龍舒增廣淨土文

The World of Ultimate Bliss, though it lies beyond a million worlds from this realm. To speak of its history, no words could exhaust how far it is. Yet to speak of the Wisdom-nature of the Buddha, because it pervades all space and worlds, there is no place where it is not present; therefore the mind, thoughts, conduct, and movements of all sentient beings are all within the Buddha-nature. Thus for one whose mind is wholehearted and earnest, there is not a single matter that fails to bring a response; therefore this volume is titled "RESPONSE IN THE PRESENT LIFE."

WITNESSING THE KILLING OF LIVING BEINGS, RECITING THE BUDDHA'S NAME, GAINING BLESSINGS

In the collection of Quan Âm (Avalokiteśvara) Responses, it is recorded that in the land of Nhiêu Châu, among the soldiers there was a man named Trịnh Lân. When he died and arrived in the underworld, King Yama examined the registers and verified, and because he had been seized by mistake, released him to return. King Yama said: "When you return to the world of men, strive to do good.

When you see anyone killing living beings, you must recite the name of Amitābha Buddha together with the Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara (Quan Thế Âm); that creature will be reborn, you too will gain great blessings, and you will also in part help me, sparing me the trouble of punishing the wicked." From this, upon careful reflection, it is fully seen that one who recites the name of Amitābha Buddha has not only liberated the deceased but also increased blessings and longevity; not only that, but his body in the next life will also be born in the Western Land.

MR. TRẦN KHÍ RECITES THE BUDDHA'S NAME AND DRIVES AWAY A GHOST

Mr. Vương Nhựt Hưu said: Mr. Trần Khí of the land of Vọng Giang was a man of the same district as me, who often killed and wronged the lives of men. Afterward he saw a ghost appear. Khí was terrified and hurriedly recited the name of Amitābha Buddha, and the ghost dared not draw near. Trần Khí recited the Buddha's name without ceasing, and the ghost then no longer appeared. Afterward he often recited the Buddha's name, and at the time of his death he passed away sitting upright.

Half a year later, he possessed his granddaughter named Diệu Quang in the household, saying: "By reciting the name of Amitābha Buddha, I have been born into the World of Ultimate Bliss." Her movements and speech were just as when he was alive; relatives and acquaintances all came to visit, for two or three days.

The members of the family said: "It is a pity that while he was alive, we could not paint his portrait to enshrine for veneration." When Trần Khí heard this, he immediately manifested his original form just as when he was alive, but his countenance was somewhat more youthful and fresh. For those born in the Western Land live on forever without dying; the hair of his head was like the hair of the Buddha—indeed this man was already near to becoming a Buddha.

This account was related to me by the scholar of the land of Vọng Giang, Mr. Châu Hiến Thúc.

TRƯU TÂN VƯƠNG RECITES THE BUDDHA'S NAME AND IS AWAKENED FROM A DREAM

Mr. Vương Nhựt Hưu said: I once exhorted a scholar of the land of Trấn Giang, Mr. Trưu Tân Vương, expounding the cultivation of the Western Land.

I said: "If you have no leisure, then each early morning simply join your palms, turn your face toward the West, and recite 'Namo Amitābha Buddha' ten times—that too will suffice."

Tân Vương believed this. One day he lay down and dreamed, seeing himself together with a scholar, being led to the execution ground. Tân Vương, in the midst of his terror, immediately recited the name of Amitābha Buddha ten times, whereupon he awoke.

Is this not the Buddha making use of this to render that man's faith firm and steadfast?

TRƯƠNG KẾ TỔ RECITES THE BUDDHA'S NAME TO DELIVER THE DECEASED

Mr. Vương Nhựt Hưu said: I once spoke with a scholar of the land of Trấn Giang, Mr. Trương Kế Tổ, about the matter of the Western Land. Kế Tổ believed this. His wet-nurse died, and he often recited the name of Amitābha Buddha on her behalf to deliver her.

One day he lay down and dreamed, seeing his wet-nurse return, having borrowed a White Diệp robe to wear, coming to thank Kế Tổ and bid farewell as she departed for the Western Land.

From this it should be known that the method of reciting the Buddha's name to deliver the deceased is truly most efficacious.

LƯU HUỆ TRỌNG RECITES THE BUDDHA'S NAME AND SLEEPS PEACEFULLY

Mr. Vương Nhựt Hưu said: Mr. Lưu Huệ Trọng was a knowledgeable friend of mine in former days, a man of Trường Hưng village in Hồ Châu district. Because each night he dreamed and was often frightened, I exhorted him to recite the name of Amitābha Buddha.

