AMIDAJI INTERNATIONAL TEMPLE 阿弥陀寺

All Buddhas praise the Name of Amida and encourage beings to accept in faith the teaching about Him – commentary on sections 6-12 of the Smaller Amida Sutra (Amidakyo)

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Wed, 24 Jun 2026 10:15:43 +0000

This is a fragment from my

Commentary on the Smaller Amida Sutra (Amidakyo)

- work in progress and under constant revision -

In sections 6-11, Shakyamuni invokes the witness of all Buddhas in the eastern direction, southern, western, northern, nadir and zenith who all praise “the inconceivable virtues of Amitayus (Amida)” that He himself praises:

“Śāriputra, just as I praise the inconceivable virtue of Amitāyus, so do the Buddhas in the eastern direction […]southern direction […] western direction […] northern direction […] in the nadir […] in the zenith as numerous as the sands of the Ganges River […] While dwelling in their own lands, they extend their long, broad tongues and, encompassing with them the universe of a thousand million worlds, pronounce these words of truth: Sentient beings should accept this sutra entitled ‘Praise of the Inconceivable Virtue and Protection by All Buddhas.’”[1]

The inconceivable virtues belong to the Name of Amida Buddha (Amitayus/Amitabha) and the above passages are in harmony with His 17^th Vow in which He promised that all Buddhas will praise His Name:
“If, when I attain Buddhahood, innumerable Buddhas in the lands of the ten directions should not all praise and glorify my Name, may I not attain perfect Enlightenment.”[2]

The passage showing the fulfilment of this vow is found in section 22 of the Larger Sutra:
“all Buddha Tathagatas in the ten directions, as numerous as the sands of the Ganges River, together praise the inconceivable, supernal virtue of Amitayus (Amida)”[3] which is similar with “praise the inconceivable virtue of Amitāyus” from the Smaller Amida Sutra.

Why all Buddhas praise Amida? Because only Amida (Amitayus/Amitabha) has the perfect method among all Buddhas to save every being no matter their spiritual capacities, including the lowest of the low who have nothing good in themselves. As other Buddhas can guide beings on certain conditions, their various teachings are of limited relevance, while the teaching on Amida who saves everybody without asking anything from them is of universal relevance, as Shinran explained:

„The two forms of relevance are: first, limited relevance; second, universal relevance. The Pure Land is the teaching of universal relevance.”[4]

The teaching about the unconditional salvation offered by Amida Buddha which is also presented in this sutra called the ‘Sutra of Protection by All Buddhas’ is praised and protected by all Buddhas because they all know that the Amida Path is the surest and quickest way for all beings to fulfil the very reason they themselves appear in the world – to bring ALL beings to Buddhahood. I repeat, ALL beings, not only the spiritual elites, the pure, the wise or the virtuous. In their infinite Compassion, the Buddhas do not apply judgements on beings but as perfect parents they want all their children to reach the shore of Enlightenment, free from suffering. Master Shinran explained:

„To the evil sentient beings of wrong views
In this evil age of the five defilements, in this evil world,
The Buddhas, countless as the sands of the Ganges,
Give the Name of Amida, urging them to entrust themselves to it".[5]

"Being born in the Buddha-land of happiness
Is the path to ultimate attainment of Buddhahood;
All the Buddhas acclaim the Pure Land,
For birth there is the unsurpassed means."[6]

This is why Buddhas not only praise and protect the teaching on Amida but also influence beings to entrust to Him and say His Name in faith. As Shinran explained:

„Sakyamuni, Amida, and the Buddhas of the ten quarters, all with the same mind, are no more apart from sentient beings of the Nembutsu than shadows from things. [...] Shinjin (faith in Amida) is bestowed through the compassionate means of Sakyamuni, Amida, and all the Buddhas in the ten quarters.”[7]

"Sakyamuni and all the other Buddhas
Are truly our compassionate father and mother.
With various compassionate means they lead us to awaken
Supreme shinjin (faith) that is true and real."[8]

Shakyamuni Buddha said in section 12 of the Smaller Amida Sutra:

“Śāriputra, why do you think this teaching is called the ‘Sutra of Protection by All Buddhas’? Śāriputra, all good men and women who hear this sutra and hold fast to it, and also those who hear the names of those Buddhas, are protected by all the Buddhas and dwell in the stage of non-retrogression for realizing highest, perfect Enlightenment. This is why, Śāriputra, you should accept my words in faith and the teachings of all the Buddhas.

“Śāriputra, those who have already aspired, now aspire, or in the future will aspire to be born in the land of Amitāyus Buddha all dwell in the stage of non-retrogression for realizing highest, perfect Enlightenment. They have already been born, are now being born, or will be born in that land. Hence, Śāriputra, good men and women of faith should aspire to birth there.”[9]

Protection by all Buddhas and entering the stage of non-retrogression are two of the ten benefits that beings who say the Name of Amida in faith receive during their present life, prior to birth in the Pure Land[10]. This is why Shakyamuni mentioned them too in the Smaller Amida Sutra: “protected by all the Buddhas and dwell in the stage of non-retrogression for realizing highest, perfect Enlightenment”. The karmic cause for receiving these two benefits is to accept the teaching on Amida delivered by Shakyamuni and all Buddhas: “accept my words in faith and the teachings of all the Buddhas”[11], “hear this sutra and hold fast to it”.
It is logical that hearing means to hear and accept in faith which is also the case with the words: “hear the names of those Buddhas”. This refers to hearing the names of the Buddhas in the south, west, east, north, nadir and zenith who “praise the inconceivable virtues of Amitayus (Amida)” and trust their words and testimony. To hear their names means to trust their encouragements to accept the teaching on Amida in faith as well as to say the Name of Amida whose inconceivable virtues they themselves praise.

Master Shantao said:

"One should have an unshakable faith in the passage from the Smaller Sutra that states that all Buddhas in the ten directions, as numerous as the grains of sand in the Ganges, testified and encouraged all sentient beings to attain birth in the Pure Land." [12]

"All the Buddhas in the ten directions, fearing disbelief in the teaching of the sole Buddha, Shakyamuni, with the same heart and at the same time extended their tongues, enveloped the three thousand great-thousand worlds, and said these sincere words, 'All sentient beings should believe in the teachings preached, praised, and validated by Buddha Shakyamuni. All common people must believe that regardless of the balance of vice and virtue and regardless of the time spent reciting Nembutsu - once, ten times, for one day, or for seven days up to one hundred years - if one utters the Name of Amida Buddha from the depth of one's heart[13], birth in the Pure Land will certainly be possible. The Buddhas averred that you must not doubt this'"[14]

Shinran also said: “the testimony of the Buddhas of the ten directions, countless as the sands of the Ganges River, has not been made in vain”.[15]

As I mentioned previously in this book when I explained section 5 (part 1), the stage of non-retrogression means one thing for the followers of the 20^th Vow who say the Name while clinging to their self-power and are destined to the border land of the Pure Land, and another for followers of the Primal Vow (18^th Vow) who say the Name as an expression of complete faith in the Power of Amida. Thus, 1) all sentient beings born in the border land of the Pure Land will never retrogress again in samsara and when they abandon their illusion of self-power will certainly advance to the center (the fulfilled land) of the Pure Land where they attain Buddhahood, and 2) those who are to be born in the center of the Pure Land are already in the stage of non-retrogression since they first entrusted themselves totally and exclusively to Amida Buddha in their present life. So, when they reach the Pure Land, they immediately become Buddhas.

to be continued

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[1] The Three Pure Land sutras, translated into English by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, revised second edition, BDK English Tripitaka12-II, II, IV, Numata Center for Buddhist translation and Research, 2003, p.105-107
[2] The Three Pure Land sutras, translated into English by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, revised second edition, BDK English Tripitaka12-II, II, IV, Numata Center for Buddhist translation and Research, 2003, p.15
[3] The Three Pure Land sutras, translated into English by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, revised second edition, BDK English Tripitaka12-II, II, IV, Numata Center for Buddhist translation and Research, 2003, p.35
[4] Shinran Shonin, Lamp for the Latter-Ages, letter 8, The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.535
[5] Shinran Shonin, Hymns of the Pure Land, The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.347-348
[6] Shinran Shonin, Hymns of the Pure Land Masters, The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.372
[7] Shinran Shonin, Lamp for the Latter-Ages, letter 2, The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.526-527
[8] Shinran Shonin, Hymn of the Two Gateways of Entrance and Emergence, The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.629
[9] The Three Pure Land sutras, translated into English by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, revised second edition, BDK English Tripitaka12-II, II, IV, Numata Center for Buddhist translation and Research, 2003, p.107
[10] Please read chapter “The ten benefits in this life of faith in Amida Buddha” from my book The Meaning of Faith and Nembutsu in Jodo Shinshu Buddhism.
[11] Shakyamuni also encouraged the acceptance in faith of His teaching on Amida Buddha from the Larger Sutra:
“ If there are sentient beings who have heard it, they will attain the stage of non-retrogression for realizing the highest Enlightenment. This is why you should singleheartedly accept in faith, uphold, and chant this sutra, and practice in accordance with its teachings.”
“The Buddha further said, ‘I have expounded this teaching for the sake of sentient beings and enabled you to see Amitayus (Amida) and all in His land. Strive to do what you should. After I have passed into Nirvana, do not allow doubt to arise.”
The Three Pure Land Sutras - A Study and Translation from Chinese by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai and Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p.70
[12] Master Shan-tao quoted by Honen Shonin in An Outline of the Doctrine for Birth in the Pure Land,The Promise of Amida Buddha - Honen's Path to Bliss; English translation of the Genko edition of the works of Honen Shonin - Collected Teachings of Kurodani Shonin: The Japanese Anthology (Wago Toroku), translated by Joji Atone and Yoko Hayashi, Wisdom Publications, Boston, 2011, p.106
[13] "If one utters the Name of Amida Buddha from the depth of one's heart" means to say Amida's Name with an entrusting heart. This is the nembutsu of faith.
[14] Master Shan-tao, as quoted by Master Honen in his work, An Outline of the Doctrine for Birth in the Pure Land,The Promise of Amida Buddha - Honen's Path to Bliss; English translation of the Genko edition of the works of Honen Shonin - Collected Teachings of Kurodani Shonin: The Japanese Anthology (Wago Toroku), translated by Joji Atone and Yoko Hayashi, Wisdom Publications, Boston, 2011, p.116
[15] Shinran Shonin, Kyogyoshinsho, IV, Kyogyoshinsho – On Teaching, Practice, Faith, and Enlightenment, translated by Hisao Inagaki, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p. 260

The identity of Amida Buddha and those born in His Pure Land – commentary on section 4 of the Smaller Amida Sutra

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Tue, 23 Jun 2026 12:24:28 +0000

This is a fragment from my

Commentary on the Smaller Amida Sutra (Amidakyo)

- work in progress and under constant revision -

Shakyamuni Buddha said:

“For what reason, Śāriputra, do you think that Buddha is called Amitābha? Śāriputra, the Buddha’s light shines boundlessly and without hindrance over all the worlds of the ten directions. It is for this reason that He is called Amitābha. Again, Śāriputra, the lives of the Buddha and the people of His land last for innumerable, unlimited, and incalculable kalpas. It is for this reason that the Buddha is called Amitāyus.

Śāriputra, ten kalpas have passed since Amitāyus attained Enlightenment. Moreover, Śāriputra, He has an immeasurable and unlimited number of śrāvaka disciples, all of them arhats, whose number cannot be reckoned by any means. His assembly of Bodhisattvas

is similarly vast. Śāriputra, that Buddha land is filled with such splendid adornments.”[1]

As Shakyamuni confirms, Amida (Amitabha/Amitayus) is now a Buddha because “ten kalpas have passed” since He attained Enlightenment (Buddhahood). This is why in the Larger Sutra or the Smaller Sutra and Contemplation Sutra, He no longer calls Him Bodhisattva Dharmakara which was His name when He was in the causal stage, but “Amitayus”, which means Infinite Life, or “Amitabha” - “Infinite Light”. These two aspects, “Infinite Life” (Amitayus) and “Infinite Light” (Amitabha) are merged in Japanese Buddhism into the word “Amida”[2], which means the Buddha of Infinite Life and Infinite Light. His Infinite Life is the effect of the 13^th Vow He made when He was Dharmakara Bodhisattva, while the Infinite Light is the effect of His 12^th Vow [3]. So, we cannot separate Amitayus (Infinite/unlimited Life) from Amitabha (Infinite/Boundless Light) because these are the two aspects of the same Buddha as Shakyamuni explained in section 4 of this sutra.

In the Larger Sutra, Shakyamuni also said that Amida “is now dwelling in a Western Buddha-land called ‘Peace and Bliss,’” – which is to be found not here, but “a hundred thousand kotis[4] of lands away from here”:

“The Buddha replied to Ananda, ‘Bodhisattva Dharmakara has already attained Buddhahood and is now dwelling in a Western Buddha-land called ‘Peace and Bliss,’ a hundred thousand kotis of lands away from here.’

Ananda further asked the Buddha, ‘How much time has passed since He attained Buddhahood?’ The Buddha replied, ‘Since He attained Buddhahood about ten kalpas have passed.’”[5]

The passage above is extremely important as it shows that there is a clear distinction between this world with its unenlightened beings, and the Pure Land. Shakyamuni did not explain Amida and His Pure Land in ultimate terms and did not say that they are to be found in one’s heart/mind or “here and now”, as some nowadays deluded scholars are trying to convince us. On the contrary, Dharmakara who became Amida Buddha is dwelling in His Pure Land, outside of this samsaric realm.

The fact that Amida is “now dwelling” in His Pure Land, also shows that He is active now in bringing all beings to His realm. This now is everlasting and is referring both to the time when Shakyamuni delivered that discourse (sutra) and also to the time of Shan-tao, Honen, Shinran, Rennyo, we in the XXI century and the future generations that will come after us. Amida is a Buddha of the present in the sense that He has already attained Buddhahood and will act forever for the salvation of all beings. Because He is the Buddha of “Infinite Life”, for Him now is without end.

What about the terms “sravaka”, “arhats” and “Bodhisattvas” that appear in this section?

“He has an immeasurable and unlimited number of śrāvaka disciples, all of them arhats, whose number cannot be reckoned by any means. His assembly of Bodhisattvas is similarly vast.”

I think those terms can have multiple meanings.

Usually “sravaka” is used in the Hinayana sense of a person who seeks to realize Nirvana for himself alone, but in this fragment as well as in various parts of the Larger Sutra, I think it preserves its original meaning of “disciple” and “hearer”. So, it means that all beings born in the Pure Land are the personal disciples (sravaka) of Amida Buddha. Their number is infinite because they come to be born in the Pure Land from all corners of the universe and will continue to do so in the infinite future.

The term “arhat” is also used in two ways in various texts. First, it refers to the arhat of the Hinayana – a being who attained personal freedom from birth and death but did not attain the perfect Enlightenment of the Buddhas[6]. Thus, they do not have Infinite Wisdom and Infinite Compassion and are not interested in saving sentient beings. The second usage of the term is as one of the titles of Shakyamuni and any Buddha, that is, a Fully Enlightened person. This last meaning is intended for those who are born in the center of the Pure Land.

The term Bodhisattva has two meanings:

1) 1) bodhisattvas in aspiration who are still on the path and still unenlightened (not Buddhas yet). In this category we include anybody who made the four Bodhisattva vows[7] and aspire to attain Buddhahood for themselves and all beings. Also, those who have entered the stage of non-retrogression for birth in the Pure Land through total faith in the Power of Amida are, while still in this world, bodhisattvas in aspiration. This is because faith in Amida is the same with the Bodhi Mind - the aspiration to attain Buddhahood for oneself and all beings[8].

2) Bodhisattvas who already attained Buddhahood, but who do not remain secluded in their Enlightenment. These are in fact, Buddhas who manifest as Bodhisattvas and it refers to beings born in the center (fulfilled land) of the Pure Land. They were born there through total faith in the Power of Amida. They are the followers of the Primal Vow.

Thus, the fragment above, “He has an immeasurable and unlimited number of śrāvaka disciples, all of them arhats” may have two meanings, 1) all beings born in the center of the Pure Land are the personal disciples of Amida and are all fully enlightened and 2) all beings born in the border land of the Pure Land are also His personal disciples but for the moment they have attained the limited enlightenment of the arhats, that is, freedom from samsara only. Those born in the center of the Pure Land are part of Amida’s assembly of Enlightened Bodhisattvas while those born in the border land are part of the assembly of those free from samsara but not Buddhas yet.

Also, just like the phrase “humans and devas (gods) in my land “ from section 17 of the Larger Sutra that Shakyamuni used only in relation with the states of existence prior to their birth in the Pure Land, the words sravakas, arhats and bodhisattvas might refer to the previous state of the present dwellers of the Pure Land who were at the spiritual level of sravakas, arhats of the Hinayana or bodhisattvas in aspiration in their former life, prior to birth in the center (fulfilled land) of the Pure Land.[9]

to be continued

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[2] Chin / O-Mi-T’o-Fo; Japan / Amida; Vn / A-Di-Đà. The word “Amitabha” is also used in English to represent both “Amitabha” (“Infinite Light”) and “Amitayus” (“Infinite Life”). (T. Cleary).

[3] Read my explanations of the 13^th and 12^th Vows of Amida Buddha in my Commentary on the Sutra on the Buddha of Infinite Life.

[4]Koti is a term used in ancient India to express a high numerical value equivalent to one hundred thousand, ten milion, or one hundred million.

[5] The Three Pure Land Sutras - A Study and Translation from Chinese by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai and Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p.23-24

[6] According to this meaning, an arhat has overcome the outward manifestation of the afflictive emotions but has not completely uprooted their psychic imprint. He is free from samsara but has not attained perfect Enlightenment. For this reason, we say he did not discover the Buddha nature.

[7] The four Bodhisattva vows are: 1. no matter how perfect a Buddha would be, I vow to become like Him, 2. no matter how profound the Dharma (the teaching) would be, I vow to fully understand it all, 3. no matter how numerous the passions would be, I vow to conquer them all, 4. no matter how numerous the beings would be, I vow to save them all. In Jodo Shinshu we do not specifically take any vows like these, but rely on the Primal Vow of Amida and we naturally fulfill the four Bodhisattva vows when we attain Buddhahood in the Pure Land of Amida. Faith in Amida is itself the Bodhi Mind and the Name of Amida that we say as an expression of this faith contains the infinite merits of all practices and vows.

