Home services in Japanese Buddhism, known as otsutomé (お勤め) or more formally gongyō (勤行), have many different approaches. It often depends on sect, particular communities, and personal preference. Trouble is, English sources are often confusing or insufficient. So, I try to look up information in Japanese, which is sometimes harder than you might think.
Anyhow, something I’ve learned recently about Tendai Buddhism, is that at least in some Tendai traditions, home practice might be divided between a morning service and a night service. This is in keeping with the two concepts in Tendai (more on that here):
Hokké Senpō (法華懺法) – reverence for the Lotus Sutra, the foundation for Tendai Buddhism, and for much of Mahayana Buddhism.
Reiji Sahō (例時作法) – reliance on Amida Buddha to help deliver oneself (and others) from this world of frustration and fear.
Thus, in lay-Buddhist home services for Tendai Buddhism, some communities tend to divide the morning versus evening services to reflect these two concepts.
This page from the Jimon-branch of Tendai Buddhism, based in the famous Mii-dera Temple (as opposed to the Sanmon-branch based in Enryakuji atop Mount Hiei) shows example services for both morning and evening. I can’t translate everything word for word from the site, but let me try to summarize the basic format.
Morning Service
For the morning service, one pays homage to the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas “of the ten directions”1 and takes the Lotus Sutra as their basis. The morning service cited in the Jimon-sect page is based on a treatise by founder Saicho called the Hokke Sanmai Gyōhō (法華三昧行法), and for some reason is much shorter than the evening service.
The morning service is comparatively short, but includes liturgy such as:
I left out some of the liturgy from this list because I could not find details, or they were very specific to the Jimon sect (e.g. praises of Saicho’s disciple Enchin, who is the source of the Jimon branch), but hopefully you get the idea. This emphasizes the here and now, and seems rooted in the hokke senpo side of Tendai Buddhism to me.
Evening Service
The evening service by comparison uses the Amitabha Sutra as its basis and includes somewhat different liturgy.
Dedication of Merit for Rebirth in the Pure Land (this differs slightly from the morning service version).
It’s interesting to note that the evening service still includes verses from the Lotus Sutra, but also mixes the Nembutsu and Mantra of Light as well and definitely emphasizes the reiji saho side of Tendai.
Conclusion
As these are services associated with just one sub-sect of Tendai, and since people often add, subtract or adapt services to meet their needs, it’s perfectly fine to adjust this to whatever works in your situation. You could potentially reduce this all the way down to reciting the Heart Sutra in the morning, and the nembutsu at night. Or something similar. As long as it is sustainable, and captures the spirit of Hokke Senpo and Reiji Saho.
The themes of morning services expressing hokke senpo, and evening services expressing reiji saho, are a great way to apply Tendai teachings in one’s own life, or just Mahayana Buddhism in general.
P.S. features the gardens of Mii-dera temple, photo by E5894, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
1 The eight cardinal directions, plus up and down.
For months, I’ve had on my to-do list to go and fix up the Wikipedia article about the nembutsu (or nian-fo in Chinese). I had started contributing to that article way back in 2006 shortly after I first got interested in Pure Land Buddhism, and occasionally update or add details. The article was flagged for some quality control issues recently, and I decided to help clean it up.
Some of my early contributions in Wikipedia way back in the day… can’t believe it’s been 18 years.
As I began to write some updates to the article, though, and trying to distill what the nembutsu is within the Pure Land tradition, I realized that this is a really tough question. There’s centuries of interpretations, layers of culture, and divergent viewpoints. I tried to summarize this in an older article, but after reading over that article, I realized that I didn’t quite hit the mark there either.
So, let’s try this again.
Pure Land Buddhism is a large, broad, organic tradition within Mahayana Buddhism (an even bigger tradition). It is not centrally-organized, but follows many trends and traditions across many places and time periods. However, these traditions all have a couple things in common:
Reverence toward the Buddha of Infinite Light (a.k.a. Amitabha Buddha, Amida, Emituofo, etc.). The nature of who or what Amitabha Buddha is is open to interpretation though.
Aspiration to be reborn (as in one’s next life) in the Pure Land of Amitabha Buddha. There have been many ways to interpret what exactly this means, but I am sticking to the most simple, literal interpretation for now.
In any case, these two things are what make the “Cult of Amitabha” what it is. By “cult” I mean the more traditional, academic definition, not the modern, negative definition. Amitabha is to Mahayana Buddhism, what the Virgin Mary is to Catholicism.
Every Pure Land tradition across Buddhist history is mostly focused on #2: how to get to the Pure Land. The early Pure Land Sutras spend much time describing how great Amitabha Buddha is, and how getting to the Pure Land is so beneficial towards one’s practice, but differ somewhat on how get reborn there.
