure and mighty resplendence
appears by the powers of the Buddhas' heroic oaths.
The flowers are made of maṇi in abundance.
Their shadows and their radiance resemble the exquisite clouds (of incense)
that enshroud the tree with all-pervasive fragrance
and veil the entirety of the bodhimaṇḍa.
May you gaze inside the bodhimaṇḍa of the Sugata.
The adorning curtains of lotuses are pure and clean.
Emerging from them are flaming orbs of light.
Bells tinkling and tolling are heard in the clouds above (them).
All (of the) beautiful trees of wondrous colours
that grow in the lands of the ten directions
appear as the Bodhi tree.
Beneath that tree, the Buddhas transcend all defilement.
The vast, expansive bodhimaṇḍa results from great merits.
Maṇis rain down endlessly from its branches.
From each maṇi emerge the Bodhisattvas
who serve and make offerings to the Buddhas of the ten directions.
The nature of the Buddhas is inconceivable.
They all cause their jewelled trees to resound.
Hearing the sounds, multitudes bring to mind
the Buddhas’ past practices and the path to Bodhi.
Through the immeasurable aeons, he has cultivated an ocean.
As an offering to the Buddhas of the Ten Directions, he has given an ocean.
He has transformed and saved all of the living beings in this ocean.
Presently, he is (known as) the complete, the Saṃbuddha, Vairocana.
From the pores of his skin, clouds manifest and issue forth
as well as light that shines on everything in the ten directions
that is felt by the alterers who are (subsequently) opened to Bodhi.
They apply this to the path to Bodhi, pure and unhindered.
This Buddha has already walked the entirety of the path.
He transforms and saves all of the living beings.
His godly psychic powers and self-mastery are immeasurable.
With a single thought, he causes them all to be freed.
The many maṇis, the mysterious treasures of the Bodhi tree,
and all kinds of majesty and rarity:
The Buddhas, in the shade of these things, attain true Bodhi
and shine upon everything the great diffusion of light.
A great sound thunders. Their (lions’) roars pervade the ten directions,
yet everywhere they expound at length the Dharma as calm tranquility.
Listening to the many living beings’ wishes,
they employ a diversity of appropriate methodologies to reveal the dawn.
This Buddha walks with the adornment of all of the perfections,
(which are) numerous as the atoms of a thousand lokas.
He is accomplished in all powers.
May you all go together to worship and revere (him).
The children of the Buddhas of the Ten Directions, numerous like atoms,
congregate joyfully and come to rest together,
having rained down many clouds of charity,
here before the Buddha to have an audience with him, gazing upward.
The Tathāgatas make (but) one sound, (yet) it is immeasurable.
They can expand the sutras to (be) as deep as the ocean (is deep).
Everywhere, they rain the Saddharma in response to the hearts of the masses.
May you go to see the one who is honoured amongst two-legged things.
All of the oaths of the many Buddhas of the three times
are all proclaimed from underneath the Bodhi tree.
In the space of an instant, they are all disclosed.
May you hasten to go to the Tathāgata.
The great wisdom of Vairocana is an ocean.
There are none who do not see the light that shines forth from his mouth.
Presently, he awaits the congregation of the masses, and soon he will speak.
May you go to witness (him) and hear what he says.
(Buddhāvataṃsakasūtra, Parivarta I, concluding gāthā)
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JeroenLuminous beings are we, not this crude matterNetherlandsVeteran
“The heart is the only book worth reading.”
— Ajahn Chah
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JeroenLuminous beings are we, not this crude matterNetherlandsVeteran
“Looking for peace is like looking for a turtle with a moustache: you won’t be able to find it. But when your heart is ready, peace will come looking for you.”
— Ajahn Chah
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JeroenLuminous beings are we, not this crude matterNetherlandsVeteran
“The essence of meditation is non-interference.”