[8] The Awakening of the Bodhi Mind – the aspiration to attain Budhahood for oneself and all beings – is fulfilled in the Awakening of Faith (shinjin) in the Primal Vow of Amida Buddha. Master Shan-tao said:

“Awake your Bodhi Mind to Amida’s Compasion”, that is, aspire to your and other beings Liberation by relying on the Compasion and Power of Amida.

So, the Awakening of the Bodhi Mind, the obligatory condition in Mahayana of attaining the supreme Enlightenment/Buddhahood, appears in Jodo Shinshu in the form of the entrusting heart (shinjin).
Shinran Shonin said in the Hymns on Patriarchs:

“Faith is One Mind
One Mind is the Diamond-like Mind;
The Diamond-like Mind is the Bodhi-Mind;
This mind is given us by the Other-Power.”
The One Mind represents the cause of Enlightenment. Since this is the Bodhi-Mind, it has two aspects:
“To take refuge with One Mind in the Buddha
Of Unhindered Light Shining throughout the Ten Directions
Is the mind aspiring to become Buddha;
So says Vasubandhu, the Master of Discourse.”
(Hymns on the Patriachs 17)
“The mind aspiring to become Buddha
Is the mind seeking to save sentient beings;
The mind that seeks to save sentient beings
Is True Faith endowed by Amida’s Compassion.”
(Hymns on the Patriachs 18)

[9] Shakyamuni Buddha himself explained in section 17 of the Larger Sutra that when the expression “humans and devas” in the Pure Land appears in that sacred discourse it is only in relation with the states of existence prior to their birth in the Pure Land:

“They are all of one form, without any differences, but are called 'heavenly beings' (devas) and 'humans' simply by analogy with the states of existence in other worlds. They are of noble and majestic countenance, unequalled in all the worlds, and their appearance is superb, unmatched by any being, heavenly or human. They are all endowed with bodies of Naturalness, Emptiness, and Infinity."

(The Three Pure Land Sutras, translated into English by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, revised second edition, BDK English Tripitaka12-II, II, IV, Numata Center for Buddhist translation and Research, 2003, p.31 )

To have the body of Naturalness, Emptiness and Infinity means that these people born in the Pure Land of Amida through the gate of the Primal Vow attained Buddhahood or supreme Enlightenment (Nirvana), as promised in the second part of the 11^th Vow.

Stick with Amida Buddha

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Wed, 03 Jun 2026 05:38:06 +0000

Thoughts come and go.
They are like clouds.
Stick with Amida,
not with the
wandering
thoughts.

Question from a reader: Josho – I need your help regarding the issue of shinjin (or lack of). I know that I do not have settled shinjin, as much as I would like to have it. I follow the Amida Dharma for a while but then I fall off the rails and think that perhaps another path is or more suited to me. So…I try to follow another path just to arrive at the place where I realize (again) that I cannot “succeed” in any type of spiritual progress by my own efforts and that I need Amida. So…. I return to Amida.
Intellectually I believe in the existence of Amida and His Pure Land, and I do want to go there, but there is obviously some kind of emotional or other block which is preventing me from having settled shinjin and from really experiencing Amida as a living presence in my life. What is your advice? Can you help?

My answer: When the thought of leaving for another path occurs again in your mind, just do not follow it. Take the definitive decision to stick with Amida Buddha no matter what thoughts appear in your mind.

Thoughts come and go. This is what they do. They are like clouds. However, they have no power unless we empower them. If you simply let them come and go without focusing on them, they will disappear, but if you pay attention to them, they become bigger and bigger and will eventually make you take bad decisions.

So, simply decide that you will stick with Amida. There is no special solution to solve worldly problems or spiritual problems other than letting go. Simply let go and stick with Amida.
Next, about that kind of emotional block that you think is preventing you from not having settled shinjin (faith) – let go to the idea of waiting for an emotional problem or other type of block to go away. Abandon the idea that something must go and another thing must stay. Stop waiting for special experiences of Amida as a living presence in your life. Amida is indeed a living presence in our lives but we cannot see Him or feel Him because we are not Buddhas! Only Buddhas can see and feel the presence of other Buddhas! Unenlightened beings cannot recognize a Buddha even if that Buddha is sitting in front of them every day, as Amida does.

So, it is pointless to worry about any kind of emotional block that prevents you to experience Amida or have settled shinjin. Its normal for ordinary people to have all sorts of emotional problems and various types of blocks, so don’t worry about that anymore! Shinjin is just a simple faith, a definitive decision to entrust Amida Buddha to take you to His Pure Land in the same way you trust a good mechanic to fix your car or a good plumber to repair the pipes in your house.

Just as you know and trust that the mechanic is able to fix your car, you also know and trust that Amida will take you to His Pure Land. There is no big deal in shinjin, and no special feeling. Faith (shinjin) co-exists with our blind passions, and our emotional ups and downs because shinjin is NOT satori (Enlightenment). Amida did not promise to fix our emotional problems in this life, but only to put us in the stage of non-retrogression for birth in His Pure Land.

So again, abandon the tendency of your monkey mind to go to another path and stop waiting for special things to happen in relation with shinjin. Settled shinjin is knowing and trusting that Amida will take you to His Pure Land. As long as you accept the existence of Amida Buddha and His Pure Land, and you want to go there, then simply trust that He will take you there. Allow Him to take you to His Pure Land and do not think that shinjin is something that must be accompanied by special states or feelings. As Shinran explained, the reason we do not see Amida or His Light is because we have blind passions,

“Although I, too, am in Amida’s embracing Light,
My evil passions hinder me from perceiving it,
But His Light of great compassion never ceases to shine on
me untiringly."[1]
Settled shinjin means that you know Amida exists and will take you to His Pure Land. That is all! Nothing else! Experiencing something is optional and not important. To know that Amida Buddha exists and that He will take you to His Pure Land is all that matters.

[1] Kyogyoshinsho – On Teaching, Practice, Faith, and Enlightenment,chapter II, translated by Hisao Inagaki, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p. 80

The concrete platform for the Stupa of All Buddhas

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Sun, 10 May 2026 21:48:23 +0000

I have just finished the concrete platform for the Stupa of All Buddhas. Before I poured the cement, I made a ceremony in which I chanted the Nembutsu liturgy and invited Amida and all Buddhas to bless and consecrate the land. Then I placed small statues and images of Amida Buddha, Green Tara, White Tara, Namgyalma, rolls with Nembutsu, Namgyalma mantra, the four Dharmakaya relic mantras, as well as many others (a complete list with all sacred things I place in the stupa will be available when it’s ready). Now, from time to time I recite the Nembutsu, make offerings and circumambulate the place while visualizing the stupa as already being there.

Next, I will focus on buying as many bricks and bags of cement as possible, as well as various materials needed for the lower part of the stupa. Meanwhile, I need to order tsa-tsa molds with all Buddhas to make hundreds of small statues with them to be placed in the stupa. I am also making rolls with Nembutsu and will need to buy or find rolls with various mantras. Because it is a stupa of all Buddhas, I need that every Buddha be represented with their image, Name and mantras. I am also trying to find copies of various sutras and if possible, the whole Mahayana and Theravada canon of sutras on a memory stick. I already have Kangyur and Tengyur in two DVDs. There are many other things to be placed in the stupa but they are too many to be mentioned here.

Any donation for the building materials and various Dharma items is welcomed and deeply appreciated. Click here if you wish to donate (PayPal),

Two pilgrimages for two friends

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Wed, 29 Apr 2026 13:18:53 +0000

Click here to read all articles in the category of Nembutsu pilgrimages

A few days ago, I was sitting in front of the statues of Amida and various Buddhas that I keep in my room to remind me of the 17^th Vow [1] and the protection they offer to people of shinjin (faith)[2], when I was overwhelmed with a strong sense of devotion and energy. Looking at each of their holly faces I said in a strong voice - I am the dog of Amida, I am the dog of the Buddhas.

A dog is loyal (in my case to Amida and all Buddhas), a dog fiercely protects what he loves (the Dharma and Sangha), a dog can walk many miles and resist cold and heat without complaining if he is given a task by his master. A dog is, I think, a good symbol for my pilgrimages on foot.

This time I had two pilgrimages: one to a friend and another to a dog’s grave.

First, I visited Shosan[3] Silviu, a Vajrayana practitioner, to whom I offered a statue of Ksitigarbha as well as various gifts from Drolma Veronica in Bucharest. I saw him from the distance, coming towards me, looking majestic with a white kata in his hands. The time stopped and we bowed to each other as brothers in faith, the culmination of many lifetimes of dedication to the Buddha Dharma. Then he invited me to his place of work where I met some of his colleagues and we performed a ceremony together – he did a Tibetan service and I chanted the Nembutsu liturgy. We stayed a few hours together, talking about Dharma and he offered me many useful presents like small statues and images of various Buddhas (Shakyamuni, Tara, Padmasambhava), copies of sutras, etc. He actually gave me the whole Tibetan canon in DVDs and as you know, the Larger Sutra and Smaller Sutra on Amida Buddha is also part of it. I was in great need of such images and texts to place them in the Stupa of all Buddhas that I am trying to build at Amidaji.

Meeting Shosan was a great inspiration to me as I am particularly impressed by people with devotion towards the Buddhas, who keep images of them and recite their mantras and holy Names. I know that meditation is much emphasized nowadays in the West, but for me Buddhism is more of a personal relation of faith and devotion with Amida and all Buddhas, so I am not impressed by great meditators but by devotional people who treat the Buddhas and Dharma with respect.

The second pilgrimage was decided when I heard that Floppy Mahakala, the dog who used to visit the Buddhist center near the stupa, died in a car accident. Very strangely, I heard this sad news a few hours after I was inspired to call myself the dog of the Buddhas.

my first encounter with Floppy Mahakala

Floppy Mahakala greeted me warmly the first time I visited the stupa in Tranisu, as you can see in the video above ☝ His black and white fur always reminded me of the two forms of the Enlightened fierce Protector Mahakala – Black Mahakala and White Mahakala. Once, when I chanted alone there, he suddenly jumped on my back and hugged me, then he attended my recitations in silence.

When I heard that he left his illusory body, my grief transformed into the wish to make a pilgrimage to his grave on Valea Draganului. When I reached that place (the photo in the right 👉), I was sad to realize that there is actually no sign to where he might be buried except some pieces of his black and white fur spread on the ground. Perhaps that is near the accident site and because he was a big dog his body was buried in haste there. The thought of impermanence hit me so powerful, combined with the smell and devastation of the area. I recited the Nembutsu liturgy, made offerings to Amida in his name, prayed for him and placed a gift from Drolma Veronica made especially for this occasion. Then I suddenly saw him with my mind’s eye, bowed to him and we both enjoyed each other’s presence beyond the sad physical reality of the place. Unfortunately, I could not stay longer because it was already late and I needed to start the journey back. I will try to find a solution for his physical remains to be treated in a more dignified manner and will write about it at a later time.
Before reaching his resting place, I met two big dogs on a narrow alley. They stared at me for a while and then they silently moved aside to let me pass. I realized they were his friends and probably understood who I am and what I am going to do.

at the Buddhist stupa in Tranisu

The road to the stupa and Floppy Mahakala’s burial place was filled with many profound experiences and nice people. I started from Cluj and walked three days through many deserted areas and villages among which I mention Baciu, Radaia, Garbau, Doroltu, Inucu and over the hills to Dumbrava, then on the E60 European road to Izvoru Crisului, then again on E60 to Huedin, then headed to Sancraiu, Alunisu, Sacuieu, Bologa, Tranisu (Buddhist stupa) and Valea Draganului.

In Garbau me and this nice guy (see previous photo ☝👈) recognized each other from the last year's pilgrimage. I could not stop wondering on how many lifetimes we wandered together in various states of existence as friends, brothers, father and son.... Especially I could not stop thinking to him like to a lost father.
May the Light of Amida Buddha guide us both to His Pure Land.

In Izvorul Crisului I was welcomed again, by the nice lady (photo 👉) who always offers me accommodation at her guest house Kalotaszeg Vendeghaz and a big bowl of soup with a jar of zacusca. Her meals are from the god realms, so tasty and refreshing after the first 42 km walk.

In Huedin I was invited by two nice ladies, Ioana and Adriana for cookies and coffee ( 👈) and we spent much time together chatting and laughing. It was a beautiful reunion from past lives. To honor them I placed my kesa over the walking robes and chanted Nembutsu liturgy and Juseige. Their cookies lasted until I finished the pilgrimage, providing me with much necessary sweet and energy for the trip.

Another thing that deeply impressed me was how a man crossed a dangerous street to offer me a very tasty pie with eggs and cheese. I bowed in gratitude and chanted Nembutsu. He left me with a sense of immense gratitude and amazement. There is something very sacred in receiving food and water from others.

During the pilgrimage, which I consider it a walking prayer, I repeated to Amida and all Buddhas that I offer to them my blood and every cell in my body with the aspirations that all beings, either humans or nonhumans, who come in contact with me, never be born again in the lower realms, all their obstacles be removed and attain birth in the Pure Land. This is why I stopped and talked with anybody who wanted to talk with me, accepted every offering of water and food, and welcomed any smile or greeting with bowing and respect.

Namo Amida Bu

meeting with Nepalese and Srilankan workers with
whom I recited the Three Refuges

me with the pie offered by the nice person
who crossed the dangerous road for me

In the upper right you can see a dog looking
at the camera. He reminded me of Hayagriva,
the fierce manifestation (in Vajrayana Buddhism) of Amitabha.

When I entered the village of Secuieu many horses started to run freely and passed near me. I said Nembutsu many times at such a beautiful sight.

Life in human form is precious. May we never waste it!

Please consider a donation if you wish to support my Dharma activities and my pilgrimages,

[1] In His 17th Vow, Bodhisattva Dharmakara who later became Amida Buddha, made the promise that all Buddhas will praise His Name, thus encouraging beings everywhere to say it in faith: “If, when I attain Buddhahood, innumerable Buddhas in the lands of the ten directions should not all praise and glorify my Name, may I not attain perfect Enlightenment.” The Buddhas are supreme in the universe, no one is their equal in Wisdom, Compassion or anything else, and so if the Name of Amida is recited and glorified by all Buddhas, it means that this Name is also supreme in the universe.
[2] „Shakyamuni, Amida, and the Buddhas of the ten quarters, all with the same mind, are no more apart from sentient beings of the Nembutsu than shadows from things.” Shinran Shonin, Lamp for the Latter-Ages, letter 2. You can read more about the Protection of all Buddhas offered to those who entrust to Amida at this link, https://amida-ji-retreat-temple-romania.blogspot.com/2018/04/the-ten-benefits-in-this-life-4-benefit.html
[3] Although he is a Vajrayana follower, he kept his Buddhist name since he was practicing Zen in 1995.

Be careful how and to whom you speak about Amida Buddha

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Mon, 23 Mar 2026 12:12:00 +0000

Click here for the Spanish version

In reference to saying anything about Amida Buddha to other human beings, Master Rennyo said:

„In particular, act with extreme caution, as this is a time when people determinedly strain their ears to hear anything that can be distorted and spread in slander.”[1]

Whatever we say about the Nembutsu teaching, it can always be misinterpreted if we say it to those who are not karmically mature and not opened to it. Master Rennyo called those who are not karmically mature and not open, to be people without stored good from the past. Thus he instructed:

„In teaching others, one must determine the presence or absence of good from the past.”[2]

The "stored good from the past" represents our good karma from past lives and this life which manifests itself as an opening or receptive state of mind towards the message of the Primal Vow of Amida Buddha. A lot of people hear the teaching about the Primal Vow or Amida’s Name but few are opened to it. This openness is very important in our tradition and is the manifestation of good stored from the past[3].

Master Rennyo said:
„There is nothing, be it taking refuge in Amida or attaining faith, that is not related to good from the past.”[4]

and he explained the relation of good from the past and faith in his teaching on the five conditions for birth in the Pure Land, that I already explained in my article on this topic.

He also said (words in brackets are my own):

„Efforts to teach others (telling them about the Name of Amida is also teaching) will be useless if we fail to determine the presence or absence of good from the past. For this reason, one should instruct others after having considered their innate capacity for birth in the Pure Land in light of the existence or nonexistence of good from the past.”[5]

He also criticized the way some of his followers did not take into consideration this openess or good from the past:

„Recently, the way of followers of the Buddha Dharma in our tradition has been to talk indiscreetly about the teaching with no clear understanding of what is right and what is wrong. Hence we hear that the true meaning of Shin teaching has been utterly lost. It is with detailed knowledge of the above that one is to proclaim our tradition’s basic principles”.[6]

Those who say ANYTHING about Amida Buddha should know at least the essentials of the Jodo Shinshu teaching so that in case they are asked they can give a proper answer. If they lack basic good knowledge that comes from a faith guided understanding of the Dharma, then they can lead others into confusion. Also, again, before saying anything about Amida Buddha and His Name, one must ponder deeply if the person in front of him is opened or not.

Why is it so dangerous if the person we say anything to about Amida is not opened or lacks stored good from the past? The reason is simple – they can become enraged and/or slander the Dharma and Amida himself, thus creating more evil karma that can make them be born into hells and other lower realms. Even if ultimately it's good to hear the Name of Amida as that is somehow an introduction to Him and His teaching, to hear it and answer with slander is very bad for that person.

Somebody pointed to me that I myself encouraged people to say the Name of Amida to animals even if they do not understand the meaning. Yes, but that advice was for animals and animals are not humans! The human mind is more complicated than that of animals and even if its good for any being to hear the Name of Amida, the animal mind cannot create aversion to it like a human being without good from the past! This is why Master Rennyo and myself advise for caution when saying anything related with Amida Buddha to humans!

The best way for us to help other human beings hear anything about Amida Buddha is to be examples of faith ourselves, understand the teaching well, be available if anybody has any question[7], make the teaching easy to access and free, engage in or support Dharma activities and Dharma centers, etc.

Question: How can I help other human beings create a connection with Amida Buddha without them having the feeling that I impose Amida on them or that I intrude into their lives? Give me some examples.

My answer: It’s extremely important to be smart, act with caution and find the right moment, as well as the right words and situations to help others make a connection with Amida Buddha.
For example, you can invite a friend into your house and be sure that you place an easy to see image of Amida from where he sits. No matter if he is not interested in religion he will see the image and make a connection. He will surely ask what that image represents and you have the chance to introduce him to Amida with a few words. Also, you can write the Name (Namo Amida Bu) somewhere where it can be easily seen by visitors so they can also make a conection with it and perhaps ask simple questions out of simple curiosity. Or you can write a few short Dharma sentences on a card hunged on a wall that can also be visible to visitors.