One early sutra, the Pratyutpanna Sutra is one of the first to mention Amitabha and the Pure Land at all, but it very strongly emphasizes a meditative approach, in order to achieve a kind of samadhi. According to Charles B Jones, being reborn in the Pure Land wasn’t even mentioned in this sutra, nor Amitabha’s origin story. It was a purely meditate text. Nonetheless, this sutra was highly favored by the early Chinese Pure Land Buddhists, namely the White Lotus Society started in the 5th century by Lushan Huiyuan.
The main textual source for being reborn in the Pure Land is from the Immeasurable Life Sutra, also called the Larger [Sukhavati Vyuha] Sutra. This is where we see the famous 48 vows of the Buddha, including the most important, the 18th vow (highlights added):
設我得佛。十方衆生至心信樂。欲生我國乃至十念。若不生者不取正覺。唯除五逆誹謗正法
(18) If, when I attain Buddhahood, sentient beings in the lands of the ten quarters who sincerely and joyfully entrust themselves to me, desire to be born in my land, and call my Name, even ten times, should not be born there, may I not attain perfect Enlightenment. Excluded, however, are those who commit the five gravest offences and abuse the right Dharma.
translation by Rev. Hisao Inagaki
This is where things get interesting, in my opinion.
The Chinese character 念 (niàn) was used to translate the Buddhist-Sanskrit term Buddhānusmṛti or “recollection of the Buddha”. But, according to Jones, the Chinese character 念 had multiple nuances in Chinese:
And in fact each one of these interpretations can be applied to the nembutsu (Chinese niànfó) because it means niàn (念) of the Buddha (fó, 佛).
But which is it: concentration, a moment of recollection, or verbal recitation?
Most of the early Chinese Buddhist teachers like Tanluan, Daochuo and Shandao all promoted a mix: usually visualization was the superior method, but verbal recitation was a fallback for people who couldn’t dedicate themselves to visualization-meditation and ritual. The earliest Buddhist teachers mostly emphasized the visualization-meditation approach, but by Shandao’s time (7th century) the verbal recitation was deemed the most effective method.
Later, in Japan, the monk Genshin (not to be confused with the game…) summarizes these various methods in his 10th century work, the Ojoyoshu. It was a high quality work and even praised by Chinese monks when it was sent over as part of Japan’s diplomatic missions. But Genshin came to the same basic conclusion: the nembutsu can be any one of the three.
Finally we get to Buddhist teachers like Honen (12th century), who taught that the verbal recitation was the only viable choice. Honen praised past methods, but his target audience was a mostly illiterate population, as well as monks whose monastic institutions had largely declined into corruption and empty ritual. So, for such people, better to rely on Amitabha Buddha’s compassion and recite the verbal nembutsu wholeheartedly.
Multi-lingual sign at the temple of Chion-in in Kyoto, Japan where Honen’s mausoleum rests.
This approach isn’t that different from the Chinese approach which varied by teacher or patriarch but through Shandao’s influence had a parallel development. Some teachers emphasized the efficacy of simply reciting the nembutsu (much like Honen), others added the importance of concentration while reciting the nembutsu.
However, turning back to the Larger Sutra, let’s go back to the 48 vows. The 19th and 20th vows state:
(19) If, when I attain Buddhahood, sentient beings in the lands of the ten quarters, who awaken aspiration for Enlightenment, do various meritorious deeds and sincerely desire to be born in my land, should not, at their death, see me appear before them surrounded by a multitude of sages, may I not attain perfect Enlightenment.
(20) If, when I attain Buddhahood, sentient beings in the lands of the ten quarters who, having heard my Name, concentrate their thoughts on my land, plant roots of virtue, and sincerely transfer their merits towards my land with a desire to be born there, should not eventually fulfill their aspiration, may I not attain perfect Enlightenment.
So, taken together, the 18-20th vows cover the various interpretations of 念 we discussed above. All of them are included in Amitabha’s vows to bring across anyone who desires to be reborn there. The common theme is sincerity (至心 zhì xīn). If you look at the original Chinese text, all three include “sincerity”.
Further, when asked about how many times one should recite the nembutsu, Honen replied:
“….believe that you can attain ojo [往生, rebirth in the Pure Land] by one repetition [of the nembutsu], and yet go on practicing it your whole life long.”
So, let’s get down to business: what is the nembutsu / niànfó ?
Based on the evidence above, I believe that the nembutsu is any of these Buddhist practices described above, taken under a sincere aspiration to be reborn in the Pure Land. It’s about bending one’s efforts and aspirations toward the Pure Land.
If you are calculating how to be reborn, or if your heart’s not 100% into it, then it may be a waste of effort.
Instead, if you feel unsure, study the Buddhist doctrines, get to know the Pure Land sutras, read about past teachers and if you feel fired up about, recite the nembutsu, or do whatever moves you. You will just know when. The more you put into it, the more you get out of it too.
Amitabha’s light shines upon all beings, like moonlight, and if you feel inspired by it, just know that you’re already halfway to the Pure Land.
I am the sort of person who is bad with names. I recently met some new neighbors, and they told me their names, and I made a point of remembering those names, but 5 minutes later, I had already forgotten one of them.