— Adyashanti
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DavidA human residing in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Ancestral territory of the Erie, Haudenosaunee, Huron-Wendat, Mississauga and Neutral First NationsVeteran
edited November 2022
In Buddhism, is an inner confidence in something that is worthy of our trust. For example, we have faith in the Dharma, but that doesn’t mean we have to blindly swallow everything we read. Just because it is written in the holy books or because a lama says it, doesn’t mean we have to believe it. In the Buddhadharma, that kind of credulous, unquestioning, naïve belief is not necessarily considered to be a virtue at all. The quality of questioning in an intelligent manner, and really investigating and seeing for ourselves whether something is worthy of our belief or not, is very much encouraged.
"If you are replacing a thought, with a thought of gratitude, you are not living in the present moment, you are still up in your mind too much, simply live in the present moment, study the noble eightfold path, the four noble truths, dependent arising, three marks of existence, any thoughts that crop up simply need be recognized and dropped, bringing concentration back to the present. "
"So guard the sign, nor count the cost,
And what is gained will not be lost;
Who fails to have this guard maintained
Will lose each time what he has gained."
Bhikkhu Nanamoli (Not sure if translated Pali or direct)
"Enlightenment is Absolute Cooperation with the Inevitable !" ~Jesuit priest Anthony de Mello~
( in other words Go with the flow )
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DavidA human residing in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Ancestral territory of the Erie, Haudenosaunee, Huron-Wendat, Mississauga and Neutral First NationsVeteran
"Peace is within oneself to be found in the same place as agitation and suffering. It is not found in a forest or on a hilltop, nor is it given by a teacher. Where you experience suffering, you can also find freedom from suffering. Trying to run away from suffering is actually to run toward it."
-- Ajahn Chah
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JeroenLuminous beings are we, not this crude matterNetherlandsVeteran
“One’s relationship to the pleasant and the unpleasant determines how well one can practice. Being attracted to the pleasant and avoiding the unpleasant means one isn’t really free.”
— Joseph Goldstein
To receive a simple wish of love quietly opens our minds to an innate wisdom that recognizes the essential goodness of being, the intrinsic goodness of experience itself, the joy of being alive. It brings out the natural wisdom that was hidden in our minds.
Lama John Makransky, “Love Is All Around”
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DavidA human residing in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Ancestral territory of the Erie, Haudenosaunee, Huron-Wendat, Mississauga and Neutral First NationsVeteran
You are not the same as or different from
Conditions on which you depend;
You are neither severed from
Nor forever fused with them—-
This is the deathless teaching
Of buddhas who care for the world.
When buddhas don’t appear
And their followers are gone,
The wisdom of awakening
Bursts forth by itself.
Nagarjuna-Verses From the Center
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DavidA human residing in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Ancestral territory of the Erie, Haudenosaunee, Huron-Wendat, Mississauga and Neutral First NationsVeteran
“The more you sense the rareness and value of your own life, the more you realize that how you use it, how you manifest it, is all your responsibility. We face such a big task, so naturally we sit down for a while.”
The Buddha is the Dhamma; the Dhamma is the Buddha. The Dhamma the Buddha awakened to is something always there in the world. It hasn't disappeared. It's like groundwater. Whoever digs a well down to the level of the groundwater will see water. It's not the case that that person created or fashioned the water into being. All he's done is to put his strength into digging the well so that it's deep enough to reach the water already there.
So if we have any discernment, we'll realize that we're not far from the Buddha at all. We're sitting right in front of him right now. Whenever we understand the Dhamma, we see the Buddha. Those who are intent on practicing the Dhamma continuously — wherever they sit, stand, or walk — are sure to hear the Buddha's Dhamma at all times.
-Ajahn Chah
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JeroenLuminous beings are we, not this crude matterNetherlandsVeteran
Ascending to the high seat, Dogen Zenji said:
“Zen Master Hogen studied with Keishin Zenji.
Once Keishin Zenji asked him, ‘Joza, where do you go?’
Hogen said. ‘I am making pilgrimage aimlessly.’
Keishin said, ‘What is the matter of your pilgrimage?’
Hogen said, ‘I don’t know.’
Keishin said, ‘Not knowing is the most intimate.’
Hogen suddenly attained great enlightenment.”
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DavidA human residing in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Ancestral territory of the Erie, Haudenosaunee, Huron-Wendat, Mississauga and Neutral First NationsVeteran
That the self advances and confirms the myriad things is called delusion. That the myriad things advance and confirm the self is enlightenment.
