Amitabha Buddha

When one walks into the main hall of a Buddhist temple in Taiwan, one can often find three statues of different buddhas sitting on the altar. The one to the left is Amitabha Buddha from the Western Pure Land, the one sitting in the center is the founder of Buddhism in this world, Sakyamuni Buddha, and the last one, on the right, is the Medicine Buddha. The Medicine Buddha is also well known in Buddhism, but the concept of going to the Pure Land of Amitabha Buddha after death is very widespread. Therefore, statues of the Medicine Buddha are not as common as those of Amitabha buddha, and the concept of being reborn in the Pure Land of the Medicine Buddha is also less widely accepted, even though it is clearly written in a sutra that any person may also choose to go there after death.

From reading our magazines and books, the reader may have discovered one thing: words like "Amitabha" and "Amitabha Buddha" keep appearing in many places, such as at the beginning of Master Cheng Yen's speeches or when Tzu Chi members pray for the deceased.

Who or what is this "Amitabha?" It is the name of a buddha who now resides in a place called the Western Pure Land, which is thousands of light-years to the west of our world. In a situation like a speech by the Master, the name is used as a greeting, but when it is used to pray for the deceased, it asks this compassionate buddha to bring the deceased to his Pure Land to enjoy eternal peace.

What is a buddha? "Buddha" is a Sanskrit term meaning "enlightened." The word usually refers to a person who is enlightened and who has the greatest compassion and wisdom. Any person can carry out his or her own spiritual formation and eventually become a buddha. However, it is not easy to attain the buddhahood, because a person needs to get rid of all shortcomings such as greed, anger, doubt, arrogance, etc. At the same time, the practitioner should also cultivate merits, compassion and wisdom from studying and interacting with events and people around him. It takes three mahakalpas (a mahakalpa is 1,334,000,000 years) to become a buddha. That is why buddhas are very rare. However, it is also why there is more than one buddha.

In the main halls of many Taiwanese Buddhist temples, the statues of Amitabha Buddha, Sakyamuni Buddha and the Medicine Buddha are often seen together, placed from left to right. Although Sakyamuni Buddha has passed away, many Chinese Buddhists believe that the Medicine Buddha helps us with our current lives and Amitabha Buddha guides us to his Pure Land after we pass away.

We can vow to go to any buddha's Pure Land after death, including that of the Medicine Buddha or any other buddha. However, the concept of being reborn in Amitabha Buddha's Pure Land has been deeply rooted in Chinese Buddhism for centuries. The Pure Land sect of Buddhism focuses on constantly reciting Amitabha Buddha's name. The reason? People believe that they can go to his Pure Land much more easily if they obtain the buddha's power by simply reciting his name. Furthermore, the buddha can help people to do spiritual formation much faster than they can by themselves.

The Sanskrit word "Amitabha" originally has the meanings of "infinite light" and "infinite life." It is said that Amitabha Buddha was a king many eons ago. One day, he came upon a buddha named Lokesvararaja and the king was exuberant at hearing this buddha's lecture. He gave up his crown and became a monk named Fa Tsang. Fa Tsang then made forty-eight vows concerning his attainment of buddhahood and his Pure Land. These vows included such things as his determination not to attain the buddhahood if anyone who vowed to be reborn in his land failed to do so, or if other buddhas could not praise him.

It is possible for even a criminal to go to the Pure Land, since any buddha will always care for and accept anyone who comes to him. A buddha does not discriminate against any person based on his past life or background. If this person is willing to believe in the buddha, accept his teachings completely and do good deeds from that moment on, the buddha will receive this person. We must not forget that compassion is one of the most important principles of Buddhism. Being compassionate to all types of people, even criminals is what makes a buddha a buddha.

However, we must not forget another important Buddhist concept: karma. According to the definition given by Soothill and Hodous, karma is explained as a "moral action which causes future retribution, and either good or evil transmigration. It is also that moral kernel in each being which survives death for further rebirth or metempsychosis." (William Edward Soothill and Lewis Hodous, A Dictionary of Chinese Buddhist Terms. Rev. by Shih Sheng-kang et al. 2nd ed. Taipei: Fo Kuang Publishing House, 1994. P.403.) In Buddhism, there is a famous saying : "When a person dies, nothing but karma will follow him." How a person will live his next life or which of the Six Destinies he will go to depends entirely on his karma, or what he has done in this life. When one has done a lot of good deeds, one will live a better life as a human being or even ascend to heaven. When one has done a lot of bad deeds, on the other hand, one will live badly or poorly, or even descend to the realms of hell, hungry ghosts or animals.