In the early Buddhist sutras, the Buddha described the mind as a monkey flitting from branch to branch:
Just as a monkey, swinging through a forest wilderness, grabs a branch. Letting go of it, it grabs another branch. Letting go of that, it grabs another one. Letting go of that, it grabs another one. In the same way, what’s called ‘mind,’ ‘intellect,’ or ‘consciousness’ by day and by night arises as one thing and ceases as another.
Assutavā Sutta (SN 12.61), translation by Ven. Thanissaro Bhikkhu
This inability to focus the mind prevents us from gaining any insight, being easily swayed by sensual lust, anger, or ignorance, unable to see the bigger picture. Centuries later, in the Parable of the Burning House of the Lotus Sutra, the kids in the burning house are so distracted by their toys, that they do not notice their father calling them to get out.
This notion of the unstable mind unable to see its own peril is found in every Buddhist tradition, and what drives much of the Buddhist practice. Recognizing one’s own mental patterns is the first step, an important one too, but another important step is to counteract this. One cannot stop the thoughts themselves, it’s just the way the mind of Homo sapiens works. Instead, one should look into Buddhist training to either withstand such thoughts, counteract them, or look past them. This isn’t a simple thing either. It’s quite difficult, and requires long-term training. But it is essential to one’s well-being.
When I catch myself brooding angry thoughts, or thinking something stupid and selfish, I often think about something Honen said in a famous catechism called the 145 Questions and Answers (ippyaku-shijūgo-kajō-mond, 百四十五箇条問答), namely question #69:
一。心に妄念のいかにも思はれ候は、いかがし候べき。
Q) When bad thoughts keep arising within my mind, what ought one to do?
Because the Pure Land tradition of Buddhism is so large, there’s a lot of ways to interpret this. I don’t know the right answer. You should do your own research and decide for yourself. For some, this is using the nembutsu as a form of mindfulness practice (withstanding evil thoughts), while for others, this is acknowledging the grace of Amida Buddha, and that one is still destined to be reborn in the Pure Land (looking past evil thoughts).
This is not to replace the tradition of mindfulness meditation, either. It’s just not always possible to be sitting on a cushion meditating, so remembering Honen’s advice is a handy thing to do when you are going through life, and feeling your mind looping the same negative or unwholesome thoughts over and over.
My wife and daughter both tested positive for COVID on Wednesday and had to isolate themselves since then. I took time off from work, bring them food, do the housework, and look after our son, ferry him to various social events and playdates, while also looking after a one year old puppy. Then, the puppy developed conjunctivitis (pink eye) as of yesterday. Further, my old acid reflux problem reared its head recently causing plenty of misery for me.
The week has been a train wreck but we’ve managed. Thankfully my wife and daughter’s both had miles symptoms and will be out of quarantine soon.
Amidst all the chaos, I tried to keep up daily Buddhist practice, with mixed success. This morning I just had only enough time to recite the Three Treasures: namu-ki-e-butsu, namu-ki-e-ho, namu-ki-e-so (praise to the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha).
If you’re a parent, especially a single parent like my mother was, sometimes that’s all you can realistically do. That’s also true if you’re young and just getting on your feet, working a grueling 9-5 job, or you’re caring for ill or elderly family members.
Such people don’t have the time or energy to contemplate Tibetanyidam or participate in a Zen sesshin. How can someone working a demanding warehouse job at Amazon maintain mindfulness when you barely have time for a lunch break? How can a school teacher afford a retreat to Bhutan when they’re scraping money to get adequate school supplies in the classroom?
For most working-class people dealing with stress, financial woes, or parenting, such Buddhist practices are a privilege they can’t afford, but they shouldn’t be excluded either. This was a problem faced centuries ago and continues in the West today.
Instead, when your world is falling apart, or you’re cleaning poop from a baby’s diaper, or trying to mentally shut out the weirdo on public transit, sometimes it’s just enough to say the nembutsu: na-mu-a-mi-da-butsu. Maybe you can’t maintain a Buddhist altar, but it’s just enough to keep a small image in your wallet that you drew or printed out. If you can’t afford good Buddhist books, make your own.
I am not joking or making light of Buddhist practice either. Consider this verse from the second chapter of the Lotus Sutra:
If someone with a confused and distracted mind should take even one flower and offer it to a painted image, in time he would come to see countless Buddhas.
Or if a person should bow or perform obeisance, or should merely press his palms together, or even should raise a single hand, or give no more than a slight nod of the head, and if this were done in offering to an image, then in time he would come to see countless Buddhas.
And if he himself attains the unsurpassed way and spreads salvation abroad to countless multitudes, he will enter the nirvana of no remainder as a fire dies out when the firewood is exhausted.
If persons with confused and distracted minds should enter a memorial tower and once exclaim, “Hail to the Buddha!”
Then all have attained the Buddha way.
