Ekayana Zen

“When I attain Buddhahood, if sentient beings in the ten directions – who sincerely and joyfully entrust themselves to me, desire to be born in my land, and recite my name, even ten times – should not be born there, then may I not attain Perfect Enlightenment.”

Now, let us try to understand the deliverance vow of Buddha Amitabha one more time: “When I attain Buddhahood” means when the Buddha already became a Buddha. “Sentient beings in the ten directions” means all living beings residing in the ten-directional dharmadatu. “Who sincerely and joyfully entrust themselves to me” means [these sentient beings] deeply and sincerely have faith in Buddha Amitabha; they have admirational devotion and love toward Buddha Amitabha. “If [sentient beings] who desire to be born in my land, and recite my name, even ten times, should not be born there, then may I not attain Perfect Enlightenment.” If you want to reach his Western Pureland of Ultimate Bliss, then you need to bring to mind the Buddha at least ten times, and if you still cannot arrive at his pure realm, then Buddha Amitabha vowed not to attain Buddhood and not to sit on the throne of Perfect Enlightenment. This is such a perfectly correct sentence! Excluded, however, are those who commit the five heinous offences and abuse the Right Dharma, the rest of the living beings who bring to mind the Buddha will all reach the Buddhaland

When I read the Amitabha Sutra up to this specific vow, I developed deep admiration and devotion, and resolved to practice in order to take rebirth in the Western Pureland of Ultimate Bliss. Today, we will discuss about the address of the Western Pureland of Ultimate Bliss. From more than 2,500 years ago until this very day, [the location of] the Western Pureland of Ultimate Bliss has always been fixed; it has never moved.

The Buddha clearly mentioned the following in the Shorter Sukhavativyuha Sutra of Amitabha: “The Buddha told the Chief Monk Sariputra that from here, going to the west past one hundred thousand koti Buddha lands, there is a world realm called Sukhavati. In this land there is a Buddha called Amitabha who is presently expounding the Dharma.”

Right here in this sentence, the Buddha introduced the address of the Western Pureland of Ultimate Bliss to us. We must read and analyze it very carefully to find out where exactly is the Western Pureland and how to arrive there.

We should first try to open our eyes widely to imagine a round globe in the midst of space, and let us imagine that we are standing on it. From the perspective of where we are standing, the sun rises in the east and sets in the west. We are currently searching for an address, so we need to draw up a diagram to determine exactly where the west is in relative to ourselves.

When we wake up and see the crack of dawn, we think the sun is actually rising based on our ordinary perception. However, someone with a scientific understanding will see it in a very different light and will not think that the sun is actually rising in the morning. They would understand that our Mother Earth is rotating toward the sun. Thus, we are at a place where there is no sun and we slowly rotate toward the direction of the sun. When our Mother Earth rotates past the sun, it becomes dusk, and we believe that the sun has set. And [based on that], we confirm that the direction where the sun rises is the east, and the direction where the sun sets is the west according to the mundane way of seeing things in our human world. Yet, in reality, the sun neither rises nor sets.

According to the view of the Sutras, the east and the west of a Buddhaland take on different meanings and it is not the same as the above-mentioned [worldly] view. The east is the direction of sunrise, which is the beginning of all [mental and physical] movements and it is the start of all activities in a day. For those beings who have not yet walked on the path of liberation according to the Buddha-Dharma and who are still engrossed in the [activities of the] three worlds, then the eastern direction is the direction that initiates all [phenomenality] of the cyclic existence of birth and death.

When the sun sets in the western direction, it has to do with the end of all movements, bringing all [mental and physical] activities of the day to a stop. According the the view of the Sutras, this refers to the end of confusion and darkness, leading all life-and-death fluctuations generated in our minds to cease. We can simply understand east represents the beginning and west represents the end of [the continuity] in our mindstreams, bringing all fluctuations in each of our thought movement to a halt. However, if we base everything on the direction of the sunset, then we will continue to walk without end, and we definitely will never be able to reach the Western Pureland of Ultimate Bliss.

“… [F]rom here, going to the west past one hundred thousand koti lands, there is a world realm called Sukhavati.” Herein, the Buddha was referring to what all of us need to do in order to arrive at the Western Realm of Ultimate Bliss. We need to cross beyond the one hundred thousand koti Buddha lands. [Koti is a Sanskrit word meaning ten million]. One hundred thousand koti lands [metaphorically] indicate an extremely large number that we could not possibly count with our [ordinary] heads. So, where exactly are all this one hundred thousand of myriad koti lands? 

