How does learning “The Sutra of Contemplation on Amitabha Buddha” give us an auspicious and wealthy life?
There is a saying: Blessings bring disasters if one does not have sufficient merits to receive them. In fact, one’s longevity and blessings depend on the energy one has cultivated. Only by cultivating sufficient energy of compassion and kindness can we live a healthy, happy, and wealthy life.
With that said, how do we gain lots of merit? Here’s a secret taught by the Buddha. Using this method, even the poor can get rid of their bad karma, having a wealthy and auspicious life for themselves and even their future generations. And what is more, upon their passing, they would be reborn in paradise and achieve ultimate liberation.
The Origin of the Sutra
Why did the Buddha expound the content of “The Sutra of Contemplation on Amitabha Buddha” to Vaidehi?
In the time of the Buddha, Prince Ajatasatru of the Magadha kingdom imprisoned his father, King Bimbisara, and planned to starve him to death due to the incitement of Devadatta. His mother, Lady Vaidehi, secretly brought food to the prison to visit her husband several times. When Prince Ajatasatru learned of this, he was so angry that he drew his sword and wanted to kill his mother. However, after being advised by his ministers, he imprisoned his mother in the palace instead.
Vaidehi was compassionate and revered the Buddha in particular. She wailed and prayed to him from afar, praying to him and repenting, ” What evil karma did I commit in my previous life that I gave birth to such an evil son? Buddha, please explain to me how to go to the that place where there is no trouble or sorrow, only kindness and no pain.
The Buddha was moved by Vaidehi’s sincerity. There, he unleashed his powers and showed Vaidehi the countless worlds of the 10 Directions and expounded to her ways to cleanse her bad karma and reach paradise. Vaidehi was also being told of “The Sutra of Contemplation on Amitabha Buddha”, and she, with her 500 servants, hence enlightened and awakened their mind of bodhicitta. In the end, the Buddha bestowed them with their titles of enlightenment and led them to be reborn in paradise[1]. This marks the origin of “The Sutra of Contemplation on Amitabha Buddha”.
Practicing the Content of the Sutra for Wealth and Auspiciousness
In the previous section, King Bimbisara and Queen Vaidehi of the Magadha Kingdom, despite being the king and queen, still had to face immense suffering and unbearable pain. They never thought that the wealth and power they possessed would bring them to the tragedy of father and son becoming enemies and facing a life-threatening disaster! So, how can we truly obtain great wealth and fortune? How can we have genuine health, longevity, and happiness?
In the Nirvana Sutra, the Buddha reveals the law of “reap what we sow”. All lives are bound by the Law of Nature and must work to obtain what they want. With that said, to obtain wealth and a good fate, one must earn merits; to obtain health and be free from afflictions, one must cleanse all filth from their body and mind.
Therefore, in “The Sutra of Contemplation on Amitabha Buddha”, the Buddha taught us a way to accumulate blessings and eliminate bad karma to relieve our suffering. First, we should be filial to our parents, respect our teachers, and cultivate compassion. Also, we should avoid all evil deeds, no matter how small they are, such as being lazy, abusive, angry, deceitful, etc. Moreover, we should practice generosity and do good deeds, loving and cherishing all beings with compassion. We should also chant Buddha’s name and practice diligently to enhance our physical and mental energy. We pray to the buddhas and bodhisattvas to illuminate our lives, turning darkness into light, and transforming afflictions into wisdom. That is how we can recover from illnesses and change our destiny for the better[2].
◎ How to Obtain Good Karma and Merits?
How will we benefit from learning “The Sutra of Contemplation on Amitabha Buddha”?
According to the Buddha, there are 16 visualizations in “The Sutra of Contemplation on Amitabha Buddha”, and every one of them brings many merits. Here are the three visualizations out of the 16.
1. On Achieving Liberation
If one visualizes the beautiful scenes of paradise such as various jewels, pagodas, and the countless rays of light to the extent of not forgetting, and even if one cannot describe in detail what they have seen, then one shall be free from the karmic cycle of life and death for eighty billion eons. In the next life, one can still be reborn in paradise[3].
2. On Getting Rid of Worries
If one visualizes Guanyin Bodhisattva and Mahasthamaprapta Bodhisattva, one shall be rid of the bad karma of life and death that are accumulated over countless eons and have all disasters eliminated[4]. Besides, instead of suffering from reincarnation, one can often enjoy the pure and wonderful lands where all buddhas and bodhisattvas reside, receiving boundless blessings and auspiciousness[5].
3. Nine Grades of Rebirth
There are nine grades of rebirth to which beings in paradise can be reborn. To allow more beings in various realms to be reborn in paradise, the Buddha used countless methods. Anyone who is able to practice even one or two of the practices taught in the sutra, or simply develops a respectful heart upon hearing the teachings, shall receive the compassionate blessings of the buddhas and bodhisattvas. Even great evildoers can be freed from their evil paths and attain auspicious karma by generating sincere thoughts and chanting Buddha’s name[6]. If one practices the content of the sutra diligently and correctly, one shall achieve liberation.
The Lesson on “The Sutra of Contemplation on Amitabha Buddha” by Grandmaster JinBodhi
Meeting the sutra shows your luck; believing in it, you shall be blessed!
Meeting the sutra and believing in it without doubt, you shall be blessed with immeasurable and incredible merits!
Grandmaster JinBodhi once held a lesson on “The Sutra of Contemplation on Amitabha Buddha” to expound the content of the sutra, allowing the public to gain a deeper understanding of paradise and the true nature of life, and how to be liberated from all suffering in life. Using simple and easy-to-understand language, Grandmaster JinBodhi provided a clear and concise explanation of the sutra’s key teachings, making it easier for the public to understand.
