Accounts of Pureland Rebirth
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Came across this in a blog... thought it may inspire anyone who is practising pureland Amitabha practice... if anyone has any accounts from other websites or personal accounts to share, feel free to post on to this thread.
Here are two accounts of rebirth to Amitabha's Pure Land in recent times. These stories demonstrate and prove to us that rebirth in Sukhavati is still possible in the 21st century. It's so easy. You only need to recite "Namo Amitabha Buddha". These stories were related by Ven. Heng Sure, a disciple of the late Ven. Master Hsuan Hua.
Account # 1
The first case is of the mother of a Silicon Valley whiz kid who probably earns 6 or 7 figures American dollars. He stayed in California and he had a neighbour staying nearby there who is a overseas Chinese residing in the USA. They can hear knocking on her wooden fish everyday, reciting Amitabha's name. One day he noticed that she didnot come out to empty her trash for the last few days and he was worried. So he went over her house and found the door not locked. He found her on her bed and wearing the robes of a lay Buddhists. She was in meditation posture with the wooden fish still on her hands. She obviously knew her coming death and was ready to take rebirth in the Pure Land.
Account #2
The second case is also of another elderly woman who called upon her relatives and friends one day saying that she was about to go away. Her family was surprised because they knew she didnot have any passport. "Where did she think she was going?" they asked. But the elderly woman just asked them to gather around her bed and she was also in her lay Buddhist robes. After telling the family not to worry and that she was going to take rebirth in Amitabha's Pure Land, she passed away. -
Originally posted by wisdomeye:
Came across this in a blog... thought it may inspire anyone who is practising pureland Amitabha practice... if anyone has any accounts from other websites or personal accounts to share, feel free to post on to this thread.
Thanks for sharing but the 2 examples are not evidence that they gain rebirth in pureland. Any better examples? -
Originally posted by hasene:
Thanks for sharing but the 2 examples are not evidence that they gain rebirth in pureland. Any better examples?This is a true account from my ex-colleague. Her father-in-law told them that Amitabha would be coming to fetch him to Pureland in 4 days time. True enough, he passed away on the 4th day. This is the same case as in case 2.
Usually Amitabha will either appear to the person in real life or in their dream to inform the Buddhist the exact day, sometimes even the exact time that He will be coming to bring them to Pureland.
According to Master Chin Kong, he had witnessed many cases of well practise Buddhists who could foretell the exact day they would pass away. Some Buddhists could foretell the exact day of passing away months before their death.
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Originally posted by hasene:
Thanks for sharing but the 2 examples are not evidence that they gain rebirth in pureland. Any better examples?
hi hasene, if i have any other better examples later, i will post. For now, dun have.However, I think that to be able to die with such ease as in sitting in a meditation position or as Dawnfirstlight said, with ability to predict time of death and say that one is going to pureland is very strong indication of confidence in facing death and in itself a very auspicious sign. Maybe you have to compare this with how some others who pass away to appreciate just how unique and precious this ability to die with such lack of fear and ease is...
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By Venerable Hsuan Hua
Although the name "Amita Buddha" consists of two words, the entire Buddhadharma is included within them. Shakyamuni Buddha spoke each Sutra because he was requested to do so. In the Vajra Sutra it was Subhuti who requested the Dharma, and Shariputra requested the Dharma in the Dharma Flower Sutra. No one, however, asked that the Amitabha Sutra be spoken. No one requested this Dharma, and so it was spoken without request. Why? Because no one understood this Dharma. The Pure Land Dharma door looks very simple from the outside, but actually the two words "Amita Buddha" encompass the Three Stores and the Twelve Divisions of the canon. Every Buddhist Sutra is contained within them. A few decades ago I wrote this verse:
Amitabha is the king of the ten thousand dharmas,
Which exhaustively contain the Five Periods and the Eight Teachings.
A cultivator need only hold and recite it singlemindedly
And he will certainly reach the still, bright unmoving field.I had a response while reciting the Buddha's name a few decades ago, and so I wrote this verse. You may see "Amita Buddha" as being only a Buddha's name, but if you recite his name, you can understand all dharmas; and thus the verse says, "Amitabha is the king of the ten thousand dharmas." In the second line, "the Five Periods" are the
1. Flower Adornment Period
2. Agama Period
3. Vaipulya Period
4. Prajna Period
5. Dharma Flower-Nirvana Period
"The Eight Teachings" are the
1. Store
2. Pervasively
3. Special
4. Perfect
5. Sudden
6. Gradual
7. Secret
8. Unfixed
The two words "Amita Buddha" contain the Five Periods and the Eight Teachings; thus "A cultivator need only hold and recite it singlemindedly." All that cultivators of the Way have to do is recite Amita Buddha's name with a concentrated mind, and they "will certainly reach the still, bright, unmoving field."
