---
title: "答四十八問 · 答淨土四十八問"
description: "答四十八问是明代高僧莲池袾宏所著的一部佛教问答体著作。该书以四十八组问答形式，针对当时佛教修行者常见的疑惑进行深入浅出的解答，内容涵盖禅净关系、戒律实践、教理阐释等核心议题。作为晚明佛教复兴的重要文献，它系统阐述了净土思想并调和各宗观点，体现了袾宏禅师圆融的佛学思想。该书至今仍是汉传佛教特别是净土修行者重要的指导经典，对后世影响深远。"
url: "https://rushiwowen.co/en/r/cmcxylvmy000tl804cs7844n8"
---

問。世人聞念佛念心。心淨土淨之語。因膠執內心。拂拭令淨。偏空自喜。撥無西方。及語心土一如。則曰我心匪石。懷土奚為。蚓實含泥。黃壤豈侔金界。鼇誠戴岳。持地何若摶空。蓋亦喻似丹臺。象比蓮萼。四十脈絡。以當寶網交羅。一靈內朗。以況彌陀安住。近肺約西。通舌為池。法譬而已。無論實境。則有引風水之凶吉。致子孫之興衰。例依正之互融。示機感之摩忒。此猶未委正因。未窮十妙。更求明誨。傾此惡見。

> \*\*Question.\*\* People hear the teaching, "Recite the Buddha's name, contemplate the mind; when the mind is pure, the land is pure." Because of this, they stubbornly cling to the inner mind, polishing and wiping it to make it pure. They delight in a one-sided emptiness, rejecting the Western Pure Land. When told that mind and land are one, they say, "My mind is not a stone; why should I long for soil? Earthworms indeed hold mud, but yellow soil cannot compare to the golden realm. Turtles truly carry mountains; why uphold the ground when you can soar through the sky?" They compare it to an alchemy furnace, liken it to a lotus petal; they take the forty veins as the jeweled net, and the inner light of the spirit as Amitabha dwelling within. They relate the lungs to the West, see the tongue as a pond—mere metaphors and similes, but no true reality. Then they bring in the good and bad fortune of feng shui, which causes descendants to prosper or decline, using it as an example of the mutual integration of the environment and the body, to show how the mind and its conditions never miss their mark. Yet they still do not grasp the true cause, have not exhausted the ten subtleties. I beg for clear instruction to overturn this wrong view.

答。心淨土淨。語則誠然。但語有二義。一者約理。謂心即是土。淨心之外。無淨土也。二者約事。謂心為土因。其心淨者。其土淨也。若執理而廢事。世謂清閒即是仙。果清閒之外。無真仙乎。至如攬身分而言淨土。此則邪見尤甚。苦報彌深。蓋吾佛唯明一心。而膠人恒執四大。是故認肉絡為寶羅。指妄想為真佛。肺屬西而便名金地。舌生津而遂號華池。鄙偽千途。莫可枚舉。豈知革囊不淨。幻質非真。徒費辛勤。終成敗壞。而復迷醉無知。竊附於心淨土淨之說。不但愚夫愚婦惑之。士大夫亦有受其害者。良可歎也。

> Answer: "The mind pure, the land pure" — this saying is indeed true. But it has two meanings. First, from the principle: the mind itself is the land; apart from the pure mind, there is no pure land. Second, from the practical: the mind is the cause of the land; when the mind is pure, the land is pure. If one clings to the principle and discards the practical, saying that leisure and carefreeness are immortality — then is there truly no immortal apart from leisure and carefreeness? As for those who confuse the physical body for the pure land, this is an even more serious wrong view, bringing only deeper suffering. For our Buddha clarifies solely the mind, yet people stubbornly cling to the four elements. Thus they mistake the web of flesh for jeweled netting, take deluded thoughts for the true Buddha. They call the lungs western and thus name it the golden ground; when the tongue produces saliva, they call it the lotus pool. Countless such vulgar deceptions, too many to list. How could they know that the bag of skin is impure, that the illusory body is not real? Their efforts are in vain, and in the end it all decays. Yet, still drunk and deluded, they ignorantly attach themselves to the saying "mind pure, land pure." Not only do common men and women fall for this, but even scholars and officials suffer its harm. Truly lamentable.

問。商入海。士趨朝。不待勸而騖者。以冠葢之溢目。貨貝之動心也。釋迦現土。令人自擇。善財登閣。諸佛交光。其為觀念。無俟勸矣。使善知識緩頰繭足而導人信。不若善導之光從口出。真善導耳。嘗聞此方念佛。淨土華鮮。念佛心弛。淨土華萎。彼佛廣開方便。胡不移此華榮悴於此人之前乎。假令處世。則開目閉目。與蓮相參。期盡。則乘此華輪。彈指生彼。有何不可。而不然者。豈權巧之所不及耶。

> Question: A merchant enters the sea, a scholar hurries toward court—neither needs urging, driven by the splendor of carriages and the allure of wealth. Shakyamuni revealed the Pure Land, letting people choose for themselves. Sudhana ascended the tower, and all Buddhas shone with radiant light. Such contemplation needs no encouragement. If a teacher strains their voice and wears out their feet to guide people toward faith, it is not as effective as the light that shines from the mouth of the Good Guide himself. It is said that when one recites the Buddha's name here, the flowers in the Pure Land bloom; when the mind of recitation slackens, the flowers wither. The Buddha of that land opened vast skillful means—why not manifest the blooming and withering of these flowers before this person's very eyes? Suppose, while still in this world, both with eyes open and closed, one could be surrounded by lotuses; and when one's time is complete, ride this lotus wheel and be born there in a snap of the fingers. What could be wrong with that? If it is not so, is it because such skillful means are beyond reach?

答。干名圖利。乃現世之功能。人斯共見。念佛往生。實隔世之因果。人所難知。雖然。蓮華實榮悴於目前。而迷者不覺耳。淨心為善。則神清氣爽。而內志開舒。穢心為惡。則氣暴神麤。而衷懷沮喪。華榮華悴。不昭然乎。況夫目親聖像。遠祖之誠言。池降銀臺。珍公之故事。以至身泛紅蓮。如高浩象。且代有其人矣。孰曰現世無徵哉。

> Answer: Seeking fame and profit brings rewards in this very life—something everyone can see. But reciting the Buddha's name and attaining rebirth in the Pure Land is a cause and effect that spans lifetimes, which is hard for people to grasp. Yet even so, the lotus flower truly blooms and withers right before our eyes, though the deluded fail to notice. When the mind is pure and good, the spirit is clear and refreshed, and the heart opens with ease. When the mind is defiled and evil, the temper turns violent, the spirit grows coarse, and the heart sinks in dismay. Is the blooming and withering of the flower not evident in this? Moreover, we have the sincere words of our distant ancestor who gazed upon the sacred image, the story of Master Zhen receiving the silver platform descending into the pond, and even those like Gao Haoxiang whose bodies floated upon red lotuses. Such people have appeared in every generation. Who can say there is no evidence in this very life?

問。道家所稱默朝者。與觀佛類。彼之天帝。即是菩薩。往就菩薩。或不退轉。孔子。儒童菩薩也。嘗思文王。至見其形黝然。正與觀佛類矣。文王在帝左右。孔子應與同居。今用思文王之法而思孔子。思孔子。即思菩薩。往就孔子。即往就菩薩。亦當得不退轉。則此二氏者。奚必挽之西耶。

> Question: The Daoist practice of "Silent Pilgrimage" seems similar to contemplating the Buddha. Their Heavenly Emperor is a bodhisattva, and going to that bodhisattva may lead to non-retrogression. Confucius is said to be the Bodhisattva of Youthful Purity. When he once contemplated King Wen, he saw his form as dark and indistinct—this is exactly like contemplating the Buddha. King Wen resides by the Emperor's side, so Confucius should dwell with him as well. Now, if we use the method of contemplating King Wen to contemplate Confucius, then contemplating Confucius is contemplating a bodhisattva. Going to Confucius is going to a bodhisattva, and one could also achieve non-retrogression. If so, for these two schools, why must we steer them toward the Western Pure Land?

答。天帝雖云菩薩。見身是欲界君王。孔子縱號儒童。應迹乃人間君子。譬之宰衡暫時外補。選舉者他歸。人主忽爾微行。朝覲者不赴。故知四生慈父。三界大師。天中之天。聖中之聖。唯佛一人。無與等者。豈可默朝欲界。企想人間。便得擬萬億佛土外之西方。恒沙賢聖中之化主。二教不宗於佛。將誰宗耶。

> Answer: Although the Emperor of Heaven is called a Bodhisattva, his visible body is still the ruler of the desire realm. Although Confucius is hailed as the Child of the儒童 (the youthful sage), his manifested traces are but a sage among mortals. This is like a prime minister temporarily assigned to an external post—those who come for selection and appointment will turn elsewhere; or like a sovereign who suddenly travels in disguise—those who come for court audience will not find him. Therefore, we know that the Compassionate Father of all sentient beings, the Great Teacher of the Three Realms, the Heaven within Heaven, the Saint among saints—only the Buddha, the One, has no equal. How could one, by merely bowing to the desire realm or yearning for the human world, be compared to the Western Land beyond the billion Buddha-lands, or the Transforming Master among the countless sages? If the two teachings do not take the Buddha as their ultimate refuge, whom then do they take as their refuge?

問。或謂佛逼眾生。拋離骨肉。棄捨形骸。近別家鄉。遠投外國。魂爽幽幽。入此夢境。夢中獲寶。色色非真。聞之慘然。有何極樂。又云。在生亦是夢境。既全是夢。益復可悲。將謂菩薩先醒。却行如夢六波羅密。則實報莊嚴。更成恍忽矣。我其歸常寂光乎。寂光無色。莽渺安依。不如寓世夢間。一任獻吉憎惡。

> Question: Someone says that the Buddha forces sentient beings to abandon their flesh and blood, discard their physical forms, leave their homelands, and travel far to foreign lands. Their souls drift in obscurity, entering this dream-like realm. In the dream, they find treasures, but everything is unreal. Hearing this is disheartening—where is the ultimate bliss? They also say that life itself is a dream. If everything is a dream, it becomes even more sorrowful. They argue that Bodhisattvas awaken first, yet they practice the six paramitas as if in a dream. Then even the glorious rewards of enlightenment become illusory. Should I return to the eternal, tranquil light? But that light has no form and is vast and indeterminate—where can I rely on it? It is better to dwell in this worldly dream, letting Xianji despise it as he pleases.

答。虗浮界內。是夢非真。常寂光中。是真非夢。世人以夢為真。以真為夢。顛倒如斯。良可悲矣。豈知骨肉之即讎冤。形骸之為桎梏。得生淨土。是則脫沈疴而再獲天年。釋狴犴而榮歸故里。名之極樂。詎不然乎。若夫菩薩行門。雖云如夢。譬之大喜將臨。夜現吉祥之境。豈比重昏失曉。魂招凶惡之徵。蓋菩薩在夢而將甦。凡夫繇夢而入夢。至於寂光。則朗然大寐之得醒矣。

> Answer: Within the realm of floating illusion, all is dream, not real. In the realm of eternal stillness and light, all is real, not dream. People of the world take dream as real and real as dream—such is their confusion. How pitiful! Do they not know that flesh and blood are but enemies, and the body itself a shackle? To be reborn in the Pure Land is to recover from a grave illness and regain a full life, to be released from prison and return home in glory. Is it not fitting to call it the Land of Ultimate Bliss? As for the path of a Bodhisattva's practice—though it is said to be like a dream—it is like when great joy is about to come, and auspicious scenes appear in the night. How could that compare to one who is deeply deluded and has lost the dawn, whose soul summons omens of misfortune? Bodhisattvas are in the dream but about to wake; ordinary beings go from dream into dream. As for the realm of stillness and light—there, in radiant clarity, one has awakened from the great slumber.

問。淨剎去此方十萬億佛土。是有數量者矣。但最為遙遠。非舟車人力之所及耳。竊意鸚鵡鸜鵒。既知念佛。縱令迅飛。似亦可至。設使壽命短促。中道而殪。飛仙固不能至乎。飛仙或不能至。但修神足通。何患不至乎。然則欲往西方者。以目犍連為本師可也。

> Question: The Pure Land is a hundred billion buddha-lands away from this world. It has a measurable distance—the farthest of all. It lies beyond the reach of boats, carts, or human effort. I would guess that even if a parrot or a myna knew Buddha Recitation and flew as fast as it could, it still might not arrive. And if its lifespan were short and it died along the way, then surely even a flying immortal could not get there. Perhaps a flying immortal cannot, but what if one cultivated the supernormal power of travel? Then why worry about not arriving? If that is so, then one who wishes to go to the Western Land could take Maudgalyayana as their teacher.