Such images, words and Nembutsu itself can be placed in your courtyard, too. You can even place a statue or image of Amida Buddha that can be visible from outside of your courtyard.
Also, you can wear a nenju (Buddhist rosary) at your arm all the time and people can become curious about it, or have a t-shirt or a cap with Amida and Nembutsu, etc. These are just a few ways by which you can promote Amida Buddha without being invasive to others and without giving them the feeling that you preach to them without their wish. No normal people should have any problem if you express yourself through your own clothing or by images posted in your own house and courtyard, especially if when meeting with them you do not speak about Amida without being asked.

More than this, if you are a good friend and neighbour, always helping others while wearing Amida related images, words or items (like a Nenju) many people will look with respect to you and will not dare insult your religion even if they are not interested in it. I myself have been engaged in lots of social activities with Christian friends whose respect I gained through hard work and who started to get curious about Buddhism, asking questions and hearing about Amida without myself talking to them deliberately about Him.

Remember – do not be intrusive, but cautious, smart and inventive in matters related with Amida Dharma. And always take into consideration the openess (good from the past) of those in front of you.

Namo Amida Bu

[1] Thus I Have Heard from Rennyo Shonin (Rennyo Shonin ‘s Goichidaiki Kikigaki), translated by Hisao Inagaki, Dharma Lion Publications, Craiova, 2008, p.82
[2] Thus I Have Heard from Rennyo Shonin (Rennyo Shonin ‘s Goichidaiki Kikigaki), translated by Hisao Inagaki, Dharma Lion Publications, Craiova, 2008, p.81
[3] Also, if you listen again and again to the teaching in this life, thus becoming immersed with all your being in the Dharma, this listening will become a “stored good” which will make you open to the call of the Primal Vow.
[4] Thus I Have Heard from Rennyo Shonin (Rennyo Shonin ‘s Goichidaiki Kikigaki), translated by Hisao Inagaki, Dharma Lion Publications, Craiova, 2008, p.82
[5] Thus I Have Heard from Rennyo Shonin (Rennyo Shonin ‘s Goichidaiki Kikigaki), translated by Hisao Inagaki, Dharma Lion Publications, Craiova, 2008, p.82
[6] Thus I Have Heard from Rennyo Shonin (Rennyo Shonin ‘s Goichidaiki Kikigaki), translated by Hisao Inagaki, Dharma Lion Publications, Craiova, 2008, p.83
[7] Only questions asked while in a learning mood deserve an answer. Questions asked out of the wish to slander or mock the Dharma should not be taken into consideration.

The transmission and importance of the Smaller Amida Sutra (Amidakyo)

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Thu, 05 Feb 2026 07:39:00 +0000

This is a fragment from my

Commentary on the Smaller Amida Sutra (Amidakyo)

- work in progress and under constant revision -

“Thus have I heard. At one time the Buddha was staying in the Jeta Grove monastery of Anāthapiṇḍada’s Garden at Śrāvastī, together with a large assembly of twelve hundred and fifty monks who were all great arhats well known to the people. Among them were great disciples such as the elders Śāriputra, Mahāmaudgalyāyana, Mahākāśyapa, Mahākātyāyana, Mahākauṣṭhila, Revata, Śuddhipanthaka, Nanda, Ānanda, Rāhula, Gavāṃpati, Piṇḍola-Bhāradvāja, Kālodayin, Mahākapphiṇa, Vakkula, and Aniruddha. He was also accompanied
by many Bodhisattva Mahāsattvas, such as Dharma Prince Manjuśrī, Bodhisattva Ajita, Bodhisattva Sweet-smelling Elephant, and Bodhisattva Constant Endeavor, and by innumerable devas, including Śakra, lord of the gods, and many others.”[1]

Although in front of Shakyamuni there were many monks, enlightened Bodhisattvas and gods, He addressed to Shariputra, which means that he was the one to whom the Buddha directly transmitted this sutra.

More than this, it’s of utmost importance to notice that the Smaller Amida Sutra was taught spontaneously, without answering to a question - “The Buddha then said to Elder Śāriputra….” (section 2). Shakyamuni simply started to talk in an ecstatic manner about the splendour of Amida Buddha and His Pure Land. He said on and on something like: “Sariputra, it is wonderful!!! … that place is supreme in beauty! …. Sariputra, in that land there are so and so places and so and so precious treasures! …. Sariputra …….Sariputra…”. It seems that Shakyamuni didn’t even allow himself time to breathe when He spoke about the beauty of the Pure Land, such was His enthusiasm in presenting it (section 3):

“Śāriputra, why is that land called Utmost Bliss?[...] Again, Śāriputra, in that Buddha land heavenly music is played continually. The ground is made of gold […] Again, Śāriputra, in that land there are always many kinds of rare and beautiful birds of various colors […] In that Buddha land, Śāriputra, when soft breezes waft through the rows of jeweled trees and jeweled nets they produce subtle, wonderful sounds”…. and so on…

The exaltation with which He spontaneously described the Pure Land of Amida in this sutra, or the radiant light that emanated from His body when He delivered the Larger Sutra in which He expounded the sacred story of Amida and His 48 vows[2], are both an indication that His teaching about Amida is extremely important and that His listeners should accept Amida as a living Buddha and His Pure Land as a real enlightened place.

to be continued

Please support my Dharma work and Amidaji with a donation:

[1] The Three Pure Land Sutras - A Study and Translation from Chinese by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai and Numata Centre for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p.91
[2] It is recorded in the Larger Sutra on Amida Buddha that when Shakyamuni was about to deliver it” all the senses of the World-Honored One radiated joy, His entire body appeared serene and glorious, and His august countenance looked most majestic.” After Ananda asked Him about the reason for these wonderful manifestations, Shakyamuni reveals to him the true goal of His coming to this world, by presenting the history of Amida Buddha, the 48 Vows and encouraging sentient beings to aspire to birth in the Pure Land. In the same sutra, the whole gathering listening to the discourse, including Ananda, had a vision of Amida Buddha and His Pure Land, which is further proof that Shakyamuni speaks about real things, not symbols or fictions.

The audience accepted the Smaller Amida Sutra in faith – commentary on section 14

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Wed, 04 Feb 2026 07:45:00 +0000

This is a fragment from my

Commentary on the Smaller Amida Sutra (Amidakyo)

- work in progress and under constant revision -

“When the Buddha had delivered this sutra, Śāriputra and all the monks, together with beings of the whole world, including devas, humans, and asuras, rejoiced at what they had heard and reverently accepted it. Having worshiped Him, they departed.”[1]

When Shakyamuni finished delivering this sutra which was taught spontaneous and not in response to a question, all the audience gathered there to listen to it in the “Jeta Grove monastery of Anāthapiṇḍada’s Garden at Śrāvastī”[2], obeyed His instruction to accept His words in faith – “you should accept my words in faith and the teachings of all the Buddhas”[3] from section 12 as well as the encouragement of all Buddhas: “sentient beings should accept this sutra entitled ‘Praise of the Inconceivable Virtue and Protection by All Buddhas”[4] from sections 6 to 11.

The fact that the audience “rejoiced at what they had heard and reverently accepted it” also shows faith and indicates to the implicit meaning of the sutra.
One of the ten benefits in this life of a person who entrusts to Amida Buddha in accordance with His Primal Vow is to have great joy in one’s heart. As Shinran Shonin said:

„'Joy' (kangi): means to rejoice beforehand at being assured of attaining what one shall attain.”[5]

This joy is none other than the relief[6] people of faith experience when they know they are in the stage of non-retrogression for the attainment of Buddhahood in the Pure Land of Amida.

to be continued

Please support my Dharma work and Amidaji with a donation:

[1] The Three Pure Land sutras, translated into English by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, revised second edition, BDK English Tripitaka12-II, II, IV, Numata Center for Buddhist translation and Research, 2003, p.108
[2] The Three Pure Land sutras, translated into English by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, revised second edition, BDK English Tripitaka12-II, II, IV, Numata Center for Buddhist translation and Research, 2003, p.103
[3] The Three Pure Land sutras, translated into English by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, revised second edition, BDK English Tripitaka12-II, II, IV, Numata Center for Buddhist translation and Research, 2003, p.107
[4] The Three Pure Land sutras, translated into English by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, revised second edition, BDK English Tripitaka12-II, II, IV, Numata Center for Buddhist translation and Research, 2003, p.105-107
[5] Shinran Shonin, Notes on Once-calling and Many-calling, The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.474
[6] The joy of faith is like the relief you have when a great burden is taken from your shoulders, and indeed there is no greater burden than to be unenlightened and a slave of samsaric existence. The burden of your liberation is carried by the Buddha called Amida (Amitayus/Amitabha), who already crossed the Path for you. For a detailed explanation on this topic of joy, please read chapter “The Ten Benefits of faith in Amida during this life: 7. The benefit of having great joy in our hearts” from my book The Meaning of Faith and Nembutsu in Jodo Shinshu Buddhism.

On the expression “good men and women” from the Smaller Amida Sutra

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Tue, 03 Feb 2026 17:24:00 +0000

This is a fragment from my

Commentary on

the Smaller Amida Sutra (Amidakyo)

- work in progress

and under constant revision -

As you have probably noticed if you carefully read this sutra, there is an expression – “good men and women” that appears in sections 5 and 12: “a good man or woman who hears of Amitāyus (Amida), holds fast to His Name” - section 5, “all good men and women who hear this sutra and hold fast to it” and “good men and women of faith” – section 12.

“Of faith” is the key element of this expression and we should rely on it to understand its meaning and role in the Amida Sutra.

"Men and women of faith” are called "good", not because they must be virtuous as a necessity for birth in the Pure Land, but because they are given Amida’s perfect virtues through faith. In other words, Amida makes them good (suitable) for birth in the Pure Land, that is, He provides them with all that is necessary for birth there.

So, “faith” (shinjin) is the implicit meaning and the essence of those words. Without reliance on Amida’s Power, one cannot go to the center of the Pure Land (fulfilled land of the Pure Land) because his/her “goodness” or personal virtues are simply not enough for such a goal. But if men and women entrust in Amida Buddha, they “dwell in the stage of non-retrogression” in this life, and at the moment of death they are born in the Pure Land, where they attain the “highest, perfect Enlightenment” as Shakyamuni promised in section 12.

Thus, instead of struggling ourselves to become worthy of the Pure Land, we should simply entrust to Amida and let Him carry us there.

As Shinran said in Tannisho:

“For those who entrust themselves to the Primal Vow, no good acts are required, because no good surpasses the Nembutsu[1]. Nor need they despair of the evil they commit, for no evil can obstruct the working of Amida's Primal Vow[2].”[3]

to be continued

Please support my Dharma work and Amidaji with a donation:

[1] “No good acts are required because no good surpasses the Nembutsu” is NOT an encouragement towards a life of evil, but simply shows that we cannot be born in the [center of the] Pure Land through the limited merits gained by our actions done with an unenlightened mind. The Name of Amida contains all His infinite merits necessary for our birth there. For a more detailed explanation read my article “False (mundane) merits vs True (supramundane) merits” which also appears in the book Jodo Shinshu Buddhist Teachings – 2^nd revised edition.
[2] “No evil can obstruct the working of Amida's Primal Vow” means that we are born in the Pure Land through the Power and infinite (supramundane) merits of Amida Buddha.
[3] A Record in Lament of Divergences – Tannisho, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.661

The reason for Shakyamuni’s appearance in our world and why His teaching on Amida Buddha is the most difficult to accept in faith - commentary on section 13

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Mon, 02 Feb 2026 14:35:00 +0000

This is a fragment from my

Commentary on the Smaller Amida Sutra (Amidakyo)

- work in progress and under constant revision -

“Śāriputra, just as I now praise the inconceivable virtue of other Buddhas, they also praise my inconceivable virtue, saying, ‘Śākyamuni Buddha, you have accomplished an extremely difficult and unprecedented task. In this Sahā world, during the evil period of the five defilements – those of time, views, passions, sentient beings, and lifespan – you have attained highest, perfect Enlightenment and, for the sake of sentient beings, have delivered this teaching which is the most difficult in the world to accept in faith.’

“Śāriputra, you must realize that I have accomplished this difficult task during the period of the five defilements. That is to say, having attained highest, perfect Enlightenment, I have for the sake of the world delivered this teaching, which is so hard for [people] to accept in faith. This is indeed an extremely difficult task.”[1]

According to Shinran Shonin’s interpretation, the reason for Shakyamuni Buddha’s coming to this world was to teach about the unconditional salvation offered by Amida [2]. As He taught the story of Amida and His 48 Vows (among which the 18^th/Primal Vow is the most important) in the Larger Sutra, that discourse is Shakyamuni’s true reason for His appearance in human form[3]:

“The Larger Sutra reveals the true teaching. It is indeed the right exposition for which the Tathagata (Buddha) appeared in the world, the wondrous scripture rare and most excellent, the conclusive and ultimate exposition of the One Vehicle, the precious words disclosing perfect, instantaneous fulfilment[4], the sincere words praised by all the Buddhas throughout the ten quarters, the true teaching in consummate readiness for the beings of this day. Let this be known.”[5]

The idea of Shakyamuni’s coming to this world to teach about the unconditional salvation offered by Amida is emphasized again in the Smaller Amida Sutra in the form of all Buddhas praising Shakyamuni’s appearance in our Saha universe in an era filled with the five defilements. The passage from section 13 of Amidakyo clearly links the appearance of Shakyamuni in our universe with His teaching on Amida Buddha which is based on faith and most difficult to be accepted in faith. Shinran Shonin also said in relation to this section:

"Realization of true and real shinjin (faith in Amida)
Is rare in the defiled world of the last Dharma-age;
The witness of Buddhas countless as the sands of the Ganges
Reveals how difficult it is to attain ".[6]

Why is this teaching on Amida “the most difficult in the world to accept in faith”, especially since it is the easiest Path to Buddhahood? The answer is obvious - because people tend to dismiss the path of birth in the Pure Land through simple faith in Amida as being too easy to be true. Although Amida Buddha offers us the easiest Path out of samsara and Shakyamuni with all Buddhas praise it and recommend it to us, many will miss it due to their illusory dreams of spiritual greatness. Just look to nowadays practitioners who think they can conquer Nirvana with their self-efforts like it’s just another human attainable project[7], who consider that to become a Buddha is to be a good human being when Shakyamuni himself clearly said that He and His realizations were beyond the human realm[8]. Also, think to those who deny the existence of Amida and His Pure Land calling them myths, metaphors, symbols and dismiss the path of faith as some kind of folk addition or method for lower people who can’t understand non-duality …. Such deluded practitioners copy and paste the words of Enlightened Masters of old without having their spiritual realizations. How can they ever receive faith?

to be continued

Please support my Dharma work and Amidaji with a donation:

[1] The Three Pure Land sutras, translated into English by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, revised second edition, BDK English Tripitaka12-II, II, IV, Numata Center for Buddhist translation and Research, 2003, p.107-108
[2] Please read chapter “Shakyamuni Buddha’s supreme appearance and the reason for His coming to this world –commentary on the section 3”, from my Commentary on the Sutra on the Buddha of Infinite Life (Larger Sutra).
[3] For a detailed explanations of Shakyamuni’s words on this topic in the Larger Sutra and Shinran’s interpretation, please read the chapter “Shakyamuni Buddha’s supreme appearance and the reason for His coming to this world – commentary on section 3”, from my Commentary on the Sutra on the Buddha of Infinite Life (Larger Sutra).
[4] Through the Path of Faith in Amida one will instantly attain perfect Enlightenment in the very moment of his birth in the Pure Land.
[5] Shinran Shonin, Kyogyoshinsho, chapter I, The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.10
[6] Shinran Shonin, Hymns of the Dharma Ages (Shozomatsu Wasan)
[7] People don't really understand what is meant by becoming a Buddha in this life, and in this very body. This is perhaps due to the bad influence of many fancy Buddhist magazines which talk about Enlightenment like it’s some kind of calmness or stillness of mind which can be attained by everybody. They use a language which makes Enlightenment seem a normal human experience if you are good, and meditate, and they also describe Shakyamuni, the historical Buddha, like a normal human being who proved that spiritual calmness can be attained by anybody. Well, Shakyamuni was NOT a human being and Buddhahood is nothing comparable with any calmness or stillness of mind! This should be well understood.
Also, Buddhahood goes beyond any human or godly experience, and so we can say that Shakyamuni was NOT a human anymore after He attained perfect Enlightenment. His outer form remained human, but His mind went beyond any attainments of humans and gods. This is because Buddhahood or perfect Enlightenment is supreme in the universe. Nothing can compare with a Buddha or fully Enlightened One. Buddhahood means, among many things, that you attain the Three Bodies (Aspects), that is, ultimate Dharmakaya beyond form, a glorious Sambhogakaya or transcendent body seen only by high level Bodhisattvas, that you can manifest a Pure Land if you want (perhaps not so great like Amida's but definitely a better realm than any samsaric realm), that you can know the thoughts of ALL beings in ALL worlds and thus are able to help each one of them according to their specific level of understanding. You can also see and hear them all, and you know all their past lives as well as the many possible ways of development in the never ending future. I repeat as I am not sure it was well understood – I said ALL beings in ALL worlds! You know everything about ANY particular being in the six realms of all world systems from tiny insects to long living gods and you can go everywhere in an instant, without even moving yourself from your present location. This means that you can manifest as many Nirmanakayas or transformed/ accommodated bodies you want in all parts of the universe. Shinran Shonin said the same in Tannisho:
“Do those who speak of realizing Enlightenment while in this bodily existence manifest various accommodated bodies (Nirmanakayas), possess the Buddha’s thirty-two features and eighty marks, and preach the Dharma to benefit beings like Shakyamuni? It is this that is meant by realizing Enlightenment in this life.”
Buddhahood also means that you master ALL practices, Dharma gates and profound teachings, and are able to teach them all without effort. I don’t have the time now to describe the various other supernatural capacities of a Buddha, but I ask you, the reader of this book, to just contemplate the few mentioned above. Do you think you can become like this in your present life? If yes, then you are gravely deluded about your real capacities, and thus you cannot yet accept Amida’s helping hand that is extended to you.
[8] In a well known dialogue (Dona Sutta), a brahman named Dona asked Shakyamuni Buddha who is He:
“Sir, are you a god?”
“No, brahman.”
“Are you a yakkha?
“No, brahman.”
“Are you a human being?”
“No, brahman.”
“When asked, ‘Are you a god?’ you answer, ‘No, brahman…’ When asked, ‘Are you a yakkha?’ you answer, ‘No, brahman…’ When asked, ‘Are you a human being?’ you answer, ‘No, brahman…’ Then what sort of being are you?”
“Brahman, the defilements by which - if they were not abandoned - I would be a god: those are abandoned by me, their root destroyed, made like a palm tree stump, no longer subject to future arising. The defilements by which - if they were not abandoned - I would be a yakkha… a human being: those are abandoned by me, their root destroyed, made like a palm tree stump, no longer subject to future arising.
Just as a blue or red or white lotus born in water, grows in water and stands up above the water untouched by it, so too I, who was born in the world and grew up in the world, have transcended the world, and I live untouched by the world. Remember me, brahman, as a Buddha.”
The state of human beings is limited by various kinds of delusions, so we are mistaken if we say, for example, that Buddha is a human being. This is because the state He attained is higher than the human state of spiritual evolution. In particular, some Christians accuse Buddhism that its Founder is just a human and is thus inferior to Jesus who was the son of God. Even some Buddhists say that Buddha was a human being in order to show that they don’t promote idols or god-worshiping.
Both methods of speaking about a Buddha are false, because although the physical appearance of a Buddha may be human, the state which He has attained and in which He dwells is supreme in the universe.
The ego’s unceasing run, led by desires and karma, is followed by suffering. Birth and death does not end until Enlightement or Awakening is attained. A Buddha is one who escapes from this maddening run.
The word “Buddha” means “The Awakened One”, that is, awakened to the true reality. He goes beyond birth and death, escaping the chains of karma. His existence in the Universe is supreme and beyond our thinking which is still enslaved by illusions and ignorance. A Buddha has Infinite Wisdom and Infinite Compassion, helping sentient beings to break free from birth and death.
In Buddhism the situation is different from Christianity because there isn’t a Creator God, a Ruler, or a Judge. Everything depends on karma: a Buddha is not a creator, a ruler, or a judge, but His existence in the Universe is supreme. He is “The Awakened One” and He acts as a guide and Saviour, capable of true Compassion which is no longer enchained by the attachments or the illusions of ordinary beings.

