Rebirth in the Pure Land: Putting Down Confusion

By: Lin Ai Wei (Lin Zi Yi) When one lives with a mind of clarity, all places are undefiled. When one lives with a mind at peace, all places are at peace. These two sentences are so important as a foundation of right views and right thought, but unfortunately people view peace as an outside occurrence which once manifested touches them on the inside thus manifesting what they consider a peaceful world. The view that peace begins on the outside first is wrong. Peace is a manifestation of stillness. People conclude peace to whatever one feels as a comfortable lifestyle. This mannerism leaves many confused about what true and actual purity, peace is. That which is within is with-out. If your mind is confused, every where you go, there will be confusion. If your mind is angry, greedy, ignorant, arrogant and with pain then your every step is of the hells. Purity is simply the manifestation of cultivated virtue and moral. This refers to both purity of mind and body. For too long living beings believe that the body and mind are separate and thus must be fused together by some transcendental practices. This is not true at all. The only reason why it seems that the body and mind are separate is because of ones own views and education about things. People, from childhood all up to the time they die, are given an education which helps them shape their lives around upholding what society, economy and government need in order to revolve around the views which keep people needing. In brief, society in general is a market place where those controlling the market feed the population an education which keeps the people running in circles. The education we receive as children blocks our true wisdom and thus results in skepticism later on in life. Its inevitable in a world of skeptics to believe anything outside mainstream logic and reasoning. Mainstream logic and reasoning revolves around the belief that you must shape your reality around the supported sciences and societal outlook. When people are constantly shown images, articles, and lifestyles, like those which we have in our world now, they feel as though there is an approval to attach themselves to such lifestyles, and thus they want, strive for, and compete against others for things desired. Our current world problems are a result of misinformation, wrong education, and the lack of sense to change from the usual habits. This leads us to focus on specific teachings which allow us to clear the mind of these imposed views, and investigate the mind to reveal the root causes of our own personal and worldly problems. When Shakyamuni Buddha, The World Honored One, spoke the Amitabha Sutra, he did so spontaneously, meaning without being asked specifically about Buddha Pure Lands. The World Honored One saw that living beings are still deluded and will remain so for eons to

come unless they can constantly be mindful of the proper mind, the Buddha Mind and correct their false thinking. The Buddha Speaks The Amitabha Sutra is filled with amazingly simple methods for all living beings to attain Buddhahood; but not only that, it speaks of methods to be reborn in Amitabha Buddhas Pure Land. Please read The Buddha Speaks the Amitabha Sutra for the complete teachings within the sutra. In regards to the Pure Land, when ever a person hears of a another land other than Earth, in which they can be reborn in, they automatically think it to be similar to the heaven of Judeo-Christian belief. This is belief is not true at all. The Buddha Pure Lands are not like the heavens of Judeo-Christian faith. One can only enter a Pure Land by their own diligence and sincerity in cultivating the Buddha Dharma. A pure mind, pure heart, cultivated in merit and virtue according to the Buddha Dharma will allow one to be reborn in the Pure Lands. This kind of method is quite foreign to western belief. It not only casts scientific thought into confusion, but requires one to have faith in their cultivation, the teachings received as well as faith in the Buddhas of their affinity. It is all mind cultivation, and this is where things get unusual for most people. When the mind has unhealthy, angry, greedy, ignorant views one will experience a world of negativity, indulgent in desires and lacking in morals. Over long periods of time, depression settles in and the world is a violent, unsafe place. On the other hand, when the mind has healthy, patient, compassionate and wise views, one will experience that peace, stillness in emotions and mind; clear in decisions with less confusion. Over time a joy that never fades overcomes the person, and the world is a peaceful, pleasant and loving place. Those are two extremes of the same mind. Nothing really changed from what was originally there, only the views of the mind changed. One mind had fear and anger, another had love and joy. Both moved between two different extremes, and both remain stuck on the wheel of birth and death. The educational teachings of Buddhism, when cultivated, eventually lead one to end their attachments to all things of mind. What are the things of the mind? What you regard in mind is just what is of the mind. The methods of being reborn in a Buddha Pure Land are many, yet we will focus on two; Recitation of a Buddhas name, and perfection of conduct with mindfulness of the Buddhas of ones affinity. One of the better known Buddha Pure Lands in our world, is that of Amitabha Buddha and his Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. This Pure Land is unlike any other place, for when reborn there, one takes their negative karma with them and cultivates to directly cut them off without creating more karma, which keeps them revolving on the wheel of birth and death.