Shakyamuni Buddha spoke about Amita Buddha without being asked. Some people think that reciting Amita Buddha's name is a practice for old ladies and that people with wisdom should not cultivate this method. This is a mistake! Whether you are wise or stupid, you can cultivate the practice of reciting Amita Buddha's name. This Dharma door benefits beings of all three levels of ability: superior ability, mediocre ability, and inferior ability. They all derive benefit, and so everyone can cultivate this method.
Why recite Amita Buddha's name? We in the Saha World have our closest affinities with the Bodhisattva Who Observes the Sounds of the World. Kuan Yin Bodhisattva manifests the Universal Door and has thirty-two response bodies. Amita Buddha has even great affinities with all living beings, because he is the teacher of Kuan Yin Bodhisattva and Great Strength Bodhisattva and is the founder of the Land of Ultimate Bliss.
How is it that we have conditions with Amita Buddha? In a past life, when he was cultivating on the causal ground before becoming a Buddha, Amita Buddha was a Bhikshu named Fa Tsang. Bhikshu Fa Tsang made his Forty-Eight Great Vows so that all of us living beings can go to the Land of Ultimate Bliss and become Buddhas.
The Bhikshu Fa Tsang vowed, "In the future, when I become a Buddha, there will be only men and no women in my Buddhaland." Everyone knows that without women there can be no men, and that without men, there can be no women; everyone must have a father and mother to be born. If there are only men in the Land of Ultimate Bliss, can they give birth to children? No. If not, where do the men in the Land of Ultimate Bliss come from?
The children are born from lotus flowers. Beings born there first enter a lotus bud. When we recite the name of Amita Buddha, our lotus bud grows. When we recite once, our flower grows a little, and when we recite again, it grows a little more. The more we recite, the larger the bud grows, until the lotus gets as big as a cartwheel. When we are on the verge of death, Amita Buddha manifests a body before us and takes us off to the Land of Ultimate Bliss, where he puts our spirit-nature into that lotus flower. When the lotus flower opens, your Dharma body manifests, and so the saying goes, "When the flower opens, one sees the Buddha." When the lotus flower opens, a Buddha is born. Since everyone who becomes a Buddha is a man and not a women, the Land of Ultimate Bliss has only men and no women.
Although the Land of Ultimate Bliss is one hundred billion Buddhalands away from here, still we can go there by transformation if we sincerely recite his name. Bhikshu Fa Tsang also said that after he became a Buddha, everyone in his land would be transformationally born from a lotus flower. There is a verse which reads:
Vow to be born in the Western Pure Land,
Where the nine grades of lotus flowers are one's true parents.The "nine grades of lotus flowers" are the highest superior grade, the middle superior grade, the lowest superior grade; the highest medium grade, the middle medium grade, and the lowest medium grade; and the highest inferior grade, the middle inferior grade, and the lowest inferior grade. Each of these nine grades of lotus flowers is again divided into nine grades, which gives a total of eighty-one grades. Any living being who recites Amita Buddha's name can be born in the Land of Ultimate Bliss.
Another of Bhikshu Fa Tsang's Forty-Eight Great Vows is, "When I become a Buddha, any living being throughout the ten directions who calls out my name will be born in my land." He vowed that they all would be born in his land by transformation from a lotus flower and would perfect Anuttarasamkyaksambodhi, the Unsurpassed, Proper and Equal, Proper Enlightenment. Because Amita Buddha made this vow, if we of the Saha world recite "Namo Amita Buddha," he will come and extend his hand to us at the end of our lives. The image of Amita Buddha is often seen making the extended-hand mudra. He extends his hand to lead you to the Land of Ultimate Bliss, to pull you off to the Western Paradise. It is said,
Amitabha is foremost of the Buddhas of the ten directions and the three periods of time. In nine grades he takes living beings across. And his awesome virtue is inexhaustible. So do not take Amita Buddha too lightly.