The method of birth in the Pure Land – commentary on section 5 (part2) of the Smaller Amida Sutra (Amidakyo)

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Fri, 23 Jan 2026 17:35:00 +0000

This is a fragment from my

Commentary on the Smaller Amida Sutra (Amidakyo)

- work in progress and under constant revision -

“Śāriputra, those sentient beings who hear of that land should aspire to be born there. Why? Because they will be able to meet such sages of supreme virtue. Śāriputra, one cannot attain birth in that land with few roots of good or a small store of merit.

Śāriputra, if a good man or woman who hears of Amitāyus holds fast to His Name even for one day, two days, three, four, five, six, or seven days with a concentrated and undistracted mind, then, at the hour of death, Amitāyus will appear with a host of holy ones. Consequently, when their life comes to an end, the aspirants’ minds will not fall into confusion and so they will be born immediately in the Land of Utmost Bliss of Amitāyus. Śāriputra, perceiving these benefits, I say: ‘All sentient beings who hear this teaching should aspire to birth in that land.’”[1]

We must notice these words “sages of supreme virtue (merit)” and “one cannot attain birth in that land with few roots of good or a small store of merit (virtue)”.

Both indicate to the infinite merits of Amida Buddha (in relation with the implicit meaning of this sutra about which I will talk in details at a later time) that make one reach the Pure Land. Shinran Shonin said,

“When sentient beings of this evil world

of the five defilements[2]

Entrust themselves to the selected Primal Vow,

virtues indescribable, inexplicable, and inconceivable

fill those practitioners."[3]

He also explained in his work “Passages on the Two Aspects of The Tathagata’s Directing of Virtue”:

“Concerning the directing of virtue through the Power of the Primal Vow, the Tathagata’s directing of virtue has two aspects: the directing of virtue in the aspect for our going forth to the Pure Land and the directing of virtue in the aspect for our return to this world.”[4]

The directing of virtue (merits) in the aspect for our going forth means that by receiving shinjin (faith) during this present life we are made to be born in the center of the Pure Land where we instantly become Buddhas. The directing of virtue for our return to this world means that as soon as we become Buddhas there we return to this world in various forms to help all beings. Both these aspects are the transference of merit from AmidaBuddha to us which we receive in the form of shinjin (faith/entrusting heart) and Nembutsu (saying of the Name). These infinite merits (virtues) of Amida are the “supreme virtue” which made those sages of the Pure Land being born there and indicate to the implicit meaning of the sutra and are contrasted with the “few roots of good or a small store of merit (virtue)” in the above passage from section 5 of this sutra.

Thus, in both cases – birth in the center of the Pure Land (fulfilled land of the PureLand) or the border land of the Pure Land, it is the Power of Amida which brings us there, with the difference that those who remain in the borderland stop themselves from advancing to the center because of clinging to their so-called virtues and personal merits. They (dwellers of the borderland) cannot avail themselves of the infinite merits of Amida which people of complete faith receive in their present life. By imagining that their self-power matters and that they can transfer the merits of Nembutsu to birth in the Pure Land as if those merits belong to them (although they were kindly brought to the Pure Land by Amida), they keep themselves in the borderland of that realm. So, the words “one cannot attain birth in that land with few roots of good or a small store of merit” mean that those who rely on their so-called merits for birth in the Pure Land cannot actually reach the center of the Pure Land. This again, shows the implicit meaning of the sutra.

Now let’s move to the next passage:

“Śāriputra, if a good man or woman[5] who hears of Amitāyus holds fast to His Name even for one day, two days, three, four, five, six, or seven days with a concentrated and undistracted mind, then, at the hour of death, Amitāyus will appear with a host of holy ones.”

To hear of Amitayus (Amida) can be done in two ways: 1) to hear and mix reliance on Amida with reliance on one’s own power, and 2) to hear and completely entrust to Amida’s Power.

In the 1^st case the follower thinks that the more Nembutsu he recites and the more concentrated and undistracted he is during recitation, the more chances he has to be born in the Pure Land. In his situation it’s important that Nembutsu should be done with “a concentrated and undistracted mind” and as many times as possible, including the moment of death. About this kind of follower, we say in our tradition that he doubts the wisdom of the Buddha. What does this mean? To doubt the wisdom of the Buddha means that although you hear the Primal Vow, you think you know better than Amida and so instead of following His instruction – “say my Name perhaps even ten times” (18^th Vow/Primal Vow)[6] you think that you need to say Nembutsu many times or that you can combine Nembutsu with something else, like other practices. This means you doubt Amida’s wisdom and think you know better than Him what is needed for your salvation[7]. The follower in this 1^st category is born in the border land of the Pure Land. Knowing this type of person is attached to his own self-power, Amida made His 20^th Vow and Shakyamuni encouraged him to say the Name many times, like “even for one day, two days, three, four, five, six, or seven days” and “with a concentrated and undistracted mind”. Such a follower needs to know that he is doing something for birth in the Pure Land, that he deserves it and struggles to achieve it, thus being ignorant of the infinite Compassion and Power of Amida who is the only one that can make that birth possible.

In the 2^nd case, the follower hears the teaching about Amida Buddha (His Primal Vow/18^th Vow) with complete faith in His Power to save him and says the Name as a simple expression of faith, knowing that the Name is effective because of Amida (of the Power and infinite merits Amida manifested in it), not his lips or his mind. In his case, “even for one day, two days, three, four, five, six, or seven days with a concentrated and undistracted mind” means that his total faith in Amida never fades away from his mind but continues endlessly no matter how seldom or often he says the Name.

Next, there are two reasons why “at the hour of death, Amitāyus will appear with a host of holy ones”: 1) to support the practitioner who mixes reliance on Amida with reliance on his own power, to be born in the border land of the Pure Land, and 2) to simply welcome the person who has completely relied on Amida and is about to enter the center of the Pure Land.

In the 1^st case, the appearance of Amida with a host of holy ones is very important for the practitioner because he needs to have a good state of mind as a karmic condition for birth in the border land. Due to his partial and mixed reliance on Amida, his state of mind can be an obstacle for birth in the border land, so in His infinite compassion Amida makes sure to create for him the best condition so that his unenlightened mind does not become chaotic and drags him down in samsara – this is the meaning of Shakyamuni’s words: “consequently, when their life comes to an end, the aspirants’ minds will not fall into confusion and so they will be born immediately in the Land of Utmost Bliss of Amitāyus.”

Thus, the cause of birth in the Pure Land for the followers of the 19^th and 20^th vows who mix reliance on Amida with their self-power, is established in the moment of death.

In the 2^nd case, the appearance of Amida is not important, so it may happen or not, depending on the circumstances of one’s death[8]. Why is not important? Because the cause of birth in the Pure Land for the followers with complete faith is established in the very second they entrust to Amida. So, birth in the center of the Pure Land follows the moment of death as a natural consequence of the faith they received during their daily life.[9]

“Śāriputra, perceiving these benefits, I say: All sentient beings who hear this teaching should aspire to birth in that land”.

Aspiration for birth in the Pure Land is extremely important, so whether one has complete faith in the Power of Amida or mixes the reliance on Him with belief in his own so-called merits and efforts, one should wish to be born in the Pure Land of Sukhavati (Utmost Bliss). Among the Pure Lands of all Buddhas, Amida’s land in both its aspects, the border land or the fulfilled land (center) is the easiest to access.

In the next chapter we will see how the Buddhas of all directions praise Amida Buddha and encourage us to wish to be born in His Pure Land.

to be continued

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The Three Pure Land Sutras - A Study and Translation from Chinese by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai and Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p.105 The five defilements are the five marks of decay of the world we live in: 1) the defilement of views, when incorrect, perverse thoughts and ideas are predominant, 2) the defilement of passions, when all kinds of transgressions are exalted, 3) the defilement of human condition, when people are usually dissatisfied and unhappy, 4) the defilement of life-span, when the human life-span as a whole decreases – according to the sutras, when it is less or close to one hundred years, 5) the defilement of the world-age, when war and natural disasters are rife. Shinran Shonin, Hymns of the Dharma Ages, The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.406

[5] The expression “a good man or woman” from section 5 is also repeated in section 12 “all good men and women who hear this sutra and hold fast to it” and “good men and women of faith”. “Of faith” is the key element of this expression and we should rely on it to understand its meaning and role in the Amida Sutra. For followers of the Primal Vow, it is faith which makes a man or a woman good for birth in the Pure Land.

I will offer more detailed explanations in a separate chapter of this commentary.

Please read my explanations

[7] There are also other examples that we may include in the category of doubting the wisdom of the Buddha. For example, aalthough you hear Amida said, “entrust to me”, which means only to Him, you mix the reliance on Amida with faith in other Buddhist and nonbuddhist religious figures. Instead of wishing to be born in His Land as Amida asked you to do, you think you know better, and you lie to yourself that you are already in the Pure Land here and now. Although is clear from Amida’s own description (in the Larger Sutra for example) of the enlightened qualities of those born in the Pure Land, who indicate that the Pure Land is NOT here and now, you continue to believe that you know better when you clearly don’t have the same qualities. And the list can continue…

For example, o

[9] Once a reader asked me: Why did Shinran say that we should not wait for Amida’s coming at the moment of death? Will Amida not come for people of shinjin (faith)?

To this I answered: The person who has faith in the Primal Vow does not wait for the final moment of death to have a good state of mind in which to say Nembutsu and be welcomed by Amida Buddha, but receives faith during his present life when he becomes assured of birth in the Pure Land, which will actually happen at the moment of death, when he is naturally welcomed by Amida Buddha and attains Budhahood. The Nembutsu one says during one’s whole life is thus the expression of faith and gratitude, and not the self-power nembutsu. When Shinran said that we should not wait for Amida's coming at the moment of death, he did not mean that we are not actually received by Amida in His Pure Land when we die or that He might not send one of His manifestations to us in our final hours before death! Of course, Amida can do that if He wants! What Shinran meant is that we should not think that the moment of death is more important than our daily lives, and we should not attach a false significance to it, fearing that if we do not have a good state of mind or concentration in those final moments, then we will not go to the Pure Land. No matter we are or we are not in a concentrated or good state of mind when we die, no matter if we say the Nembutsu or die without saying it because of unforeseen circumstances, we will be welcomed by Amida Buddha in His Pure Land if we already entrusted ourselves to Him and said His Name in faith during life. Shinran explained:

"I, for my own part, attach no significance to the condition, good or bad, of persons in their final moments. People in whom shinjin is determined do not doubt, and so abide among the truly settled. For this reason their end also - even for those ignorant and foolish and lacking in wisdom - is a happy one.”

Shinran Shonin, Lamp for the Latter Ages, letter 6, The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.531

Some characteristics of beings born in the Pure Land - commentary on section 5 (part 1) of the Smaller Amida Sutra

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Wed, 21 Jan 2026 11:59:00 +0000

This is a fragment from my

Commentary on the Smaller Amida Sutra (Amidakyo)

- work in progress and under constant revision -

“Again, Śāriputra, all sentient beings born in the Land of Utmost Bliss dwell in the stage of non-retrogression. Many of them are in the stage of becoming a Buddha after one more life. Their number is so great that it is beyond reckoning; it can only be described as innumerable, unlimited, and incalculable.”[1]

The sentence “all sentient beings born in the Land of Utmost Bliss dwell in the stage of non-retrogression” has two meanings,

1. all sentient beings born in the border land of the Pure Land will never retrogress again in samsara and when they abandon the illusion of self-power will certainly advance to the center (the fulfilled land) of the Pure Land where they attain Buddhahood
2. those who are born in the center of the Pure Land are already in the stage of non-retrogression which they’ve actually attained when they first entrusted themselves totally and exclusively to Amida Buddha in their previous life. So, when they reach the Pure Land they immediately become Buddhas.

The 1^st meaning needs no further explanation, so I will explain again the 2^nd meaning.
The stage of non-retrogression has many names, like for example, “the definitely assured state” as in the 11^th Vow of Amida Buddha, “the stage of the truly settled”, “the truly settled of the Mahayana”, “the stage equal to perfect Enlightenment”, “assured of Nirvana”, “assured of birth in the Pure Land”, etc.
According to Shinran Shonin, we enter the stage of non-retrogression or the definitely assured state in the very moment we entrust in Amida Buddha. Thus, it means that when we leave our physical bodies we are born into the Pure Land “carrying” with us this stage of non-retrogression. This is explained in the passage from the section 22 of the Larger Sutra, named by Shinran “the passage teaching the fulfilment of the 11^th Vow” where the term “definitely assured state” is mentioned:

“Sentient beings who are born in that Buddha-land all reside among those assured of Nirvana (Buddhahood). The reason is that in that land there are neither beings who are destined to adverse conditions nor those whose destinies are uncertain.”[2]

We enter the Pure Land as beings that already reside in the stage of non-retrogression/definitely assured state, who are certain of attaining Nirvana (“assured of Nirvana”) and who attain it not after a long time of further practice in the Pure Land, but immediately after we are born there (center of the Pure Land)[3]. This is the correct view of our Jodo Shinshu school and of Shinran Shonin. For a person of true faith who resides in the definitely assured state (stage of non-retrogression/assured of Nirvana), there is no further need of practice because he has no “adverse conditions” to overcome. Thus, for someone whose destiny is fixed, the moment of birth in the Pure Land is immediately followed by the attainment of Nirvana.

The image which comes to my mind is that of a seed and a tree. When we become open to the Primal Vow of Amida Buddha, He plants in us the seed of true faith (shinjitsu shinjin). Any seed will certainly become a tree; it has the fixed destiny to become a tree. In our case, the seed of true shinjin (faith) will naturally grow and become a Buddha. So, we are born in the center of the Pure Land carrying this seed in us which immediately transforms itself into the Tree of Enlightenment (Nirvana/Buddhahood). This is how we should read the sentence “all sentient beings born in the Land of Utmost Bliss dwell in the stage of non-retrogression” in relation with those born in the center of the Pure Land.
For more details on this topic, please refer to my explanations of the 11^th Vow of Amida Buddha from my Commentary on the Sutra on the Buddha of Infinite Life (Larger Sutra).

I also explained this sentence “many of them are in the stage of becoming a Buddha after one more life” in my commentary on the Larger Sutra in the chapter dedicated to the 22^nd Vow of Amida Buddha where He used those very words,

“If, when I attain Buddhahood, bodhisattvas[4] in the Buddha-lands of other directions who come and are born in my land[5] should not ultimately and unfailingly reach the Stage of Becoming a Buddha after One More Life, may I not attain perfect Enlightenment.[…]”[6]
(fragment from the 22^nd Vow of Amida Buddha)

The words “stage of becoming a Buddha after one more life” has two meanings: 1) for those who are born in the center of the Pure Land (the fulfilled land of the Pure Land) and 2) for those who are born in the border land of the Pure Land.

As to the 1^st meaning, those already in the stage of non-retrogression since they have first entrusted to Amida, enter the Pure Land through the gate of Faith (Gate of the Primal Vow) and immediately attain Buddhahood upon birth there (11^th Vow of Amida), then they return as Enlightened Bodhisattvas (Buddhas who manifest as Bodhisattvas) to lead all beings to Enlightenment by continually playing in various universes the same role Shakyamuni had and Maitreya will have in our universe. The “stage of becoming a Buddha after one more life”, promised in the 22^nd Vow and mentioned in the Smaller Amida Sutra, represents the capacity of those who attain Buddhahood in the Pure Land to endlessly manifest themselves in various places in the universe and become active Buddhas there for the sake of sentient beings. When we are born in the center of the Pure Land, we automatically gain the capacity to always play the role of becoming Buddhas and teaching the Dharma like Shakyamuni himself. Shinran Shonin explained this in his Hymns of the Pure Land:

“Those who reach the Pure Land of happiness
Return to this evil world of the five defilements,
Where, like the Buddha Shakyamuni,
They benefit sentient beings without limit.”[7]

We will pretend to be unenlightened and attain Enlightenment (“becoming a Buddha”), like Shakyamuni himself admitted in the Lotus Sutra that although He presented himself as attaining Enlightenment (Buddhahood) in His life on earth, He has been a Buddha for a very long time, playing this game of pretending to be unenlightened and then attaining Enlightenment many times for the sake of samsaric beings,

“The devas, humans, and asuras in all the worlds all think that the present Buddha, Śhakyamuni, left the palace of the Sakyas, sat on the terrace of Enlightenment not far from the city of Gaya, and attained highest, complete Enlightenment. However, o sons of a virtuous family, immeasurable, limitless, hundreds of thousands of myriads of koṭis of nayutas of kalpas have passed since I actually attained Buddhahood. […] Since then, I have constantly been residing in the Saha world[8], teaching the Dharma and inspiring sentient beings. I have also been leading and benefiting sentient beings in incalculable hundreds of thousands of myriads of koṭis of nayutas of other worlds.”[9]

to be continued

Please support my Dharma work and Amidaji with a donation:

All my books are available for free download at this link (click here), so any little help is welcomed and very much needed. My freely available Dharma work depends on donations from readers like you.
Yours in Namo Amida Bu

_____________________________________________

[1] The Three Pure Land Sutras - A Study and Translation from Chinese by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai and Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p.105
[2]The Three Pure Land sutras, translated into English by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, revised second edition, BDK English Tripitaka12-II, II, IV, Numata Center for Buddhist translation and Research, 2003, p.35
[3] Of course, if we enter the Pure Land with faith mixed with doubt and attachments to our own power (followers of the 19th and 20th Vows), we do not immediately attain Nirvana, but stay for a while in the border land of the Pure Land until we overcome our doubts.
[4] Bodhisattvas in aspiration. See my classification of the two types of Bodhisattvas in this book.
[5] “…who come and are born in my land” is the Hongwanji translation  - The Three Pure Land Sutras, volume II, The Sutra on the Buddha of Immeasurable Life, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, Japan, 2009, p.23, while the Inagaki edition reads “who visit my land”, The Three Pure Land sutras, A Study and Translation from Chinese by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, Nagata Bunshodo, Kyoto, 1995, p. 244. I used the Inagaki’s version with the exception of the above words.
[6]The Three Pure Land sutras, translated into English by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, revised second edition, BDK English Tripitaka12-II, II, IV, Numata Center for Buddhist translation and Research, 2003, p.244
[7] Shinran Shonin, Hymns of the Pure Land, The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.329
[8] Our universe.
[9] The Lotus Sutra, chapter 16  (Taishō Volume 9, Number 262), translated from the Chinese of Kumarajiva by Tsugunari Kubo and Akira Yuyama, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research,  2007, p223-224

Commentary on the Smaller Sutra on the Buddha of Infinite Life (Smaller Amida Sutra)

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Tue, 20 Jan 2026 10:47:00 +0000

- work in progress and under constant revision -

The transmission and importance

of the Smaller Amida Sutra (NEW!)