"If we have any doubt of this sort, then it will certainly
hold us back, and we will not exert ourselves to do our
level best for it — because we see no hope: You seem to
say to yourself: “No, I’m not made for this; not ME. This
is much too high for me.” or “That’s too perfect for me.”
This is lack of self-confidence. And it would amount to
nothing but heaps of excuses for laziness and shirk-
ing. But this self-doubt is against the first doctrine of
Buddhadharma that ultimately all sentient beings share
the same quality of Buddha Nature"
You may of course be feeling, you may be thinking that this is all rather remote. This is all rather ideal, this is all rather archetypal, this is all rather mythological. It doesn't concern us very much. But we should also remember that though upon occasion that buddhism does dream and dream very beautifully, it isn't content merely to dream. We may say that on the whole the approach of buddhism of the buddha's teaching to all these questions is very sane is very practical, is also realistic. So buddhism isn't content to dream about the ideal society of the future or about some ideal world on some other plane, it tries to create also the ideal society the ideal community if you'd like here and now on this earth. It tries therefor to transform it, tries to transfigure this society and this world into the image of the buddha, into the image of the ideal and it does this in a number of different ways.
Comments
Effort is more important than so-called success because effort is a real thing. What we call “success” is just the manifestation of our mind’s ability to categorize things. This is “success.” That is “failure.” Who says? You says. That’s all. Reality is what it is, beyond all concepts of success and failure.
Brad Warner, “Think Not Thinking”
The body of the Buddha is like empty space. The mind of the Buddha is like a phantom city. The speech of the Buddha is like an image of the moon in still waters.
Think about it: can we achieve liberation through our own efforts? No.
This may be hard for Buddhist beginners to appreciate.
If they haven't practiced self cultivation, they would not know whether it is easy or hard.
Only after doing so do they realise it is difficult.
That's why so many who have turned to Pure Land are those who have practiced for some time.
After three to five years, or ten to 20 years they have realised they just aren't up to the task.
For example, to travel from this shore to the opposite one, we could swim, or ride a bamboo raft or take a regular boat.
But only after disembarking does it strike us that we lack the stamina to swim across.
Moreover, there are large waves. Even a sturdy boat may sink half way.
Whoever sincerely and joyfully entrusts to Amitabha’s deliverance through the exclusive practice of Name recitation “Namo Amitabha Buddha,” then Amitabha, in accord with his Fundamental Vow, will immediately embrace the aspirant and, when her life ends, receive her to be reborn in the Land of Bliss.
Having said that, it doesn’t mean that those aspirants who rely on the 18th Vow do not practice the basic Buddhist precepts in their daily life. They just do not dedicate such practices toward rebirth in the Land of Bliss. They clearly understand that, for rebirth in the Pure Land, they simply rely on Amitabha’s true merits and virtues which are contained in his six-syllable Name: “Na-Mo-A-Mi-Tuo-Fo.” Thus, the Name is perfect and all-sufficient. Nothing else is required.
Alan Kwan - Pure Land: An “Easy Path” of Practice?
There are 84,000 Dharma paths in Buddhism. Those who can develop faith in the Pure Land way have truly obtained “great benefit.” Why is that?
Because Pure Land can be practiced and Buddhahood achieved without leaving secular life. All we need to do is have faith in Amitabha’s deliverance and recite his name. It’s simple and easy. People from all circles and social strata, good or evil, rich or poor, educated or illiterate, are able to recite Amitabha’s name, whether at home or amid social activities. In this way, all Amitabha reciters can attain Buddhahood, completing their Dharma learning.
“For most of us, our mother is our first teacher.”
— H. H. The Dalai Lama
"Dogen statt Drogen" *
Muhō Nölke
"Dogen instead of Drugs"
ENTRUSTING OUR LIVES TO AMITABHA by Dharma Master Jingzong
Amitabha Buddha’s supremely compassionate summons is for us to entrust our lives to him
It is also a solemn instruction
Amitabha intends fully to saturate our lives and replace them with his own life so he asks us to entrust ourselves to him
It’s like an ocean calling out to drop of water
When a tiny drop merges into the ocean it is immediately suffused with all oceanic life
As we ordinary beings entrust our lives to Amitabha our hearts are promptly immersed in his life which covers the entire Dharma realm
We know from the wording alone “entrust our lives” that we can attain Buddhahood simply by reciting Namo Amitabha Buddha
No more doctrinal proof is needed
So long as we entrust ourselves to Amitabha and become one with him how can we fail to achieve Buddhahood?