Now, let us take a look at what is meant by “all sentient beings” as expounded in the Diamond Sutra in order to gain a clear understanding [of the so-called innumerable koti lands].  The Buddha said that sentient beings are actually born of our own mindstream. Here, we will only discuss two types of sentient: those born from eggs and those born from wombs.

What does it mean those born from eggs that are from our mindstream? No, they are not [literally] chickens or ducks that lay eggs and brood on a nest for a while until their eggs hatch into little chicks or ducklings. They are actually our very own “sentient-being” mind. For example, as we are sitting here listening to the teaching, we try to listen so we can later ask question, but the teaching has not finished, so we cannot yet ask the question. This means that those egg-born sentient beings were taken birth but the eggs have not yet hatched into chicklings. Or, for example, we are sitting here, and we only eat vegetarian food once in a while, thus we become hungry very quickly. We come up with the thought that later on, we will stop by the market and eat something to fill our stomachs. However, due to the fact that we are still sitting here and have not actually eaten anything yet, they are only mental sentient beings that we think of in our heads. Then in the evening when we actually stop by the market to eat, that is when the “eggs” hatch and become little chicks – that is the beginning of all actions. Thus, we call these “the sentient beings born from eggs within the mind-consciousness.”

And what, then, are the sentient beings born from the wombs? For example, we feel itchy somewhere behind our back and we immediately reach out to scratch it. The moment we generate the mind or the intention, it instantaneously becomes an action. Or we might think of a sentence, and we say it out loud or write it down at the very moment the thought arises in our mind. The very moment those “sentient beings” are born, they become speech or actions. They are considered sentient beings born from the wombs. The Buddha then said: “I must cause them to enter nirvana without residue, and thus, they can be taken across to extinction. Although I take countless and limitless sentient beings across to extinction, in truth, there are actually not a single sentient being taken across.” Only when we do it the way [the Buddha explained] will we be able to abide and subdue our mind to reach the Unsurpassed, Proper, Equanimous, and Perfect Enlightenment. Thus, we can understand that the Buddha was not talking about taking across a [literal] dog, chicken, or bird. It is not at all like that. The Buddha was talking about the “sentient-being” within our own mind.

1. Ten fetters or ten root causes of suffering

In the Amitabha Sutra, when the Buddha talked about “going to the west past ten trillion lands,” we immediately imagine the west as being in a certain direction. However, to imagine [of the west direction] in such a way is incorrect. As previously mentioned, directions are not defined in terms of “here is the east,” and “there is the west” like we normally think. [T1] We must understand that here “west” refers to the stoppage or cessation of all mental activities. The Buddha was actually talking about the land of our own mind. If we are able to completely end the ten fetters or ten root causes of suffering, then our mind will be in perfect happiness, and peaceful and serene. That is also called nirvana. In other words, we must bring all ten fetters to an end, and then we would arrive at the Western Pureland of Ultimate Bliss. 

Ten fetters leading to suffering include: attachment, anger, ignorance, arrogance, doubt, belief in a self, extreme view, grasping at one’s own views, grasping at vows, and wrong view. In the Amitabha Sutra, the Buddha said that we must cross beyond one hundred thousand kotiBuddha lands, and it means we need to move past the ten fetters of suffering in order to come home to the Western Pureland of Ultimate Bliss.

One hundred thousand koti lands of desire: For example, this morning we went out on the street and noticed that our next door neighbor has built a big and beautiful tile-roofed villa whereas our own house looked so diminutive; thus, we did not feel so pleasant about it. Or maybe we saw a friend who always dressed up in beautiful, fashionable, color-coordinated clothing, with expensive shoes and a trendy hairdo that suited her oval facial feature. Thus, we began to generate a thought or a desire wishing for those things, and thereafter, this desire continued to remain in our heart-mind for a long chain of time. And thus, one hundred thousand koti lands of desire have actually manifested in us. 

One hundred thousand koti lands of anger: Then there are so many things that bring us dissatisfaction. For example, our sangha organized a bus tour to Long Huong Temple to listen to a Dharma teaching. Yesterday, [the tour leader] said he would collect fifty thousand dong per person, yet today, he raised it to fifty-one thousand dong. When he was collecting the money, he promised that he would let you sit in the front row, but today he squeezed you all the way in the back of the bus. All of this dissatisfaction made you feel irritated, resentful and angry, and it lead you to give rise to troubling thoughts. There are so many things that can make us feel uncomfortable or cause us to have angry thoughts from one day to the next. So this is called one hundred thousand koti lands of anger.