The reason for the western location of the Pure Land – commentary on section 2

Everything in the Pure Land is the manifestation of Amida - commentary on section 3

The identity of Amida Buddha and those born in His Pure Land – commentary on section 4

Some characteristics of beings born in the Pure Land - commentary on section 5 (part1)

The method of birth in the Pure Land - commentary on section 5 (part 2)

All Buddhas praise the Name of Amida and encourage beings to accept in faith the teaching about Him - commentary on sections 6-12

On the expression "good men and women" from the Smaller Amida Sutra

The reason for Shakyamuni's appearance in our world and why His teaching on Amida Buddha is the most difficult to accept in faith - commentary on section 13 (NEW!)

The audience accepted the Smaller Amida Sutra in faith (NEW!)

to be continued

Click here to download my Commentary on the Larger Sutra and here to download my Commentary on the Contemplation Sutra

Please support my Dharma work and Amidaji with a donation:

The reason for the western location of the Pure Land – commentary on section 2 of the Smaller Amida Sutra

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Mon, 19 Jan 2026 22:00:00 +0000

This is a fragment from my

Commentary on the Smaller Amida Sutra (Amidakyo)

- work in progress and under constant revision -

“The Buddha then said to Elder Shariputra: “If you travel westward from here, passing a hundred thousand koṭis of Buddha lands, you will come to the land called Utmost Bliss, where there is a Buddha named Amitayus (Amida). He is living there now, teaching the Dharma.”[1]

In order to show that Amida’s Pure Land is not a metaphor, but a real enlightened place in which people can actually aspire to be born after death, the land is given a direction and is described in great details in the three sutras.

Some say that the direction “west” and the marvellous descriptions of the Pure Land are proofs it is only a symbol or metaphor. But the truth is that by making the effort to describe in many words the wonders of the Pure Land and by pointing to a direction – “if you travel westward from here, passing a hundred thousand koṭis of Buddha lands, you will come to the land called Utmost Bliss” or where to face the Pure Land when worshipping Amida, like in the Larger Sutra [2], Shakyamuni Buddha wanted to emphasize its actual existence as a real enlightened place [3]where sentient beings should aspire to be born without worry and doubt. It is as though I speak to you about a beautiful park that I would like you to visit. If I tell you, “it’s there, in the west of the town” and I start describing it to you, then you will have no doubt about its existence and you will wish to see it. It’s the same with the expression “Pure Land of the West” that appears in many texts.

to be continued

[1] The Three Pure Land Sutras - A Study and Translation from Chinese by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai and Numata Centre for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p.91
[2] Read chapter, “The testimony of Ananda and the audience gathered on Vulture Peak to the existence of Amida Buddha and His Pure Land – commentary on sections 41 and 42” from my Commentary on the Sutra on the Buddha of Infinite Life. In those sections Ananda is asked by Shakyamuni to rearrange his robes, put his palms together and worship Amida. Then, “Ananda stood up, rearranged his robes, assumed the correct posture, faced westward, and, demonstrating his sincere reverence, joined his palms together, prostrated himself on the ground, and worshiped Amitayus.”
The Three Pure Land Sutras - A Study and Translation from Chinese by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai and Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p.65
[3] Read the article Pure Land as a state of consciousness or a real place?

Everything in the Pure Land is the manifestation of Amida Buddha - commentary on section 3 of the Smaller Amida Sutra

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Mon, 19 Jan 2026 08:27:00 +0000

This is a fragment from my

Commentary on the Smaller Amida Sutra (Amidakyo)

- work in progress and under constant revision -

The key for understanding section 3 is the passage where Shakyamuni explains to Sariputra the origin of the birds in the Pure Land,

“Again, Śāriputra, in that land there are always many kinds of rare and beautiful birds of various colors, such as white geese, peacocks, parrots, śāris, kalaviṅkas, and jīvaṃjīvakas. Six times during the day and night birds sing with melodious and delicate sounds, which proclaim such teachings as the five roots of good, the five powers, the seven practices leading to Enlightenment, and the Noble Eightfold Path. On hearing them, all the people of that land become mindful of the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha. Śāriputra, you should not assume that these birds are born as retribution for evil karma. The reason is that none of the three evil realms exists in that Buddha land. Śāriputra, even the names of the three evil realms do not exist there; how much less the realms themselves! These birds are manifested by Amitāyus (Amida) so that their singing can proclaim and spread the Dharma.”[1]
The above comes after He described the various other manifestations like trees, balustrades, decorative nets, ponds, pavilions, lotuses and mandarava flowers, music, etc. It is clear that just as the birds in the Pure Land are “manifested by Amitayus (Amida)”, everything there is also manifested by Him, because He is the creator of His own enlightened realm. If beings in the various samsaric planes of existence have bodies according to their karma and may become objects of desire for other beings, birds in the Pure Land proclaim Buddhist teachings and help those born there to naturally “become mindful of the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha”.
Thus, the birds of the Pure Land as well as the passages quoted bellow, prove that the Pure Land is a real enlightened place, outside of Samsara and can naturally enlighten those who enter it,

“None of the three evil realms exists in that Buddha land. Even the names of the three evil realms do not exist there; how much less the realms themselves!”[2]

“Śāriputra, why is that land called Utmost Bliss? The beings in that land suffer no pain but only enjoy pleasures of various kinds. For this reason, that land is called Utmost Bliss.”[3]

“They (the lotuses of the Pure Land) are marvellous and beautiful, fragrant and pure.”

“When soft breezes waft through the rows of jeweled trees and jeweled nets they produce subtle, wonderful sounds. It is as if a hundred thousand musical instruments were playing together. Everyone who hears the sounds spontaneously becomes mindful of the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha. Śāriputra, that Buddha land is filled with such splendid adornmemts”[4]
Amida Buddha provides the dwellers of His Pure Land with all they need to make offerings to various Buddhas:

“Six times during the day and night māndārava flowers rain down from the sky. Every day, in the serenity of early morning, the people of that land fill the hems of their robes with exquisite flowers and go to make offerings to a hundred thousand koṭis of Buddhas dwelling in the worlds of all the other directions. Then they return to the Pure Land for their morning meal. After the meal they enjoy a stroll. Śāriputra, the Land of Utmost Bliss is filled with such splendid adornments.”[5]

The meal is also part of the splendid and enlightened adornments of the Pure Land which do not give rise to attachment and greed. The fact that meal appears regularly, such as “morning meal” in the above passage shows that the dwellers of the Pure Land are constantly and naturally satisfied with spiritual nourishment.

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to suppport my Dharma work and Amidaji temple.

[1] The Three Pure Land Sutras - A Study and Translation from Chinese by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai and Numata Centre for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p.104
[2] The Three Pure Land Sutras - A Study and Translation from Chinese by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai and Numata Centre for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p.104
[3] The Three Pure Land Sutras - A Study and Translation from Chinese by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai and Numata Centre for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p.103
[4] The Three Pure Land Sutras - A Study and Translation from Chinese by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai and Numata Centre for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p.104
[5] The Three Pure Land Sutras - A Study and Translation from Chinese by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai and Numata Centre for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p.104

The Stupa of All Buddhas at Amidaji temple

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Tue, 16 Dec 2025 17:47:00 +0000

Click aici pentru versiunea
in limba romana

NEW! The concrete platform for the Stupa of All Buddhas is ready

General matters

After much thought, prayer, discussion and contemplation of various options, I finally decided that the Stupa of All Buddhas to be built at Amidaji will be inspired by the Dhamek Stupa (👈left image) which is located in the Deer Park at Sarnath in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India.[1] The reasons are many, among which I mention the following,

- its style is better suited for a non-sectarian stupa: it is clearly not Tibetan, not Japanese, not Chinese, etc, but a simple Indian stupa style to which any Buddhist can relate to - nobody can say, “this stupa belongs to a Tibetan, Chinese, Japanese school, etc”, but simply see it as a stupa.

- its form is simple and easier to build locally, without the sophisticated architecture of a Tibetan chorten[2] or Japanese/Chinese pagoda

- as Dhamek stupa commemorates the first teaching of the Buddha it is very suitable as an inspiration for the Stupa of All Buddhas which represents the Teaching of all Buddhas

How can you help?

Anyone can help the building of this stupa with a donation at this PayPal box,

or at the Bank accounts listed at this link (click here).

Those who send a donation for the building of this stupa must mention the word STUPA when they donate so that I can use the funds exclusively for this project. The progress of the project as well as how the donations are spent (including photos with the materials bought from donations) will be mentioned in future related articles. Depending on the generosity of the readers and Dharma friends, I hope to gather all the needed materials (cement, brics, small statues, images, mantras, dharanis, sutra texts, as well as various other filling materials) until early spring so that I can start building it as soon as possible.

Diagram of the Stupa of All Buddhas

The goal of the Stupa of All Buddhas and our aspiration when building it

A stupa is a nuclear positive bomb, so to speak. It pacifies, blesses and influences the environment as well as human and nonhuman beings in a good way. It links anybody who sees it with the Buddhas and the Dharma, protects and nourishes, purifies and plants the seeds of liberation in those who see it, touch it or even stay in its shadow. One does not even need to be a Buddhist to receive the benefits of seeing, touching, circumambulating a stupa or a Buddha statue/image. Here are a few passages in relation with this,

“Whoever circumambulates or makes offerings to a Stupa will be blessed by Tathagatas, move to the supreme enlightened state through a non-returning path, and purify all of their karmic obscurations.”
The Noble Stainless Beams of Light Sutra

“Even if the shadow of a Stupa touches birds, animals, deer, or whomever, they will not be reborn in the lower realms.”
The Noble Stainless Beams of Light Sutra

“Whoever contacts such a Stupa will develop great wisdom and long life, and even if they die, they will be reborn in the higher realms in a royal clan, and they will never go to the lower realms.”
The Manjushrimitra Root Tantra

“A stupa is a palace where all the Buddhas are abiding. Those beings who don’t have the karma actually to see Buddha need the holy objects of body, speech and mind – statues, scriptures, stupas – as a field for accumulating merit.”
Guhyasmaja Tantra

I have the firm belief that in this dark age when many practices no longer work due to the limited capacities of beings and when almost nobody is able to purely follow precepts, it is of utmost importance to fill the world, and especially those countries where Buddhism is at the very beginning, with as many stupas and images/statues of Buddhas as possible. This is not an age of virtues and spiritual realization, but of agitation, turbulence, lack of time and patience, when people don’t have the capacity of sustained practice and many do not even entrust to Amida (Amitabha) Buddha for birth in the enlightened environment of His Pure Land. This is why nowadays the best skilful means (upaya), to help as many beings as possible to escape the lower realms is to help them enter into connection with sacred objects possessing the blessings and Power of the Buddhas. Stupas, Buddha images and statues as well as their Names and mantras are able to plant the seed of liberation into all those who see them, hear them or enters any form of contact with them. It is the reason why, for example, I advise anybody to say the Name of Amida in the presence of animals or help anybody at least hear it once or see it in written form.

Thus, our aspirations for building this stupa are the following,

- to help human and nonhuman beings create indestructible connections with the Buddhas and their Dharma, helping them to accept whatever form of Buddhism and Dharma Gate they have a karmic affinity with and is more suitable for them at the level they are now.

- To karmically support the establishment of all Buddhist schools and genuine lineages of Dharma transmission and destroy any obstacle that may exist in relation with them

- for the victory of the Buddha Dharma in this part of the world

- to stop the entering of and destroy any wrong views related with Buddhism in this part of the world

- to stop rebirth in the lower realms of samsaric existence

- to purify and pacify the beings and environment

- to bring peace

- to constantly increase the vital energy of human and nonhuman beings, long life and protection against disease

- to increase the prosperity of the land and beings

- to protect the land and beings

etc

All the above aspirations as well as others will be written and placed inside the holy stupa together with the images, mantras, dharanis of Buddhas and holy texts, because we want it to be a karmic cause for their fulfilment.

The contents of the stupa

Many things will be placed inside this stupa among which I mention images, statues, mantras, dharanis, names of all Buddhas (including the Name of Amida Buddha) and Enlightened Bodhisattvas[3], sutras from the Pali canon and Mahayana canon (Chinese canon/Tibetan canon), and tantras.

This stupa will NOT contain

Although Tibetan stupas may have relics of various founders and modern Masters[4], as well as mantras associated with them (we have absolutely no problem with this practice!) our stupa will not contain any of these elements. The reason is simple – the stupa is non-sectarian. We do not want it to be associated with any school of Buddhism in particular.

Also, because many present-day leaders and teachers are criticized (false or true – we are not here to judge anybody) and there are many conflicts and opinions nowadays with various groups liking this person and disliking another, we want everybody feel at home in the presence of this stupa. Nobody could say that he does not visit the stupa because it contains the relics, mantras or names of this or that human Master which he does not like or because it’s a Jodo Shinshu, or Gelugpa, Nyingmapa, Kagyu, or Sakya stupa, Chinese school stupa, or a Theravada stupa, etc.

The Stupa of All Buddhas will be a stupa containing elements of all Buddhas as well as sutras from all canons. These being said, what kind of sincere Buddhist of any school, would refuse to show respect or bow towards such a stupa which contains multiplied images, names and mantras of all Buddhas and sacred texts?

Various problems and criticism that may appear

The most important criticism may come from those who say that I do not have the authority, the knowledge or purity to build a stupa.

First, I am not doing it by myself, but together with those who resonate with this project. Their names will be mentioned at the right time. Any lama or master as well as any lay person of any school are welcome to join.

By so-called “authority” some might invoke the fact that I am not a Tibetan Lama or monk with pure precepts. As this is not a Tibetan stupa nor related with a specific Tibetan school, there is no need for me to be a lama. Also, to be honest, the idea of “purity” in this dark age makes me laugh as I would dare anybody to call himself pure. Referring to the monks of the Last Dharma Age (Mappo)[5], Shakyamuni Buddha said in the Great Collection Sutra[6]:

“If, because of the Dharma that I teach, sentient beings shave their hair and beard and don monk’s robes, though they may not observe the precepts, they all bear the seal of Nirvana already. These people indicate the way to Nirvana to various people and heavenly beings. These people are already within the Three Treasures, have given rise to faith and respect in their minds, and surpass the ninety-five kinds of non-Buddhist path. These people will invariably enter Nirvana quickly. They excel all laymen and secular people, with the exception of the householders who have attained endurance[7]. For this reason, heavenly beings and humans should venerate them, even if they break the precepts."[8]

Also, let’s see what the Lotus Sutras has to say about who has the so-called “authority” to build a stupa,

“Whoever makes a Stupa out of stones, agarwood, or sandalwood; or whoever makes a Stupa with joy out of medicinal wood or even out of plain wood, earth, brick, and so on; or whoever makes a Stupa by just using heaps of earth in some remote area while thinking of the Buddha; or even children who make a Stupa while playing games with sand while thinking of the Victorious One; or whoever draws forms (of the Buddha)—they will all reach Enlightenment.”

Attention here – according to Shakyamuni, a stupa is authentic even if it is made by children while playing games and thinking to the Buddha. If a stupa made by children in a play would not be authentic, then it could not bring them to Enlightenment, isn’t it? However, Shakyamuni already said in the passage above that they will. Also, whoever draws the form of a Buddha – which means anybody, not only Lamas, Masters, Gurus, monks with pure precepts will also attain Enlightenment one day.

About knowledge, yes, I do not have the knowledge of the ways the Tibetan traditions make their stupas, but I am not a Tibetan and Tibetans don’t have the monopoly on Buddhism and stupas which come from the time of the Buddhas and are of many types. Not being a Tibetan Lama I will not make a Tibetan style stupa, and I will not make Tibetan ceremonies for consecration. Instead, I have devotion, sincere aspirations, faith and common sense which I think that are the best guides in making such a project.

Who will consecrate the stupa?

Answer: The Power of all Buddhas.

Being an ignorant person filled with blind passions and attachments, I don’t think that I possess anything good in myself that can consecrate a stupa, so I will invoke Amida and all Buddhas to bless and consecrate it. I am convinced that if I ask them nicely and with devotion, they will grant their blessings. The names, mantras, dharanis, images and the sacred sutras that I will respectfully place in this stupa already contain the blessings of the Buddhas, and I am sure that they work through them for the benefit of all beings. I and my colleagues are mere children playfully building a stupa with the Buddhas in our mind. Anybody is welcomed to play with us if they so wish.

Other stupas in Romania

Nobody should have a monopoly on Buddhism, stupas and statues/images of Buddhas.

As you all know, I often visit the Buddhist Stupa in Tranisu which was built by the Gelugpa followers of the White Mahakala Center in Cluj Napoca. I recommend everyone to visit it as I visit it every year and make publicity to it.