Translation by Burton Watson
Or this quote from the Sutra on the Buddha of Immeasurable Life:
“If, sentient beings encounter his [Amida Buddha’s] light, their three defilements are removed; they feel tenderness, joy and pleasure; and good thoughts arise. If sentient beings in the three realms of suffering see his light, they will all be relieved and freed from affliction. At the end of their lives, they all reach emancipation.
Translation by Rev. Hisao Inagaki
Sometimes it’s OK to just recite the nembutsu, or the Three Treasures above. It may not do much to relieve stress, or fix your situation but be assured that every tiny little bit you do to recite the Buddha’s name, or uphold the Five Precepts (or even one of them), anything you do to live an upright, honest life does count for something.
This isn’t empty platitudes either. This is straight from the Lotus Sutra and the Mahayana Buddhist tradition at large. Like contributing to a savings accounts, every little bit you do, however small, is just one step closer to your goal. Every good, wholesome seed you plant will bear fruit someday. Every time you dedicate that good merit towards the benefit of others, it will multiply even further.
No matter how shitty your life is, believe in yourself, believe in the power of the Buddha-Dharma, and trust that even a moment’s recitation or a a single good act can and does make a difference.
As a kid, I was always fascinated by Astronomy, and I remember often watching the stars at night, when I would visit my dad’s house on the weekends. Back then, I didn’t really understand astronomy well, but I learned what I could about constellations, I visited the planetarium at the Pacific Science Center, and of course I became a big fan of classic Star Trek through my uncle. In college, I even majored in Astronomy for a time until I realized that Physics wasn’t my forté.
Space and the universe have always fascinated me, and for a long time, I’ve felt that in light of space, science, etc, Buddhism has been particularly suited for this worldview.
The Buddha-Dharma functions in a lot of ways like the laws of physics or other natural laws. It’s less something to believe in, and something more to understand or at least acknowledge. It can fit into any time or place.
The various Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, primarily found in the Mahayana tradition, might seem superstitious, but embody important Buddhist truths and can be just as weird and cosmic as anything the universe has to offer. Further, belief is such beings is neither required nor expected. It is up to each person to adopt what they want. They are quite literally a form of expedient means.
Finally, when you look at the sheer vastness of space, it’s hard not feel small. But that is alright too. Buddhism thinks big, but also because everything is interconnected in some way, it assures that the choices we make, wholesome or unwholesome, do affect all other things. We can light one corner of the world (and universe) through our actions and our thoughts.
P.P.S. I’ve often wondered if the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas really do exist, would they be humanoids like us, or would they be strange aliens like in Star Trek? Would Amida Buddha’s original from be a green alien with four arms? 😋
Something I was thinking about lately while pondering this famous tale between 12th century Japanese monk, Honen, and a woman of the night. Honen’s advice to the woman was non-judgmental but a genuine concern for her well-being, and at the same time, it also acknowledged her circumstances.
Something I’ve always liked about the Pure Land Buddhist path is its openness. The light of Amida Buddha calls to all beings, regardless of their background and circumstances, or their accomplishments as Buddhists (or non-Buddhists) and unconditionally leads them to the Pure Land. How one interprets Amida, the Pure Land and such doesn’t really matter. What’s important is that Amida accepts all beings as they are, and leads them forward.
And so, when I was thinking about this, I realized that if Amida Buddha accepts you for who you are, then it makes sense to do the same.
Thinking about the woman of the night that Honen encountered, it made me realize that Pure Land Buddhism is a great expression of Buddhist metta, or goodwill.
This is not exclusive to Pure Land Buddhism, though. In Theravada Buddhism, there is the practice of metta meditation (separate from mindfulness meditation), and Zen similarly teaches contentment with oneself and the world around you. So, each tradition in Buddhism takes metta as a core teaching and find different ways to express and foster it.
The accessibility, simplicity and portability of Pure Land Buddhism makes it ideally suited for everyday folks. As a foundation, one can then explore other aspects of Buddhism, or be content with the nembutsu.
The Great Buddha of Kamakura statue (depicting Amida Buddha), taken in December 2022. I think my daughter might have snapped this photo, not me. I forget.
What’s important is that even if you are a crappy Buddhist, it’s OK. Obviously, like exercise and eating, Buddhist practice provides many positive benefits, so anything you can do, however often, is always worth the time and effort. However, if circumstances work against you, you do not need to punish yourself for your failings either. Like the woman of the night, sometimes life just gets in the way, but there’s no need to punish yourself for it. Amida Buddha’s light and goodwill extends to you just as it extends to others. Practice what you can, when you can, and Amida will guide you along the Buddhist path (via the Pure Land) somehow or some way.
Namu Amida Butsu
P.S. Featured photo is something I took at the Kyoto train station in summer 2023, part of a promotion to celebrate Honen’s 850th birthday. I always liked this poster, but couldn’t find a post I could work it into. 😅
Recently I talked about the Pure Land Buddhist tradition, and in particular the Three Pure Land Sutras that are central to the tradition.