Amitabha wishes thoroughly to change our fate which is samsaric, distorted, defiled and impure so he calls upon us to entrust our lives
This can be compared to the maintenance of vehicles
One must drive his car into the garage for upkeep
Amitabha does not apply other methods or materials to refurbish us
He uses his own self to fulfill and replace us, his pure and enlightened Buddha body
“Entrusting my life” means that I abandon my ego and put “myself” into the hands of Amitabha for disposal as he sees fit
It means that my ego dies and the Buddha lives
Only when the ego is dead can space be vacated for Amitabha to come alive in the domain that belonged to me
But the ego is cunning indeed
When I say “I entrust my life” and surrender myself to Amitabha my ego easily finds a substitute (virtue and meritorious deeds) and sneaks back stealthily
My ego is fully aware that it will die in the hands of Amitabha so it disguises itself and produces plausible (but incorrect) arguments to make use of goodness and merit to evade its destiny
The ploy always works and the ego muddles through every time
Some Buddhists vow daily, even all life long, to entrust themselves but never really do
We each entrust our lives to Amitabha one time
Once we do so, entrustment is accomplished and lasts forever
We must entrust entirety, not a fraction of our lives
And it must be done by “me”, in person
There is no substitute
Since nothing in this world is more precious than life, no virtue or meritorious deed can surpass the entrusting of lives
I may have no shred of virtue but I entrust myself to Amitabha Buddha
I acquire everything he possesses
A person’s positive actions, however great, can never be sufficient if he does not entrust his life to Amitabha
All of Dharma learning and practice is no more than entrusting our lives to Amitabha
If you are tired of suffering, give it to Buddha Amitabha.
Whatever you hate or dislike, leave it to Amitabha Buddha. We just do what we like to do and stay in a good mood.
Since it has been handed over to Amitabha, it will be handled by Amitabha, and there will be no negotiation with him.
If you are still thinking about it in your heart and you are reluctant to give up, then you have not handed it over at all, or you have taken it back.
Physical pain, which is the result of karma, is more difficult to hand over; mental distress, which is the cause of karma, is easier to hand over.
It is really comfortable to let go of the whole body and completely lean on Amitabha Buddha.
Master Jingzong
“The teachings of Buddha are eternal, but even then, Buddha did not proclaim them to be infallible.
The religion of Buddha has the capacity to change according to times, a quality which no other religion can claim to have...
Now what is the basis of Buddhism?
If you study carefully, you will see that Buddhism is based on reason.
There is an element of flexibility inherent in it, which is not found in any other religion.”
Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar, "The Buddha and His Dhamma: A Critical Edition."
"By clinging to the fingers you will not see the moon"
-Osho
"If the Buddhas are the Dharma Realm,
they exist within my body.
If I myself am also the Dharma Realm,
then I exist within the Buddhas."
Kobo Daishi
http://www.shingon.org/teachings/ShingonMikkyo/sanmitsu2.html
Suppose you are on a flight. The aircraft is state-of-the-art, comfortable. Beautiful sky outside the window, attentive stewards, soft music, classy passengers…everything is perfect! You are sure that the journey will be quite pleasant.
But suddenly comes the voice of the captain; “Our plane is off course and has lost contact with the ground. We have no landing point and must keep flying. We have enough fuel to do so for only ten minutes.” How would you feel then? All these wonderful things disappear instantly. “Captain, please try all means to find a safe landing spot before the fuel runs out!”
When a person is born, the plane of his life takes off. Even if one has another 40 or 50 years to live, the time is like the fuel of the plane: it only decreases and will soon be used up.
Where is the landing point of our life? Can we enjoy living at ease until we find it?
Power, status, money, career, family – are any of these the final landing point of our life?