Also, there is a small stupa in the Calvin cemetery in Bucharest, which is taken care by Drolma Veronica Anghelescu, the representative of FPMT in Bucharest. More will be built in various styles for the benefit of beings living in this part of the world and I encourage you to visit each one of them.

In a country and world with stupas related with specific schools of Buddhism, I think that there is enough space for a stupa with only Buddhas and sacred texts, without any sectarian elements.

Why not a statue?

I will also make a statue in the future. I did not give up to the idea of having an outside statue of Amida Buddha. However, that project is strictly related with Jodo Shinshu Buddhism.

What if nobody visits this stupa, as various schools have their own way of building one?

I don’t care :)

Why a Jodo Shinshu Buddhist monk wishes to build a non-sectarian stupa?

- The reason I write this fragment is to counteract some people with evil intention

who present my non-sectarian attitude in a distorted way

and regard it as a depart from faith in Amida Buddha –

Because I firmly believe that Buddhists must collaborate with each other or at least find a common ground from time to time, especially in countries where Buddhism is at the very beginning. I think everyone should stick with the specific teachings and practices of his/her school and not mix them at the level they are now, but at the same time should not consider that they and their school are the owners of the Buddha Dharma.

Because I want that people who are not ready for the Primal Vow of Amida Buddha, should not be abandoned but kept within the embrace of the Buddha Dharma and be able to choose one of the many Buddhist paths taught by the Buddha. The infinite wisdom and compassion of Shakyamuni Buddha is shown in the fact that He did not teach only one path. We should remember this and do not fall into the extreme of sectarianism which makes collaboration impossible and is a cause for competition, arrogance and looking at beings as to objects to be possessed by one school or another. The goal of Buddhist disciples and Buddhist schools should be the liberation of all beings, and in fulfilling it we must help them in accordance with their karmic affinities, guiding them properly to learn the basics of Buddhism and discover which Dharma Gate its more suitable to them at the time they are now.

As a Jodo Shinshu Buddhist I firmly believe that all Buddhas praise Amida’s Name as He himself promised they will do in His 17^th Vow which was presented by Shakyamuni Buddha in the Larger Sutra. This means that they all guide beings to the same saying of the Name, so while we help people get connected with all Buddhas and Dharma Gates we also help them indirectly to meet Amida Buddha and His Dharma. As a Jodo Shinshu Buddhist I know that the reason I met the Amida Dharma in this life and was able to entrust to Amida is also due to the guidance of all Buddhas to whom I was devoted and made offerings to in the past (this life or previous lives). As Shinran Shonin said,

"Sakyamuni and all the other Buddhas

Are truly our compassionate father and mother.
With various compassionate means they lead us to awaken
Supreme shinjin (faith in Amida) that is true and real."[9]

„Shinjin (faith in Amida) is bestowed through the compassionate means of Sakyamuni, Amida, and all the Buddhas in the ten quarters.”[10]

Shakyamuni Buddha himself said in the Larger Sutra about the influence of other Buddhas in accepting His teaching on Amida in faith,

“One who has met a World-honoured One in the past
Can accept this teaching.
Such a person respectfully worships, hears,
And upholds it and rejoices so greatly as to dance.

Arrogant, corrupt, and indolent people
Cannot readily accept this teaching.
Rejoice to hear it”[11]

But those who have met Buddhas in their former lives

Also, as an Amida devotee I believe in the protection of all Buddhas, so there is no doctrinal contradiction in showing my gratitude to them,

„That the Buddhas protect persons of shinjin (faith in Amida) is truly beyond doubt”.[12]

"The Nirvana Sutra states:

The Buddha said to Bodhisattva Kasyapa, 'If there are sons or daughters of good families[13] who always sincerely perform the exclusive practice of the Nembutsu, whether they dwell in mountain forests or in villages, whether they practice it in the daytime or at night, and whether they do so while sitting or lying down, Buddhas and World-honored Ones always watch over them just as if they were before their eyes, and are ready to accept their offerings and endow merits to them.'”[14]

„When we say 'Namo Amida Butsu',

The countless Buddhas throughout the ten quarters,
Surrounding us a hundredfold, a thousandfold,
Rejoice in and protect us."[15]

„Shakyamuni, Amida, and the Buddhas of the ten quarters, all with the same mind, are no more apart from sentient beings of the Nembutsu than shadows from things.”[16]

[1] The Dhamek stupa is one of the eight most important pilgrimage sites for Buddhists, and it marks the location where the Buddha gave His first teaching to his first five disciples Kaundinya, Assaji, Bhaddiya, Vappa and Mahanama. All five disciples eventually became fully liberated. This event also marked the formation of the sangha. Several of the ancient sources describe the site of this first teaching as a Mriga-dayaa-vanam or a sanctuary for animals, which was the founding reason for the establishment of Deer Park by a local king. In Sanskrit, the word mriga is used in the sense of game animals, with deer being the most common. (Wikipedia).
I think it’s a beautiful coincidence that Amidaji’s courtyard is also a sanctuary for stray cats and dogs and the stupa we intend to build honours all Buddhas and their teachings.
After the Parinirvana of the Buddha, His remains were cremated and the ashes were divided and buried under eight stupas, with two further stupas encasing the urn and the embers. The Dhamek Stupa was presumably among these eight stupas. The Mauryan King Ashoka may have commissioned the stupa's expansion. The contemporary profile of the Dhamek Stupa has been conclusively dated to the Gupta Empire and the 5th-6th century CE. (Wikipedia)
[2] Stupas in Tibet and Tibetan-influenced regions of the Himalayas, such as Bhutan, are usually called "chorten" in English, reflecting the term in the Tibetan language. There are eight different shapes of chortens in Tibetan Buddhism, each referring to a major event in the Buddha's life. (wiki)

[3] According to Mahayana Buddhism, there are two types of bodhisattvas:
1. Bodhisattvas in aspiration who have made the vows of becoming Buddhas for themselves and all beings, but who are still on the path (still in training) and still unenlightened (not Buddhas yet). Anyone who made the four Bodhisattva vows may call himself or herself a bodhisattva in aspiration. Some bodhisattvas may be very much advanced and on various higher levels, even close to Enlightenment, but as long as they have not reached perfect Enlightenment, I also include them in this category.
2. Bodhisattvas who already attained Buddhahood but who do not remain secluded in their Enlightenment. These are in fact, ancient Buddhas who manifest as Bodhisattvas. In this category, we find Avalokitesvara, Mahasthamaprapta, Samantabhadra, Manjusri, Maitreya, and many others.
While Avalokitesvara (Kannon in Jap) and Mahasthamaprapta (Seishi in Jap) are the two Bodhisattvas who accompany Amida Buddha, the other three, Samantabhadra, Manjusri and Maitreya, were also assembled at the Vulture Peak when Shakyamuni preached the Larger Sutra.
For more information on this topic, plus mant quotes and passages supporting this classification please read The qualities of Bodhisattvas in the audience – section 2 from my book, Commentary on the Sutra on the Buddha of Infinite Life

[4] For example, any Gelugpa related stupa contains, among other elements, the mantra of Dalai Lama or Tsongkhapa – the Founding Master (whom I highly respect and I quote a lot in my books), which we avoid simply because our stupa is not related with any school. It’s the same reason we avoid placing images of our Founder Shinran Shonin, Master Rennyo or Honen Shonin. As our project has always been non-sectarian, we want in our stupa only items related with the Buddhas that are present in the sutras and to which any Buddhist can relate to.
[5] Generally speaking, the doctrine of the Three Dharma Ages refers to the gradual decline of the capacities of beings to practice the Dharma and attain realization through it. Thus, there is a difference between the time when the Buddha was in a human body and when He influenced directly through His example and Buddha field those gathered around Him, and the periods far away in time when only the teaching remains, but not the Teacher.
What a great chance it is to meet a Buddha in flesh and bones and receive instructions directly from Him, being constantly in His presence and influenced by His Buddha field. How quick and safe the spiritual development can be just by seeing His face and having devotion for Him every day, not to mention the constant checking and support He gives to your practice. Also, if you live in the period close to a Buddha’s departure from the physical body (Parinirvana), His influence is still felt and active through the working of His closest disciples or the disciples of these disciples.
As it is stated in the Sutra of Mahamaya:
“During the first five hundred years after the Buddha’s Parinirvana, seven holy monks, sages all, including Mahakasyapa, will uphold the right Dharma in succession so that it does not perish. After five hundred years, the right Dharma will become completely extinct.”
The first period of 500 years after the Buddha’s departure from His physical body (parinirvana) is called the right Dharma age. It is an age characterized by correct understanding and practice of the Dharma in all its aspects (meditation, wisdom and precepts) with the often attainment of emancipation.
The second Dharma age is called the semblance Dharma age, and it lasted 1000 years after the previous one. It was characterized by gradual decadence in the determination by which followers, both monks and lay, practice the Way. Self-indulgence slowly takes place and fills the minds and hearts of the followers. The breaking of precepts becomes more and more common among monks and nuns and “only a few attain the fruit of Enlightenment”.
The third and last Dharma age lasts for 10.000 years after the second age. In it “only the verbal teaching remains”, while nobody is capable of observing the precepts and of truly practicing meditation or other Buddhist methods based on self-power.
Words like, “the right Dharma will become extinct” or “the teaching will be stored in the naga’s palace”, which can be found in Mahamaya Sutra, Benevolent King Sutra and Shinran’s works, means that although one can still find the written texts of the Buddhist teaching, the practices based on personal power are as good as non-existent or practically non-existent because nobody can attain Enlightenment through them. The requirements of the paths of self-power within the Buddhist teachings do not accord anymore with the capacities of beings. This is the situation in the last Dharma age.
[6] About the monks and nuns of the Last Dharma Age and the authenticity of ordination in these dark times you can read the chapter “Monks and nuns of the Last Dharma Age – the doctrinal base for Amidaji ordinations) from my book On the Monks and Nuns of Amidaji Branch of Jodo Shinshu Buddhism, available for free download or in printed form at this link, https://amida-ji-retreat-temple-romania.blogspot.com/2023/01/on-monks-and-nuns-of-amidaji-branch-of.html
[7] Endurance or perseverance (ksanti) is part of the six paramitas (perfections) that I already explained in the Jodo Shinshu context in my recent book, Jodo Shinshu Buddhist teachings, 2^nd revised edition. Simply stated, one who entrusts to Amida Buddha has natural perseverance in the sense that he will never be interrupted in his faith. Anyone, whether monk or lay can have this, as faith in Amida appears in the hearts of all beings no matter if they are ordained or not.
[8] This fragment is a combination of the translation done by Hongwanji in The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p. 251 and the translation done by BDK in the BDK English Tripitaka Vol. 107-III.
[9] Shinran Shonin, Hymn of the Two Gateways of Entrance and Emergence, The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.629
[10] Shinran Shonin, Lamp for the Latter-Ages, letter 2, The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.527
[11] The Three Pure Land Sutras - A Study and Translation from Chinese by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai and Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p.40
[12] Shinran Shonin, Shoshinge, The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.305
[13] The expression “sons and daughters of good families” means males and females disciples of Buddha.
[14] Nirvana Sutra, as quoted by Shinran in his Kyogyoshinsho, chapter III, Kyogyoshinsho – On Teaching, Practice, Faith, and Enlightenment, translated by Hisao Inagaki, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p. 127-128
[15] Shinran Shonin, Hymns of the Pure Land (Jodo Wasan) - Hymns of the Benefits in the Present, The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.352-355
[16] Shinran Shonin, Lamp for the Latter-Ages, letter 2, The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.526

A HEART ADVICE to my friends

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Wed, 10 Dec 2025 17:14:00 +0000

Stay away from anybody, either Buddhists or nonBuddhists, who try to give you the "gift" of fear, that is, who tell you that you are under some kind of evil influence because you think differently than them, for whom difference of vision on a certain project or topic means bad spirit influence. Who even want to exorcize or pacify spirits instead of pacifying themselves and accepting the differences between them and others.

Chose your partners and collaborators carefully and stay away from cult/sectarian mentality and fear. In this dark age of mappo have faith in Amida and/or any Buddha of your choice, engage in direct spiritual relation with them by saying their Names or mantras and praying to them for guidance, instead of worshipping flawed human beings.

Have the courage to work for your vision if it is supported by a honest intention even if the whole world is against you, calling you stubborn and under "evil influences".

It's ok to suffer when you are misunderstood by your close ones, but it's not ok to stop, so keep fighting the fight you believe is right.

Namo Amida Bu

COMMENTARY ON THE SUTRA ON THE VISUALISATION OF THE BUDDHA OF INFINITE LIFE (CONTEMPLATION SUTRA)

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Thu, 04 Dec 2025 19:53:00 +0000

It is a few years since I completed my extensive commentary on the Larger Sutra, I have now completed my commentary on the Contemplation Sutra. Although it’s much shorter than the previous one, it took me a long time to finish it because I struggled to find the easiest way to explain it in the context of Shinran’s view of the Pure Land teaching.

I could, if I wanted to, insist on many details and offer a more scholarly approach to it. However, as my readers already know, I only care about the religious understanding that can be useful for guiding people to faith in Amida, and I write to clear any possible misunderstandings and obstacles that those sincerely interested in being born in the Pure Land might encounter when reading this sutra. As I am not a Buddha or a wise Master, my commentary is limited, but with all its limitations it contains everything that an ordinary person needs to know to put an end to the cycle of birth and death forever by aspiring to be born in the center (fulfilled land) of the Pure Land.

For this book I used the English translation of the Contemplation Sutra from Chinese[1] by Rev Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart and published under the title The Three Pure Land Sutras by Numata Centre for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003.

I am very grateful to my Dharma friend, Gansen John Welch Sensei from Australia for the proofreading of the English manuscript.

Namo Amida Bu,

Josho Adrian Cîrlea

[1] Sutra on Visualisation of the Buddha of Infinite Life (Amitayurdhyana Sutra in Skt. Bussetsu Kanmuryoju Kyo in Japanese). It is often called Contemplation Sutra. This sutra was translated into Chinese during the Liu-Sung dynasty (424-442 C.E.) by the Tripitaka Master Kalayasas (Kyoryoyasha).

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Here you can read all the chapters of this book online (the printed and free pdf versions above ☝ were proofreaded while the chapters bellow are a little unpolished):

The salvation of Queen Vaidehi - commentary on sections 1-8

The path of the 19th Vow and the explicit and implicit meaning of the Contemplation Sutra

Amida Buddha and His Pure Land as described in the Contemplation Sutra through the thirteen contemplations and the nine grades of beings

The thirteen contemplations (sections 9 - 21)

The difference between the three kinds of faith in the Contemplation Sutra and the the three kinds of faith in the Primal Vow and the Larger Sutra

On the nine grades of birth in the border land

of the Pure Land (sections 22-30)

Benefits gained by the audience (section 31)

The transmission of the teaching of the Contemplation Sutra

The Contemplation Sutra was taught in the same time with the Lotus Sutra

(in refference to sections 1 and 33)

Master Shinran's view of the characters in the Contemplation Sutra

The Bodhi Mind of the Pure Land Path (short question and answer)

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Wed, 12 Nov 2025 09:48:00 +0000

Question from a reader: Shinran said that shinjin (faith) is Bodhi Mind. Does this mean that if I do not have Compassion for all beings in this life I will not go to the Pure Land?

My answer: The fact that shinjin (faith in Amida Buddha) equals Bodhi Mind does NOT mean that you are able to have the kind of Compassion ancient Mahayana saints had for every being in your present life! It only means that through faith in Amida you will be able to save all beings, because faith is the cause of birth in the Pure Land and of subsequent attainment of Buddhahood for you and all beings. So, the aspiration inherent in the Bodhi Mind is contained in shinjin in the sense that through faith you can fulfill the Bodhi Mind (after birth in the Pure Land). The aspirations of the Bodhi Mind (to become a Buddha for you and all beings) are fulfilled through faith, which is why faith is the Bodhi Mind.

This is the proper way to understand this matter in accordance with our Jodo Shinshu school. So, don't worry. There is no problem that here and now you remain an ordinary person filled with ignorance and blind passions. It is especially for beings like you that Amida made His Primal Vow and created His Pure Land that is so easy to access.

PS: The only way you can practice compassion while you are still in this present samsaric body is to be an example of faith and help others entrust to Amida Buddha. I explained this when I presented the ten benefits in this life of a person of faith (click here to read the 9th benefit).

Don't be hungry for feelings in relation with faith

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Mon, 10 Nov 2025 11:46:00 +0000

People, in general, are hungry for special feelings and sensations, thinking that if they don’t feel something special then maybe they have no true spiritual realisations. But in matters related with shinjin (faith in Amida) and the salvation offered by Amida Buddha, no special state of mind is necessary in your daily life.

When faith is awakened in one's mind/heart the follower is taken a great burden of his shoulders in the sense that he no longer needs to rely on himself to become a Buddha - a trully free One. The burden of his liberation is carried by the Buddha called Amida, who already crossed the Path for him.

You can be happy or feel relief when you first entrust to Amida Buddha, if attaining Buddhahood or final liberation from birth and death is the most important matter for you, but this doesn’t mean that hour by hour, minute to minute, second to second, you will think to Amida or feel a continuous joy as to jump in the air. Our lives are in such a way that we can always be overwhelmed by daily problems and worries. But its ok, its simply ok to be like this. We are not compelled to always jump with joy because we are saved by Amida. Despite of this, the salvation offered by Amida Buddha is always present, as our simple faith in Him remains with us since we first received it in our hearts.

My 3rd Nembutsu pilgrimage to the Buddhist stupa in Tranisu as the starting point for the project of the Stupa of All Buddhas at Amidaji temple

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Fri, 24 Oct 2025 11:59:00 +0000

Homage to Amida and all Buddhas!

Click here to read about my 1st pilgrimage to the stupa of Tranisu

Click here to read about my 2nd Pilgrimage

I dedicated this 3rd pilgrimage to all beings, including our protectors and the deities who rule over this land, to the Buddhists of this country and those who helped build and consecrate the stupa in Tranișu, to the members of FPMT, Amidaji, and to my benefactors.

May their vital energy increase, may they always be healthy in body and mind, may they receive in abundance everything they need, including water, food, clothing and shelter, may all obstacles disappear from them, may they never be reborn in the lower realms of existence, may they create indestructible connections with Amida and all Buddhas and attain supreme Enlightenment as soon as possible.

Also, may our project with the Stupa of All Buddhas be realized without any obstacles at Amidaji temple. May all authentic lineages of transmission spread in Romania so that everyone can practice according to their specific karmic affinities and characteristics. May all Buddhists in this country always collaborate with each other in a non-sectarian spirit and for the benefit of all beings. May the wrong views that contradict the Buddha's teachings never enter these places or, if they have already entered, may they disappear permanently and have no power over the beings here. May this country become a mandala of all Buddhas and a place where human and nonhuman beings can evolve easily, without any obstacles!