But then I realized that I’ve never really explained who Amida (Amitabha) Buddha is. Now that the English language site for Jodo Shu has been retired, I wanted to fill in some gaps in information, and explain Amida Buddha’s significance to the Buddhist religion at large.
Who Is Amida?
Amida (阿弥陀) is short for Amitabha Buddha: the Buddha of Infinite Light. Sometiems he is called Amitayus: the Buddha of Infinite Life too.
Amida Buddha is a revered, almost timeless Buddha who is said to dwell “very far” to the west in a realm called Sukhavati, which people just call the Pure Land now.
A reproduction of the Taima Mandala, an 8th century tapestry in Japan depicting the Pure Land
The Pure Land is not to be confused with heaven. It is meant to be a peaceful, safe refuge that anyone can be reborn into. There, they can escape difficult situations of their life and be surrounded by many excellent Buddhist teachers. Even the very air and animals preach the Buddha-Dharma. Best of all, the sutras emphasize that one can be reborn there easily … if they so choose.
The vast light of Amida Buddha (hence “Buddha of Infinite Light”) reaches out in all directions of the cosmos providing comfort to those who encounter it, and inviting them to be reborn in the Pure Land.
“If, sentient beings encounter his light, their three defilements are removed; they feel tenderness, joy and pleasure; and good thoughts arise. If sentient beings in the three realms of suffering see his light, they will all be relieved and freed from affliction. At the end of their lives, they all reach emancipation.”
The Sutra of the Buddha of Immeasurable Life, translation by Rev Hisao Inagaki
As you can imagine, this Buddha and his promise to rescue all beings who wish to go to the Pure Land has been very attractive to people in difficult social circumstances, including women (who were thought spiritually inferior in those days), as well as the poor and illiterate who mostly toiled all day with no chance to invest in spiritual development.
However many monks devote at least part of their time and effort toward Amida as well. As a Buddhist tradition, devotion to Amida is very broad and includes many people.
Further, everyone has a slightly different idea on who Amida Buddha is, what the Pure Land really is and so on. This is fine, and there is no orthodox interpretation. Buddhism is more concerned with practice anyway, so how one interprets this tradition up to them.
Some people devote themselves fully to Amida Buddha, others venerate Amida Buddha as part of a larger. Again, it is up to the individual.
What Does Amida Look Like?
Amida Buddha is often depicted with gold color imagery, sometimes red. Compare with someone like the Medicine Buddha who is often depicted with lapis lazuli color (deep blue).
The gold color is based on the Pure Land Sutras that describe every person there, including the Buddha, as having gold-colored skin. Further, gold shines, so it fits the Buddha’s symbolism as a Buddha of light.
In some art, Amida is seated in meditation.
Amida Buddha statue at Sensoji (Asakusa Temple) in Tokyo, JapanAmida Buddha statue at Kamakura, Japan, also known as the Great Buddha (daibutsu) of Kamakura
In some art, Amida is standing, with his hands in specific gestures.
Amida Buddha welcoming the deceased, with his attendants, to the Pure Land. A medieval Japanese painting. A small home altar I purchased from Tsukiji Honganji in Tokyo about 10 years ago. A tiny, pocket image of Amida Buddha I purchased at Zojoji Temple near Tokyo Tower in Japan.
Buddhist statues are full of symbolism, they are not meant to be accurate portrayals. They are meant to convey meaning. The double-“OK” hand gestures used by Amida, one hand up, one hand down with palm up, means something like all beings are welcome.
Why Amida?
Someone learning about Buddhism will probably find this very confusing: why is there a “Buddhist Jesus” when the religion is supposed to be about meditation and finding enlightenment? Is this a sign of Buddhism’s decadence and decline?
Buddhism can be a tough religion to explain because it is really broad. Much broader than a “Buddhism for Dummies” type book can explain.
The historical founder, Shakyamuni Buddha, was like a doctor describing the state of things (e.g. the Dharma), and providing a “prescription” (e.g. Buddhist practice) to help cure the “ills” of the world.
But within that, Shakyamuni Buddha gave people a lot of autonomy. He described the world as like a river with two shores: one shore full of strife and dissatisfaction, the other peace and wellbeing. He described the need to build a raft to cross from one shore to the other. But how exactly to build that raft is up to you.
He held students, especially monks, to high standards of conduct, but as for putting teachings into practice he tailored different practices to different audiences, or to suit the person. Contrary to popular conception there are various forms of meditation taught even in the earliest traditions, not just mindfulness.
Mahayana Buddhism, one of two major branches of Buddhism really emphasizes this diversity of practices because it recognizes the concept of upaya (expedient means): whatever works at that time for that person and helps them stay in the Buddhist path is right for them.
It’s partly why there are so many Buddhist figures, so many chants and sutras, and so many different sects. Each of these represent a different “gate” for entering the Buddhist path.