答。目連遙聞說法。循聲至一佛󳬛。已越娑婆無邊無量。欲回本土而不能得。蓋至彼者。繇彼佛之神力。非聲聞之神通也。今此極樂世界。姑陳其遠。聊存十萬億剎之名。究極其歸。實超情量數目之外。眾生生此。一則佛攝受力不可思議。二則已發願力不可思議也。而神通何與焉。

> Maudgalyayana heard the teaching from afar and followed the sound to a Buddha-land, having already passed beyond the boundless and immeasurable worlds of Saha. He wished to return to his own land but could not. The reason is that his arrival there was due to that Buddha's spiritual power, not the spiritual powers of a shravaka disciple. Now as for this Land of Ultimate Bliss, we have just described its distance, briefly giving the name of "a hundred thousand kotis of lands." But to speak of its ultimate destination, it truly surpasses what thought and measurement can reach. When sentient beings are born there, first, the Buddha's power of embrace is inconceivable; second, the power of the vows they have already made is inconceivable. What have spiritual powers to do with it?

問。離妄身而求法身。更無法身。則今此妄身即法身也。彼佛便攝此身。致之淨土。不亦可乎。若淨土應現丈六等軀。不取革囊舊質。當似星隕為石。鳩化為鷹。至此而變。不亦可乎。嗟夫。浮黎始青之境。且許白日飛昇。樂󳬛清泰之域。顧使幽魂暗度。世之迷流。舍九品而取七趣者。無足怪矣。

> Question: If we leave behind this illusory body to seek the Dharma body, and there is no other Dharma body apart from it, then this very illusory body is itself the Dharma body. Would it not then be acceptable for that Buddha to embrace this body and bring it to the Pure Land? And if in the Pure Land one should manifest a body sixteen feet tall and so on, not taking on the old substance of this bag of skin, then one would be like a star falling and becoming a stone, or a dove transforming into a hawk—transforming only upon arrival there. Would that not be acceptable as well? Alas! Even in the realms of floating mist and primal azure, it is still permitted to ascend to heaven in broad daylight; yet in the land of bliss, peace, and purity, people instead have wandering spirits pass through in darkness. Among the deluded multitudes of the world, that some abandon the nine grades and cling to the seven destinies is nothing to be surprised at.

答。據佛神力。舉大千世界而歸淨土。輕若鴻毛。況復色身。攝之彌易。顧神仙家所以不能解脫者。以其戀著於形神也。色身等乎泡露。不應將此往生。法性徧在虗空。何須至彼而變。蓋是密移凡質。超聖境以同歸。豈比暗度幽魂。作鬼家之活計。但求生彼。莫論身心。

> Answer: By the Buddha's spiritual power, one can lift the entire great chiliocosm and return to the Pure Land, light as a goose feather—how much more easily can this physical body be gathered up. The reason those who seek immortality cannot attain liberation is that they cling to body and spirit. The physical body is like a bubble or dew; it should not be carried to rebirth there. The Dharma-nature pervades all space—why need one go there to be transformed? This is a secret transformation of ordinary substance, transcending the realm of sages to return as one. How could it compare to secretly ferrying ghostly spirits, making a living as a ghost? Just seek rebirth there, and do not concern yourself with body or mind.

問。世之求往生者。非即欲往生者也。就使正禮念時。佛現其前。引之西往。必辭以化緣未周。婚嫁未畢。幸少須臾無死耳。復有一人。異於前人。力修三昧。無間六時。慮後倦勤。失此機會。便乃投身自斃。縱火自焚。既匪捨報安詳。如入禪定。佛憐其愚。亦肯手相接否。

> Question: People who seek rebirth in the Pure Land—are they not the same as those who actually wish to go there? Even if, while properly bowing and reciting, a Buddha were to appear before them and lead them westward, they would surely decline, saying their work of guiding others is not yet complete, their children's marriages are not yet arranged, and they hope for just a little more time before dying. Then there is another kind of person, different from the first—one who vigorously cultivates meditation, practice unbroken through the six periods of the day, and, fearing that later they might grow lazy and lose this opportunity, throws away their body and kills themselves, or sets themselves on fire. Since they do not pass away peacefully and serenely, as one entering meditation, would the Buddha, pitying their foolishness, still reach out a hand to receive them?

答。智人之修淨土也。在生則自淨其心。報滿則任緣而往。不欲生而戀著世緣者。慢也。急欲生而自殘軀命者。愚也。如是之流。輕則攝入魔羣。重則沈於惡趣。日光普照。不及覆盆。佛雖大慈。莫之能救。

> Answer: When a wise person cultivates the Pure Land path, they purify their own mind while alive, and when their life's karma is complete, they go wherever conditions lead them. Those who cling to worldly ties and do not wish to be reborn there are arrogant. Those who desperately long for rebirth and harm their own bodies and lives are foolish. People like these, in milder cases, are drawn into the company of demons; in more severe cases, they sink into unfortunate realms of existence. Though the sunlight shines everywhere, it cannot reach a bowl turned upside down. Though the Buddha is greatly compassionate, even he cannot save such people.

問。設有一人。前生念佛勤篤。機感未應。今生雖作散善。意常在佛。而為事所紲。不能依法修持。一期報盡。又無所感。此人於中陰身。種子忽萌。十念完就。得見佛往生否。

> Question: Suppose there is a person who in a previous life recited the Buddha's name diligently and earnestly, but the conditions for a response had not yet ripened. In this life, though they do scattered good deeds, their mind is always on the Buddha. Yet they are bound by worldly affairs and cannot practice according to the Dharma. When this lifetime's karmic reward ends and still nothing has been manifested, could it be that in the intermediate state, the seed suddenly sprouts, the ten recitations are completed, and they see the Buddha and attain rebirth?

答。前生以勤篤而植因。今世繇怠緩而失果。若使臨終克念。生或可期。待乎中陰發心。勢已無及。願諸仁者。早為之圖。

> Response: In a former life, they planted the cause through diligence and devotion, but in this life they lose the fruit because of laziness and neglect. If at the moment of death they could focus their minds, rebirth might still be possible. But if they wait until the intermediate state to arouse the aspiration, it will already be too late. May all of you, good people, plan for this early.

問。有人於此。若一日以至七日。或匝月經年。翹勤勇猛。一心不亂矣。後為他師所奪。令入宗教二門。雖兩俱無成。猶不離佛門也。臨終時。佛肯憐而收之否歟。又有始勤中怠。終而改悔如初。始勤中惡。終而改悔如初。此人當入下品。當入疑城耶。

> Question: Suppose there is a person here who, for one day up to seven days, or for a whole month or a whole year, earnestly and vigorously practices with a single, undistracted mind. Later, they are drawn away by another teacher and led into the two paths of doctrinal study and contemplative practice. Even though they succeed in neither, they still do not leave the Buddhist fold. At the time of death, would the Buddha take pity and receive them? Also, there is one who is diligent at first but slackens midway, and at the end repents and returns to their original earnestness. And there is one who is diligent at first but does evil midway, and at the end repents and returns to their original earnestness. Should such a person be born in the lowest grade, or should they be born in the city of doubt?

答。即念即佛。則念佛何非宗。析空而念藏也。體空而念通也。次第而念別也。一心而念圓也。則念佛何非教。一舉雙得。誰謂無成。前通後融。不名為奪。如是往生。固無疑矣。祇恐自生分別。心挂二途。愆繇已生。非佛法咎。至若過能改悔。位實難量。釋迦翹勤七日。而正覺先成。廣額放下屠刀。而菩提立證。下品疑城。未足限之矣。

> Answer: If reciting the Buddha's name is itself Buddhahood, then how could Buddha Recitation not be a school of practice? Reciting with an analytic understanding of Emptiness corresponds to the Tripiṭaka. Reciting with an experiential understanding of Emptiness corresponds to the Shared teachings. Reciting progressively corresponds to the Distinct teachings. Reciting single-mindedly corresponds to the Perfect teachings. So how could Buddha Recitation not be a teaching? One practice yields two attainments—who can say it leads nowhere? What came before pervades; what comes after harmonizes. This is not called taking away. Rebirth in the Pure Land, then, is beyond doubt. The only worry is that we create our own divisions, our minds caught between two paths. The fault begins with us—it is not the Dharma's blame. As for those who can reform and repent of their errors—their level is truly hard to measure. Shakyamuni exerted himself for seven days, and accomplished perfect enlightenment first. Guang'e laid down his butcher's knife, and immediately realized Enlightenment. Even the lowest grade in the borderland of doubt is not enough to confine such people.

問。王臣往生。是不舍國事者也。居士往生。是不舍家事者也。夫居士一心念佛。或無他礙。若王臣之勞於王事。當不若家事之可推諉者。楊無為諸君。亦何嘗被鰥官之刺。而竟致化佛之迎。豈軍旅政刑。一切不妨往生乎。抑彼念念與實相不背乎。

> Question: When kings, ministers, and officials are reborn in the Pure Land, does that mean they didn't have to give up their government duties? And when laypeople are reborn there, does that mean they didn't have to give up their family responsibilities? Now, a layperson who recites the Buddha's name single-mindedly may face no other obstacles. But for kings and officials, burdened by affairs of state, things surely aren't as easily set aside as family matters. Yet figures like Yang Wuwei—did they ever suffer criticism for neglecting their official posts? And in the end, they still had transformed Buddhas come to welcome them. Does this mean that military affairs, government administration, and legal matters need not hinder rebirth in the Pure Land at all? Or is it that their every thought was never at odds with ultimate reality?

答。達心之士。萬機萬變。而國政非繁。執境之流。一夫一婦。而家緣尚累。譬之明鏡照物。終日照而無勞。空谷傳聲。多眾傳而不困。如是。則大君不異世尊。百辟何非海眾。都俞吁咈。而妙法交宣。慶賞刑威。而真慈平等。王事佛事。打成一片矣。何淨土之難生耶。

> Answer: For those who have understood the mind, even amid ten thousand tasks and ten thousand changes, governing a nation is not burdensome. But for those attached to circumstances, even one husband and one wife create tangled family ties. It is like a bright mirror reflecting objects—it reflects all day long without exhaustion. Or like an empty valley echoing sound—however many people call, it never grows weary. In this way, a great ruler is no different from the World-Honored One, and all the officials are nothing other than the assembly of the ocean-wide sangha. In matters of approval and dissent, the wondrous Dharma is proclaimed together. In rewards and punishments, true compassion remains equal. The affairs of the king and the affairs of the Buddha become one single piece. How then could rebirth in the Pure Land be difficult?

問。下品下生者。夙緣不淺。得遇明師。助成十念。遂證此品。既具夙緣。應不為惡。總然為惡。一念相應。萬罪消滅。如久暗得明。頓然光耀。暗無所去。明無所來。遇此境界。旋上品上生。猶涉階級。而顧居下下。豈罪不可滅。功過相準耶。彼疑城之人。止是稍疑。未嘗造惡。抑不登品。誠為負屈。即如古今生疑城者。當是何人。有指名否。

> Question: Those born in the lowest grade of the lowest level—their past karmic connections were surely not shallow. They met a clear teacher, who helped them accomplish ten recitations, and thus they attained this grade. Since they had such past karmic connections, they should not have done evil. Yet even if they did do evil, one moment of corresponding recitation erases ten thousand offenses. It is like long darkness meeting light—suddenly it shines brightly. The darkness has nowhere to go; the light has nowhere to come from. Meeting this state, they could immediately rise to the highest grade of the highest level. Yet instead they remain in the lowest of the low. Is it that offenses cannot be erased? Are merit and fault weighed against each other? Those in the City of Doubt only had slight doubt and never did evil, yet they do not even reach a grade—truly they are wronged. And who, in ancient and modern times, are those born in the City of Doubt? Can anyone name them?

答。凡人在世。固有惡心雖熾。聞淨土而不疑。亦有福業雖修。忽念佛而不信。是以雖為惡而生淨土者此也。然而罪障乍消。淨因未廣。生則必生。但應卑位耳。故知內蓄疑情。前功枉棄。心存篤信。帶業還生。則疑信之間。利害非細矣。雖然。生疑城者。當是淨業勤修。止以心無決定。今世人疑則不勤。勤則不疑。且疑且勤。萬中一二。安所指其人乎。

> Answer: Ordinary people in this world may have evil thoughts burning strongly within them, yet when they hear of the Pure Land, they do not doubt. Others may cultivate meritorious deeds, yet suddenly hearing of Buddha Recitation, they do not believe. This is why even those who have done evil can be reborn in the Pure Land. However, when their karmic offenses are suddenly erased but their causes for rebirth remain limited, they will certainly be reborn—but only in a lower station. Thus we know: harboring hidden doubt wastes all previous effort, while sincere faith allows one to be reborn even carrying karmic burden. Between doubt and faith, the difference in benefit and harm is far from small. That said, those born in the City of Doubt must have diligently cultivated Pure Land practices but simply lacked firm resolve in their minds. People today who doubt do not practice diligently, and those who practice diligently do not doubt. To find someone who both doubts and practices diligently is one in ten thousand—who could such a person even be?

問。放鳥󳭋魚鼈等。為之誦呪念佛。願彼往生。此物為當承力即生。為當舍此業報。生在人中。更師放生者。依法勤念。乃得生耶。

> Question: When we release birds, animals, fish, and turtles, and recite mantras and Buddha's name for them, vowing that they be reborn in the Pure Land—do these creatures immediately attain rebirth through the power of that recitation? Or must they first shed this karmic body, be reborn as humans, and then, guided by the one who released them, diligently recite the Dharma before they can attain rebirth?

