About Festival and Special Days

AMITABHA BUDDHA’S WORDS OF ADVICE TO BUDDHIST PRACTITIONERS OF GUAN YIN CITTA DHARMA DOOR

20/08/2023 |    
   
 

AMITABHA BUDDHA’S WORDS OF ADVICE TO BUDDHIST PRACTITIONERS OF GUAN YIN CITTA DHARMA DOOR

Question:
On 20 September 2020, from the vast emptiness came the voice of a Dharma Protector, “I’ve been summoned by Amitabha Buddha of the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss to be here to greet you, the Heavenly Child. May the Heavenly Gods quickly open the Gates of Heaven”.

Soon after, my soul was extracted from my body and a golden lotus flower appeared right under my feet. Perching on the head of an enormous golden dragon, we glided through numerous Heavenly Gates, as we made our way to the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss.

The Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss

Qilins (a type of Heavenly Beast) were seen galloping and circling around in the air. With auspicious clouds below their feet, countless numbers of small Bodhisattvas were manoeuvring their way, at will, to the places of spiritual practice in the various palaces in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. Here, every building seems to emit a huge golden halo.

Not long after, Amitabha Buddha was heard announcing, “May all Heavenly Sages come forward to listen to the dharma”.

By now, the huge golden dharma bodies of Amitabha Buddha, Guan Yin Bodhisattva and Mahasthamaprapta Bodhisattva (Great Strength Bodhisattva) were spotted sitting upright on Their respective lotus thrones. Countless Bodhisattvas and Buddhas, as innumerable as the grains of sands of the river of Ganges, had positioned Themselves on golden light-radiating dharma seats, encircling the feet of Amitabha Buddha. My lower spiritual rank could only get me to sit among the small Bodhisattvas and Heavenly Beasts in the last few rows to listen to the dharma.

Amitabha Buddha said, “All disciples of the Buddha who aspire to be reborn in Guan Yin Citta Pure Land or the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss must uphold and adhere to the Pure Precepts, refrain from malicious speech and deviant thoughts that will bring harm to others. Only those with sufficient wholesome roots, who perform recitation of the Buddhist scriptures and are fully equipped with immense fortune and virtue are able to bathe in the Lotus Pond of Seven Treasures and the Water of Eight Merits”.

Amitabha Buddha continued, “First and foremost, I will expound on the meaning of adhering to the Pure Precepts. As disciples of the Buddha, you must make the vow to be a vegetarian and lead a life of celibacy. Those who have carnal desires are deemed mere mortals in the human realm and they are not the sages of my Pure Land. Those who have the desire to consume meat are not virtuous and their compassion is clearly lacking. Similarly, such people are not the holy people of my Pure Land”.

Amitabha Buddha went on to say, “Those whose words and thoughts are malicious or if they regularly spit out obscenities simply lack virtuous and wholesome roots. They too cannot gain rebirth in the Pure Land.

Conversely, those who act out of Bodhi mind, aspire to awaken sentient beings so that others can eliminate evil and cultivate goodness, and frequently practise generosity in sharing the teachings of the Buddha, are the ones with the foundation of great virtuous roots. These are the highly-regarded sages.

Those who have committed grievous acts of killing also cannot be reborn in my Pure Land. Disciples who have heard the Buddha Dharma and yet continue to commit negative karma including killing of sentient beings can never gain rebirth in any of the Pure Lands within the Kingdom of the Buddha in the innumerable Three Thousandfold World Systems”.

Amitabha Buddha added, “The depth of one’s blessings and virtue reflects the degree of one’s merits and spiritual attainment. Upon demise, each disciple is classified into one of the three spiritual grades (upper, middle or lower) in accordance with one’s merits and spiritual attainment. This classification determines one’s spiritual abode in the different Lotus Worlds.

The virtuous people who come short in terms of spiritual attainment, practice and prajna wisdom will end up in the realms of Sravakas and Pratyekabuddhas. In the Pure Land, many great Bodhisattvas will preach various types of Buddhist scriptures.

Disciples of Guan Yin Citta Dharma Door must thoroughly study Buddhism in Plain Terms and they should not solely focus on their recitations. The publication series of “Journey to Heaven: A Buddhist’s Account of Her Visit to Heaven and the Underworld” reveals the profound truth of the universe and the working of the immutable law of karma. In this publication, you will also find the great vows of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva and the vast insights of all the Buddhas”.

A disciple from Malaysia
20 September 2020

 

Answer: Guan Yin Citta Pure Land is bestowed upon us by Guan Yin Bodhisattva. The innumerable number of practitioners of Guan Yin Citta all over the world has paved the way to the actualisation of this Pure Land. Just imagine how blessed you are. That said, it would be a real pity if you fail to make your way back home.

Source: Master Jun Hong Lu’s Discourse (Question 416), 27 September 2020