One hundred thousand koti lands of ignorance: When we come face to face with something in this life, we never get to know its ultimate reality as it truly is. For example, when our eyes meet with an object, we become dualistic, and thus, we do not see all the way through to its ultimate reality. When our ears hear sounds and we become dualistic, then we hear dark sounds, we hear distortion, we hear gossiping; and thus, we cannot see, hear or understand all the way through to its ultimate reality. We uninterruptedly see things. We see something each and every moment. We hear something each and every moment. Yet, we cannot penetrate the veil of ignorance through our seeing and hearing based on our six senses. It is because we see everything based on our dualistic inclinations, on right or wrong, proper or improper, good or bad, win or lose, etc. When we again and again see and hear in a state of confusion and ignorance from day to day, then that, indeed, is one hundred thousand koti lands of ignorance.

One hundred thousand koti lands of arrogance: We also believe we are superior to others. We may think, “It does not matter what people say, he is not as good as I. I am a much better practitioner than he.” We implicitly develop this kind of perception. Oftentimes perception arises when we see someone accomplishing something important while we ourselves have not, and we would say, “It is only because there were enough conditions for it to happen. Just wait until I have a chance myself, I would do a much better job.” That prideful mind does not allow us to see anyone as equal to, or better than, ourselves. It only allows us to be “number one” and the center of the universe. Even though we do not practice so very well, we still call ourselves “saints” and “gods” so that others will venerate and admire us. This is actually the great self-arrogance. Pride, self-arrogance, and pretense of virtues all fall under arrogance. People may be a million times superior to us, but we will say “he is only just a bit better than I. Given a chance to do it, I would surpass him.” The thoughts of self-arrogance are born in our mindstream from this moment to the next, and that is called one hundred thousand koti lands of arrogance. 

One hundred thousand koti lands of doubt: When we read a book, we cannot understand the profound teachings of the Mahayana Sutras due to our feeble capabilities. Immediately doubts arise. We become doubtful of the Dharma and of ourselves. According to the Zen tradition, everyone has the capability to become a Buddha and has the ability to attain realization. When we hear something like that, we develop doubt, thinking that the masters must already have had a great level of capabilities and great roots of virtue, and thus, they attained realization, whereas we are not at all certain and feel we do not have the same abilities. We have doubts about ourselves, about the Dharma, and about everything else, too. Even when someone is asking us to start a business together, we do not know whether this is real or not, or whether they are trying to lure us into something to rob us of our money. Whatever we face in this life, we develop feelings of ambuigity; we cannot trust, we cannot believe, and we cannot become decisive. We cannot see anything deeply through to its reality. That is one hundred thousand koti lands of doubt.

One hundred thousand koti lands of belief in a self. Next, we perceive that we are real. We would think regardless of what [the Dharma] says, if someone strikes my body, it will suffer and it will hurt. It can also become sad, and it can get hungry and thirsty, and it needs sleep. It is so clear that up until the moment we pass from this life, we still hold our physical selves as something precious. We treasure and have concerns for our physical bodies. That is one hundred thousand koti lands of belief in a self.

One hundred thousand koti lands of extreme views: Furthermore, we perceive “here” and “there,” and “eternalism” and “nihilism.” If we believe that there is an “I” and there are “others,” then we fall into opposite and extreme views. We see this side is right and the other side is wrong, this side is proper and the other side is improper, and such a way of seeing things are extreme views. 

Or when we see thoughts arising in our mind-stream, [we think] that since I am now a practitioner, I must eliminate them. Through my exertion in meditation practice, I must successfully destroy that one deluded thought, I must successfully destroy two deluded thoughts, I must eliminate them all and not allow my mind to develop any deluded thought. Such an analytical explanation belongs to the mistaken view of nihilism of non-Buddhists. Or we think that whatever exists will exist forever. For example, someone who was born as a human will remain a human throughout their lifetimes. After death, he will take birth again as a human, forever remains a human and nothing will change over the course of space and time. That is the mistaken view of eternalism. [In general,] an extreme view is a view that believes in two opposites, and it falls either into eternalism or nihilism. 