In the future, in the Dharma Ending Age, the Dharma will be destroyed. Now the Sutras are printed in words, but in the future these words will be lost. Why? Because living beings will have insufficient blessings. Their offenses will be too extreme, and so they will not have the opportunity to read the Sutras. We need not discuss the future: even today, some people whose eyes are in perfect condition cannot see clearly when they read Sutras. They have obstructions and everything appears in disarray. These karmic obstructions represent the end of the Dharma; they have eyes but cannot read the Buddhadharma clearly. In the future, this will happen to everyone, and all the Buddhist Sutras will be lost.
Which Sutra will be lost first? The Shurangama Sutra will disappear first, and after it is lost, the other Sutras will disappear one by one until the only one left is the Amitabha Sutra. At that time this Sutra will exist for one hundred years, and it will save countless numbers of living beings. But after the one hundred years, it too will be lost, and all that will remain will be the words "Namo Amita Buddha," which will survive for another hundred years. The living beings who will then recite "Namo Amita Buddha" and will be taken across to the Land of Ultimate Bliss will be very many, measureless and boundless in number. After these one hundred years, the word "namo" will be lost, leaving only "Amita Buddha." At that time people who understand the Buddhadharma will recite "Amita Buddha, Amita Buddha," feverishly seeking for the Buddha to save their lives. After another hundred years, the words "Amita Buddha" will also disappear, at which time the Buddhadharma will be extinct.
Why did Shakyamuni Buddha explain the Amitabha Sutra without being asked. Because this Sutra is extremely important: it will be the last Sutra to remain when the Dharma vanishes. So those of us who study the Buddhadharma should not look lightly on the practice of reciting "Namo Amita Buddha."
In practicing meditation, for example, some people investigate "Who recites the Buddha's name?" If in the past one recited the name of the Buddha, then one can know who is investigating, and who is reciting the Buddha's name. If you have not recited the name of the Buddha before, but are investigating "Who recites the Buddha's name?" now, then who is it who recites? Who recites the Buddha's name? Who is mindful of the Buddha? Which one recites the Buddha's name? Basically you have not recited the Buddha's name, so how could you find out who is mindful of the Buddha? Therefore, because we look into the phrase, "Who recites the Buddha's name?" we know that in the past we have recited the name of the Buddha. However, some have recited a lot, and some have recited a little; some have recited sincerely, and some have recited in a scattered manner. Now that we have encountered this Dharma door, we should not take it lightly and forget it, but should practice this method which we have practiced in the past and continue to recite "Namo Amita Buddha." If you recite "Namo Amita Buddha," you can be reborn in the Land of Ultimate Bliss, where, as the Amitabha Sutra says, you will "endure none of the sufferings but enjoy every bliss."
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There's another nice rebirth story inside this article.
http://www.drbachinese.org/branch/GSM/newsletter/2008_12_152.PDF -
Super laybuddhist Mr Lee Bock Guan of Singapore Buddhist Lodge :D has many insightful personal accounts of Pureland rebirth, such as :
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http://www.fjdh.com/Article/HTML/Article_20090404144155.htmlæ–°åŠ å�¡å±…士林陈光别居士念佛往生è§�闻记
http://www.bcs.edu.sg/forum/index.php?topic=509.0http://www.dizang.org/wj/jkgs/156.htm
http://www.amitofo3.net/ji/books/012.html
Amitofo
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"Walao" - Pureland rebirth of a Hen - just amazing
http://www.dizang.org/wj/jkgs/043.htm周广大先生临终念佛往生
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Wapian!! just fantastic!! lol
Rat also rebirth to pureland :D :D :D
http://club.fjdh.com/?uid-4643-action-viewspace-itemid-23246 -
Originally posted by zero thought:
There's another nice rebirth story inside this article.
http://www.drbachinese.org/branch/GSM/newsletter/2008_12_152.PDF
Thanks, i was going to email this story to some other fellow-cultivators... so i extracted it out from the newsletter pdf.. paste it below for those people who also wish to email....(Extracted from Newsletter “Pure Sound From Silicon Valley” Issue 152 Dec 2008)
My parents lived in Australia and they did not believe in Buddhadharma. When I first started to study Buddhadharma, I also exhorted my family to study, my mother and younger sister followed with me, and they became vegetarians and started to recite the Buddha's name, however, my father still insisted that we were being superstitious, and he even obstructed my cultivation.
