Commentary on the Contemplation Sutra

 

This is a work in progress and under constant review. 

New chapters will be  added as soon as they are finished.

The salvation of Queen Vaidehi - commentary on sections 1-8

The path of the 19th Vow and the explicit and implicit meaning of the Contemplation Sutra 

Amida Buddha and His Pure Land as described in the Contemplation Sutra through the thirteen contemplations and the nine grades of beings NEW!

The thirteen contemplations (sections 9 - 21) NEW!

to be continued 

LAST REVISED June 14, 2024

The thirteen contemplations (sections 9 – 21 of the Contemplation Sutra)

 

Fragment from my Commentary on the Contemplation Sutra. It is a work in progress and under constant revision. Click here to read the other chapters.

Here are the thirteen contemplations/meditations taught by Shakyamuni Buddha in sections 9 to 21. As they are technical explanations I will only comment when it’s really necessary.
 
The 1^st contemplation is on the setting sun:
 
 “The Buddha said to Vaidehi, ‘You and other sentient beings should concentrate and, with one-pointed attention, turn your thoughts westward. How do you contemplate? All sentient beings except those born blind – that is, all those with the faculty of sight – should look at the setting sun. Sit in the proper posture, facing west. Clearly gaze at the sun, with mind firmly fixed on it; concentrate your sight and do not let it wander from the setting sun, which is like a drum suspended above the horizon. Having done so, you should then be able to visualize it clearly, whether your eyes are open or closed. This is the visualization of the sun and is known as the first contemplation. To practice in this way is called the correct contemplation, and to practice otherwise is incorrect.’”[1]
 
Even from the first contemplation we are announced that the practices mentioned in this sutra cannot be followed by blind people, unlike the simple requirements of the Primal Vow which are easy to meet by everybody.
 
The 2^nd contemplation, on the water:

Amida Buddha and His Land as described in the Contemplation Sutra through the thirteen contemplations and the nine grades of beings

Fragment from my Commentary on the Contemplation Sutra. It is a work in progress and under constant revision. Click here to read the other chapters.

Before advancing to the chapter on the thirteen contemplations, it is important to mention that because the practices of the Contemplation Sutra lead to birth in the border land of the Pure Land, their objects of contemplation is Amida and His land as “transformed Buddha and land”.
 
In order to understand what I mean by “transformed Buddha and land” (which is actually an expression used by Shinran himself[1]) I need to explain first the doctrine of the two aspects of the Pure Land. Please read carefully.
 
The Pure Land of Amida Buddha has two main aspects: 1) the ultimate Dharmakaya aspect, and   2) the manifestation or Sambhogakaya (recompense) aspect. 
 
1) The ultimate Dharmakaya aspect means that the Pure Land is Nirvanic in its essence, as it was stated in the Larger Sutra:
 
“My land, being like Nirvana itself,
Will be beyond comparison.”[2]
 
This means that all the manifestations of the Pure Land are grounded in the perfect Enlightenment of Amida Buddha, and are conducive to Enlightenment. We ourselves will attain Enlightenment when we are born in the center of the Pure Land (the fulfilled land of the Pure Land), because the essence of the Pure Land is Enlightenment/Nirvana/Dharmakaya itself. Otherwise, if the Pure Land was not an enlightened realm, it would lead only to sense attachments, like other Samsaric realms do, but Shakyamuni Buddha[3] and our Masters[4] were very clear that this is not the case.

The Path of the 19th Vow and the explicit and implicit meaning of the Contemplation Sutra

Fragment from my Commentary on the Contemplation Sutra. It is a work in progress and under constant revision. Click here to read the other chapters.

Last revised June 6, 2024

According to Shinran Shonin, and as I mentioned previously, the Contemplation Sutra is explicitly guiding people to the 19^th Vow, while implicitly referring to the Primal Vow (18^th Vow)[1]:
 
“When I consider the Sutra of Contemplation on the Buddha of Immeasurable Life, taking into account the interpretation of the commentator [Shan-tao], I find there is an explicit meaning and an implicit, hidden, inner meaning.
 
‘Explicit” refers to presenting the meditative and non-meditative good acts and setting forth the three levels of practicers and the three minds. The two forms of good and the three types of meritorious acts, however, are not the true cause of birth in the fulfilled land (center of the Pure Land). Further, the three minds that beings awaken are all minds of self-benefit that are individually different and not the mind that is single, which arises from [Amida’s] benefiting of others. They are roots of good with which to aspire for the Pure Land that [Sakyamuni] Tathagata taught as a distinct provisional means. This is the import of the sutra; it is its “explicit” meaning.

Simple explanation of a difficult passage related with "mind", Buddha and visions from the Contemplation Sutra

I decided to give a short explanation of the following passage from the Contemplation Sutra that many find it difficult to understand or have the tendency to misinterpret it:

“Buddha Tathagatas have cosmic bodies, and so enter into the meditating mind of each sentient being. For this reason, when you contemplate a Buddha, your mind itself takes the form of His thirty-two physical characteristics and eighty secondary marks.

Your mind produces the Buddha’s image and is itself the Buddha. The ocean of perfectly and universally enlightened Buddhas thus arises in the meditating mind. For this reason, you should single-mindedly concentrate and deeply contemplate the Buddha Tathagata, Arhat, and Perfectly Enlightened One.”[1]

 If we really have a vision with a Buddha, that vision appears because of two reasons:

The salvation of queen Vaidehi

Shakyamuni and Queen Vaidehi
(source of the photo)

 Fragment from my Commentary on the Contemplation Sutra. It is a work in progress and under constant revision. Click here to read the other chapters.

last revised June 6, 2024

 Commentary on sections 1 - 8

The Contemplation Sutra[1] was taught in the context of a tragedy in the royal family of Magadha[2]. Master Shan-tao[3] who also wrote a commentary on this sutra, gave a detailed account of what happened. As I don’t have access to a good/useful English translation of his commentary, I quote Rev Hisao Inagaki’s summary of Shan-tao’s explanation: 

“Shakyamuni had a cousin, Devadatta, who was greedy for fame and wealth. Seeing the Buddha receive many offerings from King Bimbisara, he wanted to take over the leadership of the sangha. He first learned supernatural power from Ananda, which he displayed to Prince  Ajatasatru; thus he won the respect of the prince and also received sumptuous offerings from him. Devadatta then approached Shakyamuni and suggested that the Buddha retire but was rebuked for his stupidity. Angered by this, he next incited Ajatasatru to usurp the throne.

Seeing that Ajatasatru hesitated, Devadatta pointed at the prince’s broken little finger and told him the following story.