With the above aspirations in mind (as well as other personal aspirations and dedications) I recently started and finished my 3^rd pilgrimage to the Buddhist stupa of Tranisu.

It was a difficult journey as my baggage also contained my favorite (and heavy) Amida Buddha statue as well as other sacred images, but also due to the cold winds which made the temperature fall around 1-2 degrees Celsius in the morning. Now, when I am writing these lines, I am treating myself for the cold I caught during the pilgrimage.

I started like the last time, from the city of Cluj, then went mainly through the villages and cities of Baciu, Radaia, Garbau, Doroltu, Inucu, Dumbrava, Izvoru Crisului, Huedin, Sancraiu. Then, from Sancraiu I followed the road to Alunisu, Sacuieu, Bologa and Tranisu.

Between these villages and cities there were many empty places and hills, some difficult to cross like for example, the part from Inucu to Dumbrava where google maps does not work. However, now that I have some experience, I can travel to the stupa even without maps.

The first day, Cluj – Izvoru Crisului was the hardest, as I made 42 km in around 11 hours and 30 minutes. To be sure that I arrive before sunset, I had to march continuously with very short breaks of 5 minutes, and only a longer one of 15-20 minutes in Garbau where I ate and talk with some villagers. During summer when the day is longer, breaks can also be longer, but in the cold season the pilgrim cannot afford to stop too often. Thus, the effort was greater than during the 2^nd pilgrimage. Especially between Inucu and Dumbrava I had to constantly climb some never-ending hills through a muddy and desolate place and the backpack felt so heavy on my shoulders. Then I had to focus my attention on two more never ending hours on the E60 national road with heavy trucks constantly passing at near 1-2 meters from me. Sometimes on the national road I walked through the ditches that are filled with broken glass, mud and various dirty things thrown by the idiots through the windows of their cars. Many crosses indicatarethe people who died in car accidents which is a good opportunity to contemplate impermanence and death that can strike any time.

The trip is difficult not only because of the constant effort, but also since after so many km, one cannot afford to relax but must maintain constant focused attention especially when on the E60 National Road. Just a single step without attention can cause one to fall in front of a big heavy truck or injure oneself while walking through the ditches.

I have to be honest and admit that I had some moments, especially during the last part of the 1^st day, while I was travelling through the road E60, when I felt so exhausted that my attention was very difficult to maintain. Then I shouted the Name of Amida as louder as I could to refocus myself and automatically felt more energized. I did that repeatedly whenever my strength seemed to dissipate.

It’s all in the mind, dear friends, it’s all in the mind. I always start and walk in a pilgrimage with the thought that I have NO other option but to continue. It’s like I know only one direction – forward. Thus, my mind and body know that my legs must move, and the back must sustain the weight. Feelings are not important, pain is not important, thoughts are also not important – I just keep going for the benefit of all beings, for the success of the Buddha Dharma in this part of the world. The invisible nonhuman beings, the ancestral deities and spirits of the land should see me enduring any hardship and praying for them, so that they are convinced to look favourable to the Dharma activities we do in this country, make connections with Amida Buddha, and perhaps even trust to Him themselves. I sometimes addressed to these beings with great respect by introducing myself simply as Josho, the disciple of Amida and all Buddhas, wishing them all the best and kindly asking them to not cause any obstacles for the establishment of Buddhism in these lands.

The fact that Buddhas always protect us if we say the Nembutsu of faith in Amida is always a great relief for me during my pilgrimages:

„That the Buddhas protect persons of shinjin (faith in Amida) is truly beyond doubt”.[1]

"The Nirvana Sutra states:

The Buddha said to Bodhisattva Kasyapa, 'If there are sons or daughters of good families [2] who always sincerely perform the exclusive practice of the Nembutsu, whether they dwell in mountain forests or in villages, whether they practice it in the daytime or at night, and whether they do so while sitting or lying down, Buddhas and World-honored Ones always watch over them just as if they were before their eyes, and are ready to accept their offerings and endow merits to them.'”[3]

There were difficult moments when I spontaneously realized that Amida or other Buddhas, like Hayagriva, Tara, Mahakala are literally helping me, like for example extending their hands to help me climb a hill, or energizing my body and mind. For example, when I was climbing a hill, I heard the neighing of a horse and immediately thought to Hayagriva, the wrathful manifestation of Amida (in Vajrayana Buddhism) who has three horses above His head. Also, black ravens flying above remembered me about the protection of Mahakala. Sometimes I even had the spontaneous idea that Tara is sending me a rope to help me climb a muddy hill. To all these I always answered by saying the Name of Amida who contains the infinite merits of all Buddhas, all practices and is itself praised by all Buddhas. A person who trusts Amida and says His Name in faith is automatically praised and protected by all Buddha without the need that he or she practices anything else because the Name of Amida already contains everything. How wonderful this is! To say the Name of Amida and being surrounded and protected by the peaceful and wrathful manifestations of all Buddhas!

Lama Gendun stopped to greet me during my last part
of the pilgrimageand offered me a white kata

consecrating ceremony for the little stupas by Lama Gendun

At the stupa and the Tibetan Buddhist centre built near it I met with Lama Gendun and other members who arrived earlier by car, as well as with Drolma Veronica and two Amidaji members, Jiryu Doru and Jikai Mihaela from Cluj. Lama Gendun made a consecrating ceremony for some little stupas, one of which was kindly given to me, and later I led a Jodo Shinshu service in front of the big stupa in Tranisu. I chanted half of the Nembutsu liturgy and Amidakyo (Smaller Amida Sutra):

the ceremony in front of the stupa. While I did the recitations,
Drolma Veronica was doing a mandala offering

Chanting Amidakyo

the small stupa offered by Lama Gendun

Polite but heated doctrinal discussions took place between me, Lama Gendun and other members of the Tibetan centre in which I explained many aspects of the orthodox Jodo Shinshu Buddhist teaching, like for example, the real existence of Amida and His Pure Land based on the words of Shakyamuni Buddha himself in the Larger Sutra, the three Dharma Ages and the specifics of this present Dark Age, ethics and Jodo Shinshu,

Dharma discussions

the difference between Jodo Shinshu and Christianity:

- the object of faith is a Buddha,

- the basic Mahayana concept of merit transference which lies at the heart of salvation in Jodo Shinshu where we are saved through Amida’s transference of His infinite merits to us,

- the Pure Land as an enlightened environment which naturally leads to Enlightenment vs a samsaric environment,

- the importance of faith as found in many sutras and in other schools, including Tibetan Buddhism, etc.

I also explained some historical facts about Japanese Buddhist schools and the monk ordinations in Japanese Buddhism and Jodo Shinshu.

It was a very good opportunity for those present to learn about the Dharmic perspective of Jodo Shinshu Pure Land school. I also explained my non-sectarian approach (as explained in my article on the 2nd pilgrimage) and the importance of the Stupa of All Buddhas that Drolma Veronica and myself want to build at Amidaji which can be visited by practitioners of all schools, as well as nonBuddhists. He offered prayers for the success of our project and discussed many useful details together.

Drolma Veronica, the representative of FPMT in Bucharest and myself considered it to be very auspicious to mark the beginning of our project of the Stupa of All Buddhas with a visit and pilgrimage to the stupa in Tranisu and we are very happy we did it. This is the first great interconfessional Buddhist project in Romania and we hope it will be an example for future collaborations among Buddhists of any school. She is an enthusiast and dedicated Vajrayana practitioner, a great supporter and the organizatorical brain of this project.

I will come back soon with more detailed information about the Stupa of All Buddhas. Also, a special website dedicated to this project will be launched until the end of the year.

Best wishes to you all!

Namo Amida Bu

Here are just a few photos with people I met on the road:

before starting the pilgrimage I met with Jiryu Doru
and Jikai Mihaela, our Amidaji members from Cluj
who also attended the event at the stupa

with Elena who invited me for tea
and who asked me to pray for her while also
advising me to take good care on the road

In Garbau village with two villagers

and a Bodhisattva in disguise showing you
his nectar of immortality :)

A joyful example of past karmic connections manifested today

when I suddenly met with a group of Srilankan Buddhists working in Romania.

We chanted together and we talked about the Buddha Dharma.

a nice lady from the village of Dumbrava

It is already a tradition that in the 1st day of the pilgrimage I receive accomodation
at this lady's guest house Kalotaszeg Vendeghaz from Izvoru Crisului who treats me with a great vegetable soup and a jam of zacusca (a traditional food made to endure winter). Please always stay at her guesthouse if you happen to visit the area. She helped me during my 1st and 2nd pilgrimage, too!

They traveled by car and stopped to ask me if I need anything.
Then we talked, laughed a lot and took a photo.
They promised to keep in touch andvisit me at Amidaji.

Yes, I did it again :) and will continue with more pilgrimages
and Dharma travels with the blessing of Amida and all Buddhas!
Namo Amida Bu

Master Shinran’s view of the characters in the Contemplation Sutra

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Thu, 09 Oct 2025 17:23:00 +0000

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.

As we have seen in the last chapter, Master Rennyo considered that “Shakyamuni used the five grave offenses in which Vaidehi, Devadatta, and Ajatasatru were involved, as compassionate means to cause women and those who have committed the five grave offenses in the last Dharma age to aspire to birth in the Land of Serene Sustenance (the Pure Land of Amida); He assured us that even such people would unfailingly attain birth in the Land of Serene Sustenance if they took refuge in the inconceivable Primal Vow. This you should know.”[1]

Master Shinran already went even further than Rennyo in this matter and considered that all the events presented in the Contemplation Sutra were a play by enlightened actors to create the proper conditions for the teaching on Amida Buddha in its implicit and explicit aspect to appear in our world. In chapter I of his Kyogyoshinsho, he said,

“I reflect within myself: The universal Vow difficult to fathom is indeed a great vessel bearing us across the ocean difficult to cross. The unhindered Light is the sun of wisdom dispersing the darkness of our ignorance. Thus it is that, when conditions for the teaching of birth in the Pure Land had matured, Devadatta provoked Ajatasatru to commit grave crimes. And when the opportunity arose for explaining the pure act by which Birth (in the Pure Land) is settled, Shakyamuni led Vaidehi to select the land of peace. In their selfless love, these incarnated ones - Devadatta, Ajatasatru, Vaidehi - all aspired to save the multitudes of beings from pain and affliction, and in His compassion, Shakyamuni, the great hero, sought indeed to bless those committing the five grave offenses, those slandering the Dharma, and those lacking the seed of Buddhahood. We know, therefore, that the auspicious Name embodying the perfectly fulfilled supreme virtues is true wisdom that transforms our evil into virtue, and that the diamond-like shinjin so difficult to accept is true reality that sweeps away doubt and brings us to attainment of Enlightenment”.[2]
He also explained in the Hymns of the Pure Land (On the Contemplation Sutra),

“Amida and Sakyamuni, employing compassionate means,
And Ananda, Maudgalyayana, Purna, Vaidehi,
Devadatta, King Ajatasatru, Bimbisara,
Jivaka[3], Candraprabha[4], Varsakara, and others –

All of them great sages –
By various means, brought the most foolish and lowest
Of evil people to enter the Vow
That does not neglect people of grave offenses and transgressions.
Of evil people to enter the Vow
That does not neglect people of grave offenses and transgressions.

Since conditions for the Pure Land teaching had matured,
Shakyamuni and Vaidehi, manifesting compassionate means,
Led the minister Varsakara to bear witness
And King Ajatasatru to commit grave offenses.

Let us overturn the three minds of self-power, whether meditative or nonmeditative,
Which vary with each practicer;
Let us aspire to enter into shinjin (faith)
That arises from Amida’s benefiting of others.
Shinjin: the true and real shinjin of the Primal Vow.”[5]

This interpretation by Shinran may seem shocking for many, so I don’t think my readers will easily accept it, and there is absolutely NO problem if they don’t, especially because it’s not important for their birth in the Pure Land where they go only through a simple faith in Amida.

However, such things are very common in Mahayana and Vajrayana vehicles of Buddhism. For example, in the Lotus Sutra that was taught by Shakyamuni at the same time with the Contemplation Sutra, He discloses the deep truth that the whole story about Him leaving the royal palace of the Sakya clan followed by the attainment of perfect Enlightenment was just a play, because He actually became a Buddha many kalpas ago (check the footnote to read the respective passage[6])! So, to play various roles, appearing in disguise and pretending to be unenlightened is something that Buddhas and Enlightened Bodhisattvas do all the time in many samsaric universes for the sake of guiding sentient beings and for creating the best conditions for certain teachings to appear in the world. I explain this in detail in section two of my Commentary on the Sutra on the Buddha of Infinite Life (Larger Sutra), so please also refer to that book.
Just to give you another example – the King Anala, who was a Bodhisattva in disguise, admitted in the Gandavyuha Sutra (final part of the Avatamsaka Sutra) that He sometimes manifests illusory evil people who experience the effect of their bad karma to help existing samsaric beings to avoid evil and aspire for Enlightenment,

“Noble one, I have attained the Bodhisattva liberation called the attainment of illusions. Noble one, most of the inhabitants of my kingdom kill, steal, practice sexual misconduct, lie, slander, abuse, indulge in idle talk, are avaricious, are malicious, hold false views, commit bad actions, and are fierce, aggressive, and cruel, and they maintain a behavior consisting of all kinds of bad actions. There is no other way to instruct them to turn away, to desist, from that sinful behavior.

Noble one, in order to guide, ripen, control, and benefit these beings, motivated by great compassion I manifest the illusory images of executioners, through which I execute the illusory images of the condemned. I make the illusions of those who punish and execute in various ways the illusions of those who have followed a path of bad actions. I also emanate those who experience the unendurable sufferings of having their feet, hands, noses, ears, limbs, smaller parts, and heads cut off. When the beings who live in my realm see that, they become distressed, afraid, and terrified. After that, they are careful to avoid committing bad actions.
Noble one, when in that way I have used that method and see that these beings are distressed, terrified, and alarmed, I then turn them away from the path of the ten bad actions, cause them to possess the path of the ten good actions, and establish them in the path to omniscience, which is the ultimate attainment of joy and happiness and the cessation of all suffering.”[7]

However, in manifesting under the appearance of evil beings Buddhas and Bodhisattvas do not actually harm anybody, as it is also the case with the Contemplation Sutra where all those involved, including the characters who apparently hurt each other, were Enlightened beings in disguise, and thus, beyond illusion and suffering. Bodhisattva King Anala explained,

“Noble one, I do not cause harm to any being with my body, speech, or mind. “Noble one, I would wander in the most extreme suffering of the Avici hell, but I would not even once have arisen in my mind the wish to cause harm to even the smallest being, a minute insect seen on the tip of a blade of grass, existing in the realm of stupidity, which is rebirth as an animal, let alone to a human being in my realm, who has the ability to develop the path of good actions.
Noble one, I do not generate the qualities of a bad action in my dreams, let alone deliberately.”[8]

So, the opinion of Shinran that all the characters in the Contemplation Sutra, including Devadata, Ajatasatru, Bimbisara and Vaidehi, were enlightened beings in disguise setting up a play to create the proper conditions for the teaching on Amida Buddha to be promoted in the world did not appear out of thin air but was rooted in the Mahayana teaching.

No matter if you, the reader of these lines, are able or not to have such a vision of the characters in the Contemplation Sutra, you should accept its explicit and implicit meaning as explained in our lineage and in this book.

(source of the image in the upper left https://erichuntington.org/?da_image=taima-mandala-denver)

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[1] Rennyo Shonin Ofumi IV-3, BDK English Tripitaka 105-II, 106-I, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, 1996, Berkeley USA, p.104-105
[2] The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.3
[3] Jivaka was a nephew of king Bimbisara who served as a royal minister. Also, a famous and skilled physician who once cured the Buddha of a serious illness. The Three Pure Land Sutras - A Study and Translation from Chinese by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai and Numata Centre for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p.129
[4] Candraprabha (“Moonlight”): the name of one of King Bimbisara’s ministers. The Three Pure Land Sutras - A Study and Translation from Chinese by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai and Numata Centre for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p.123
[5] The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.346
[6] “The devas, humans, and asuras in all the worlds all think that the present Buddha, Śhakyamuni, left the palace of the Sakyas, sat on the terrace of Enlightenment not far from the city of Gaya, and attained highest, complete Enlightenment. However, O sons of a virtuous family, immeasurable, limitless, hundreds of thousands of myriads of koṭis of nayutas of kalpas have passed since I actually attained Buddhahood. […]Since then I have constantly been residing in the Saha world, teaching the Dharma and inspiring sentient beings. I have also been leading and benefiting sentient beings in incalculable hundreds of thousands of myriads of koṭis of nayutas of other worlds”
The Lotus Sutra, chapter 16 (Taishō Volume 9, Number 262), translated from the Chinese of Kumarajiva by Tsugunari Kubo and Akira Yuyama, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, 2007, p223-224
[7] Gaṇḍavyūha (The Stem Array), Translated by Peter Alan Roberts under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, https://84000.co/translation/toh44-45#UT22084-037-007-4236
[8] Gaṇḍavyūha (The Stem Array), Translated by Peter Alan Roberts under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, https://84000.co/translation/toh44-45#UT22084-037-007-4236

The Contemplation Sutra was taught in the same time with the Lotus Sutra (in reference to sections 1 and section 33)

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Wed, 08 Oct 2025 11:36:00 +0000

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.

“Then the World-honored One returned to Vulture Peak through the air. There Ananda fully explained to the assembly what had happened. Innumerable humans, devas, nagas, yakṣas, and all other beings greatly rejoiced to hear the Buddha’s teaching. Having worshiped the World-honored One, they departed.”[1]

The last section reminds us of the beginning of the Contemplation Sutra where we are told that Shakyamuni was already teaching another sutra on Vulture Peak when Vaidehi asked for His help:

“Thus have I heard. At one time the Buddha was staying on Vulture Peak in Rajagṛha with a great assembly of twelve hundred and fifty monks. He was also accompanied by thirty-two thousand Bodhisattvas led by Manjusri, the Dharma Prince.”[2]

After these first lines, we are told about the events related with Ajatasatru, king Bimbisara and Queen Vaidehi who, while she was confined in the palace by her son, turned her attention to the direction of Vulture Peak:
“Facing Vulture Peak, she worshiped the Buddha from afar and said, ‘O Tathagata, World-honored One, you used to send Ananda to comfort me. Now I am in deep sorrow and distress. Since there is no way of my coming to look upon your august countenance, World-honored One, I pray you send Venerable Mahamaudgalyayana and Venerable Ananda here to see me.’
When she had said these words, tears of sorrow streamed down her cheeks like rain. Then she bowed toward the Buddha in the distance”.