One day, my parents and younger sister had a car accident when they were driving. The accident was quite serious, the whole car was almost wrecked, and my father went into coma and bled a lot, however, my mother and younger sister remained safe and sound. After this experience, mother and sister gained more faith in the Buddhadharma, while my father was sick in bed and could not walk, but he had a strong belief that his body would recover as wholesome as before, and he could walk freely, therefore, he asked many good doctors to treat him, but all efforts went in vain, his physical health did not get any better. Because of this, he lose his temper all the times, which made my mother afflicted a lot, therefore I went back to Austrialia to visit them.
After I got home, I explained to my father the truth of "birth, old age, sickness, death, and other Buddhadharma. I told him," you have already gone though the suffering of birth and old age, now you are undergoing the suffering of sickness, and the last one would be the suffering of death." I explained Buddhadharma to him everyday, so he started to gain a bit of faith, he told me that one day when he was lying in bed, he saw his room caught on a heavy fire, but strange indeed was that there were some fish amid the fire, he hurried to call my mother in, however when my mother came, she saw nothing.
My father asked me what did that mean, I told him my personal view " Our physical body is like the house we are living in, now the house is on fire, it means that your body is being broken down; as for the fish, when did you see a fish with closed eyes? Fish always keep their eyes open, which means that you should wake up soon, don't get attached and confused any more. You really had a lot of blessings, since Buddhas and Bodhisattvas showed you these in order to make you wake up soon! You body condition is getting down soon, do not get attached to it any longer." From this on, my father changed to a vegetarian diet and started to recite the Buddha's name.
Half a year before my father's rebirth, my elder sister visited him once. She a finial daughter with a kind heart, but being a Catholic, she believes animals are created to be eaten by human, as long as human are kind. So when she found that our father was sick, weak, and on a veggie diet, she was worried that our father did not get enough nutrition. Therefore, she explained her concern to father, and asked him whether she could cook meat for him. He took her advice at once, and was happy that he could eat meat again. So one thing led to another, and he could not stop, later on he even desired to eat pig's feet every day.
My mother called me and asked me to talk to my father, over the phone, I just said a few words to him, "Dad, if you eat other beings' feet now, in the future, other beings will eat your feet." One week later, my mom called me again and told me that my father had returned to a vegetarian diet. Two months before my father's rebirth, he could fall asleep every night. It seemed that he kept talking to someone, getting angry and yelling.
Therefore, I went back again to Australia to visit him. I asked him why he could not sleep. He said that some beings came to bother him every night, and none of them had feet. I realized at once that they were his enemies and debtees. I told him, "It is because you ate others' feet in the past, now they all came back to you." Then I asked him," How did you treat them?" He said," I am not afraid of them, I never did a single evil thing or harm a single person in my life, therefore I do not need be afraid of them, if they come, I will fight with them!" I advised. him not behave like that, because those ghost beings are in great suffering, without blessings, they have no opportunities of encountering Buddhadharma, that is why we should be compassionate with them. I said, "If they come again tonight, you apologize to them, and tell them because you did not understand principles, you harmed them, now you are seeking forgiveness from them. Also you can tell them to recite the Buddha's name, so that they can seek rebirth, and end birth and death. You yourself also have to recite the Buddha's name on behalf of them, recite Amitabh Buddha."
The next morning, I asked father whether they came or not and how was it. He said they did come, and he addressed them as I taught, then he recited the Buddha's name on their behalf, and they did not disturb him any long, they stood there listening to the Buddha's name, after that, they left. A week before my father's rebirth, one day, it looked like he was dying, therefore, my mother and younger sister started to recite the Buddha's name, after a whole day, my father is still alive. Suddenly, my younger sister smelt fragrant incense, which lasts for about 5 minutes. At that time, she understood that she need offer incense. Therefore, she asked mother to bring an incensory for her to lit incense, wishing the Buddha could come to welcome father and his enemies and debtees into pure land. After making the incense offering, they continued reciting the Buddha's name. At that time, my younger sister heard other voices around them, a lot of melodic voices resound in the air, reciting the Buddha's name.
My younger sister said that upon hearing these wonderful sounds, she felt very pure and clear in heart. One week later, my father passed away, his mind was quite clear when he was dying, but he already put down everything, his wife, children, and houses, his only wish was to follow the Buddha and he was ready. He passed away very peacefully. His face looked ruddy and pleasant, and even had a smile on it. His body was also very soft. Some people who came to assist reciting the Buddha's name even smelt fragrant incense.