Although even criminals can repent of their crimes and be reborn in the Pure Land of Amitabha Buddha, their karma will affect their rebirth there. It says in the Sutra on Contemplating the Buddha of Infinite Age that there are three grades of rebirth in the Western Pure Land, and each grade is subdivided into three levels. Rebirth in these levels is firmly rooted in one's karma: the better the karma, the higher the level and the sooner one can see the buddha and hear his lectures. The reader may question here the sincerity of Amitabha Buddha in creating different levels in his Pure Land. Actually, we should regard this as being the best for the people who are reborn there. There are all types of people, and they all have different types of intelligence and different abilities to comprehend the buddha's teachings. Each level is like a different school for the appropriate people to enter, so that they can understand the teachings according to their intelligence and "graduate" by becoming enlightened.

People who can be reborn in the high grade of the Pure Land are ones who truly believe in Buddhism, who have great compassion and abide by all the precepts, and who vow to attain nirvana. They comprehend the meaning of all the sutras and believe in the law of cause and effect. When they die, these people will be instantly transported to the Pure Land in treasured lotus flower seats. When they arrive, Amitabha Buddha and all the residents of the Pure Land will come to greet them. They will see the buddha and all the bodhisattvas and hear their lectures. Depending on their karma, they may attain enlightenment instantly, or they may have to wait for up to three small kalpas (one small kalpa equals 16,800,000 years). They will also go to the Pure Lands of other buddhas, who will tell them when they will become buddhas themselves and what their names will be.

People in the middle grade of rebirth in the Western Pure Land are those who abide by all the precepts and who do not commit any of the Five Extreme Evils (killing one's father, one's mother, an arhat or a bodhisattva, creating disharmony in the Buddhist order, or shedding a buddha's blood) or any other sins. At the very least, they are good people who take care of their parents and do good deeds in their lives. When they die, they will be transported to the Pure Land in lotus flowers, which may take up to seven days to unfold. Amitabha Buddha and all the monks will come to greet them. They will hear lectures on the Four Noble Truths and will attain the first stage towards arhathood. Depending on their karma, they may take up to a kalpa to become arhats. They will realize their past, present and future and will attain all the supernatural powers.

People in the low grade may break the Buddhist precepts and commit evil deeds but they do not slander the Buddhist sutras. When they are dying, the fire of hell will appear, ready to engulf them, but they will meet knowledgeable persons who will teach them to fold their hands and chant "Amitabha Buddha," which will remove the majority of their sins. They will then ride in lotus flowers to the Pure Land. Depending on their karma, the flowers will take anywhere from forty-nine days to twelve kalpas to unfold. The Great Compassion and Great Power Bodhisattvas will appear before them and lecture on all the sutras and methods of repentance. They will vow to attain enlightenment.

Thus, a person's devotion to Buddhism, diligence, wisdom and past deeds determine which grade he may be reborn in and how long it will take to attain enlightenment. It is like two people going to school: one works hard and soon finishes his schooling, but the other is lazy and takes longer to graduate. Hence, if you are interested in going to the Pure Land of the Amitabha Buddha after you pass away, you must consider now which level you may go to, because the longer you have to wait in the lotus flower seat, the more the time you will waste before attaining the buddhahood.

We said that people of the low grade can go to the buddha's land when they call out his name on their deathbeds. Thus, some people may even think that they can do all kinds of evil deeds now and then when they are about to die, they can chant the buddha's name and head for paradise. Is it really that easy? No. We must realize that the Pure Land is not a hideout for criminals. It's a place for people who are good or have become good. When we chant the buddha's name, we must concentrate wholeheartedly on it. We can't think about what we are going to eat tonight or where we will go shopping. It is not easy to chant the buddha's name attentively and sincerely at the end of our lives if we have not regularly done so before. Also, when we are about to die, if we are not well prepared, we may panic or suffer greatly from illness. If we fear "death" itself and do not really believe in Amitabha Buddha, how can we concentrate on chanting his name at all?

There is also another place for people of another type. Sakyamuni Buddha mentioned that there are people who cultivate all sorts of merits and like to be reborn in the Pure Land, but they suspect Amitabha Buddha's wisdom. They believe in the concept of cause-effect and recite in the buddha's name constantly. These people will be born there in a palace full of treasures, but for 500 years, they will not see the buddha, nor will they hear the buddha's teachings or see bodhisattvas or the arhats. Nonetheless, if they realize their errors and want to leave the palace, their wish will be granted and will head to see Amitabha buddha and do the same things as other members of the Pure Land.

We may conclude that people of any sort or type may go to the Western Pure Land if they believe in Amitabha Buddha and recite his name sincerely. They need the buddha's strength to go there. Whether they have been good or bad is not important. Their past history is of no concern. What is important is that if they are determined to believe in Amitabha Buddha, he will accept them into his Pure Land. This also teaches us to treat other people in the same way. If we put ourselves in other people's shoes, we may appreciate what is being taught here-great compassion for all.