答。呪願禽畜者。若業輕緣熟。承法力而亦得往生。業重緣疏。止滅罪而改形善趣。然禽畜未必生。而放生呪願之人。福不唐捐矣。來生度化。終酬宿因。目連度蜂。足為明鏡。

> Answer: As for reciting spells and making vows for animals and livestock—if their karma is light and conditions are ripe, they may also be reborn in the Pure Land through the power of the Dharma. If their karma is heavy and conditions are distant, they will at least have their sins erased and be reborn in a better realm with a changed form. However, animals and livestock are not guaranteed to be reborn \[in the Pure Land\]. Yet for those who release living beings and make vows, their merit is not in vain. In future lives they will guide and transform them, ultimately repaying their former karmic connections. Maudgalyayana's deliverance of the bees is proof enough.

問。以淨穢二土。較勝劣而誘人者。誘凡夫之人也。凡夫所極樂者。女人。所極不樂者。無女人。與眷屬之睽離也。今使棄眷屬而入無女人之國。且堅拒不入矣。佛何無方便如此。或曰。生彼國而六通。天眼徹於閨闥。詎有離憂耶。既身居淨土。而目中常見女人。奚異彼國之有女人。那得實無女人乎。又雅士性耽質素。不寶金玉。故抵璧投珠。揮金焚錦者。往往有之。無惑其聞珍域之名而勿願耳。

> Question: Using the superior and inferior qualities of pure and impure lands to attract people—this is meant to attract ordinary people. What ordinary people love most is women. What they most dislike is the absence of women and separation from their families. Now if you tell them to abandon their families and enter a land without women, they will firmly refuse to go. Why did the Buddha not employ skillful means in this regard? Some might say: Once born in that land, one gains the six supernatural powers. With the divine eye, one can see right through the women's chambers. How could there be the sorrow of separation? But if one dwells in a pure land while constantly seeing women before one's eyes, how is that different from that land having women? How can it truly be without women? Moreover, refined scholars by nature value simplicity and do not treasure gold and jade. Thus there are those who fling away jade discs and cast aside pearls, scatter gold and burn brocade—such people are often found. No wonder they hear the name of a land of treasures and feel no wish to go there.

答。淨土雖誘凡夫。然當其始誘之時。已詳陳女色之害矣。華箭革囊。種種譬喻。正言女人之為穢。無女人之為淨也。女人之為不樂。無女人之為極樂也。焉得反生堅拒。不願西歸乎。且六通遠徹。皆繇心地開明。則九族森陳。何啻空華閃爍。目見女人。奚足為礙。至如無求廉士。不羨寶󳬛。是未知寶有同名。實非一體。此寶乃頑福所致。觸目而生貪。彼寶是淨德所成。久居而不染。執清修之小節。失聖境之偉觀。亦猶性惡淫聲。併點瑟回琴而共棄。心憎野史。與堯謨舜典而俱焚。賤金玉而捨西方。何以異於是。

> Reply: The Pure Land may lure ordinary people, but when it first begins to draw them in, it has already clearly described the harms of female beauty. The flower arrow and the leather bag—these various metaphors are precisely saying that being with women is defilement, and being without women is purity. Being with women is not true happiness, and being without women is ultimate bliss. How could one instead resist it firmly and refuse to return to the West? Moreover, the six supernatural powers reach far and penetrate deeply, all arising from the illumination of the mind-ground. Then the nine clans appear densely before one—how are they any different from illusionary flowers flickering in the sky? Seeing women with one's eyes—how could that be enough to become an obstacle? As for the incorruptible scholar who seeks nothing and does not envy treasures—this is not to know that there are treasures with the same name that are truly not of the same substance. These treasures are the result of stubborn blessings, and at a glance they give rise to greed. Those treasures are formed by pure virtue, and dwelling among them for long, one remains unstained. To cling to the minor discipline of pure cultivation and lose the great vision of the sacred realm is just like hating lewd music and therefore discarding even the zither and lute of Zeng Dian and the qin of Yan Hui, or detesting unofficial histories and therefore burning even the Plans of Yao and the Canons of Shun. To despise gold and jade and abandon the West—how is that any different from this?

問。極樂國中。一寶以至四寶。諸多奇麗。充燦其間。可謂富矣。然而取之不為貪者。曰。吾家業也。今人皆是富人之乍失業。與久失業者耳。嘗謂富即吾有。委而棄之。若此方龐居士輩者。豈不清高。不然。辛苦經營。早夜積著。雖復舊物。亦幾貪戀。況守錢虜哉。彼誓取淨土者。何以異此。

> Question: In the Land of Ultimate Bliss, there are treasures from one kind of jewel up to four kinds of jewels—many wondrous and beautiful things shining and filling that realm. You could call it wealthy indeed. Yet taking them is not called greed. Why? Because they say, "This is my own family inheritance." People today are all like wealthy people who have suddenly lost their inheritance, or who have long been without their inheritance. I once said that if wealth is already ours, and we cast it aside and abandon it—like Mr. Pang of this world and others like him—would that not be noble and pure? Otherwise, toiling and scheming bitterly, piling up savings day and night—even if these are old possessions, one still nearly clings to them with greed, let alone a miser hoarding coins! Those who vow to seek the Pure Land—how are they different from this?

答。淨心本具。故云寶是家珍。淨願求生。實乃復其故有。夫欲仁得仁尚非貪。吾復吾心胡名染。若夫實報莊嚴。則亦因淨果淨。理自如是。又何慕焉。如其顧舊業而求生。心之垢亦甚矣。何以得生淨土。

> Answer: The pure mind is inherently complete within us—this is why it is called a treasure, a family heirloom. To seek rebirth through pure vows is simply to recover what we have always had. Even wanting goodness and attaining goodness is not called greed—so how could restoring our own mind be called defilement? As for the adorned reward-body land, it too comes from pure causes and pure results; this is simply how things naturally are. Why would there be any craving for it? But if one longs for old karmic patterns while seeking rebirth, the stains on one's mind are far too heavy. How could one then attain rebirth in the Pure Land?

問。法藏恐人之憚煩而不求往生也。曰。十念足矣。釋迦恐人之憚煩而不求往生也。曰。七日足矣。見夫婦數米而念者。教以三十六萬億九千五百之號。從約也。而釋迦又以聞毫相名。與一稱名之效誘人。其意一耳。至遠公。與式公。而六時。而懺儀。備也。士攢眉去焉。夫使七日十念而不然也。佛語誑。信然也。何為峻淨國之城而拒人耶。

> Question: The Dharma-keeper (Fa-zang) feared people would find it too troublesome and not seek rebirth, so he said, "Ten recitations are enough." Shakyamuni feared people would find it too troublesome and not seek rebirth, so he said, "Seven days are enough." Seeing a husband and wife counting grains of rice while reciting, he taught them the thirty-six trillion nine hundred and fifty thousand recitations of the name, accommodating their limited capacity. Yet Shakyamuni also drew people in with the merit of merely hearing the name of the white-curl mark, and the effectiveness of a single recitation of the name. The intent is one and the same. By the time of Master Yuan and Master Shi, there were six periods of practice and full repentance rituals. Scholars frowned and turned away. But if seven days and ten recitations were not truly sufficient, then the Buddha's words would be false—surely that cannot be. Why then build so high the walls of the Pure Land and shut people out?

答。大聖化人。善權自非一種。宜繁者為說繁。宜簡者為說簡。七日十念。非言易以驕人。百倍之精專。七日勝乎七日。十念超乎萬念也。六時禮懺。非言難以阻人。宿習之濃厚。少時則刮磨未盡。有間則三昧難成也。龍舒日禮千拜。永明晝夜萬聲。攢眉而去。吾末如之何也已。

> The Great Sage teaches people using many different skillful means—never just one approach. When something needs detailed explanation, he explains it in detail. When something calls for simplicity, he teaches it simply. The seven-day practice and the ten-recitation practice are not meant to make people arrogant by suggesting it's easy. With a hundred times the dedication and focus, seven days can surpass seven times seven days. Ten focused recitations can surpass ten thousand scattered ones. The six-period daily worship and repentance is not meant to discourage people by suggesting it's difficult. When old habits run deep, a short time of practice won't scrape them away completely. With interruptions, deep concentration becomes hard to achieve. Longshu bowed a thousand times a day. Yongming chanted ten thousand times day and night. Those who furrow their brows and walk away—what can I do about them?

問。古德一喚裴休之名。動其羅剎之念。謂諱所當諱。而於彌陀呼喚無諱焉。眾所惑也。曰。此彌陀之願。無傷也。聲音之道。靡間顯幽。故皋某來復。望其更生。號天呼父。命曰反本。至於發言必稱堯舜。逢人每說項斯。其指同矣。但六字尚存皈敬之文。四字全似唱名之瀆。牛山用以驅魔。等呪中鬼神之號。市人用以泄憤。同俗間詛詈之詞。若此者。亦可數數聒耳否乎。

> Question: An ancient master once called out the name "Pei Xiu," which stirred up the demon's anger in him—this is called respecting what should be respected. Yet when it comes to Amitabha, people call out his name without any such reservation. This is something many find confusing. Answer: This is Amitabha's vow, so there is no harm in it. The way of sound knows no barrier between the visible and the hidden. That is why in ancient rites they called out to the departed by name, hoping for their return to life; why people cry out to heaven and call upon their father, which is called returning to the source; and why in speech one always invokes Yao and Shun, and when meeting people one often mentions Xiang Si. Their meaning is the same. But the six-character form still retains words of reverence, while the four-character form resembles nothing so much as the disrespect of calling someone's name directly. Niu Shan used it to drive away demons, treating it like the names of ghosts and spirits in a spell. Market folk use it to vent their anger, making it no different from common curses and insults. When used in ways like these—can such recitation really be repeated over and over, assailing the ear?

答。裴休是二字之家諱。一稱則已褻其人。彌陀是萬德之尊稱。屢誦則彌增其美。稱堯說項喻實然矣。既爾。則但念尊稱。便成皈敬。六字四字。誠無別焉。獨以法久弊生。翻成瀆慢。鳴鑼擊鼓。而如唱如謌。泄憤申冤。而似呪似詛。聞之天耳。寧不悲乎。然而戲稱怒舉。亦植良因。果報將來。不可思議。凡情未諳。明者知之。

> Answer: Pei Xiu is a personal name of two characters. To call someone by their personal name even once is already disrespectful to that person. "Amita" is an honorific title of ten thousand virtues. Reciting it repeatedly only adds to its beauty. The comparison of praising Yao while speaking of Xiang is indeed apt. That being so, simply reciting the honorific title itself becomes an act of reverence. Six characters or four characters—there is truly no difference between them. It is only because over time faults arise, and it turns into irreverence and negligence. Beating gongs and drums, chanting as if singing or crooning; venting anger and airing grievances, sounding like spells or curses. If the heavenly ear were to hear this, would it not be grieved? And yet, whether spoken in jest or shouted in anger, it still plants good roots. The karmic reward to come is inconceivable. Ordinary feelings do not understand this; the wise know it.

問。觀音勢至。淨國之儲君也。一稱其名。彼必來赴。譬如宰相。有汲引薦󳫠之權。求進取者。可叫號而通之。未聞直干人主者也。至如水鳥樹林。既皆佛化。臨終見之。與見佛無殊。則生前念之。與念佛何異。況又不必直斥鴻名。重彼凡夫之惑。

> Question: Guanyin and Mahasthamaprapta are the crown princes of the Pure Land. If you call their names even once, they will surely come to you. They are like prime ministers who have the authority to promote and recommend people—those seeking advancement can call out to them and reach them. But no one has ever heard of directly approaching the ruler himself. As for the water birds and trees, since they are all manifestations of the Buddha's transformation, seeing them at the time of death is no different from seeing the Buddha. So then, thinking of them while alive—how is that different from Buddha Recitation? Moreover, one need not directly invoke the sacred name, which would only deepen the confusion of ordinary people.

答。權分大小。則千千宰執。何如一遇明君。報有正依。則庭下莊嚴。豈比堂中真主。是故提綱者自張其目。摘葉者每失其根。獨舉鴻名。更無容惑矣。

> Answer: When we distinguish by power and status, a thousand ministers and officials cannot compare to one encounter with a wise ruler. When we speak of rewards in terms of the world and its environment, the splendor of the courtyard cannot compare to the true lord within the hall. Therefore, those who grasp the main point open their own eyes, while those who pluck at leaves always lose the root. Simply upholding the great name alone leaves no room for doubt.