Someone who believes that these are the aim of life is like a lost plane taking the clouds in the air as a safe landing field.
"Generations of peoples, primarily in Asia, have maintained that the historical Buddha, Gautama, invented zazen, and so was an Absolute God in zazen.
The truth is, of course, zazen was not born of, nor created by the historical Buddha; Buddha was born of the unfathomable depths of zazen.
We too may be born from the same place, as countless buddhas have in the past. We are all absolute perfection in zazen, infinite perfection — the transcendence of ourselves; the transcendence of the practice; the transcendence of all things.
Zazen is and was the mother of Buddha. We should confirm this with our own direct experience."
~ Hōgen Yamahata
"The greatest magic is transmuting the passions.
The greatest generosity is non-attachment.
The greatest goodness is a peaceful mind.
The greatest patience is humility."
Atisa
“Waking up is not a selfish pursuit of happiness, it is a revolutionary stance, from the inside out, for the benefit of all beings in existence.”
— Noah Levine
Giving in to distraction, we give up caring about the activity we are doing. When we do that we also give up caring about our self, about the value of the effort we are making with our life.
– Les Kaye, “The Time Is Now”
As a counterpoint to that, it seems to me that giving up on everything is an excellent way to emptiness.
“Imagine a prune tree. In every prune of that tree there is a seed. That seed contains the prune tree and all its ancestors. Within that seed there is an infinity of prune trees. Within the seed there is an intelligence, a wisdom that know how to become a prune tree, how to make roots, a trunk, branches, leaves, blossoms and prunes. It doesn’t know this out of itself, but because it carries the wisdom and adjustments of all its ancestors. And so it is also with you. You contain the wisdom to become a full and complete human being, because you contain the wisdom of all your ancestors, not just the biological ones but also the spiritual ones.”
— Thich Nhat Hanh, Fear
"Aniccā vata saṅkhārā, upāda vaya dhammino.
uppajjitvā nirujjanti, tesaṁ vūpasamo sukho."
"All things are inconstant, their nature: to arise and pass away.
they disband even as they arise, their total stilling is bliss."
https://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/bodhi/bps-essay_43.html
"This world is shrouded in darkness. Here, only a few can see their way free. These few birds escape from the net, and fly away to the heavens."
Dhammapada
"The Bodhisattva Vow, the sacred aspiration and practice of opening and clarifying oneself in order to be of unhindered service to others, is the zeitgeist we cultivate and celebrate here."
-Jogen Sensei
@Jeroen
I found this today thanks to this video:
(Buddhāvataṃsakasūtra, Parivarta I, concluding gāthā)
“The heart is the only book worth reading.”
— Ajahn Chah
“Looking for peace is like looking for a turtle with a moustache: you won’t be able to find it. But when your heart is ready, peace will come looking for you.”
— Ajahn Chah
“The essence of meditation is non-interference.”
— Adyashanti
In Buddhism, is an inner confidence in something that is worthy of our trust. For example, we have faith in the Dharma, but that doesn’t mean we have to blindly swallow everything we read. Just because it is written in the holy books or because a lama says it, doesn’t mean we have to believe it. In the Buddhadharma, that kind of credulous, unquestioning, naïve belief is not necessarily considered to be a virtue at all. The quality of questioning in an intelligent manner, and really investigating and seeing for ourselves whether something is worthy of our belief or not, is very much encouraged.
"If you are replacing a thought, with a thought of gratitude, you are not living in the present moment, you are still up in your mind too much, simply live in the present moment, study the noble eightfold path, the four noble truths, dependent arising, three marks of existence, any thoughts that crop up simply need be recognized and dropped, bringing concentration back to the present. "
Marc Hards
"So guard the sign, nor count the cost,
And what is gained will not be lost;
Who fails to have this guard maintained
Will lose each time what he has gained."
"Enlightenment is Absolute Cooperation with the Inevitable !"
~Jesuit priest Anthony de Mello~
( in other words Go with the flow )
"Peace is within oneself to be found in the same place as agitation and suffering. It is not found in a forest or on a hilltop, nor is it given by a teacher. Where you experience suffering, you can also find freedom from suffering. Trying to run away from suffering is actually to run toward it."
