About Japan's original vows

ask:Some people say that rebirth in the Western Paradise is based on the faith of Amitabha Buddha, this original vow, which is captured by the ten recitations of the eighteenth vow.（The Master replied: Many Japanese sects have this view.)Assuming that a person has caused his past karma, there is no chance to chant the Buddha's name when he dies, such as an accidental death, etc., but as long as this person has sufficient faith in Amitabha Buddha on weekdays, he can turn over this bad karma and be reborn. Is this statement correct?

Master Jingjie replied:This Japanese Shizong has the original vow to recite the Buddha's name, and in terms of benefits, it gives people a lot of hope;However, this method also has its shortcomings, which is that it emphasizes too much belief, not emphasizes vows and chanting the name, and various auxiliary practices such as keeping precepts, which may cause misleading.Because the Pure Land Dharma is a difficult method to believe.Therefore, Master Huiyi talks about the three aspects of faith, vows and actions, although they are independent in nature;But in actual operation, these three are mutually inclusive. Faith affects the power of wishes, and vows also affects faith. Faith, wishes and actions all affect each other.So relying solely on faith rather than emphasizing vows and chanting the name, this faith will actually make a question mark: Is your faith true faith?Or just believe in faith?This is all doubtful.You said you don’t make a vow, and you believe it, what is faith?

In a simple definition, Master Yin Guang said that faith is: the first thing you believe is suffering and happiness;Second, you believe that Amitabha Buddha has the ability to save you.These are two faiths, believing that the Saha world is suffering, the paradise is happiness, and that Amitabha Buddha can save you;But whether you really make a vow to be disgusted with the Saha world and seeking bliss is actually very important!There is also the name chanting. Master Huiyi said: If a person does not recite the name, you say that you have full faith, which is very doubtful.You said you really want to be reborn, and you also believe that you can be reborn;But in your usual time, if you don’t recite the name, you use it to make delusions, and then you say that you have all your faith and wishes, which is really doubtful.A person does not recite the name, but says that faith and aspiration are complete?You can hold on to a little less, and do your best to dial out the time to recite the name.But if you have time instead of chanting the name, you would rather have delusions and then say that you have full faith, and this faith is questionable!

Therefore, the original wish of chanting Buddha's name is actually a questioning attitude among Chinese ancestors and many modern masters.Therefore, if this method is done well, it is very good;But if you mistakenly recognize the news of the ancestor, you may overestimate your strength when you die.We should not say good or bad about this method. If someone hears it when you promote it, he will be very happy: Oh, it turns out that it is not necessary to recite the name of the Pure Land, nor to be contemplated, nor to be disgusted with the Saha world. Anyway, how should I love the Saha world? No matter how much I love it, no matter how much I love it, no precepts or practice meditation and contemplation, as long as I have full faith, I can be reborn.

If he mistakenly recognizes the news and has such thoughts, he will be disappointed when he dies.So when you promote Buddhism, you must be careful, will others cause misrecognition of news?It means that your understanding will be different from his understanding.Of course, you have to talk about general holding. This faith includes precepts, concentration and wisdom, and also includes all faith, aspirations and practices: if you say that you have true faith, you will definitely keep the precepts;If you have true faith, you will definitely practice forbearance;True faith will definitely be able to practice meditation and wisdom, which is different.Then you are practicing perfectly, and you will take one method and control all methods. This is OK for you.

If the other party misrecognizes the news and thinks that a single faith can be reborn, then you may cause him to misjudgment the situation. If he does not rebirth at that time, it is you who mislead him.Therefore, I think: unless this person has a good root, it is better to talk more and more, that is, faith, vows, and chant the name, and this is not enough, there are both correct practices and auxiliary practices.Because you only have the mindfulness of faith, aspiration, and chanting the name, and you have the mindfulness in your heart, if you do not keep the precepts, there will be stones in front of you;Your car is driving very fast, and you may not be able to jump over the many obstacles ahead.You must practice all good deeds, cultivate blessings and merits, and eliminate sins, so that your car will drive smoother on the highway.Therefore, if you promote the Pure Land Dharma and rely solely on faith, I think it will be dangerous.Let’s experience this paragraph again.