問。或想六字在我身分。一一歷念。此與安般數息。同一攝心。云何不許。斥為外道。又今時蓮宗。壞於白蓮等教。寶鑑所載。僅其二三。未盡舉也。向使佛說經時。既證六方廣長之舌。復示百種波旬之狀。庶讖同禹鼎。魔息閻浮。而不慮此。果何說乎。且即今其說最熾。其害甚深者。為是那種外道耶。

> Question: Some people say that visualizing the six-syllable mantra within one's own body, reciting each syllable one by one, is the same as the mindfulness of breathing practice of counting the breaths—both are ways of concentrating the mind. Why then do you not permit it, and reject it as an outside-path practice? Also, today the Lotus School has been corrupted by the White Lotus and similar teachings. The Precious Mirror records only two or three of these, not all of them. If only the Buddha, when expounding the sutras, had already testified with the broad and long tongue of the six directions, and further revealed the hundred kinds of behavior of Mara, then it might be like the cauldron of Yu casting out demons, and Mara would be pacified in Jambudvipa. But this was not anticipated—what is the explanation for that? Moreover, among those whose teachings are most rampant today and whose harm is deepest, which kind of outside-path are they?

答。安般。乃借息觀心。全殊鍊氣。歷念。則著身求效。固是邪宗。寶鑑深呵。他書競斥。千形萬態。莫可具陳。法弱魔強。末運應爾。佛曾懸記。非不慮也。若即今熾然為害。則有所謂十六字經。氣氣歸臍者。盡力追奔。直至丹田者。蹉認誰字者。謬解南無者。若斯等流。如鬼如魅。全無意況。西天九十五種之所不收。此方儒道二教之所不攝。野火燒空。久之自滅耳。又何足謂之外道乎哉。

> Answer: Mindfulness of breathing means using the breath to contemplate the mind—it is entirely different from cultivating vital energy. If one fixates on bodily sensations and seeks physical results through repeated practices, this is certainly a misguided path. The Precious Mirror deeply criticizes such practices, and other texts likewise condemn them. Their forms are countless and impossible to describe fully. In this degenerate age, it is only natural that the Dharma is weak and obstacles are strong. The Buddha foresaw this long ago—it is not something he failed to consider. As for the harmful practices flourishing today, there are those who champion a "sixteen-character scripture," those who strive to drive breath down to the navel, those who struggle to force breath all the way to the elixir field, those who mistake the meaning of certain characters, and those who misinterpret "Namo." Followers of such practices are like ghosts and phantoms, utterly devoid of genuine understanding. They are not accepted among the ninety-five kinds of teachings in India, nor are they included in the Confucian or Daoist traditions of this land. Like wildfire burning across empty space, they will eventually die out on their own. How could they even deserve to be called non-Buddhist paths?

問。今之迷者。猶背燭而坐。回首無不見燭者。彼一念緣佛。便應見佛。如必念之熟而後見。將回首見燭者。亦必瞪目熟視。久而後見哉。向令佛設善權。念佛時。隨念見佛。停心絕念。及與雜念時。便爾懵然。斯人人念佛矣。安有闡提耶。

> Question: People today who are deluded are like someone sitting with their back to a candle. The moment they turn their head, there is no one who does not see the candle. So when a person brings a single thought to mind of the Buddha, they should immediately see the Buddha. If they must first recite until the practice becomes ripe before they can see, then someone turning their head to see a candle would also have to stare hard with wide-open eyes for a long time before seeing it. Suppose the Buddha had set up a skillful means whereby, whenever one recites the Buddha's name, one sees the Buddha along with the thought; but as soon as the mind stops and thoughts cease, or when distracted thoughts arise, one is suddenly blank and sees nothing—then everyone would be reciting the Buddha's name. How could there be any icchantika?

答。太陽日日當天。而戴盆不覺。明鏡時時對面。而瞽目無知。念佛之人。念念與彌陀相接。而自昧自迷。何以異於是。良以心水不清。佛月不現。眾生自咎。於佛何尤。且明燭在背。回首幾人。指點徒勞。堅然強項。乃責佛之難見。亦獨何歟。

> The sun shines in the sky every day, yet those who wear a basin over their head do not notice it. A bright mirror faces them at all times, yet the blind know nothing of it. Those who practice Buddha Recitation are connected to Amitabha in every single thought, yet they remain confused and deluded. How is this any different? It is simply because the water of the mind is unclear, so the moon of the Buddha does not appear. The fault lies with the sentient beings themselves—what blame can be placed on the Buddha? Moreover, when a bright candle is at one's back, how many turn their heads around? Though others may point the way, their efforts are wasted as one stubbornly stiffens their neck. Then to complain that the Buddha is hard to see—how perverse is that?

問。黃帝內經。明大惑之病。謂目中無端。忽有所見。是也。今學人於本無中。忽有所見。與見鬼何別。又云。將死之時。乃得接引。所謂時衰鬼弄人。捨身而隨之。不亦大惑歟。顧稱見惑思惑。一切惑繇是破焉。世人安得不惑。

> Question: The Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic describes the illness of great confusion, saying that without any cause in the eyes, one suddenly sees things—this is what it means. Now, when a student of the Way, within what is fundamentally nothing, suddenly sees something—how is that different from seeing ghosts? It also says that at the time of death, one receives guidance and escort. This is what is called "when one's time is declining, ghosts toy with the person." To cast aside one's body and follow them—is this not great confusion? Yet it claims that delusion of view and delusion of thought—all delusions are broken by this. How can people in the world not be confused?

答。無故而忽見。安得非邪。昔觀而今成。安得非正。蓋因果之常理也。淨業學人。應須平日考因果之根原。辨邪正之微細。至於臨終所見。魔佛顯然。誰足為惑。如觀立佛而現坐佛者。魔也。正報依報。不與經文符合者。魔也。以空觀空之而隱者。魔也。苟為不然。則淨心成就。淨境現前。接引往生。訓垂金口。安得與無故忽見比耶。

> Answer: If something appears suddenly without cause, how could it not be a demon? What was previously contemplated now becoming a reality — how could it not be true? This is simply the ordinary principle of cause and effect. Those who study the Pure Land path should ordinarily investigate the root of cause and effect and discern the subtle distinctions between what is false and what is true. When it comes to what appears at the moment of death, demon and Buddha are clearly distinguishable — who could be confused? For instance, if you have been contemplating a standing Buddha and a sitting Buddha appears, that is a demon. If the main and dependent rewards do not match the scriptures, that is a demon. If it disappears when you contemplate its emptiness with emptiness, that is a demon. If it is not so, then the pure mind is accomplished, the pure realm appears before you, and you are welcomed and guided to rebirth — this is the teaching directly from the Buddha's golden mouth. How could it be compared to something that appears suddenly without cause?

問。經云。剎中有諸天世人之異。此中既無日月風雨之司。諸天當何所職。又無營求衣食之苦。世人當何所為。合是攝來人天。良以化形丈六八尺。見證賢位聖位矣。更出舊名何也。

> Question: The scripture says that within this realm there are differences between the heavenly beings and the human world. But since this place has no sun, moon, wind, or rain to govern, what duties should the heavenly beings have? And since there is no hardship of seeking food and clothing, what should the people of the world do? It must be that the beings gathered here, both humans and gods, are those who have manifested bodies sixteen feet or eight feet tall and have realized the stages of the worthy and the saints. Why then bring up the old names again?

答。人天念佛。皆獲往生。欲示生因。猶存舊號。並是無為侶伴。禪寂生涯。何必上主天曹。下營人事。如此世界中耶。

> Answer: Whether human or heavenly beings recite the Buddha's name, all attain rebirth. To show the cause of rebirth, the old name is still kept. They are all companions of the unconditioned, living the life of meditative stillness. Why must one go up to serve in the heavenly courts, or down to manage human affairs, in this world?

問。法藏之發四十八願也。曰。不得是願。誓不作佛。今法藏之作佛。經十劫矣。其得誓願久矣。然尤亟亟然引眾生而歸之。若填河塞井然似繇未滿願者。何也。願之未滿。不可言得。願之未得。不應作佛。豈作迹佛之後。又願度生。至其涅槃而歸本佛。始真作佛耶。

> Question: When Dharmakara made his forty-eight vows, he said, "If I do not fulfill these vows, I swear I will not become a Buddha." Now Dharmakara has been a Buddha for ten kalpas. He fulfilled his vows long ago. Yet he still urgently draws beings to him and guides them home, as if he were filling a river or capping a well—as though his vows were still not complete. Why is this? If the vows are not yet complete, they cannot be called fulfilled. If the vows are not yet fulfilled, he should not have become a Buddha. Could it be that after manifesting as a Buddha, he once again vowed to save beings, and only when he enters Nirvana and returns to the original Buddha is he truly a Buddha?

答。菩薩之道。方其在因地也。則從因至果。及其居果地也。又帶果行因。是以得願而心如未得。弘願繇稱作佛。而不住佛邊。真佛斯在。豈比人天小行。羅漢偏空者耶。若曰迹佛度生。唯涅槃乃成真佛。則古佛涅槃。皆同斷滅。靈山一會。儼然未散。復云何通。

> Answer: The path of a Bodhisattva—while still on the causal ground, one progresses from cause to fruition; and once dwelling on the fruition ground, one again carries fruition to cultivate causes. Thus, though one has attained the vow, the mind remains as if it has not attained it. The vast vow is proclaimed as becoming a Buddha, yet one does not abide at the Buddha's side. The true Buddha is right here. How could this compare to the lesser practices of humans and gods, or to the Arhats who cling to one-sided Emptiness? If one says that the manifested Buddha saves sentient beings and that only through Nirvana does one become a true Buddha, then all ancient Buddhas who entered Nirvana would amount to annihilation. Yet the assembly on Vulture Peak remains vividly unconcluded to this day—how would that be explained?

問。或云。西乃天傾物老之方。人死念絕。乃得生彼。又云。天傾之處。地為有餘。有餘。則能廣容往生之眾。又云。庚辛屬金。金不變壞。以示不退轉之義。又云。萬物以西而成百果皆實於秋。行人東方行因。西方證果。竊為往生乃是生機。何不入東方生物之府。而反入肅殺之地。若標第一義諦。何不直於中央攝入耶。無乃但論一時當機。所謂西者。無所取義歟。

> Question: Some people say that the West is the direction where heaven tilts and things grow old—where a person's life ends and their thoughts cease, and only then can they be reborn there. Others say that where heaven tilts, the land has a surplus, and that surplus can generously hold all the multitudes who are reborn there. Others say that the heavenly stems Geng and Xin correspond to metal, and since metal does not decay or break, this shows the meaning of non-regression. Others say that all things are completed in the West, and that the hundred fruits all ripen in autumn, so that practitioners cultivate the cause in the East and realize the fruit in the West. I secretly wonder: since rebirth is a matter of the power of life, why not enter the Eastern realm of living things, instead of going back into a land of stern destruction? If we are pointing to the ultimate truth, why not directly gather people into the center? Is this not merely speaking of what suits the capacity of a particular time, so that what is called "West" actually carries no meaning?

答。如來一語。多義攸含。但邪正殊途。理應揀擇。若云念絕。則念絕誰生。若云地容。則地容有限。金性不變。秋位司成。二義為近。據實而論。亦不盡然。蓋虗空無盡。世界何窮。今此極樂之󳬛。東觀則西。西觀則東。南北二方。亦復類是。釋迦勸往。故說西方。別佛讚生。必標他向。那得執西立義。膠固不融。不然。童子徧參。何復南為正位。藥師示現。乃令東亦淨方。但歸心一處。專念斯成已耳。

> Answer: A single saying of the Tathagata contains many meanings. But since wrong and right are different paths, one should carefully discern between them. If one says that thought ceases, then who is it that produces that ceasing of thought? If one says that the ground contains it, then the ground's capacity is limited. The nature of gold does not change, and autumn's position governs completion. These two interpretations come close, but speaking in terms of ultimate reality, they are still not entirely correct. For space is endless—how could worlds ever be exhausted? Now this Land of Ultimate Bliss: viewed from the east it is west, viewed from the west it is east. The southern and northern directions are likewise. Shakyamuni urged people to go there, and so spoke of the West. Other Buddhas praised rebirth there, and so necessarily pointed to another direction. How could one cling to "west" and fix a meaning on it, stuck and inflexible? If not, then why did the Youth make his pilgrimage with the south as the primary direction? And when Medicine Buddha manifested, he caused the east also to be a pure land. One need only gather the mind into one place; focused mindfulness alone brings it about.

問。兜率。彌勒宮也。昔人往往發願求生。具有儀法。至唐道昂。專修西方。而臨終兜率來迎。夫兜率可不願而致。西方似亦可不願而致矣。又或誓取銅輪。反得鐵輪。誓取金臺。反得銀臺。則誓取西方淨土。反得東方淨土。亦未可知。

> Question: The Inner Court of Tushita is the palace of Maitreya. In the past, people often made vows to be reborn there, and there were proper ritual methods for doing so. But in the Tang dynasty, Daolang devoted himself exclusively to cultivating the Western Pure Land, yet at the end of his life, Tushita came to welcome him. So Tushita can apparently be reached without making a vow for it—and likewise the Western Pure Land seems reachable without vowing for it. Or again, one might vow to attain the Copper Wheel, yet instead receive the Iron Wheel; vow to attain the Golden Terrace, yet instead receive the Silver Terrace. Then it is also possible that vowing to attain the Western Pure Land, one might instead receive the Eastern Pure Land—this too cannot be known for certain.