Most people think that being reborn in the Pure Lands is quite a foolish thought to have. The normal manner of thinking is that when one wishes to leave this world and envisions another one, that person cant handle the problems in their own life. This view is quite a burden to hold. It certifies that the person holding this view accepts their afflictions owns their afflictions and can not put down their afflictions. Not only this, but it shows a lack of the capacity to put down ones views and contemplate something other than ones own discriminative mind. Contemplating the discriminative mind is simply drowning oneself into an endless internal dialogue with rationalities, logical explanations, reasoning, and thus more and more false thinking. The method of reciting a Buddhas name allows for the cultivator to utilize one false thought to end all others. It is the manner of concentrating on one thought at all times which takes the focus off of any day-dreaming like manner so as to relieve the cultivator of desires, greed, aggression and confused thinking. Over time the cultivator will feel lighter than usual. Calmer in mind and at ease in many of their personal dealings. This is an outcome of diligent and sincere practice. Through constant Buddha name recitation, one will begin to embody the virtue and moral behavior and characteristics of the Buddha they are reciting. This influences the cultivator to do wholesome things, good things and keeps them mindful of the Buddha at all times. If the Buddha name be Amitabha Buddha, as spoken of in the Amitabha Sutra, is sincerely recited/cultivated daily and non-stop, then at the time of death the cultivator will be led by Amitabha Buddha to his Pure Land. But the interesting thing is that one does not have to wait till their time of death. There are recently recorded accounts where people young in age from 25 and up, who decided they would like to leave this world, recited diligently Namo Amitabha Buddha for 3yrs and left. This means they sincerely recited the Buddhas name without stopping, every day, probably not sleeping much, and definitely not eating much and when their negative karma was light enough, they left. There are numerous accounts of people meditating and reciting the Buddhas name, and then dying without pain or fear. Some even died standing up while reciting and bowing to the Buddha. Some died walking and some died lying down on their bed. Those that died standing up never fell over, and the same goes for those who have died sitting in meditation. Usually when someone dies, the body becomes stiff, cold and eventually smells. Yet, with the cultivation of the Buddha Dharma, ones body becomes purified and will not smell at death, will not be cold at death and will not be hard as well. Now these few signs are not etched in stone. There are many signs to look for when someone dies. These signs let you know of their rebirth in the Pure Land. Not all of these signs may appear, and sometimes none would appear at all. As spoken of in the Amitabha Sutra, if ones karma is heavy, yet they refrained from creating more negative karma while alive in body while all along diligently reciting Amitabha Buddhas name, the cultivator would arrive at the Pure Land but would not be reborn just yet. They would be in an un-bloomed lotus waiting till their heavy karma is light enough to allow them to realize the fruit of patience so they may awaken in the Pure Land.

All of this seems too hard for most people to accept. Why should it be easy when people have been taught to disregard anything not scientifically proven, and or to disbelieve anything they can not see or touch. Unfortunately, holding on to this view locks one into ignorance. Though the Buddha Dharma does not advocate blind-faith it does advocate investigation. This investigation is not without faith. The faith held is one that claims what the Buddha spoke and taught was and is true. One just has to come to realize such teachings within. The second method is perfection of conduct. One will not be reborn in any Pure Land if they lack the merits of cultivated virtue and moral. All the Buddhas represent perfected virtue. It is our job to make sure we can emulate the Buddhas to our best ability. This way our conduct would be pure and our virtue and morals perfected. We may recite diligently ever day, but if when meeting other people we curse them, get frustrated, are greedy and arrogant our recitation was in vain, and any merit attained from recitation is cancelled out by our impure conduct. This literally means that for the land to be pure, the mind must be pure. One can not enter a Pure Land if they are breaking the 5 precepts. If one hasnt taken the precepts, then guarding the mind may be a harder thing to do, for precepts guard the mind. Of course one has to look at their own causes and conditions when contemplating rebirth in a Pure Land. The mind must be as pure as possible, meaning no thoughts of killing, greed, anger and ignorance. These afflictions must be put down. This doesnt mean that through many years of recitation and faith in Amitabha Buddhas vows, you have thoughts of greed here and there, get a bit angry and do stupid things once and a while that you will not be able to enter his Pure Land. If you sincerely cultivate and correct your behavior, actually change your views and mind, that sincerity and diligence would manifest in great merits towards rebirth. All of the methods of Buddhism point to cultivating virtue, and perfecting moral conduct. When the mind is clear, not defiled, all places are Buddha Lands and all beings are Buddhas. Yet that view is only according to the mind which has the capacity to accept such wisdom. Though many beings are not realized Buddhas, they still have the Buddha Nature, the wise and ultimately clear, undefiled Thus-ness. The only difference between ordinary beings and realized Buddhas is confusion. Realized Buddhas are not confused, ordinary beings are. There is a saying which goes, Unenlightened, one is a human. Enlightened, one is still a human. This means that regardless of your enlightenment, you are still with a human form. Do good things, be a good person, and help others perfect their conduct. Being reborn in a Pure Land is not something one should attach to and greedily desire. They should view such an outcome as realizing the fruit of their labor. Their labor being sincerely and diligently reciting the Buddhas name, living a wholesome and selfless life by being an example of virtue and moral. One does not get to the top of the mountain by thinking, talking about it only, just as one does not get full from just thinking, talking about food. One has to apply themselves in order to attain the result. Guard the mind at all times and do so by Taking Refuge and accepting the 5 precepts for their function is to guard the mind from false thinking. People think themselves to be of great ability, but if they did have great ability they wouldnt be

humans but Gods, and they wouldnt be Gods but Bodhisattvas, and they wouldnt be Bodhisattvas but Buddhas. Thus is the nature of the non-dual mind. Unmoved, and unfettered, the true nature pervades all directions, and not one direction has been pervaded.