Forty-nine days after my father's rebirth, one day when my son Mingguang was in sleep, he felt someone nudging his elbows in his dream, when he opened eyes, he saw his grandfather. Mingguang said that his grandfather did not look like before, since his grandfather had the appearance of a Bhikus, with hair already being shaved, a very fresh and smooth face without any wrinkle, wearing a bright orange sash, smiling happily. Mingguang asked him, "Grandpa, how come you are here? His grandpa answered, smiling, "I came to tell you, I have already followed with Amitabha and been reborn in the Pure Land. Mingguang, you should vigorously recite Buddha's name, and follow with Amitabha Buddha."
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Thanks for all contributors of rebirth accounts... i noticed that in pureland literature, it is mostly in Chinese Language... if more accounts in English is made known to the English-speaking people, then it will help people who are practising to have more faith and diligence.
But for this thread, please post any accounts you have on hand, whether English or Chinese to encourage all readers.
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wisdomeye, is it ok we communicate with amitofo in prayer for prayer requests?
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hi hasene,
In a prayer written by Chakme Rinpoche, it is said that Amitabha is aware of every single thought arising in every single sentient being at all times. Buddha Shakyamuni did also say something similar in the Diamond sutra. So i believe you can address your prayers to Amitabha. The Buddhas who are omniscient would know everything.
Hope this helps.
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Originally posted by wisdomeye:
hi hasene,
In a prayer written by Chakme Rinpoche, it is said that Amitabha is aware of every single thought arising in every single sentient being at all times. Buddha Shakyamuni did also say something similar in the Diamond sutra. So i believe you can address your prayers to Amitabha. The Buddhas who are omniscient would know everything.
Hope this helps.
Thanks. Would like to know which buddhist temples have the statues of Amitabha? -
Originally posted by hasene:
Thanks. Would like to know which buddhist temples have the statues of Amitabha?Singapore Buddhist Lodge (near Somerset MRT) has a very huge one... I think most Chinese Mahayana temples would have... anyone else know?
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Originally posted by wisdomeye:
Singapore Buddhist Lodge (near Somerset MRT) has a very huge one... I think most Chinese Mahayana temples would have... anyone else know?
I have been there a number of times but I do not know how Amitabha looks like. -
Originally posted by hasene:
I have been there a number of times but I do not know how Amitabha looks like.It is at the eating area of Singapore Buddhist Lodge. On your left hand side when you enter the eating area. If I'm not wrong, there is only one Buddha at the eating area.
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The above is Amitabha.
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Originally posted by Dawnfirstlight:
It is at the eating area of Singapore Buddhist Lodge. On your left hand side when you enter the eating area. If I'm not wrong, there is only one Buddha at the eating area.
There are two ways to get to the eating place. -
Originally posted by Dawnfirstlight:
The above is Amitabha.
Oh, this is the one! Saw this before and I thought he is Guatama Buddha Shayamani. Is he another version of Buddha the founder of Buddhism? Both look no difference to me. -
Hi Amitayus48, thanks for the links. When I checked them out, I found they are all in Chinese. Is there any way I can read them in English?
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Does jing zong xue hui or any buddhist organization do translations for these stories or MCK talks or sutra explanation in English? I think it's quite important to reach out to those who don't read Chinese most people in my generation read mostly English or have a preferance for English.. So far I haven't come across any English translation with explanation in English for wu liang shou jing.
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Originally posted by hasene:
Oh, this is the one! Saw this before and I thought he is Guatama Buddha Shayamani. Is he another version of Buddha the founder of Buddhism? Both look no difference to me.Amitabha is not another version of Buddha Shakyamuni. Usually, Amitabha is in the standing posture with his left hand folded up like the poster above (there is also sitting posture but very rare) and Buddha Shakyamuni is usually in the meditating posture (there is also standing one).
Unlike other religion who believe in one God, in Buddhism, we believe everybody has Buddha's nature (our true nature), thus there are many Buddhas.
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Originally posted by Dawnfirstlight:
It is at the eating area of Singapore Buddhist Lodge. On your left hand side when you enter the eating area. If I'm not wrong, there is only one Buddha at the eating area.
The big one is outside in open space beside the main chanting hall... That should be Amitabha... if my eyes not wrong... but i saw quite some time back and didn't look very carefully.