答。十善戒定。生天之正因也。發願回向。生淨土之正因也。故生天者。容有不資於願。而生淨土者。無願則不成也。蓋淨土非無善力。而願乃居先。生天亦假慕求。而善為之主。世有初修天業。後知非。而一意西方。是以歿現玉京。俄隱跡。而重彰佛國。正專求之所感。豈漫修而可成。至如銅鐵未符。金銀稍隔。則是求上僅得其中。然而終竟必如其願。志西方而功未就。要於人天善道受生耳。若能純一用心。堅誠發願。西則必西。何東生之足慮。

> Answer: The ten wholesome precepts and concentration are the direct cause of rebirth in the heavens. Making vows and dedicating merit is the direct cause of rebirth in the Pure Land. Therefore, those reborn in the heavens may not necessarily rely on vows, but for rebirth in the Pure Land, without vows it cannot be accomplished. After all, the Pure Land is not without the power of wholesome deeds, yet the vow takes precedence. Rebirth in the heavens also depends on longing and seeking, but wholesome deeds are its main factor. In the world, there are those who first cultivate the practices for heavenly rebirth, and later realize it is not the ultimate goal, and single-mindedly turn to the Western Pure Land. Thus, though they may first appear in the Jade Capital, they soon vanish from there and reappear in the Buddha Land. This is exactly what comes from wholehearted seeking—how could it be achieved by scattered cultivation? As for those whose practice does not yet match copper and iron, and is still somewhat removed from gold and silver, this means that seeking the highest, one attains only the middling. Yet in the end, they will certainly fulfill their vow. If one aspires to the West but one's practice is not yet complete, one will at least be reborn in the wholesome realms of humans or gods. If one can apply the mind single-mindedly and make vows with firm sincerity, then West it will surely be—what need is there to worry about being born in the East?

問。懺中所禮佛。乃盡三世。而所念佛。獨一彌陀。固謂三世諸佛無稱名之願耳。然彌陀亦有多名。具在經中。隨取一名持之。得否。據小彌陀經。翻為無量壽。無量光。而觀經獨稱無量壽者。豈能觀之智。所觀之光。即為光耶。六方佛中。其西亦有無量壽者。即是此佛自讚否耶。

> Question: The Buddhas revered in repentance rituals encompass all those of the three time periods, yet the Buddha recited is exclusively Amitabha. This is because the Buddhas of the three time periods have no vow regarding the recitation of their names. However, Amitabha also has many names, all recorded in the scriptures. Would it be acceptable to take any one of these names and recite it? According to the Smaller Amitabha Sutra, his name is translated as Infinite Life and Infinite Light, while the Contemplation Sutra refers to him only as Infinite Life. Could it be that the wisdom that contemplates and the light that is contemplated are themselves the Light? Among the Buddhas of the six directions, there is also one in the West named Infinite Life. Is this Amitabha praising himself?

答。如來名號。誠曰多端。但取偏熟眾生耳根。於中實無差別。惟彼彌陀之號。普徧十方。故令稱念之人。皆歸一致。且無量壽是唐言。阿彌陀乃梵語。而壽量現等虗空。光明自徧宇宙。舉體該用。但云無量壽足矣。若夫十方諸佛。覈之歷有同名。釋迦尊稱。多之至於無算。極樂教主。何獨不然。非佛自讚。亦無疑矣。今時有人執念釋迦而不念彌陀者。自以為是。拗眾稱高。噫。釋迦使汝師彌陀。而汝不從教。譬之子違父命。而不就明師。雖日呼其父。安得不云忤逆。

> Answer: The names of the Tathagata are truly many and varied. But we should choose the one that best suits the ears of ordinary beings. In reality, there is no difference among them. Only the name of Amitabha is universally heard throughout the ten directions, so that all who recite it return to one and the same place. "Infinite Life" is the Chinese term; "Amitabha" is Sanskrit. His lifespan now equals empty space, and his light naturally pervades the universe. The whole essence includes all functions—simply saying "Infinite Life" is enough. As for the Buddhas of the ten directions, upon investigation, many share the same name. The honored name of Shakyamuni has been used countless times. Why should the teacher of the Land of Ultimate Bliss alone be different? This is not the Buddha praising himself, and there is no doubt about it. Nowadays, some people insist on reciting Shakyamuni's name but not Amitabha's. They think they are right and force others to praise them as superior. Alas! Shakyamuni tells you to take Amitabha as your teacher, yet you do not follow his teaching. It is like a son disobeying his father's command and refusing to go to a wise teacher. Even if he calls out to his father every day, how can he not be called rebellious?

問。觀音紹位時。彼世界中。固知必念彼佛之號矣。不知法藏當時念何佛名而成淨土。使其無所念。固不當以己之所不為者強人。使其徧念諸佛。尤不當使人專持而獨私於己。又復此門之開。自彌陀始。則諸佛何以徒知讚羨。而閉其門。略不為眾生地耶。

> Question: When Guanyin was about to take the throne of Buddhahood, the beings in that world surely knew to recite the name of that Buddha. But I wonder—when Dharmakara was still cultivating, which Buddha's name did he recite to attain the Pure Land? If he recited nothing at all, then he should not force upon others what he himself did not practice. If he recited all Buddhas equally, then he especially should not have people focus exclusively on reciting his name alone while reserving that benefit for himself. Moreover, if this practice was first opened by Amitabha, why did all the other Buddhas merely praise and admire it, yet keep this door closed, doing nothing at all to help sentient beings?

答。古佛出世。已經無量。則後佛之念先佛。誰復能數計而知。但當機教主。開啟法門。必出自一佛之口。猶禮樂征伐自天子出耳。非諸侯之不言念佛也。且法海無邊。非謂止念佛。而更無諸教。化門不執。豈必行諸己。而然後教人。就使彌陀不念古佛。令眾生念已何妨。譬孔子學無常師。為萬代宗師奚礙但當專念焉用多疑。

> The ancient Buddhas who appeared in the world are already countless. So when later Buddhas recite the names of earlier Buddhas, who could possibly count or know them all? But the teaching authority who responds to the capacities of beings and opens the Dharma-door must speak from the mouth of a single Buddha—just as rites, music, and military campaigns issue from the emperor alone. This does not mean the feudal lords did not speak of Buddha Recitation. Moreover, the ocean of Dharma is boundless—it is not that Buddha Recitation alone exists and there are no other teachings. The gate of transformative teaching is not fixated; how could one insist that a teacher must practice everything himself before teaching others? Even if Amitabha did not recite the ancient Buddhas, what harm is there in having sentient beings recite his name? For example, Confucius learned from no fixed teacher, yet became the master of ten thousand generations—what obstacle is that? Just recite single-mindedly—why entertain so many doubts?

問。彼佛壽命。所謂河沙劫石。浩浩渺渺。非二乘能知者也。若曰復有觀音紹統。是無量而有量矣。佛厭眾生耶。眾生厭佛耶。佛厭眾生。則非佛。眾生厭佛。如法華所云。則觀音之開普門久矣。似非喜新者之所樂從也。將彌陀涅槃之後。亦有正法。像法。末法。而觀音之補位。同彌勒之降生乎。

> Question: The lifespan of that Buddha is described as being like the grains of sand in the Ganges or the countless eons of a kalpa—vast and immeasurable, beyond the reach of the two vehicles to comprehend. If it is said that Guanyin will succeed to his position, then what is immeasurable becomes measurable. Is the Buddha weary of sentient beings, or are sentient beings weary of the Buddha? If the Buddha is weary of sentient beings, then he is not a Buddha. If sentient beings are weary of the Buddha, as the Lotus Sutra says, then Guanyin has long since opened the universal gate. This does not seem to be what those who delight in novelty would gladly accept. Could it be that after Amitabha enters Nirvana, there will also be a period of True Dharma, Semblance Dharma, and Final Dharma, and that Guanyin's succession to the position is like Maitreya's descent?

答。無量有二。一為無量之無量。法性等於虗空是也。二為有量之無量。雖有紹繼。而人天莫數。是也。疑者謂釋迦誘迷󳬛諸子。故現無常。彌陀統淨土諸賢。正宜永壽。其涅槃也。似厭眾生。然而淨土眾生。已能悟佛身之常住。非比娑婆凡品。率皆認跡滅為真亡。無去無來。非新非舊。生彼國者。尚不明此義乎。是則子克家而父退休。臣有德而君禪位。繇眾生不疑無佛。故佛身權示捨生。縱入涅槃。奚得稱厭。若夫位有補處。則彷彿龍華。法無正末。則迥異娑婆矣。

> Answer: There are two kinds of immeasurable. The first is the immeasurable within the immeasurable — the Dharma-nature, which is equal to empty space. The second is the immeasurable within the measurable — though there is succession and inheritance, the number of humans and gods cannot be counted. Those who doubt say: Shakyamuni lured the deluded children, and therefore displayed impermanence. Amitabha governs the noble ones of the Pure Land, and so should rightly have eternal life. His entering Nirvana seems like weariness with sentient beings. Yet the sentient beings of the Pure Land are already able to realize the Buddha-body's eternal presence — they are not like ordinary beings in this Saha world, who all take the manifested extinction as true death. Neither coming nor going, neither new nor old — how could those born in that land still fail to understand this meaning? This is like a capable son who takes charge of the household while the father retires, or a virtuous minister while the ruler abdicates. Because sentient beings do not doubt that the Buddha exists, the Buddha-body provisionally demonstrates letting go of life. Even upon entering Nirvana, how could this be called weariness? As for the position of one who will be the next Buddha — this resembles the Dragon-Flower Assembly. The Dharma has no true or final age — how utterly different it is from the Saha world.

問。極樂之樂。從情識生。三禪而上。已不耽樂。九品之內。顧復求樂。何也。若云寂滅為樂之樂。豈必緣衣食自然。無有眾苦。而得名乎。若云淨土唯心。心體常樂。何為又言觀佛心者。大慈悲是。

> Question: The happiness of the Pure Land arises from emotional consciousness. From the third meditation heaven upward, beings no longer indulge in pleasure. Yet within the nine grades of birth in the Pure Land, why do they still seek happiness? If you say it is the happiness of the happiness of cessation, must it necessarily depend on clothing and food arising naturally, and the absence of suffering, to earn that name? If you say the Pure Land is mind-only, and the essence of mind is always joyful, then why also say that one who contemplates the Buddha's mind finds it to be great compassion?

答。極樂雖接凡情。其實有二。一者對苦說樂。無有眾苦。故名極樂。二者稱性說樂。無苦無樂。故名極樂。此之真樂。豈情識之擬耶。又聲聞以寂滅為樂。大聖以慈悲為樂。則大慈悲心。非即常樂乎。而世人以戚戚言悲。抑末矣。

> Answer: Although the Pure Land accommodates ordinary beings' feelings, in reality it has two aspects. First, it is called "ultimate bliss" in contrast to suffering—because it is entirely free of all suffering. Second, it is called "ultimate bliss" in accordance with true nature—beyond both suffering and bliss. This true bliss cannot possibly be grasped by ordinary feeling and consciousness. Furthermore, voice-hearers (śrāvakas) take the cessation of suffering as their bliss, while the Great Sage takes compassion as his bliss. Does this great compassionate mind not itself constitute lasting bliss? Yet people in the world mistake fretful sorrow for compassion—this is a shallow misunderstanding.

問。諸穢者。善權之必資也。昔宣師持律甚嚴。化佛數以穢破之。竊意淨剎中人。皆繇精戒而生。佛於此人。正宜徧示穢相。破其執情。柰何更示淨相。將非以水濟水乎。若曰此人定業應爾。則所謂欲令法音宣流。變化所作者。何人欲。何人變也。

> Question: Impurity is surely a necessary aid to skillful means. In the past, Master Xuan strictly upheld the precepts, yet the manifested Buddha repeatedly used impurity to break through his attachment. I would think that those born in a pure land all arise through refined observance of the precepts. For such people, the Buddha should precisely display impure forms everywhere to shatter their clinging. Why instead show them pure forms? Would this not be like adding water to water? If you say this person's fixed karma must be so, then when it is said, "wishing to make the Dharma sound spread abroad, produced by transformation" — whose wish is it, and who does the transforming?

答。諸佛善權。合宜則用。有宜逆破者。有宜順成者。各隨其機而已。娑婆苦界。先以苦而折摧。安養樂󳬛。合用淨而攝受。要使故習永離。善根純熟。何得遽以穢破。遂令鄙吝復萌。水鳥樹林。咸宣妙法。蓋為此也。直俟忍力堅強。然後回入染鄉。利生接物耳。今麤心比丘。未成一德。先試諸艱。觸涅而緇。良繇自取矣。

> Answer: The Buddhas use skillful means. They apply whatever is appropriate. Sometimes it is fitting to break things down through opposition; sometimes it is fitting to bring things to fulfillment through accord. Each approach simply follows the capacities of those being taught. In the suffering realm of Saha, they first use suffering to break and subdue people. In the land of bliss of Sukhavati, it is fitting to use purity to gather and receive them. The goal is to cause old habitual tendencies to be left behind forever and wholesome roots to ripen fully. How could one then abruptly use impurity to break them, causing stinginess and meanness to sprout again? The water, birds, trees, and groves all proclaim the wondrous Dharma. It is precisely for this reason. Only after one's power of patience has become firm should one return to the defiled lands to benefit living beings and receive and guide others. Nowadays, coarse-minded monks have not perfected even a single virtue, yet first try all kinds of hardships. Touching black dye, they become black—truly this is brought on by themselves.