Shakyamuni Buddha knew her thoughts, interrupted His discourse and came to her. This is how the Contemplation Sutra was taught:

“Even before she raised her head, the World-honored One, who was then staying on Vulture Peak, knew Vaidehi’s thoughts and immediately ordered Mahamaudgalyayana and Ananda to go to her through the air; He himself disappeared from the mountain and reappeared in the inner chamber of the royal palace.”[3]

Then, when the discourse ended, Shakyamuni returned to the Vulture Peak where Ananda told the assembly of humans and nonhuman beings gathered there what happened. So, the Contemplation Sutra was presented again on Vulture Peak.
Rennyo Shonin explained that the sutra Shakyamuni was teaching when Vaidehi prayed to Him was the Lotus Sutra[4] which means that both sutras were actually taught by Shakyamuni in the same time,

“Accordingly, long ago, when Shakyamuni expounded the Lotus Sutra, the wondrous text of the One Vehicle, on Mount Gṛdhrakuṭa (Vulture Peak), Devadatta provoked Ajatasatru to acts of treachery; Shakyamuni then led Vaidehi to aspire to the Land of Serene Sustenance (the Pure Land of Amida Buddha). Because Shakyamuni withdrew from the assembly gathered at Mount Gṛdhrakuṭa (Vulture Peak) where He was expounding the Lotus Sutra, descended to the royal palace, and graciously set forth the Pure Land teaching for Vaidehi’s sake, Amida’s Primal Vow has flourished to this day. This is why we say that the teachings of the Lotus and the Nembutsu were given at the same time.

In other words, it is clear that Shakyamuni used the five grave offenses in which Vaidehi, Devadatta, and Ajatasatru were involved as compassionate means to cause women and those who have committed the five grave offenses in the last Dharma age to aspire to birth in the Land of Serene Sustenance (the Pure Land of Amida); He assured us that even such people would unfailingly attain birth in the Land of Serene Sustenance if they took refuge in the inconceivable Primal Vow. This you should know.”[5]

to be continued

(source of the image in the upper left https://erichuntington.org/?da_image=taima-mandala-denver)

[1] The Three Pure Land Sutras - A Study and Translation from Chinese by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai and Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p.100
[2] The Three Pure Land Sutras - A Study and Translation from Chinese by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai and Numata Centre for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p.75
[3] The Three Pure Land Sutras - A Study and Translation from Chinese by Hisao Inagaki in collaboration with Harold Stewart, Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai and Numata Centre for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p.76
[4] The Lotus Sutra (Saddharmapuṇḍarika Sutra) is one of the most popular and influential Mahayana sutras in China and Japan and the fundamental text of the Tendai and Nichiren schools. There are several Chinese translations, of which the version rendered by Kumarajiva in 406 became the most popular. Cf Rennyo Shonin Ofumi, BDK English Tripitaka 105-II, 106-I, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, 1996, Berkeley USA.
[5] Rennyo Shonin Ofumi IV-3, BDK English Tripitaka 105-II, 106-I, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, 1996, Berkeley USA, p.104-105

The transmission of the teaching of the Contemplation Sutra (section 32)

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Tue, 07 Oct 2025 07:50:00 +0000

Fragment from my Commentary on the Contemplation Sutra. This is a work in progress and under constant revision. Click here to read the other chapters.

“Then Ananda rose from his seat, stepped forward, and said to the Buddha, ‘World-honoured One, what should we call this sutra and how should we receive and retain the essentials of its teaching?’

The Buddha answered, ‘Ananda, this sutra is called the ‘Visualization of the Land of Utmost Bliss of Buddha Amitayus and of Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara and Bodhisattva Mahasthamaprapta.’ It is also called the ‘Purification and Elimination of Karmic Hindrances for Attaining Birth in the Presence of All Buddhas.’ Hold fast to this sutra and do not forget it. Those who practice this samadhi will be able to see, during their lifetime, Buddha Amitayus and the two Mahasattvas. If good men or women simply hear the Name of this Buddha or the names of those two Bodhisattvas, the evil karma that would bind them to birth and death for innumerable kalpas will be extinguished.

And so, how much more merit will they acquire if they concentrate on them! You should know that all who are mindful of that Buddha are like white lotus flowers among humankind; Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara and Bodhisattva Mahasthamaprapta become their good friends. They will sit in the seat of Enlightenment and be born into the family of the Buddhas.’

The Buddha further said to Ananda, ‘Bear these words well in mind. To bear these words in mind means to hold fast to the Name of Buddha Amitayus (Amida).”

When the Buddha had spoken thus, Venerable Mahamaudgalyayana, Venerable Ananda, Vaidehi, and all the others greatly rejoiced to hear the Buddha’s discourse.”[1]

This section, like the whole sutra itself, has many layers of interpretation and refers to both the explicit and implicit meaning of the Contemplation Sutra whose official names are “Visualization of the Land of Utmost Bliss of Buddha Amitayus and of Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara and Bodhisattva Mahasthamaprapta” and “The Purification and Elimination of Karmic Hindrances for Attaining Birth in the Presence of All Buddhas.’”

It is a sutra through which you can practice visualization of the Pure Land, Amida and the two Bodhisattvas. The purification and elimination of karmic hindrances happen for both categories of practitioners, those destined to the border land and those who will be born in the centre (fulfilled land). However, birth in the presence of all Buddhas may happen either in the border land where one may perceive various transformation aspects of the Buddhas or in the centre of the Pure Land where one enters the ocean of the ultimate Reality of the Dharmakaya which is shared by all Buddhas and has access to their glorious Sambhogakaya aspects with which they dwell in their own Pure Lands or in the Pure Land of Amida like Avalokitesvara and Mahasthamaprapta.

Those who practice this sutra and attain the spiritual realisations mentioned in it will also have visions with the Nirmanakaya (transformation/adaptation) bodies of Amida, Avalokitesvara and Mahasthamaprapta during their present life in samsara – “those who practice this samadhi will be able to see, during their lifetime, Buddha Amitayus and the two Mahasattvas.”

Also, if “good men or women”, that is, faithful disciples of the Buddha, “hear the Name of this Buddha or the names of those two Bodhisattvas, the evil karma that would bind them to birth and death for innumerable kalpas will be extinguished.” This might have two meanings:

1) those who hear the Name of Amida and recite it in self-power will escape samsara forever and spend some time in the border land (once birth in the border land is attained there is no falling back in samsara again!) until they abandon clinging to their so-called merits and advance to the centre of the Pure Land

2) those who hear the Name of Amida and say it with total faith in His Power. These are followers who hear with faith. They not only escape samsara but immediately become Buddhas in the centre of the Pure Land.

The next passages focus on the followers in the second category:

“And so, how much more merit will they acquire if they concentrate on them! You should know that all who are mindful of that Buddha are like white lotus flowers among humankind; Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara and Bodhisattva Mahasthamaprapta become their good friends. They will sit in the seat of Enlightenment and be born into the family of the Buddhas.’”

The words “how much more merit will they acquire if they concentrate on them” refer to the merit transference from Amida to those who entrust themselves to Him. This merit is not the limited kind of merit that one can attain by practicing visualization with a samsaric mind, but the supramundane merit of Amida himself. Here to be concentrated means exclusivity, that is, to have exclusive faith in Amida without any clinging to ideas of personal merits or any form of self-power and to exclusively say His Name in faith without mixing it with any other practice.

Mindfulness (“mindful of that Buddha” as Shakyamuni said in the passage above) is a term that is very much used nowadays but we must understand it in the sense that was explained by Shinran Shonin. For him, mindfulness always referred to faith and to Amida Buddha. This is why he said that mindfulness is Nembutsu and that Nembutsu is Namo Amida Butsu,

“Saying the Name is in itself mindfulness;
mindfulness is Nembutsu;
Nembutsu is Namo Amida Butsu”.[2]

What does Namo Amida Butsu mean? It means “I take refuge in Amida Buddha/Homage to Amida Buddha”. What does Nembutsu represent? What do we, followers of the Primal Vow, express by saying Namo Amida Butsu (Namo Amida Bu/Namo Amituofo, etc)? We express faith, so Namo Amida Butsu or Nembutsu is the expression of faith. It is faith because there can be no faith separate from the genuine Nembutsu (the Nembutsu based on Amida’s Power/the Nembutsu of the Primal Vow) and no genuine Nembutsu separate from faith. Shinran Shonin said:

"Although the one moment of shinjin and the one moment of Nembutsu are two, there is no Nembutsu separate from shinjin (faith), nor is the one moment of shinjin separate from the one moment of Nembutsu.”[3]

Rennyo Shonin also said:

"'Namo' means 'to take refuge in'; it means to entrust yourself to Amida with the assurance of your salvation.”[4]

So, according to Shinran, mindfulness is faith and the Nembutsu of faith. It means to be mindful or aware of Amida Buddha’s Primal Vow and of His indiscriminative salvation. It means to have the twofold profound convictions according to which 1) we know that we are people of deep karmic limitations, incapable of attaining Buddhahood through our own power and 2) that only Amida Buddha can save us through His Vow Power without asking anything from us. This is the mindfulness of the Jodo Shinshu Path – to entrust to Amida Buddha, to be aware of His indiscriminative salvation and of our karmic limitations, to know that only Amida Buddha can save us. A person who says the Nembutsu of faith is aware of all these.

Shinran Shonin also said in Shoshinge:

“When a thought of mindfulness of Amida’s Primal Vow arises,
At that instant we spontaneously enter the stage of definite assurance.
Always reciting only the Name of the Tathagata,
We should seek to repay our indebtedness to His Great Compassion”.[5]

The stage of definite assurance is the same stage in which the 500 attendants of Vaidehi entered by entrusting themselves to Amida – “the World-honored One gave them all assurances that they would be born there (in the Pure Land of Amida)”.

To repay indebtedness means to say thank you to Amida Buddha.

In chapter III of his Kyogyoshinsho, Shinran also said:

“Deep mind is deep faith. Deep faith is steadfast deep faith. Steadfast deep faith is decisive mind. Decisive mind is supreme mind (because this is the Bodhi Mind). Supreme mind is true faith. True faith is enduring mind. Enduring mind is sincere mind. Sincere mind is mindfulness. Mindfulness is the true One Mind. The true One Mind is great joy (relief at knowing the burden of liberation is taken from your shoulders by Amida)[6]. Great Joy is the true entrusting heart. The true entrusting heart is adamantine faith. Adamantine faith is the aspiration for Buddhahood. The aspiration for Buddhahood is the desire to save sentient beings. The desire to save sentient beings is the desire to embrace sentient beings and bring them to the Pure Land of Peace and Bliss. This desire is the Great Bodhi Mind. This mind is the Great Compassion, for it arises from the wisdom of Infinite Light.”[7]

In the Hymns in Praise of Amida Buddha, Master T’an-luan said[8]:

“His Light shines everywhere at all times.
For this reason, the Buddha is also called “Unceasing Light”.
By accepting in faith the Power of His Light, with continuous mindfulness,
We all attain Birth. Hence, I prostrate myself and worship Him.”[9]

Here again there is this connection between faith and continuous mindfulness. What does “continuous mindfulness” mean? It means that one who has faith will always have the twofold profound conviction of faith: he will always know that he is a person of deep karmic limitations, incapable of attaining Buddhahood through his own power and that only Amida Buddha can save him through His Vow Power without asking anything from him. There are many other passages in Shinran’s works which show that for him, mindfulness always meant faith (“mindful of that Buddha” as Shakyamuni said in the Contemplation Sutra), and this is how we should also interpret it.

Then Shakyamuni entrusted this Nembutsu of faith to Ananda:

“The Buddha further said to Ananda, ‘Bear these words well in mind. To bear these words in mind means to hold fast to the Name of Buddha Amitayus (Amida)’. When the Buddha had spoken thus, Venerable Mahamaudgalyayana, Venerable Ananda, Vaidehi, and all the others greatly rejoiced to hear the Buddha’s discourse.”

Shinran Shonin explained,

“The Contemplation Sutra passage beginning, ‘The Buddha said to Ananda, ‘Hold well to these words (‘Bear these words well in mind’),” reveals precisely that Sakyamuni entrusted Amida’s Name to Ananda so that it would be passed down to distant generations. Although the advantages of the two gateways of meditative and nonmeditative practices (explicit meaning of the sutra) have been taught up to this point, in view of the intent of the Buddha’s Primal Vow (implicit meaning of the sutra), this is to bring sentient beings solely to wholehearted utterance of the Name of Amida Buddha.”[10]

Here ”wholehearted utterance” means to say the Name of Amida with a heart of faith.

Some people in the audience, including Vaidehi and her five hundred female attendants, Mahamaudgalyayana and Ananda rejoiced because they understood the implicit meaning of this sutra and accepted the Nembutsu of faith, while others because they embraced its explicit meaning. Thus, all of them received the sutra with reverence, according to Shakyamuni’s urge - “hold fast to this sutra and do not forget it.”

To hold fast to this sutra and do not forget it applies to future generations, too. Any sutra, and especially this one should be accepted as it is, without denying its content or authenticity.

To hear and receive any teaching of the Buddha is a joyous event for those who are truly interested in attaining liberation:

“When the Buddha had spoken thus, Venerable Mahamaudgalyayana, Venerable Ananda, Vaidehi, and all the others greatly rejoiced to hear the Buddha’s discourse”.

to be continued

(source of the image in the upper right https://erichuntington.org/?da_image=taima-mandala-denver)

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[2] The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.296

[3] The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.538

[4] Thus Have I Heard from Rennyo Shonin (Rennyo Shonin’s Goichidaiki -kikigaki), an annotated translation by Zuio Hisao Inagaki, Dharma Lion Publication, Craiova 2008, p.29

[5] Kyogyoshinsho – On Teaching, Practice, Faith, and Enlightenment, translated by Hisao Inagaki, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p.78

[6] Words in brackets are my own explanations.

[7] Kyogyoshinsho – On Teaching, Practice, Faith, and Enlightenment, translated by Hisao Inagaki, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p.122

[8] As quoted by Shinran in his Kyogyoshinsho, chapter V.

[9] Kyogyoshinsho – On Teaching, Practice, Faith, and Enlightenment, translated by Hisao Inagaki, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, Kyoto, 2003, p. 220

[10] The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.212-232

Benefits gained by the audience of the Contemplation Sutra (section 31)

noreply@blogger.com (Josho Adrian Cirlea) — Mon, 06 Oct 2025 18:45:00 +0000

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.

“As the Buddha delivered these words, Vaidehi and her five hundred female attendants listened to His teaching. Having envisioned the boundless features of the Land of Utmost Bliss, of Buddha Amitayus (Amida), and of the two Bodhisattvas, Vaidehi rejoiced in her heart. Wonder-struck at this revelation, she attained great awakening with clarity of mind and insight into the non-arising of all dharmas (phenomena). Her five hundred female attendants awakened aspiration for highest, perfect Enlightenment and desired to be born in that land.
The World-honored One gave them all assurances that they would be born there and that they would then gain the samadhi of being in the presence of all the Buddhas. Innumerable devas (gods) also awakened aspiration for highest Enlightenment”.[1]

As I mentioned previously, Vaidehi entrusted herself to Amida and was helped by His and Shakyamuni’s Power to attain various spiritual realisations. This time it’s mentioned that “she attained great awakening with clarity of mind and insight into the non-arising of all dharmas (phenomena)”. Also, her five hundred female attendants received faith(shinjin) which is itself the Bodhi Mind - aspiration to attain Enlightenment for oneself and all beings. Thus, they entered the stage of definite assurance, also called the stage of non-retrogression for birth in the centre of the Pure Land – this is the meaning of “the World-honored One gave them all assurances that they would be born there and that they would then gain the samadhi of being in the presence of all the Buddhas”. In this case, to be in the presence of all Buddhas means to become one of the Buddhas. Innumerable devas who listened to this sutra were either able to entrust to Amida and entered the same stage of non-retrogression for birth in the centre of the Pure Land or they started to create the karmic connections for birth into one of the various levels and grades of the border land.

to be continued

(source of the image in the upper left https://erichuntington.org/?da_image=taima-mandala-denver)

AMIDAJI INTERNATIONAL TEMPLE 阿 弥 陀 寺

All Buddhas praise the Name of Amida and encourage beings to accept in faith the teaching about Him – commentary on sections 6-12 of the Smaller Amida Sutra (Amidakyo)

The identity of Amida Buddha and those born in His Pure Land – commentary on section 4 of the Smaller Amida Sutra

Stick with Amida Buddha

The concrete platform for the Stupa of All Buddhas

Two pilgrimages for two friends

Be careful how and to whom you speak about Amida Buddha

The transmission and importance of the Smaller Amida Sutra (Amidakyo)

The audience accepted the Smaller Amida Sutra in faith – commentary on section 14

On the expression “good men and women” from the Smaller Amida Sutra

The reason for Shakyamuni’s appearance in our world and why His teaching on Amida Buddha is the most difficult to accept in faith - commentary on section 13

The method of birth in the Pure Land – commentary on section 5 (part2) of the Smaller Amida Sutra (Amidakyo)

Some characteristics of beings born in the Pure Land - commentary on section 5 (part 1) of the Smaller Amida Sutra

Commentary on the Smaller Sutra on the Buddha of Infinite Life (Smaller Amida Sutra)

The reason for the western location of the Pure Land – commentary on section 2 of the Smaller Amida Sutra

Everything in the Pure Land is the manifestation of Amida Buddha - commentary on section 3 of the Smaller Amida Sutra

The Stupa of All Buddhas at Amidaji temple

A HEART ADVICE to my friends

COMMENTARY ON THE SUTRA ON THE VISUALISATION OF THE BUDDHA OF INFINITE LIFE (CONTEMPLATION SUTRA)

The Bodhi Mind of the Pure Land Path (short question and answer)

Don't be hungry for feelings in relation with faith

My 3rd Nembutsu pilgrimage to the Buddhist stupa in Tranisu as the starting point for the project of the Stupa of All Buddhas at Amidaji temple

Master Shinran’s view of the characters in the Contemplation Sutra

The Contemplation Sutra was taught in the same time with the Lotus Sutra (in reference to sections 1 and section 33)

The transmission of the teaching of the Contemplation Sutra (section 32)

Benefits gained by the audience of the Contemplation Sutra (section 31)

AMIDAJI INTERNATIONAL TEMPLE 阿弥陀寺