Nembutsu - the Path of the Last Dharma Age (commentary on the words of Bodhisattva Manjushri)

 

"In the Record of Holy Chu-lin Temple, it is recorded: 'While Bodhisattva Samantabhadra and Bodhisattva Manjusri sat facing each other in the east and west and were revealing the wondrous teachings to a multitude of sentient beings in the great hall of Chu-lin Temple on Mount Wut'ai, the meditation master Fachao kneeled and asked Bodhisattva Manjusri, 'What sort of teaching would make it possible for common mortals of the future defiled world to depart from the delusive triple realms forever and to be born in the Pure Land?'
Bodhisattva Manjusri replied, 'There is no practice superior to the recitation of the Name of Amida Buddha for birth in the Pure Land. Even in the path for the instantaneous realization of
Enlightenment, there is the sole teaching of Nembutsu. Therefore, the acclaimed holy teachings from the lifetime of Buddha Shakyamuni are the teachings of Amida Buddha, particularly for the common people in the defiled world of the future.' ”[1]
 

Commentary:
“Common mortals of the future defiled world” are us, people living in the Last Dharma Age, far removed from the presence in human form of the historical Buddha and His direct disciples.

There is no need to develop special feelings of gratitude towards Amida Buddha in order to be saved (video teaching)

 

Click here to watch more videos in the DHARMA TALK playlist. There are more than 170 videos there until now, so you'll certainly find one that is useful to you. 

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.

The merits transferred by Amida Buddha are not ours to use for personal goals

Question by a Dharma friend: If Amida transfers His karmic merits to us, why can we not dedicate them to others?
 
My answer: The transference of merits from Amida Buddha does NOT mean these merits become our property. They still remain Amida’s merits but working from inside us. And these merits have only one goal - to lead us to His Pure Land. It is like being carried to a wonderful place by your best friend in his car. The car is not yours and will never become yours because you are carried in it by your friend. It’s the same with Amida’s transference of merit. Just like you cannot do what you want with the car of your friend who leads you to destination, you cannot do what you want with Amida’s merits.

 

Amidaji simple style of teaching Jodo Shinshu Buddhism

 

Click here to watch more videos in the DHARMA TALK playlist. There are more than 170 videos there until now, so you'll certainly find one that is useful to you. 

To what kind of people is Jodo Shinshu Buddhism intended for? (video discussion)

 

Here is a new video in the series of the 71 topics of examination for those who want to be ordained in Amidaji branch of Jodo Shinshu Buddhism. The main speaker is my student Rev Kosho Arana from Colombia. He already received monk (priest) ordination in our school, in September this year.  

The links mentioned in the video are posted in its description on my youtube channe.

Namo Amida Bu