問。一人作佛事。諸佛應盡知。十方佛來迎。是人何所向。諸佛本同。迹同。種種皆同。念佛者。合是十方諸佛同來接引。此獨一方三聖往迎。必其念時。所見偏淺。

> Question: If one person does a Buddhist practice, all Buddhas should know of it completely. If Buddhas from the ten directions come to welcome them, where does that person actually go? The Buddhas are fundamentally the same, their manifestations are the same, and in every way they are the same. If someone practices Buddha Recitation, it stands to reason that all Buddhas of the ten directions together should come to receive and guide them. Yet here only three holy beings from one single direction come to welcome them. Surely this means that when they were practicing recitation, their vision was one-sided and shallow.

答。諸佛雖能徧知。而赴機不亂。一佛既勤專念。而感應自符。修淨土者。就使諸佛齊彰。亦必有主有伴。彌陀獨顯。化佛雲從。因果法爾如然。非是偏淺所致。

> Answer: Although all Buddhas can know everything universally, they respond to each person's capacity without confusion. Once one Buddha wholeheartedly focuses on the recitation, the response comes naturally on its own. For those who practice Pure Land, even if all Buddhas appeared together at once, there would still necessarily be a primary Buddha and accompanying Buddhas. Amitabha alone appears, and transformation Buddhas gather around him like clouds. This is simply how cause and effect naturally work—it is not because of any partiality or shallow attainment.

問。涅槃云。釋迦亦有淨土。本我導師。在彼末法。最後誠言。可無信受。便爾六時但念迦文。生難勝國。豈不當機耶。釋迦極讚彌陀。合如其願。既生彼已。遣我承事彌陀。亦復何礙。

> Question: In the Nirvana Sutra, it says that Shakyamuni also has a pure land. He is originally our guiding teacher. In this age of the decline of the Dharma, his final sincere words—how could we fail to have faith and accept them? So if we simply recite his name throughout the six periods of the day and are born in the Land of Difficult Victory, would that not also suit our capacities? Shakyamuni deeply praises Amitabha, and we should follow his vow accordingly. Once born there, if he sends us to serve Amitabha, what obstacle would there be in that?

答。諸佛誰無淨土。彌陀亦有穢󳬛。良繇土土交資。佛佛互讚。如世易子而教。猶華接幹而生。妙用微權。不可思議。惡知難勝。非即清泰之鄉。安辨瞿曇。得無法藏之後。但遵現教。毋用他求。

> Reply: Which Buddha does not have a pure land? Even Amitabha also has a defiled land. This is precisely because lands mutually support one another, and Buddhas praise one another. It is like people in the world exchanging children to educate them, or like flowers grafted onto stems to grow. Such wonderful function and subtle skillful means are inconceivable. How can one know that this difficult-to-conquer realm is not itself the land of peace and purity? How can one recognize that Gautama attained the state beyond the Dharma treasury? Simply follow the present teaching; there is no need to seek elsewhere.

問。有云大徹大悟人。不妨更見彌陀。既已不歷諸位。立地成佛矣。以佛見佛。猶以知知知。此一見為是參。為是證。意者權示榜樣。又或理既頓超。身猶凡下。往獲妙用。乃可度生耳。

> Question: Some say that a person who has achieved great awakening and deep enlightenment need not seek to see Amitabha. Since they have already bypassed all the stages and attained Buddhahood instantly, using a Buddha to see a Buddha is like using knowing to know knowing. Is this "seeing" a matter of contemplation or of realization? Perhaps it is merely an expedient display for the sake of example. Or perhaps, though the principle is suddenly transcended, the body remains that of an ordinary being—only by going forth and attaining wondrous function can one then save living beings.

答。凡夫心始得悟。見處與佛相齊。菩薩行實無邊。功能去佛猶遠。不妨再依古佛。重受新聞。且證且參。何窮何盡。昔人謂離師太早。不能盡其妙。況離佛乎。若執三祇薰鍊。是藏教小乘。而弱羽狂飛。失利多矣。可不慎諸。

> Answer: When an ordinary person's mind first awakens and their insight becomes equal to the Buddha's, their practice as a bodhisattva is truly boundless—yet their power is still far from the Buddha's. There is no harm in once again relying on the ancient Buddhas and receiving their teachings anew. Practice and realize, again and again—how could it ever end? The people of old said that leaving one's teacher too early means you cannot fully grasp the wonder of the teaching. How much more so if one leaves the Buddha? If you insist that it takes three incalculable eons of gradual cultivation, that is the small vehicle of the Tripitaka teachings. And for a weak bird to recklessly take flight means losing far more than it gains. Should one not be cautious about this?

問。即淨即穢。即穢即淨。西方此土。不踰分寸。生而即無生。去則實不去。今曰彈指。曰一念頃。曰屈伸臂。此已約時。便似舉足移步。雖云極速。猶是兩途。

> Question: "Pure is precisely impure, impure is precisely pure; the Western Land and this land do not exceed a single inch. Being born there is precisely non-arising; going there is truly not going." Now you speak of "a snap of the fingers," "a single moment of thought," "the time to bend and stretch an arm"—these already specify time, which makes it seem like lifting a foot and taking a step. Though you say it is extremely fast, it is still two separate journeys.

答。執謝惑銷。縱使路阻千山。而融通不二。情關識鎖。就令速超彈指。而判隔彌深。今學人唯圖句語尖新。喜談即穢即淨。不知頭沒九淵之下。謂天壤無殊。身沈鮑廁之中。謂薰蕕不別。良可哀夫。

> The answer: Only when delusion is dropped and affliction is dissolved can one find unity even when a thousand mountains block the road. But when the knots of emotion and the locks of consciousness remain, even if one transcends in the snap of a finger, the separation only grows deeper. Nowadays, students of the Way seek only clever and novel words, delighting in talk that "defilement itself is purity itself," not knowing their heads are submerged in the deepest abyss while they claim there is no difference between heaven and earth. Their bodies sink in the filth of the latrine while they claim there is no distinction between fragrant and foul. How pitiable indeed.

問。執途之人而問之。皆曰。念佛。耳之。則口稱。非心念也。詰之。則曰。心口相應云。夫心口相應斯成聲。因心而動斯為念。安得以聲為念乎。或謂萬法唯心。何聲之非心耶。然則鐘鼓琴瑟之鳴。亦是念乎。幾矯亂矣。

> Question: If you stop people on the street and ask them, they all say they practice Buddha Recitation. When you listen closely, though, it is just their mouths speaking — not the mind recollecting. When you press them on it, they say, "The mind and mouth correspond." But when mind and mouth correspond, a sound is produced; it is the mind stirring that counts as recollection. How can a sound be called recollection? Some may say that all phenomena are mind-only, so how could sound not be mind? But then the ringing of bells, drums, zithers, and lutes would also be recollection. That is nothing but muddled, twisted reasoning.

答。鐘鼓雖含洪韻。非叩不鳴。琴瑟雖具妙音。無指不發。鐘鼓琴瑟。譬脣舌之外張。若擊若彈。似心念之內動。如其絕念。從何發聲。是以寐語喃喃。亦繇夢想。豈得佛聲浩浩。不自心源。但世人任運稱呼。不專不切。初則藉念成聲。頃則隨聲亂念。名曰相應。實不相應耳。天如有言。口與心。聲聲相應。心與佛。步步不離。如是念佛。其庶幾乎。

> Answer: Though bells and drums possess a mighty resonance, they will not sound unless struck. Though lutes and zithers hold exquisite tones, they will not speak without fingers to play them. Bells, drums, lutes, and zithers are like the outward movement of lips and tongue. The striking and plucking are like the inner stirring of the mind's thoughts. If one's thoughts cease entirely, from where could any sound arise? Thus, even the murmuring of one talking in their sleep still comes from dreams. How then could the vast sound of Buddha Recitation not arise from the wellspring of one's own mind? But people in this world simply recite however it happens to come out, neither focused nor earnest. At first, they rely on the thought to produce the sound, but in an instant, they let the sound scatter their thoughts. They call this "correspondence," but in truth it is not correspondence at all. As Tianru has said: let mouth and mind correspond sound after sound, and let mind and Buddha never be apart step by step. Reciting the Buddha's name in this way—perhaps then one is close to it.

問。善財之參德雲。始知念佛法門。及南過百城。五十四參而見阿彌陀佛也。則三昧成矣。他日文殊現身竹林。但令人念阿彌陀佛。夫以善財位臻十信。文殊何不徑指即見彌陀。而顧使周歷百城乎。彼學人未南詢而輙議西歸者。太早計乎。

> Question: When Sudhana visited Meghashri, he first learned the practice of Buddha Recitation. Then, after traveling south through a hundred cities and making fifty-four visits, he finally met Amitabha Buddha. Only then was his samadhi fully accomplished. On another occasion, Manjushri appeared in the Bamboo Grove and simply told people to recite Amitabha Buddha's name. Now, since Sudhana had already reached the tenth stage of faith, why didn't Manjushri just point him directly to see Amitabha right away? Why instead have him journey through a hundred cities? As for those students who, before even setting out on their southern quest, hastily talk about returning to the West — isn't that counting their chickens too early?

答。始參而教念佛。則從源以及流。周歷而見彌陀。則繇末而歸本。所謂無不從此法界流。無不還歸此法界也。是故南詢而後西返。豈曰遲還。往生而後徧遊。何云早計。醫王發藥。標本隨宜。操縱微機。固凡情靡測矣。

> Answer: When first seeking instruction and being taught Buddha Recitation, one proceeds from the source down to the streams. After journeying everywhere and finally seeing Amitabha, one follows the branches back to the root. This is what is meant by "there is nothing that does not flow forth from this Dharma realm, and nothing that does not return to this Dharma realm." Therefore, after seeking in the south and then returning west, how could this be called a late return? After being reborn in the Pure Land and then roaming everywhere, why call it planning too early? The King of Physicians dispenses medicine according to what suits the root and the branches. The subtle workings of his control and release are truly beyond what ordinary minds can fathom.

問。總攝六根而念佛。此勢至語也。念既從心與意之所生。則凡為願者。迴向者。禮者。懺者。一念蔽之矣。世無心外之願。與心外之迴向禮懺也。夫一心念佛。而是佛所發之菩提。即願也。專向是佛。即迴向也。南無。即禮也。一念消生死之罪。即懺也。餘可例知矣。念佛有何不足。而紛紛使心亂哉。

> Question: "Gathering all six senses and reciting the Buddha's name" — these are the words of Dashizhi. Since recitation arises from the mind and intention, then whatever is a vow, a dedication of merit, a bow, or a repentance — a single thought encompasses them all. There is no vow outside the mind, nor any dedication, bowing, or repentance outside the mind. When one single-mindedly recites the Buddha's name, the enlightenment that this Buddha awakened to is itself the vow. Focusing wholly on this Buddha is itself the dedication of merit. "Namo" is itself the bow. A single thought erasing the sins of birth and death is itself the repentance. The rest can be understood by analogy. What is lacking in Buddha Recitation, that people should busy themselves and let their minds become scattered?

答。一心清淨。是為理觀內明。五體翹勤。乃曰事懺外助。直觀本心。非不徑要。而末法眾生。慧薄垢重。須假理觀事懺。內外交攻。庶得定就慧成。死生速脫。但今人惟存事懺。理觀全荒。何況外飾虗文。中無實悔。反令清信男女。紛紛亂心。背普賢之願王。乖慈雲之本制。嗟乎傷哉。弊也久矣。

> Answer: Single-minded purity is the contemplation of principle, illuminating from within. Bowing with the five limbs prostrate is the external aid of repentance through action. Directly contemplating one's original mind is indeed the essential path, yet beings in this age of declining Dharma have thin wisdom and heavy defilements. They must rely on both contemplation of principle and repentance through action, attacking from within and without, so that concentration may be achieved and wisdom perfected, and birth and death quickly escaped. But people today preserve only repentance through action, while contemplation of principle lies wholly neglected. How much worse when outwardly they adorn themselves with empty words, while inwardly they have no true repentance—this instead leaves faithful men and women confused and scattered in mind, turning their backs on Samantabhadra's king of vows and violating the fundamental precepts of Clouds of Compassion. Alas, how sad! This corruption has lasted far too long.

問。觀經言。觀佛心者。大慈悲是。世人若能放生戒殺。仁民愛物。以至九類眾生皆滅度之。而不作滅度想。遂與法藏之心契矣。且又不違釋迦觀心之訓。柰何取觀身與稱名之麤迹。而反以佛心為助緣耶。

> Question: The Contemplation Sutra says that contemplating the Buddha's mind means great compassion. If people in the world can release living beings and refrain from killing, love all people and cherish all creatures, and even liberate all nine kinds of sentient beings across to the other shore without holding the thought of having liberated them, then they are in harmony with the mind of Dharmākara. Moreover, this does not contradict Śākyamuni's teaching on contemplating the mind. Why then take the coarse practices of contemplating the body and invoking the name, and instead treat the Buddha's mind as a merely auxiliary condition?