This article is only intended to be an introduction. Readers who are interested in further pursuing the concept of the Pure Land should read books such as Buddhism of Wisdom & Faith by Master Thick Thien Tam, published by the Sutra Translation Committee of the United States and Canada.

The Medicine Buddha

The Medicine Buddha's full name is actually the "Medicine Master Buddha with the Radiance of Lapis Lazuli," but to many Buddhists, he is mostly known as "the buddha who grants longevity and mitigates suffering."

There are two special features of the statue of the Medicine Buddha. The first is that when the statues of the three buddhas are seen together, the Medicine Buddha is always placed on the right. The Medicine Buddha's Pure Land is located thousands of light-years to the east of our world, so his statue is placed on the right.

The second special feature is that the Medicine Buddha is usually seen with a bowl in his left hand. His right hand extends outward and rests on his lap with the palm facing upward in a gesture of giving. The bowl contains medicine. The Medicine Buddha's gesture symbolizes his giving medicine or blessings to people. This buddha can be seen with other hand gestures, but the one mentioned above is seen quite often.

There are five sutras about the Medicine Buddha. Four of them have different titles but are quite similar in content, differing only in a few lines. The fifth sutra is quite unlike the others in that it describes seven different Medicine Buddhas in the east. As a side note to these sutras, all of them can be found in any major tripikata, which is a collection of Buddhist sutras, commentaries and precepts. Anyone who is interested in reading and studying these sutras should consult any collection for further details.

The Sutra on the Medicine Master Buddha with the Radiance of Lapis Lazuli and His Vows is now the most widely circulated sutra about the Medicine Buddha. It describes his Pure Land, his famous twelve vows, what one should do to invoke the power of the Medicine Buddha, and the benefits a person may receive from praying to this buddha. It also states that praying to the buddha can bring longevity and alleviate one's suffering. Naturally enough, most ordinary people seek long life without any suffering. Thus, most people forget the buddha's original name and refer to him as "the buddha who grants longevity and mitigates suffering."

In order to have a better understanding of this buddha, we first need to have a better comprehension of this buddha's Sanskrit name: Bhaisajya-guru-vaidurya-prabhasa. The word "Amitabha" means "infinite light, infinite life," and the expression is relevant to the vows of Amitabha Buddha. In the same way, the Medicine Buddha's Sanskrit name is also relevant to his vows. Each unit, as separated by the hyphens, has its own meaning. "Bhaisajya" means "medicine," but it is not only medicine for physical and mental illness. In Buddhism, Sakyamuni Buddha's teachings are not only the path to eternal tranquillity, but also "medicine" for the illnesses of arrogance, selfishness, suspicion, hatred, anger, etc. Many of these "illnesses" can also create physical illnesses after some time. Many problems in our world come from our wrong perceptions, wrong knowledge, or any one of the mental problems just mentioned. To make our world a better place, we need to cure ourselves of our mental illness. Then we will also be physically healthier.

Besides the teachings, things around and inside us can also be medicine. A sufficient amount of money, for instance, can lift a poor person's life out of misery. The best example is what Tzu Chi is doing today: its members go to visit poor families and provide them with money, so that these families can live comfortably. Tzu Chi also goes to various disaster areas around the world (as readers may have read in our past issues) to provide necessary assistance, food or clothing to disaster victims, so that they may be freed from their anguish. Tzu Chi also has been doing bone marrow transplants for years to give hope and new life to patients dying from all sorts of blood disease. Accordingly, money, food, and even bone marrow are medicine, because they can relieve the agony of the needy. We should not consider only pharmaceutical products to be medicine; we should instead expand the definition of medicine to include all possible things.

A person who knows how to apply medicine may be considered as a master of medicine, or "doctor" in modern terminology. Thus the term "guru," which means "master," appears here in this buddha's name. The word indicates that this buddha has the wisdom and power to cure all illness, physical or mental. For instance, the buddha's sixth vow states that any handicapped person will be cured when he hears the buddha's name. The seventh vow states that any person who is poor, sick or lonely will have no illness, will be joyful, or will have abundant possessions when he or she hears the buddha's name. Actually, any buddha is a medicine master, a doctor, because he knows what type of medicine should be prescribed for a certain kind of illness or problem. Sakyamuni buddha preached for decades to all sorts of audiences. It was not until much later that his disciples in China divided the buddha's teachings into various sects, with the intention of allowing future buddhists to discover and diligently practice the method suitable to the intelligence of each individual. This is also like prescribing suitable medicine for suitable patients.

"Vaidurya" is lapis lazuli, a kind of gemstone that is deep, semi-translucent blue in color. Many of the paintings of this buddha found in the Tunhuang caves in China are thus deep blue in color. Lapis gives a sense of majesty and coolness, just as we often associate red with heat. Its radiance ("prabhasa") is the light of clarity and purity, which represents the Medicine Buddha's self-realization.