-- Ajahn Chah
“One’s relationship to the pleasant and the unpleasant determines how well one can practice. Being attracted to the pleasant and avoiding the unpleasant means one isn’t really free.”
— Joseph Goldstein
"Liberation is the inevitable fruit of the path and is bound to blossom forth when there is steady and persistent practice."
Bhikkhu Bodhi
"Life doesn't becomes easier...You only become stronger"
“If you think you are too small to make a difference, try sleeping with a mosquito.”
— H. H. the Dalai Lama
“Choose to be optimistic, it feels better.”
— H. H. The Dalai Lama
“We can live without meditation or religion, but we cannot live without human affection.”
— H. H. The Dalai Lama
Lama John Makransky, “Love Is All Around”
You are not the same as or different from
Conditions on which you depend;
You are neither severed from
Nor forever fused with them—-
This is the deathless teaching
Of buddhas who care for the world.
When buddhas don’t appear
And their followers are gone,
The wisdom of awakening
Bursts forth by itself.
Nagarjuna-Verses From the Center
“The more you sense the rareness and value of your own life, the more you realize that how you use it, how you manifest it, is all your responsibility. We face such a big task, so naturally we sit down for a while.”
― Kobun Chino Otogawa Roshi
Groundwater
The Buddha is the Dhamma; the Dhamma is the Buddha. The Dhamma the Buddha awakened to is something always there in the world. It hasn't disappeared. It's like groundwater. Whoever digs a well down to the level of the groundwater will see water. It's not the case that that person created or fashioned the water into being. All he's done is to put his strength into digging the well so that it's deep enough to reach the water already there.
So if we have any discernment, we'll realize that we're not far from the Buddha at all. We're sitting right in front of him right now. Whenever we understand the Dhamma, we see the Buddha. Those who are intent on practicing the Dhamma continuously — wherever they sit, stand, or walk — are sure to hear the Buddha's Dhamma at all times.
-Ajahn Chah
Ascending to the high seat, Dogen Zenji said:
“Zen Master Hogen studied with Keishin Zenji.
Once Keishin Zenji asked him, ‘Joza, where do you go?’
Hogen said. ‘I am making pilgrimage aimlessly.’
Keishin said, ‘What is the matter of your pilgrimage?’
Hogen said, ‘I don’t know.’
Keishin said, ‘Not knowing is the most intimate.’
Hogen suddenly attained great enlightenment.”
That the self advances and confirms the myriad things is called delusion. That the myriad things advance and confirm the self is enlightenment.
"If we have any doubt of this sort, then it will certainly
hold us back, and we will not exert ourselves to do our
level best for it — because we see no hope: You seem to
say to yourself: “No, I’m not made for this; not ME. This
is much too high for me.” or “That’s too perfect for me.”
This is lack of self-confidence. And it would amount to
nothing but heaps of excuses for laziness and shirk-
ing. But this self-doubt is against the first doctrine of
Buddhadharma that ultimately all sentient beings share
the same quality of Buddha Nature"
Reverend Cheng Kuan
You may of course be feeling, you may be thinking that this is all rather remote. This is all rather ideal, this is all rather archetypal, this is all rather mythological. It doesn't concern us very much. But we should also remember that though upon occasion that buddhism does dream and dream very beautifully, it isn't content merely to dream. We may say that on the whole the approach of buddhism of the buddha's teaching to all these questions is very sane is very practical, is also realistic. So buddhism isn't content to dream about the ideal society of the future or about some ideal world on some other plane, it tries to create also the ideal society the ideal community if you'd like here and now on this earth. It tries therefor to transform it, tries to transfigure this society and this world into the image of the buddha, into the image of the ideal and it does this in a number of different ways.
-Urgyen Sangharakshita, 8fp lecture series
Life is never perfect. Have the courage to rest your mind in the midst of imperfection.
Ajahn Brahm
Perfect lesson for the NOW I'm currently in...
Giving, caring and being compassionate are fundamental to the spiritual life.
Ajahn Brahm
P.S. Just adding my own note to this quote. More often that not this can be to ourselves.
We cannot change the world. But we can change our attitude towards it.
Ajahn Brahm