答。念佛有二。一者念佛心性。二者念佛身名。念心性者。見真佛也。不妨覲光明相好之佛於西方。念身名者。見應佛也。亦能覩自性天真之佛於象外。本迹雙舉。理事同原。心性良非助緣。身名豈云麤迹。今五部六冊之徒。藉口無為。撥空因果。障人禮像。𠷣彼稱名。古德有言。人人丹霞。方可劈佛。箇箇百丈。始可道無。其或未然。入地獄如箭射。

> Answer: There are two kinds of Buddha Recitation. The first is reciting the Buddha of our mind-nature. The second is reciting the Buddha's body and name. Reciting the mind-nature means seeing the true Buddha. It does not prevent one from beholding the Buddha of luminous marks and excellent features in the West. Reciting the body and name means seeing the manifested Buddha. It can also reveal the naturally true Buddha of one's own nature beyond all forms. Root and trace are upheld together; principle and phenomenon share the same source. How could the mind-nature ever be merely a supporting condition? How could the body and name be called coarse traces? Nowadays, the followers of the Five Divisions and Six Volumes use "non-doing" as a pretext, deny emptiness and causality, hinder people from bowing to images, and mock those who recite the name. The ancients had a saying: only when everyone is Danxia may one split a Buddha image; only when each person is Baizhang may one speak of "no." If one is not yet so, one falls into hell as swiftly as an arrow flies.

問。空華巾兔之類。世所謂幻妄也。一切依正之報。世所謂實事也。佛言實事俱是幻妄。則空華巾兔。又當何名。藉令彼之實事果為幻妄。其形狀了了虗偽。一空華巾兔可矣。安俟推破。始知幻妄。是故有幻者。有如幻者。有妄者。有如妄者。彼同居淨土。幻妄耶。如幻妄耶。全妄是真。全幻是中。同居穢土。即同居淨土。同居淨土。即上三土耶。

> Question: Things like flowers in the sky, a hairnet, and a rabbit's horns are what the world calls illusions and delusions. All the rewards of dependent and direct retribution are what the world calls real things. The Buddha says that real things are all illusions and delusions. Then what should flowers in the sky, a hairnet, and a rabbit's horns be called? Suppose those real things really are illusions and delusions—their shapes are perfectly clear yet false. One flower in the sky, hairnet, or rabbit's horns would be enough. Why wait to analyze and refute them before knowing they are illusions and delusions? Therefore there are illusions, and there are things like illusions; there are delusions, and there are things like delusions. As for the Pure Land of the Same Dwelling, is it illusion and delusion, or is it like illusion and delusion? When the whole of delusion is true, and the whole of illusion is the Middle, is the defiled land of the Same Dwelling itself the Pure Land of the Same Dwelling? Is the Pure Land of the Same Dwelling itself the upper three lands?

答。空華巾兔。固全體虗無。肉兔樹華。亦從來幻妄。本不推而自破。但在迷而未知。故正幻與如幻無殊。實妄與似妄何別。同居淨土。蓋即幻即如。即真即中者矣。統而論之。即穢即淨。即一即三。畢竟空寂。有何階限。然雖如是。情見未破。欣厭猶存。應須消除幻妄。證入真常。捐棄穢󳬛。求生淨國。若夫捨垢取淨。是生死業。常禪師語使未著在。

> The flowers in the sky, the rabbit in the cloth, the rabbit in the flesh, the flowers on the tree—all are utterly empty from the start, and have always been illusions. They break apart on their own without needing to be pushed. It is only that we are deluded and do not yet know this. Therefore, the truly illusory and the seemingly illusory are no different; the genuinely false and the apparently false—how do they differ? Dwelling together in the Pure Land is simply this: the illusory is itself Suchness, the true is itself the Middle Way. Taken as a whole, the impure is itself pure, the one is itself the three. Ultimately empty and still—what stages or limits could there be? Yet even so, if views of feeling are not broken through and feelings of longing and aversion still remain, one should still dissolve illusions and enter true permanence, cast off the impure and seek rebirth in the Pure Land. But as for rejecting the defiled to grasp the pure—that is the karma of birth and death. Chan Master Chang's words have not yet landed.

問。約心觀佛。以妄心。觀妄佛。所見之佛即妄也。悟如鏡像。如虗空。妄體全真。乃得證入蓮品。假如魔化佛身。亦妄也。妄與前妄。無二無別。則此妄豈不即空假中。當體全真。而必欲遣之。遣著何去。

> Question: When we contemplate the Buddha with the mind, using a deluded mind to contemplate a deluded Buddha, the Buddha we see is itself delusion. Realize that it is like a reflection in a mirror, like empty space — the very substance of delusion is entirely real. Only then can one attain entry into the grades of rebirth in the Pure Land. Suppose a demon transforms into a Buddha's body — that too is delusion. This delusion and the previous delusion are not two, not different. Then is this delusion not precisely Emptiness, the Provisional, and the Middle? Its very substance is entirely real. And if one insists on casting it away — where would that attachment to casting away go?

答。別真妄。辨佛魔。一代時教。不得不然。據實而論。真亦不立。有何妄焉。佛且是無。誰為魔者。不見有魔。尚安用遣。如其陰識猶封。未許撥無魔事。楞嚴所示。諦審思之。

> Reply: Distinguishing the true from the false, telling the Buddha from Mara—this is how the teachings of a whole lifetime had to unfold. But speaking in terms of ultimate reality, even "true" does not stand, so how could there be any "false"? The Buddha himself is not something that exists—so who could be Mara? When you do not perceive any Mara at all, what use is there in driving one away? But if your hidden consciousness is still bound fast, then you are not yet permitted to dismiss Mara's workings as nothing. Consider carefully what the Surangama Sutra reveals.

問。昔人云。佛。日也。狀佛性者。曰。如杲日麗空。狀佛光者。亦曰。如百千日。此日觀所繇立也。非生盲人。無不見日。取其觀心易成。而諸師舍此。據作毫相之觀。疑於故紊觀經次序矣。或謂恐吸日精者混之。獨不慮黃闕眉間之論。矣門明堂之說。混我中觀耶。

> Question: People in the past have said that the Buddha is like the sun. When describing Buddha-nature, they say it is like a bright sun shining in the sky. When describing Buddha's light, they also say it is like a hundred thousand suns. This is the basis for establishing the contemplation of the sun. Anyone who is not blind from birth can see the sun. The point is that this makes the contemplation of the mind easy to accomplish. Yet some teachers set this aside and instead base their practice on contemplating the mark of the white hair between the eyebrows. I suspect this departs from the proper sequence of the Contemplation Sutra. Some might say they avoid this out of concern that practices drawing on the sun's essence would get mixed in. But why do they not worry that theories about the yellow gate and the space between the eyebrows, or the explanations of the bright hall, might get mixed into our Middle Way contemplation?

答。不觀日輪。而觀毫相。越次而行。是自有說。良以觀門雖廣也。而標大主。則言佛便周。佛相雖多也。而表中道。則唯毫是統。蓋為夫樂簡便而憚繁劇者設也。似乎越次。實則無傷。獨慨夫法立魔隨。以邪混正。有不可勝舉者矣。噫。不但謬解經文。兼復流成世害。吸日月。而納妖祟以亡身。守印堂。而聚火熱以盲目。逼臍氣而成蠱滿。運任督而結癰疽。禍及良民。殃遺後代。可不悲夫。

> Answer: Not contemplating the sun disk, but instead contemplating the mark between the eyebrows, and proceeding out of the usual order—this has its own explanation. It is because, although the methods of contemplation are vast, when one focuses on the supreme Lord, then saying “Buddha” already covers everything. And although the marks of the Buddha are many, when one focuses on the middle way, then only the mark between the eyebrows governs them all. This was set forth for those who delight in simplicity and ease and dread complexity and exertion. It may seem to skip the proper order, but in fact there is no harm in it. What I alone lament is that whenever a teaching is established, demons follow, mixing the crooked with the true in ways too numerous to recount. Alas! Not only do they misinterpret the scripture, but this also spreads and becomes a harm to the world. They absorb the sun and moon and take in malevolent spirits, bringing death upon themselves. They fix their attention on the point between the eyebrows and gather fiery heat, blinding their own eyes. They force the breath at the navel and develop a swollen, parasitic blockage. They circulate the governing and direct vessels and form abscesses and sores. Disaster reaches the common people, and misfortune is passed down to later generations. Is this not pitiable?

問。淨土之無女人。恐惑行人也。而觀音自淨土出。往往化為女人。如所稱馬郎婦等者。合論指善財所見童女之類。並是慈相。蓋地上菩薩。始行慈度人耳。佛心既是慈悲。反於本剎。顯威光而不呈慈相。何也。

> Question: The absence of women in the Pure Land might confuse practitioners. Yet Guanyin comes forth from the Pure Land and often manifests as a woman—such as the one known as the Wife of Ma Lang and others like her. The Comprehensive Commentary points out that the young woman seen by Sudhana and similar figures are all manifestations of compassion. This is because only bodhisattvas on the ground stages begin to practice compassion by saving others. Since the Buddha's mind is itself compassion, why is it that in his own realm he displays majestic radiance but does not manifest a form of compassion?

答。娑婆欲染偏重。故觀音即女以轉其心。善財差別未明。故婆須現女以通其智。非慈化之謂也。行慈而現女。慈化未行。欲染先熾矣。九蓮佳士。始習淨心。有女以損善芽。甚不宜矣。

> Answer: In the Saha world, the stain of desire is especially heavy. That is why Guanyin manifests as a woman to turn people's minds around. Because Sudhana had not yet clearly understood distinctions, Vasumitra manifested as a woman to open up his wisdom. This is not what is meant by transforming through compassion. If one were to practice compassion by manifesting as a woman, before compassion could transform anyone, the stain of desire would already be blazing. A fine scholar of the nine-petaled lotus, just beginning to cultivate a pure mind—to have a woman there would damage the sprouts of goodness. This is most unsuitable.

問。末法。般舟三昧經先滅。無量壽經更留。夫般舟所祈見者。此彌陀也。觀經所祈見者。亦此彌陀也。謂常行為難。則成觀亦難。謂見佛前立為難。則今之習觀者。方以日觀難成。直觀毫相矣。豈有今日難成之觀。而法滅時。更易為力也。

> Question: In the Age of Dharma Decline, the Pratyutpanna Samādhi Sutra will be the first to disappear, while the Larger Sutra on Amitāyus will remain longer. Now, what the Pratyutpanna Samādhi Sutra practitioners seek to see is Amitāyus. What the Contemplation Sutra practitioners seek to see is also this same Amitāyus. If we say that the practice of constant walking is difficult, then contemplative practice is equally difficult. If we say that seeing the Buddha standing before one is difficult, then those who practice contemplation today find even the sun contemplation hard to accomplish, and so they turn directly to contemplating the white curl between the eyebrows. How could an contemplation that is difficult to accomplish today become easier when the Dharma is about to disappear?

答。無量壽經更留住世者。大彌陀經是也。非十六觀經也。良以稱名易舉。觀想難成。般舟先觀足輪。逆緣而上。亦觀經之類耳。佛境勝而凡心麤。難就一心三觀。宴安便而勤苦逆。誰肯卻坐常行。而六字稱名。則三尺童子辦之矣。此經偏救末世。豈偶然哉。

> Answer: The sutra that remains in the world longer is the Larger Amitāyus Sutra, not the Sutra of the Sixteen Visualizations. The reason is that reciting the name is easy to practice, while visualization is hard to accomplish. In the Pratyutpanna Samādhi practice, one first visualizes the wheel-marks on the Buddha's feet, working upward in reverse order—this too belongs to the category of visualization sutras. The Buddha's realm is exalted, but the ordinary mind is coarse; it is hard to attain the single-minded threefold contemplation. Idle comfort is easy, while diligent hardship goes against the grain; who is willing to sit in meditation constantly? But the six-character recitation of the name—even a three-foot-tall child can do it. That this sutra especially rescues beings in the final age is no coincidence.

問。慈雲開理一心。事一心。夫一心窮理。一心作事。是二心互起。如雙桴兩杵。亂動不休。奚云不亂。若理如事。事如理。彼一心即此一心。則單用一心。有何不可。禮師云。附事顯理。又是一種觀法。不合曰理觀事觀。天台教門固如是。慈雲乃其後嗣。何獨不如是。

> Question: Ciyun explains "one mind in principle" and "one mind in practice." Now, one mind fathoming principle and one mind engaging in practice — these are two minds arising alternately, like two oars or two pestles moving ceaselessly in confusion. How can this be called "undisturbed"? If principle is like practice, and practice is like principle, then that one mind is just this one mind — so why not simply use a single mind? What is wrong with that? Master Li says: "Attaching to practice to reveal principle" — this is yet another method of contemplation, and it is incorrect to call it principle-contemplation and practice-contemplation. The Tiantai school's teaching has always been thus. Ciyun was its successor — how could he alone be an exception?