Huệ Trọng wholeheartedly and aloud recited it 108 times, and that night he then slept peacefully. The following day he also recited as on the previous day, and from then on he was always able to sleep peacefully. From this I see that the Buddha's power is vast and great, with no place that He does not shelter.

This account I have already set forth in the previous volume, in the passage on reciting the Buddha's name for "tranquility of body and form."

LADY NGUYỄN TẨU RECITES THE BUDDHA'S NAME AND HER EYES GROW BRIGHT

Mr. Vương Nhựt Hưu said: There was a Lady Nguyễn Niệm Tam Tẩu in Điền Trang province, Hoài Ninh county, of the same district as me, whose two eyes ached and were nearly blind. She often recited the name of Amitābha Buddha, and her eyes grew bright again.

This account I myself witnessed.

KING YAMA EXHORTS LADY TƯƠNG TO RECITE THE BUDDHA'S NAME

In the land of Trấn Giang, Kim Đàng county, Chu Lâm village, there was a Lady Tương Bà, about 70 years of age, who died and arrived in the underworld; but her allotted lifespan was not yet exhausted, and King Yama allowed her to return, asking: "Do you recite the sūtras?" She replied: "I cannot recite them."

The King said: "If you cannot recite the sūtras, then you may simply recite the name of Amitābha Buddha—that too will do."

Having been released to return, Lady Tương Bà then recounted: "King Yama taught me to recite the Buddha's name; I no longer have any doubt." Therefore she often recited this name of the Buddha, until near one hundred and twenty years of age she passed away.

That she was born in the Pure Land is certainly determined. Is it not because she recited the Buddha's name that she also lived so long? If it were not so, then for what reason was she able to live so long?

This account was related to me by the scholar of Kim Đàng county, Mr. Trương Duyên Chi.

THIỆU THE PACIFICATION COMMISSIONER RECITES THE BUDDHA'S NAME AND ESCAPES CALAMITY

In the land of Tấn Giang, there was Mr. Thiệu Bưu, styled Hi Văn. While still a student, one day he lay down and dreamed, seeing himself going to a certain government office where everyone called him the Pacification Commissioner (An phủ).

Thiệu Bưu rejoiced to himself and said: "Is this omen not a sign that I shall pass the examination and shall receive the office of Pacification Commissioner?" Then he went forward and saw an official who asked: "Do you know the reason why you have not yet passed your examination?" He replied: "I do not know." That official sent a man to lead Thiệu Bưu to look, and he saw a great cauldron boiling clams and snails. The clams and snails could speak human words, and seeing Thiệu Bưu pass by, they cried out: "Thiệu Bưu!" Bưu was frightened and then recited the name of Amitābha Buddha; he had recited but a single utterance when the clams and snails transformed into golden sparrows (sparrows) and flew away.

Indeed, afterward Thiệu Bưu passed the examination at a high rank and served as an official up to the post of Pacification Commissioner. From this it is seen that the killing of living beings blocks the road that lies ahead of a person—how can one not take warning! Again it is seen that the Buddha's power is vast and great—how can one not revere it! Official rank has its own appointed lot—it cannot be obtained by craving and seeking.

RECITING THE BUDDHA'S NAME, THE WIND-DISEASE DOES NOT ARISE

Mr. Vương Nhựt Hưu said: I took passage on another's boat, and as we drew near the middle of the river, in the land of Trấn Giang, the water grew shallow and we could go no further; so we put in at Kim Sơn Temple and borrowed four sets of sūtras, that is, the Amitābha Sūtra.

I wished to compare and correct them and carve the woodblocks to spread them widely. When I held the brush, my right hand had wind-disease; several fingers trembled continuously and I could not write the characters. I then raised my fingers and recited the names of Amitābha Buddha and Avalokiteśvara (Quan Thế Âm) several times, earnestly praying that I might be rid of this wind-disease, so as to finish writing out this set of sūtras.

When the prayer-vow was finished, my fingers immediately ceased trembling, and even unto its completion the volume gave no pain. From this it is seen that the Buddha and the Bodhisattva are indeed ever before one's face; it is only that people's faith is not wholehearted and earnest.

IN A DREAM RECITING THE BUDDHA'S NAME AND ESCAPING TERROR

Mr. Vương Nhựt Hưu said: When I am in the midst of dreams and delusion, there are times I am frightened; I recite the names of Amitābha Buddha and the Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara (Quan Thế Âm), and there has never been a time when I did not attain peace and security, or sometimes immediately awoke.

