Amitābha is the principal Buddha of Pure Land Buddhism. He is also known as Amitāyus, which is understood to be his enjoyment body (Saṃbhogakāya). In Vajrayana Buddhism, Amitābha is known for his longevity, discernment, pure perception, and the purification of aggregates with deep awareness of the emptiness of all phenomena. Amitābha is associated with the Diamond Realm (vajradhātu), whereas Amitāyus is associated with the Womb Realm (garbhakoṣadhātu).
Pure Land Buddhism or the Pure Land School is a broad branch of Mahayana Buddhism focused on achieving rebirth in a Pure Land. It is one of the most widely practiced traditions of Buddhism in East Asia. The Pure Land Buddhist school is also known as the "Nembutsu school" or the "Lotus School".
Sukhavati is the pure land of the Buddha Amitābha in Mahayana Buddhism. Sukhavati is also called the Land of Bliss or Western Pure Land and is the most well-known of the Mahayana Buddhist pure lands due to the popularity of Pure Land Buddhism in East Asia.
The Nianfo, alternatively in Japanese as 念仏, Korean: 염불; RR: yeombul, or in Vietnamese: niệm Phật, is a Buddhist practice central to the East Asian Buddhism. The Chinese term nianfo is a translation of Sanskrit buddhānusmṛti, which is a classic Buddhist mindfulness (smṛti) practice.
Zhiyi also Chen De'an (陳德安), was the fourth patriarch of the Tiantai tradition of Buddhism in China. His standard title was Śramaṇa Zhiyi (沙門智顗), linking him to the broad tradition of Indian asceticism. Zhiyi is famous for being the first in the history of Chinese Buddhism to elaborate a complete, critical and systematic classification of the Buddhist teachings. He is also regarded as the first major figure to make a significant break from the Indian tradition, to form an indigenous Chinese system.
The Amitāyus Sutra (Sanskrit), simplified Chinese: 佛说无量壽經; traditional Chinese: 佛說無量壽經; pinyin: Fóshuōwúliàngshòujīng; Sutra of Immeasurable Life Spoken by Buddha; Vietnamese: Phật Thuyết Kinh Vô Lượng Thọ; Japanese: Taisho Tripitaka no. 360) also known as the Longer Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra, is one of the two Indian Mahayana sutras which describe the pure land of Amitābha. Together with the Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra, this text is highly influential in East Asian Buddhism. It is one of the three central scriptures of East Asian Pure Land Buddhism, and is widely revered and chanted by Pure Land Buddhists throughout Asia.
Mahāsthāmaprāpta is a bodhisattva mahāsattva who represents the power of wisdom. His name literally means "arrival of the great strength".
The Amitābha Sūtra, also known as the [Shorter] Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra is one of the two Indian Mahayana sutras that describe Sukhāvatī, the pure land of Amitābha. The text was translated into Chinese in 402 by Kumārajīva and it is also known in Chinese as the "Small Sutra" (Xiaojing).
In Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism, the Five Tathāgatas (Skt: पञ्चतथागत, pañcatathāgata; or Five Wisdom Tathāgatas, are the five cardinal male and female Buddhas that are inseparable co-equals, although the male cardinal Buddhas are more often represented. Collectively, the male and female Buddhas are known as the Five Buddha Families. The five are also called the Five Great Buddhas, and the Five Jinas.
Shandao was a Chinese Buddhist scholar monk and an influential figure of East Asian Pure Land Buddhism and a contemporary of the influential Chinese Buddhist monk Tánluán. Shandao was possibly one of the first Pure land author's who publicly stated that ordinary people can be reborn in the Pure Land primarily by relying on the power of Amitābha Buddha's vows. Due to this, several modern scholars consider Shandao to be the true founder of Chinese Pure Land. According to Alfred Bloom, Shandao "systematized Pure Land thought and brought it to its highest peak of development in China." Shandao was also the first Pure Land author to state that mere oral recitation of Amitabha's name was sufficient for rebirth in the Pure Land.