答。智一也。而明權實。非裂智以成雙。心一也。而說妄真。不破心而為二。觀有理事。亦何礙焉。譬之鏡像別而不離。水月分而不斷。就事而思其理。理在事中。從理而推其事。事非理外。何待兩處起念。桴杵亂投故理事者。一而二。二而一。不相似。不相睽者也。況既曰附事顯理。則一種而雙用。明亦甚矣。慈雲之於台教。復何悖乎。

> The mind is one, yet we speak of the false and the true—not dividing the mind into two. Contemplation involves both principle and phenomena—what conflict is there in that? It is like reflections in a mirror: distinct yet inseparable. Like the moon in water: differentiated yet unbroken. When we consider the principle through phenomena, the principle is found within phenomena. When we infer phenomena from the principle, phenomena are never outside the principle. Why need one set up thoughts in two separate places? Only when one haphazardly throws down the pestle and mallet does one create such confusion. Therefore, principle and phenomena are one yet two, two yet one—neither identical nor opposed. Moreover, since it is said to "attach to phenomena to reveal the principle," then a single approach serves a dual purpose, and this is abundantly clear. How then does Ciyun contradict the Tiantai teachings?

問。十疑論似用不淨觀為淨土因者。向疑無女人。無眷屬。不足勸進凡夫。正謂其以不淨為淨耳。今使了知不淨。生厭離心。詎非淨土正因耶。然止觀稱不淨觀成。未離三界。應是但知世間不淨。未知諸天不淨。設能了知諸天不淨。不識可生淨土否。

> Question: The Treatise on Ten Doubts seems to use the contemplation of impurity as the cause for rebirth in the Pure Land. I have wondered whether the absence of women and family there is enough to encourage ordinary people toward it. This is precisely what is meant by taking the impure as pure. Now, if one comes to understand impurity and develops a mind of weariness and detachment, is that not rightly the cause for the Pure Land? However, Great Concentration and Insight states that even when the contemplation of impurity is perfected, one has not yet escaped the three realms. This must mean one knows only the impurity of the worldly realm, not yet the impurity of the heavens. Suppose one could understand the impurity of the heavens as well—is it certain one could be reborn in the Pure Land?

答。娑婆不淨。女人乃其一端。十疑論廣說不淨。而意重女人耳。但知不淨可厭。而不欣淨土。未易往生。假令骨觀雖成。而不觀佛身。難登樂國。不淨為淨土正因。蓋未可也。

> Answer: The Saha world is impure, and women are only one aspect of that impurity. The Treatise on the Ten Doubts explains impurity at length, but it places particular emphasis on women. However, simply knowing that impurity is something to be loathed, without also aspiring to rebirth in the Pure Land, makes it difficult to be reborn there. Even if one succeeds in the contemplation of bones, without contemplating the Buddha's body, it is hard to reach the Land of Bliss. To say that the contemplation of impurity is the direct cause of rebirth in the Pure Land is not quite right.

問。淨土水鳥樹林。演說無常苦空無我之義。此殆非了義也。彼佛既欲法音宣流。何不流一圓音。使隨類得度。而必此音乎。儻攝定性聲聞。來歸此土。更作是音。不令舊病增劇歟。

> Question: In the Pure Land, the water, birds, and trees proclaim the teachings of impermanence, suffering, emptiness, and non-self. This would seem to be a provisional, rather than a definitive, teaching. Since that Buddha wishes the sound of Dharma to flow forth everywhere, why not pour out a single perfect sound, so that all beings may be liberated according to their kind? Why must it be this particular sound? If those of fixed nature, the voice-hearers, were drawn to be reborn in that land, and this sound were made for them again, would it not make their old affliction worse?

答。無常苦空之法。非局小也。蓋是徹上徹下。亦偏亦圓。觀夫不生不滅之謂無常。五陰不起之為真苦。菩薩而聞此義。彌廣其心。聲聞而解此音。頓忘其小。不曰圓音。謂之何哉。

> Reply: The teachings on impermanence, suffering, and emptiness are not limited to the small vehicle alone. They reach all the way up and all the way down; they are both partial and complete. Consider this: that which is neither born nor ceasing is what is called impermanence; the non-arising of the five aggregates is what is called true suffering. When a bodhisattva hears this meaning, their mind becomes ever more vast. When a voice-hearer understands these words, they instantly forget their smallness. If this is not called the perfect voice, what else could it be?

問。處蓮胎者。六劫。十二劫。未聞三聖說法。而一由旬內。當不少水鳥樹林。彼其下品凡夫。但領無常苦空無我之義。目前色相。一切不取。不取之久。理應銷滅。車輪蓮質。那得獨存。又云如忉利天樂。既受天樂。安保不墮。且若不墮時。何不徑修此天之業耶。

> Question: Those in the lotus womb for six kalpas or twelve kalpas have not yet heard the Three Holy Ones teach the Dharma. Yet within one yojana there must be no lack of water, birds, and trees. These lowest-grade ordinary beings only grasp the meaning of impermanence, suffering, emptiness, and non-self. The sights before their eyes—they cling to none of them. When they have not clung for so long, by reason these should dissolve away. How then could the lotus seat with its wheel-like form alone remain? It also says they enjoy pleasures like those of the Trayastrimsa Heaven. Once they receive heavenly pleasures, how can they be sure they will not fall? And if they will not fall, why not simply cultivate the karma for that heaven directly?

答。蓮開遲暮。正繇在世之日。不達無常苦空之理耳。向使早明斯理。何得久處蓮胞。故知不取色。則金色華開。不取相。則妙相佛現。育蓮之道斯在。銷華之說奚為。若謂樂比諸天。恐成退墮。不知借天為喻。生淨土者。已不欣羨天宮。故雖處樂不迷。志大道者。豈肯便修天樂。或又謂受用既等上天。身位胡居下品。此則正表高高三界。不及下下九蓮。證果雖卑。感報已勝。儲君尚在襁褓。脫異多官。伽陵未出胞胎音殊眾鳥。是故下生猶勝天宮。古訓昭然。無容更喙矣。

> Answer: The lotus opens late in the evening of life. This is precisely because, during their time in this world, people fail to understand the truth of impermanence, suffering, and emptiness. Had they understood this truth earlier, how could they have remained so long inside the lotus bud? Therefore we know: when one no longer clings to form, the golden lotus opens; when one no longer clings to appearance, the wondrous Buddha appears. Here lies the way to nurture the lotus. What use is there in theories about destroying the flower? If someone says that the pleasures there rival those of the heavenly realms, and fears this leads to backsliding—they do not understand that heaven is only used as an analogy. Those reborn in the Pure Land no longer long for heavenly palaces. Thus, though surrounded by pleasure, they are not deluded. How could one who aspires to the great Path be willing to cultivate mere heavenly bliss? Someone else may ask: if their enjoyments equal those of the heavens above, why is their rank placed among the lowest grades? This actually shows that the highest of the highest in the three realms cannot match the lowest of the lowest among the nine lotus grades. Though the fruit they realize may seem low, the reward they receive is already supreme. An heir to the throne may still be in swaddling clothes, yet he is already set apart from the many officials. The kalavinka bird, before it even breaks out of its egg, already has a voice unlike ordinary birds. Therefore, being born below is still better than the heavenly palace. The ancient teachings are clear and unmistakable—there is no room for further argument.

問。人畏生死事大。無常迅速。乃始猛欲求脫。不敢暫息也。一聞橫出三界之旨。捷路修行之說。念佛消罪之文。十聲往生之願。便謂有佛可憑。無業足懼。以玫悠悠。竟不得力。而入閻老手者多矣。則蓮宗誤之也。彼宗教二門。參究甚難。又不許疾見功效。生死二字。常係於心。安得有此。

> Question: People fear that the matter of birth and death is grave, and that impermanence comes swiftly. Only then do they urgently seek liberation, not daring to rest even for a moment. But as soon as they hear the teaching of "horizontal escape from the three realms," the talk of a swift path of practice, the passage about reciting the Buddha's name to erase offenses, and the vow that ten recitations bring rebirth, they immediately say, "There is a Buddha we can rely on, and no karma we need fear." Thus they drift along lazily, and in the end gain no power. Many fall into King Yama's clutches. So it is the Pure Land school that misled them. As for the schools of Chan and the scriptural teachings, their inquiry is extremely difficult, and they do not promise quick results. The two words "birth and death" stay constantly in the mind. How could they have this problem?

答。凡人修道。有聞難則止。聞易則行者。有聞難則勤。聞易則惰者。古聖施教。各順時宜。善用心者。存乎其人而已。念佛一途。直超三界。大悲之極。故啟斯門。若夫怠荒成弊。眾生自誤。非佛誤眾生也。我欲仁而仁斯至。仁在目前。狂克念而聖斯成。聖非遙遠。是亦以易誤人乎。若夫一言頓悟。立地成佛。宗門言易。抑又甚矣。安得亦謂之誤。

> Answer: When people cultivate the Path, some give up as soon as they hear it is difficult, while others keep going as soon as they hear it is easy. Some become diligent when they hear it is difficult, while others grow lazy when they hear it is easy. The ancient sages gave teachings according to what suited each time and situation. Whether one uses them well depends entirely on the person. The single path of Buddha Recitation directly transcends the three realms. Because it is the utmost expression of great compassion, this gate was opened. As for the problem of laziness and neglect leading to ruin, it is sentient beings who mislead themselves—it is not the Buddha who misleads sentient beings. If I wish for benevolence, benevolence arrives; benevolence is right before me. When the wild mind restrains its thoughts, sagehood is achieved; sagehood is not far away. Is this also a case of easy methods misleading people? As for the claim that one word brings sudden awakening, that one immediately becomes a Buddha on the spot—the Chan school speaks of easiness in an even more extreme way. How could that also be called misleading?

問。豐干。彌陀化身也。寒山拾得。文殊普賢也。彌陀之現。不領觀音勢至。而挾文殊普賢以遊。至所屬詞。又多宗門語耳。將無以念佛觀佛為局。而轉如來禪成祖師禪乎。抑常寂光土之人。匪是莫繇接乎。

> Question: Fenggan was an incarnation of Amitabha. Hanshan and Shide were Manjushri and Samantabhadra. When Amitabha appeared, he did not bring along Guanyin and Mahasthamaprapta, but instead accompanied Manjushri and Samantabhadra on his travels. Moreover, the words attributed to him were mostly Zen lineage sayings. Was this not perhaps to avoid limiting things to Buddha Recitation and contemplating the Buddha, and instead to turn Tathagata Zen into Patriarch Zen? Or is it that people of the Land of Eternally Tranquil Light cannot be reached by any means other than this?

答。觀音勢至。固稱日侍導師。文殊普賢。何曾暫離安養。故釋迦乃娑婆化主。會有觀音。黃蘗非儒教宗師。席延裴相。融通攝化。寧有定乎。至謂語涉宗門。似乎更翻淨業。殊不知九蓮華蕊。枝枝開迦葉之顏。七寶欄楯。步步入善財之閣。八楞毫相。楞楞觀中道真詮。六字名稱。字字示西來密意。何待轉小為大。變局為通。然後接彼上根。演斯玄化。故知念佛一路。即是入理妙門。圓契五宗。弘該諸教。精微莫測。廣大無窮。鈍根者得之而疾免苦輪。利智者逢之而直超彼岸。似麤而細。若易而難。普願深思。慎勿忽也。

> Answer: Guanyin and Mahasthamaprapta are certainly called the guides who accompany us day and night. Manjushri and Samantabhadra—have they ever for a moment left the Land of Peaceful Nurturing? Thus Shakyamuni is the transforming teacher of this Saha world, and his assembly includes Guanyin. Huangbo was not a patriarch of Confucianism, yet Pei Xiu sat in his assembly. Blending and embracing all beings in transformation—how could there be any fixed rule? As for the claim that the saying touches upon the Chan school and seems to overturn the practice of pure karma—how little they realize that within the nine-petaled lotus buds, each branch opens the countenance of Mahakashyapa; among the seven-jeweled railings, every step enters the pavilion of Sudhana. In the eight-faceted mark of the white curl between the brows, each facet reveals the true meaning of the Middle Way in contemplation. In the six-character name, every character shows the secret intent of the coming from the West. Why wait to turn the small into the great and change the partial into the universal before receiving those of superior faculties and unfolding this profound teaching? Thus we know that the single path of Buddha Recitation is precisely the wondrous gate to entering principle. It perfectly accords with the five schools and broadly encompasses all teachings. Its subtlety is unfathomable; its vastness is boundless. Those of dull faculties who attain it quickly escape the wheel of suffering. Those of sharp wisdom who encounter it directly transcend to the other shore. It seems coarse yet is fine; it appears easy yet is hard. May all deeply reflect—take care not to neglect it.

## 答淨土四十八問終

> Answering Forty-Eight Questions on Pure Land <note>End</note>