Pure Land Buddhism

Across many centuries and many countries, Buddhism has adapted to different cultures and different needs of very different people, creating a rich heritage of art, ritual, teaching, and ethics. Such diversity within the Buddhist tradition, so much so that people sometimes speak of different "Buddhisms," is made possible by the Buddha's teaching of "skillful means," that is, adapting the message (the "Dharma") to the circumstances of the people, as they are, and where they are.

The Buddha most dramatically taught the concept of "skillful means" in the Lotus Sutra, when he told of a man trying to persuade his children to leave a burning building, where they were happily playing. (Of course, this is a parable. In real life, the father most likely would have entered the building to rescue them.)
Finally, he told them a lie, that he had some beautiful carts, drawn by magnificent animals, and he encouraged them to come out to ride in the carts. They did, and so, they were saved. The father rejoiced, and the Buddha commended his behavior, although technically, he violated the precept (code of behavior) about telling falsehoods.

So, the history of Buddhism is largely untouched by the sectarian violence found in other religions. A Buddhist will rarely try to argue that one form of Buddhism is superior to another, just more appropriate at the time and place.

Pure Land Buddhism comes as a surprise to many non-Buddhists, although it is one of the most widely practiced forms of Buddhism in the world today. It is a Buddhism based on faith, faith in Amitabha Buddha. "Buddha," it must be remembered, is not a person's name. Instead it is a title, given to those rare beings who attain Buddhahood and teach what they have learned by such attainment to the rest of us.

So, Siddhartha Gautama, who lived in India over twenty-five centuries ago, is not the only Buddha, just the latest in a long line of Buddhas, and he is not the last. Maitreya Buddha will be the next Buddha. Amitbha Buddha is a very ancient Buddha of whom we have no historical record (and so, he is referred to as one of the a-historical, or non-historical, Buddhas). These Buddhas, and all the others, share the same reality... and so do we.

This ancient Buddha created and rules a "pure land," where people can more freely advance along the Buddhist path of wisdom toward Buddhahood. The goal of Pure Land believers is to be reborn in Amitabha's Pure Land. There, in more favorable surroundings, in the presence of Amitabha, they will eventually attain complete enlightenment. In the Pure Land, people are free from sickness and age, from all suffering and death. Even birth itself is not the result of painful labor. Those who come to the Pure Land do so by being born from lotus flowers. It is not a heaven or a paradise, an end in itself. Once there, however, they cannot fall back in the great scheme of birth and rebirth. In Western terms, the Pure Land is a sort of graduate school, the last step before final graduation, in Buddhist terms, Nirvana.

The Pure Land is a land of beauty and music, a land of no extremes (for instance, of cold and heat). Anger, ignorance, and other characteristics of the human condition are not found in the Pure Land. Instead of find distractions to their progress along the Buddhist path of wisdom, those in the Pure Land find that even the trees and the birds show forth the teachings.

The basic practice of Pure Land Buddhists is calling on the name of Amitabha Buddha, visualizing him, and taking vows to be born into the Pure Land. Calling on or reciting the name of Amitabha Buddha is the most basic and characteristic practice of Pure Land Buddhists. Repeating the name of Amitabha Buddha keeps him and his infinite light and infinite life in our remembrance. With confidence or faith in Amitabha's promises to deliver all those who call on his name, Pure Land Buddhists of all cultures and countries, through no power of their own, believe that they will be reborn in Amitabha's Pure Land, not through their own merit but through concentration on and faith in Amitabha Buddha.

Vowing to be reborn in the Pure Land means that you focus your efforts on that goal. Like the basic Buddhist initiation of "taking refuge,"
making vows affirms that you see yourself as something more than just as who you are in this time and space. This life, right now, has value only as a path to something greater.

One way to progress along the path is through Buddha-name recitation, whispered, thought, or chanted aloud. As you recite the name ("Amitabha, Amitabha, Amitabha..."), you may visualize Amitabha. You may reflect on the transcendent idea of Buddha-reality that underlies all the Buddhas. In other words, Buddha-name recitation is not simply mechanical repetition of a name. It is a meditation practice, a way to focus on Amitabha, not only on his nature but also on his promises. Buddha-name recitation leads to mental acuity. As your concentration on Amitabha strengthens, distractions to your purpose fall away. Some say that you realize the Pure Land here and now.

You escape the laws of cause and effect, perception and action, known as karma, because with rebirth into the Pure Land, you escape the accumulations of lifetimes of experience. Yet, Pure Land Buddhists teach the basic Buddhist ethical codes: not to steal, kill, lie, or indulge in sexual excess or intoxicants.
Pure Land Buddhists believe that Buddha-name recitation is a skillful means appropriate for anyone. It is not so much that it is easy, easier than other Buddhist practices, just that it is more appropriate. And since concentration on Amitabha focuses the mind, Buddha-name recitation leads one to the same goal as does Zen Buddhism. Although Pure Land Buddhists accept Zen as valid, they believe it is too demanding for most people. "With Zen, nine out of ten fail," a Pure Land teacher claimed. "With Pure Land, ten thousand out of ten thousand succeed."

Buddha-name recitation makes it possible for everyone to be reborn in the Pure Land, saints and sinners, teachers and criminals, alike. Amitabha Buddha has vowed to welcome them all into his Pure Land, if they simply call on his name.

The basic teachings of Pure Land Buddhism are the Amitabha Sutra, the Contemplation of Amitabha Sutra, and the Sutra of Infinite Life. Many beautiful Pure Land chants are available for free download in MP3 format here. Typically, Pure Land Buddhists greet and take leave of one another by a reminder of the Buddha upon whom they depend: Namo Amitabha Buddha. Self-power fades, as one turns to the power of the Other, Amitabha Buddha.