The Amitāyus Contemplation Sūtra is a Mahāyāna sutra which is important for East Asian Pure Land Buddhism, a major branch of East Asian Mahāyāna.
Ānantarya karma (Sanskrit) or Ānantarika kamma (Pāli) are the most serious offences in Buddhism that, at death, through the overwhelming karmic strength of any single one of them, bring immediate disaster. Both Buddhists and non-Buddhists must avoid them at all costs. Such offenses prevent perpetrators from attaining any of the stages of enlightenment and from ordaining into the Sangha. The offences are:
- Killing one's mother
- Killing one's father
- Killing an Arahant
- Wounding a Tathāgata
- Creating schism in the Sangha
Tánluán (Chinese: 曇鸞; Japanese pronunciation: Donran, 476–542) was a Chinese Buddhist monk who wrote on Pure Land Buddhism. Tánluán is considered to be the Third Patriarch of Pure land Buddhism by the Japanese Pure Land sects like Jōdo-shu and Jōdo Shinshū.
Yunqi Zhuhong, also named Zhuhong, was a Chinese Buddhist monk during the late Ming Dynasty. His name Yunqi derives from his monastic residence on Mount Yunqi (雲棲山) hence "Zhuhong of Yunqi [Mountain]". In Chinese Buddhism, Yunqi Zhuhong is best remembered as the Eighth Patriarch of the Pure Land tradition, and is known for his analysis of the Pure Land thought, and reconciling "mind-only" interpretations with more literal "Western Pure Land" interpretations. Along with his lay follower, Yuan Hongdao, Zhuhong wrote extensively on the Pure Land and defended its tradition against other Buddhist critics, while analyzing the Pure Land of Amitabha Buddha within the larger Buddhist context.
Pure Land is a Mahayana Buddhist concept referring to a transcendent realm emanated by a buddha or bodhisattva which has been purified by their activity and sustaining power. Pure lands are said to be places without the sufferings of samsara and to be beyond the three planes of existence. Many Mahayana Buddhists aspire to be reborn in a Buddha's pure land after death.
In Buddhism, faith refers to a serene commitment to the practice of the Buddha's teaching, and to trust in enlightened or highly developed beings, such as Buddhas or bodhisattvas. Buddhists usually recognize multiple objects of faith, but many are especially devoted to one in particular, such as one particular Buddha. Faith may not only be devotion to a person, but exists in relation to Buddhist concepts like the efficacy of karma and the possibility of enlightenment.
Kenneth Ken'ichi Tanaka, also known as Kenshin Tanaka or Ken'ichi Tanaka is a scholar, author, translator and ordained Jōdo Shinshū priest. He is author and editor of many articles and books on modern Buddhism.
Hānshān Déqīng, was a leading Buddhist monk and poet of the late Ming dynasty China. He was also posthumously named Hongjue chanshi (弘覺大師). Hanshan was known for studying and teaching Pure Land, Huayan and Chán Buddhism. He is known as one of the four great masters of the Wanli Era Ming Dynasty, along with Yunqi Zhuhong (1535–1613) and Zibo Zhenke (1543–1603) both of whom he knew personally. He also wrote their biographies after their deaths.
Buddhānusmṛti, meaning "Buddha-mindfulness", is a common Buddhist practice in all Buddhist traditions which involves meditating on a Buddha. The term can be translated as "remembrance, commemoration, recollection or mental contemplation of the Buddha." It is also one of the various recollections (anusmṛti) taught by the Buddha in the sutras.
Peng Shaosheng was a lay Buddhist scholar-practitioner and literatus during the Qing dynasty. He was also known by the sobriquets Erlin Jushi (二林居士) and Zhiguizi, as well as the Buddhist Dharma name Jiqing (際清). Peng is known for his synthesis of Pure Land and Huayan Buddhism as well as for his biographical collections of the lives of eminent laymen, laywomen and Pure Land sages.