This fully shows how swift is the awesome divine power of the Buddha and the Bodhisattva. For those who possess faith, the place of efficacious response—how could He fail to attest to it?

RECITING THE BUDDHA'S NAME, THE HOUSE DOES NOT CRUSH HER TO DEATH

There was an old woman blind in both eyes, who hired a young boy to lead her along, and who often recited the name of Amitābha Buddha. One day she was resting in an old house when the house suddenly collapsed. The boy fled, but the old woman remained inside. There happened to be two beams that propped against each other, supporting the area above the old woman so that she was spared from being crushed to death. Thus the method of reciting the Buddha's name is most efficacious in this way.

This account was related to me by the layman Diệu Định.

RECITING THE BUDDHA'S NAME, THE MALARIA-FEVER IS HEALED

There was a Yuanquan official (Viên quan) named Lý Tử Thanh, residing in the land of Tú Châu, who was fond of and admired the Taoist path of the immortals, and who often studied the Buddha-dharma with me (Vương Nhựt Hưu). Some years ago he contracted the malaria-fever disease, and I said: "I only fear that your heart does not believe; if you believe in it, the disease will surely be healed."

I handed him a medicinal prescription, instructing that when the hour of the disease's onset came, he should concentrate his mind and recite "Amitābha Buddha," and then drink this medicine. Mr. Tử Thanh heeded these words and did accordingly; that day the disease abated by eight tenths, the next day it again abated by eight tenths, and thus until the final day, when he was healed and well. From then on Mr. Tử Thanh greatly believed in the Buddhist principle, and he often kept a Pure Land text within his sleeve, carrying it about to recite.

AN EMBROIDERED IMAGE OF THE BUDDHA OFTEN HAS RELICS

Mr. Chung Ly Trạch, who held the office of Junior Preceptor (Thiếu sư) in the land of Chân Châu, had his wife Lady Nhậm, who cultivated the Western Land, carve an image of Amitābha Buddha, four inches and eight tenths in height, made into a shrine very finely carved and adorned. Wherever she went, she often carried it upon her head to behold and venerate. That image, from between its brows, often poured forth jeweled relics (Xá lợi / śarīra), as large as grains of rice, their radiance shining brilliantly.

This account is drawn from the collection Bửu Châu (Jeweled Pearl).

DREAMING OF THE BUDDHA AND THEREUPON ATTAINING ELOQUENT DISCERNMENT

In the time of the Sui dynasty, Chan Master Huệ Tư, because in a dream he saw Amitābha Buddha expound the Dharma for him to hear—afterward he was more eloquent and discerning than other men, and auspicious signs were not few.

This account is drawn from the Biographies of Rebirth (Vãng sinh).

RECITING THE BUDDHA'S NAME TO TREAT DISEASE AND BE HEALED

In recent years in the land of Tú Châu there was a master who often recited the name of Amitābha Buddha, and who treated disease for people. When someone who was ill invited him to come and recite the Buddha's name, they often were healed and made well. The people of the region of Tú Châu all praised him.

RECITING THE BUDDHA'S NAME, THE GRANDSON ESCAPES CALAMITY

Mr. Vương Nhựt Hưu said: In my village there was an old man who, whenever anything happened, would join his palms and wholeheartedly recite the name of Amitābha Buddha.

His grandson was just three years of age. Following his mother to the fields, he suddenly vanished. The old man searched and inquired but did not find him; after a few days someone informed him, saying: "I saw the footprints of the young child out by that stream!"

Indeed, going out there to search, they found him, and saw footprints filling the entire bank. It is not known by what reason that stream was very deep, yet this young child was able to cross to the other side, and for so long without any harm.

People said this was because his grandfather had a wholehearted, sincere mind in reciting the name of Amitābha Buddha, and thus was able to evoke such a blessed fruit.

SECTION OF PERSONAL DISCOURSE

In truth, the Buddha-dharma is a truth that one must experience for oneself; on the other hand, thinking and understanding are not yet truly on the right path, when one's observation is not penetrating.

With regard to daily life, what does the Buddha-dharma exhort us to do?

We should harmonize the practical, real life with the ideal of altruism, bring conduct and thought into accord, reject all things that are contradictory, and deeply empathize with and comprehend the fixed principle of impermanence of all dharmas.

In sum: direct one's life according to the example of the Buddha, and strive to escape the cycle of birth and death and saṃsāra.

NAMO FUNDAMENTAL TEACHER ŚĀKYAMUNI BUDDHA

END OF VOLUME EIGHT