The video series “Grandmaster JinBodhi’s Teaching: The Sutra of Contemplation on Amitabha Buddha” will be released soon, and viewers will be able to see Grandmaster JinBodhi’s vivid and lively explanations of the sutra and the significance of kindness and aspiration.
★ Watch “Grandmaster JinBodhi’s Teaching: The Sutra of Contemplation on Amitabha Buddha” Series Here
Why do we visualize different types of illumination?
If we only fulfill parts of the content of the sutra, can we reach paradise?
◎ Participants’ Sharing
Participant A：Zhou Quanyan
「I’ve read the sutra before without understanding it. Thanks to Grandmaster JinBodhi’s explanation, I understood everything! The future is not so scary now and I’ve found my direction! 」
Participant B：Wong Shuying
I felt powerful energy filling up my body when I did the Visualization of the Sun, Visualization of the Water, Visualization of the Ground, Visualization of the Trees, Visualization of the Waters of Eight Virtues, and Visualization of the World of Ultimate Bliss. This meditation method is easy to learn and can eliminate bad karma and bless my family with lots of merit. It’s truly remarkable! I feel so lucky.
Participant C：Ye Jingyang
「I heard about the sutra more than 10 years ago, but it was difficult to understand; so I put it aside for a very long time. Thanks to Grandmaster JinBodhi’s easy-to-understand explanation, I’ve come to appreciate the sutra and understand the beauty of the realm of paradise. I am so glad and grateful.」
【More】
According to the sutras, copying, disseminating, and reciting sutras brings a tremendous number of merits. Download the video “Grandmaster JinBodhi’s Teaching: The Sutra of Contemplation on Amitabha Buddha” and receive the blessings of peace, joy, health, and happiness from the buddhas and bodhisattvas!
Watch “Grandmaster JinBodhi’s Teaching: The Sutra of Contemplation on Amitabha Buddha”
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◎ Texts taken from “The Sutra of Contemplation on Amitabha Buddha”
[1] When Vaidehi saw the Buddha, the World-Honored One, she removed her necklace, rose and prostrated herself on the ground. Weeping bitterly, she faced the Buddha and said, “O World-Honored One, what evil karma did I commit in a previous life that should cause the birth of such an evil son? World-Honored One, what were the causes and relationship with Devadatta? We are family members? My only wish is for the World-Honored One to reveal to me a place where I might be reborn that is without worries and afflictions. I am not happy in this impure and evil world of Jambudvipa. This defiled and evil place is full of hell-beings, hungry spirits and beasts, and there is an accumulation of much evil. I pray that in the future I may hear no evil worlds and see no evil beings. Now, World-Honored One, prostrating before you, I repent and ask for your compassion. My only wish is for you to teach me to visualize a place where one can be reborn by performing pure and undefiled acts.”
[2] “Those who desire to be born in that land must perform the three meritorious acts: First, they should attend dutifully to their parents; honor the work of teachers and elders; with a compassionate mind refrain from killing, and cultivate 10 virtuous acts. Second, they should receive and uphold the Three Refuges, keep the various precepts, and refrain from breaking the rules of conduct. Third, they should awaken the bodhicitta, believe firmly in the principle of karma, read and recite the Mahayana teachings, and encourage those who practice the way. These three acts are called the Undefiled Acts.”
[3] The Buddha said to Ananda, “You are the keeper of the Buddha’s discourses for future generations and for the benefit of the multitudes of beings who wish to be liberated from suffering. For them I proclaim the dharma of visualizing the ground. If they can visualize the ground, the evil karma binding them to birth-and-death for eight billion eons will be eliminated, and when they take leave of this life, they will be born into the Pure Land with a heart that is free of doubt.”
[4] The Buddha said to Ananda, ” If you wish to visualization Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva, you should visualize in this way. By visualizing in this way, you will not encounter any disasters, purify your karmic obstacles, and eliminate the sins of countless eons of birth and death. Such a bodhisattva, just by hearing their name, one obtains immeasurable blessings, not to mention visualizing them in detail.”
[5] This visualization is the visualization of Bodhisattva Mahasthamaprapta; it is also known as the visualization of the physical features of Mahasthamaprapta. Those who can visualize this Bodhisattva have made the 11th Visualization. For those who visualize this Bodhisattva, the evil karma binding them to infinite eons of birth-and-death will be eliminated, and those who perform this visualization will no longer be subject to birth from the womb, but will roam freely throughout the pure and exquisite lands of the buddhas. When these visualizations are completed, they are called the complete perfection of the visualization of Avalokitesvara and Mahasthamaprapta.
[6] The Buddha said to Ananda and Vaidehi, “The sentient beings in the lowest grade of the lowest level of rebirth are those who commit unkind acts such as the Five Heinous Crimes offenses, the 10 evil acts, or countless evil acts. Such a foolish person, because of his evil karma, shall fall into the evil realms of existence and experience endless suffering for many eons. When such a foolish person’s life is about to end, if this person meets a virtuous friend who provides various kinds of comfort, expounds the exquisite dharma, and teaches him to chant to the Buddha, and if that person is too tormented by pain and too weak to chant, the virtuous friend says, ‘If you are unable to chant to the Buddha, you should recite the name of the Buddha of Infinite Life.’ And so, with a sincere mind and an uninterrupted voice, chant ‘Namo Amitabha Buddha’ 10 times. Because this person chants the Buddha’s name, with every repetition, the evil karma binding this person to birth-and-death for eight billion eons will be eliminated. When such person’s life is coming to an end, he sees a golden lotus flower appear in front of him like a sun.