One hundred thousand koti lands of grasping at one’s own views: Due to our distorted views and our experiential understanding of eliminating deluded thoughts, [we feel] that since we have practiced diligently for a long time throughout the years, we are able to calm our mind through single-pointed concentration for one hour during which no confused thoughts arise. Therefore, we believe that we are able to suppress our deluded thoughts. If someone tells us otherwise, we will debate with all our might. That is because we feel that we have successfully eliminated all thoughts, so we grasp at this [way of practice as] being correct. Clinging to our own view is considered one hundred thousand koti lands of grasping at one’s own views.

One hundred thousand koti lands of grasping at vows: After we receive vows, we resolve at keeping these vows very strictly and would not transgress even at the slightest. In Buddhism, keeping vows is correct in accordance with the Right Dharma. There is nothing wrong with keeping vows, however, we cling and grasp [at the vows], and are conservative of the ceremonial vows and of the discipline. [Unfortunately,] there are vows that the Buddha could elucidate, yet we cannot. For example, consider the vow prohibiting lying or false speech. Suppose that during wartime, some soldiers chasing after an offender across your house and they ask you whether you have seen him. If you respond that you saw him running across and is hiding in that bush over there, so that the soldiers will find him and kill him, then this is considered breaking or not breaking the vow on lying? Discipline sometimes means to keep the vows is to perfectly abide by the vows, and to transgress the vows is to break the discipine; yet, sometimes it also means to keep the vows is to transgress and to transgress is actually to perfectly keep the vows. There are cases when to keep is to abide by the vows strictly. However, there are cases in which keeping a vow means you actually transgress. In this case, if we keep our vows at the cost of another person being caught and killed, then it is considered transgressing the vow. 

Discipline is shila [in Sanskrit] and this can be interpreted as “becoming liberated by assurance” and “becoming liberated part by part,” so it means we can actually be assured of liberation by whichever vow we can keep. A vow is not a precept to admonish or to forbid us from something. There are times when keeping vows is correct, but there are times when we need to be flexible, skillful and adaptable in order not to harm others. To not harm others is keeping vows in a pure way. Yet, we usually clutch tightly [and we believe that] since the Buddha taught it that way, I must do it exactly that way. That person is hiding in that bush, so then I have to point him out. Keeping vows is not [necessary] like that.

Another example regards a Bhikkhu, a fully-ordained monk, who is walking on the street. There is a vow taught by the Buddha that a Bhikkhu is not allowed to touch any part of a female’s body, or to walk alone with a female on the same road. Now, if this Bhikkhu met a lady who just had an accident and is lying semi-conscious on the bare ground, and if this Bhikkhu does not come to her rescue by picking her up, she will most likely pass away afterward. Therefore, if this lady ends up losing her life due to the Bhikkhu keeping strict vows, then that is considered a transgression. 

Another example is when non-Buddhists have very strange precepts that do not accord with the Right Dharma. For example, if you follow their religion, then you don’t dare to read the scriptures of other religions. They have forbidding precepts and threatening omens that say if you take refuge in and are a follower of their religion, then you do not have the right to read the Buddhist scriptures. If so, then this is considered clutching at [misguided] discipline. That is falling under grasping at views and grasping at vows. There are precepts which we need to maintain, but in reality, it can be the same as to transgress. That is one hundred koti lands of grasping at vows.

One hundred thousand koti lands of wrong view: Wrong view is the erroneous view we hold on to in this life. It means that we follow teachings, methods, and activities that are in conflict with the Right Dharma. For example, we might believe that there is a certain world realm in which a certain Buddha can liberate us and deliver us to his realm while we are still filled with torments. If we truly believe in such a teaching, then that is totally defaming the law of causality – cause and effect. Is that [kind of belief], then, considered right view or mistaken view? Any one of us who still holds on to such a belief is holding one hundred thousand koti lands of wrong view.

THICH TUE HAI

Zen Master Vivid Spontaneous Presence

Excerpted from Bhikkhu Thich Tue Hai’s teachings on “The Eighteenth Aspirational Vow of Buddha Amitabha”

English translatin by Milam Sudhana (2019)

Edited by Khenmo Trinlay and Oliver K. Luu 

For more information:

Audio: https://ekayanazen.com/home/f/audiotext-in-search-of-the-great-bliss-pureland

Book: https://ekayanazen.com/home/f/book-foreword-by-khenchen-konchog-gyaltshen-rinpoche