Anyhow, the existence of Amida Buddha, along with other figures such as Kannon, helps fill in a gap where some Buddhist practices and regiments just aren’t practical for most people, and also provides a sense of assurance in an uncertain world (speaking from experience). Those who find the “mind-only” interpretation of Amida attractive can also take comfort that nurturing Amida Buddha in one’s own mind helps awaken the Buddha within. Further, a timeless Buddha like Amida avoids the challenges of the interpreting the historical Buddha, Shakyamuni, through various layers of culture and history.2
As Amida Buddha is a tradition within the larger tradition, some Buddhists gravitate toward Amida, and some do not. Each person according to their own path. Mahayana Buddhism is large enough to embrace them all.
Namu Amida Butsu
P.S. Featured photo is the famous “Black Amida” statue at Zojoji Temple near Tokyo Tower in Japan. This was the statue that was venerated by the Tokugawa Shoguns back in the day.
1 The use of light symbolism in Amida Buddha is thought to possibly borrow from Zoroastrianism, which is possible given the contacts between the Parthians and the Buddhist community. Light is central to Zoroastrianism, but not mentioned in early Buddhist culture. The concept of Amida Buddha is definitely Indian-Buddhist, but Buddhists in the northwest of India often borrowed artistic concepts from neighboring cultures. Another example is Greco-Buddhist art.
2 Early Mahayana Buddhism was a critic of the “pilgrimage” culture at the time in India, where there was increasing importance of the holy sites, and the holy relics of the historical Buddha. Mahayana shifted the emphasis toward the timeless Dharma, and Buddhas as embodying this Dharma.
It’s similar to how people in other religions split hairs over what the religious founder said, based on layers in interpretation, or how people try in vain to recreate the original community (again through layers and layers of interpretation).
While writing a recent blog post, I realized that I had mentioned, but never explained, what the Three Pure Land Sutras are in the Buddhist tradition, and their significance to Mahayana Buddhism as a whole.
Think of this as a handy reference post. I haven’t done one of these in a while. 😊
The Buddhist Canon
When you think of most world religions, they are usually based on one or two books. Christianity has the Bible (including both Old and New Testaments), Islam has the Qur’an plus Hadiths, and so on. Things get fuzzier with religions like Hinduism and Buddhism where they are not based on one or two books, but instead layers of texts written at different periods of time. Such religions have a kind of “accumulated” religious tradition.
As an organized religion, Buddhism begins and ends with the historical Buddha, Shakyamuni. His birth name is Siddhartha Gautama, but in the Buddhist tradition he is called “Shakyamuni”, or “Sage of the Shakya clan”.
Long story short, all Buddhist texts, called “sutras”, are considered sermons of Shakyamuni Buddha, passed down through the generations, first by word, and later written down. Modern historians question the historicity of this, since the very earliest sutras were recorded around 100 BC, 400 years after the Buddha lived. Also some sutras, especially those in the Mahayana Buddhist tradition, were definitely later compositions since they have a more narrative flow quite different from earlier ones.
Why did the early Mahayana Buddhist compose a new set of sutras? My personal guess is that these authors took fragments of early teachings and repackaged them in a more “hip” (relative to the times) and smoother format for easier distribution.
In any case, Buddhism doesn’t have a strict dependency on the sutras the way other religions might. The Dharma, the teachings of the Buddha, is more like the Laws of Physics: something all around us whether we believe it or not. Shakyamuni Buddha’s contribution was to both uncover the Dharma and articulate it. So, the sutras, as purported sermons of the Buddha, are our best guide to understanding the Dharma, but they have their limits.
Sutra Format
Buddhist sutras can be volumes long, or extremely short, very specific to a topic, or kind of general in their teachings. Many were composed in India to address specific audiences, while others were composed in China, but made to look like they were from India for authenticity. As the featured photo above shows, many sutras are preserved in Classical Chinese (not modern Chinese) instead of Sanskrit, despite originating from India. The sutra book above is from a Japanese temple, so each Chinese character includes pronunciation guides (furigana) for Japanese audiences.
Finally, because there are so many sutras, many Buddhist traditions tend to gravitate toward one sutra or set of sutras for their theological foundation. This is especially true in Mahayana Buddhism.
Mahayana Buddhism teaches the notion of “expedient means” (lit. Upaya in Sanskrit): this means that any and all of these sutras are suitable to someone somewhere for progressing along the Buddhist path. “Different strokes for different folks”.1 Mahayana Buddhism is (speaking frankly) broad and messy, but it also strives to be as accessible as possible to a variety of people since one of its founding tenets is that all beings are capable of enlightenment. They just each start from different circumstances.
As we say in the US: go big or go home. 😁🇺🇸
Sutras of the Pure Land Tradition
The Pure Land Buddhist tradition is probably one of the largest, if not the largest in East Asian Buddhism, but it’s not a single sect or school. It is a loose network of traditions across several countries, from Tibet to Japan, all centered around three key sutras and devotion to Amitabha Buddha, the Buddha of Infinite Light. Professor Charles B Jones compared it to the tradition in Catholicism venerating the Virgin Mary within the larger Christian tradition: some Christians do, some do not. In the same way, some Buddhists are devoted to the Buddha of Infinite Light, and some are not.
In any case, across all Pure Land traditions, the primary textual sources are called the Three Pure Land Sutras. In short, they are:
Sutra Name (English)
Sanskrit
Chinese (and pinyin)
Likely Country of Origin
Immeasurable Life Sutra
Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra, longer version
佛說無量壽經 (Fó shuō wú liàng shòu jīng)
India, before 2nd century
Amitabha Sutra
Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra, shorter version
佛說阿彌陀經 (Fó shuō Ā mí tuó jīng)
India, before 4th century
Contemplation Sutra
Amitāyurdhyāna Sūtra
佛說觀無量壽佛經 (Fó shuō guān wú liàng shòu fó jīng)
China, possibly 4th century
Note that many other sutras mention or focus on Amitabha Buddha too, but the three above are the primary sources.
Let’s look at each one individually…
The Immeasurable Life Sutra
This sutra, known more formally as The Sutra of the Buddha of Immeasurable Life, is the oldest and longest of the three. In English, it would probably take about 2 hours to read, so it’s not short, but not a tome like the Lotus Sutra either.
The general format is (in order):
A long preamble about the progress of a Bodhisattva to full Buddhahood (patterned from Shakyamuni’s life)
The origin of Amitabha Buddha, and his 48 vows to help all beings
The virtues of Amitabha Buddha, and benefits of those who encounter his light
Why someone would want to be reborn in his Pure Land, and the three grades of people reborn there
Contrasting this world with the Pure Land (spoiler: our world sucks)
General Buddhist exposition about the hassles of this life (again, trying to emphasize the Pure Land)
Admonition by Shakyamuni Buddha to be reborn there
What’s interesting about the Immeasurable Life Sutra is that it’s a fairly good primer, covering many general Buddhist subjects, from a Mahayana-Buddhist perspective, while also explaining in detail who Amitabha Buddha is, and why the Pure Land is a worthwhile goal.
Sometimes I still find little hidden gems in there when I read it.
Note, for ritual and chanting, the sutra is much too long to chant, so people often chant key sections, for example the Shiseige in Japanese-Buddhist traditions. The featured photo above is part of the Immeasurable Life Sutra.
The Amitabha Sutra
The Amitabha Sutra, known by the more clunky name Shorter Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra, is by far the shortest and simplest of the three Pure Land sutras. It is not quite as short as the Heart Sutra (it takes about 10 minutes to recite/chant compared to the Heart Sutra which takes 1-2 minutes), but it is often chanted as a whole.
The Amitabha Sutra condenses many things about the Immeasurable Life Sutra into a much simpler and shorter narrative, mostly describing the wonder of the Pure Land of Amitabha Buddha. and why one would want to be reborn there:
The land is very beautiful and safe, with nothing to fear. It reflects Amitabha Buddha’s goodwill toward all beings.
The land is very conducive to Buddhist practice since everything there relates to Buddhism somehow, even the birds singing, or the wind blowing.
You will be in the presence of a great many teachers, Bodhisattvas, and even the Buddha Amitabha himself.
From there, the sutra lists many, many Buddhas who attest to the Pure Land, and reiterate that it’s worth being reborn there.
Finally the sutra states that one can be reborn there by simply being mindful of the Buddha.
The Contemplation Sutra
The Contemplation Sutra, also known as the The Sutra on the Contemplation of the Buddha of Immeasurable Life, is the newest sutra, and believed to have been composed in China, not India. It is the most “visual” of the three sutras since it describes a long, complex meditation exercise one can do to be reborn in the Pure Land of Amitabha Buddha. The sutra starts with a story about the Buddha (Shakyamuni) helping Queen Vaidehi who is in prison due to her son’s treachery. She wants to escape this world of misery, and so the Buddha teaches her the following visualization exercises, which are meant to be done in order:
Oneself being reborn in the Pure Land in a lotus bud
Visualizing the Buddha Amitabha in a specific way, leading beings to the Pure Land
Rebirth in the Pure Land for those of superior grade
Rebirth in the Pure Land for those of middle grade
Rebirth in the Pure Land for those of lower grade
Because the visualization exercises listed in the sutra are so detailed, they have often been depicted in Buddhist artwork such as the Taima Mandala.
Significance
Of course the Three Pure Land Sutras are important to the Pure Land tradition, but they are also influential in other Buddhist traditions, and also in Buddhist art and culture in the medieval period. Even today in various communities, people relive the origin story of Amitabha Buddha in chanting and liturgy, and art related to the Pure Land still persist in such things as video games and other media. It has greatly influenced East Asian Buddhism and continues to influence Buddhism at large.
I like the Immeasurable Life Sutra in particular, and every once in a while like to read through it again. I suppose it’s my “go to” sutra.
Namu Amida Butsu
1 This is does not mean an “anything goes” approach to Buddhism, of course. Stories of “crazy wisdom” and other such things are exaggerated and rarely practiced in Buddhism. Instead, teachings such as the The Four Dharma Seals provide a theological “anchor”, as well as the Buddhist tradition. Not everyone may like the idea of following a religion tradition, but as with any long tradition, it has the benefit of collective experience across generations, so long as we are not overly bound to it.
Usually I don’t like to talk about my personal life, especially work,1 but this past week or two has been pretty rough. I’ve been working with another team on a project, and I found out recently that the manager of that project was unhappy with me, and complained to my own manager. Further, the same manager made an under-handed comment during a meeting yesterday, almost certainly aimed at me, rubbing salt on the wound.
My own manager has done his best to be supportive, but I can’t lie, getting criticized really stings, especially given all I’ve done for that team in the past.
In the last 24 hours, I went through a range of emotions: rage, revenge, quitting the job entirely, then despair because I need the job, etc. The fact is is that a steady, secure income is hard to come by these days, and as the sole bread-winner of a family, I have to be extra mindful of where I go, and sometimes have to just “suck it up” to provide for my family. I am certain I am not the only person who is in this bind, either. Each time we get up and head to work, we are forced to “sing for our bread” whether we want to or not. Capitalism sucks.
Even a Buddhist text near and dear to my heart, the Larger Sutra of Immeasurable Life2 (link and link), composed more than 2,000 years ago, touches on this:
But in this world [as opposed to the Pure Land of the Buddha] much evil is committed, and few are provided for naturally; people must work hard to get what they want. Since they intend to deceive each other, their minds are troubled, their bodies exhausted, and they drink bitterness and eat hardship.
Translation by Rev. Hisao Inagaki
So, yeah, as Office Space rightly said: work sucks, and yet we have to put up with it to survive.3
But the sting to my pride, coupled with the fact that I have to suck it up and continue to work with this person for the forseeable future makes me feel rotten. I do it for the sake of my kids and wife, but it still makes me feel rotten inside.
So, I started thinking about things like the Eight Winds of Buddhism, and the story of Hakuin the 18th century Zen master in Japan who was unfairly blamed for something but shrugged it off anyway, or the story of the tsunami and the Zen master. In each case, the lesson is to not get hung up on one’s reputation, and gain freedom in the process. This makes sense, but is a lot harder to implement in practice.
I suppose in a more Pure Land Buddhist, less Zen Buddhist context, the goodwill of Amida Buddha extends to all beings equallyregardless of their character. Even if the world finds fault in you, Amida Buddha extends his goodwill nonetheless. The Eight Winds may blow this way and that, but it doesn’t matter. No need to get hung up on perfection, or criticizing yourself. In the end, you will be fine.
Namu Amida Butsu
P.S. Another thing I forgot to mention is that regardless of Buddhist sect or practice, it never hurts to stop and contemplate goodwill in Buddhism. You don’t have to like the other person, but you can extend a sense of goodwill toward them.
P.P.S. The oppressiveness of the working class isn’t necessarily limited to modern capitalist societies. Back in the Hellenistic Period of history, the Ptolemaic dynasty in Egypt was known for their oppressive bureacracy too:
1 Folks might be surprised where I currently work, but it’s definitely unrelated to my blog in every respect. Plus, it’s generally best not to mix the two.
2 This sutra is also known by various other names: the Larger Sutra, the Immeasurable Life Sutra, the Longer Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra, and so on. More on the Pure Land Buddhist canon here.
3 There are limits though. If someone is subject to harassment, intimidation or discrimination, that’s when the environment is simply too toxic. No amount of patience can fix that. It will erode one’s mental health. If you are in this situation, please do not think “sucking it up” will make it better. Sometimes a change in environment is the best thing you can do for yourself. At the very least, talk to someone you trust, preferably outside of work.
Just prior to my trip to Japan this summer, I found this essay in Japanese by a Jodo Shu-sect Buddhist temple, but since we were leaving imminently, and the return back was so hectic, I never had a chance to talk about this. So, this post had been sitting in draft for months. 😅
The article is written in Japanese, but you can read the Google translation here. This article talks about a Jodo Shu concept, called shiraki nembutsu (白木念仏) or “unvarnished nembutsu”. I’ve talked about this concept before, but modern discussions of it are less common than analysis of old essays from early Jodo Shu masters. It was nice to find a modern essay about this.
Normally, the idea of “accepting things as they are” is something you might normally equate with Zen Buddhism, but the concept is not exclusive to Zen, and is found across all Buddhist traditions in some form or another, even something faith-based like Pure Land Buddhism.
Since all things come into this world through various and complex causes and conditions, every living being is unique in some way, with unique traits (for better or for worse). Learning to accept all such things as they are, warts and all, is part of the Buddhist path. Learning to accept yourself as you are, warts and all, is also part of the Buddhist path.
Gleanings in Buddha-Fields 
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