Aug 5

Aug 5, 2017
慧淨上人法語
念佛方法

Among the 84,000 kinds of teaching, invocation to the Buddha by name-recitation is the easiest one in practice and the most splendid one in terms of merits and virtues. Name-recitation is better than silent invocation in mind.

It is because Buddha-invocation in mind is not common, while name-recitation in voice can be practiced popularly. At the time near end-of-life, it is difficult for one to invoke Amitabha Buddha in mind when he is flurried and fearful. Name-recitation in voice, on the other hand, can eliminate his heavy karmic offenses in the past 8 billion eons that cause his birth-and-death.

Isn’t it meant that we can only recite the name in voice and cannot invoke Amitabha in mind? Not really. It is because that person belongs to the class at the lowest level in the low tier, and he is close to the end of his life. In our case, we can recite orally in our daily life. When tired, switch to silent recitation in mind.

八萬四千法門當中，方法最容易、功德又最殊勝的，就是稱名念佛。稱名念佛勝過心念的念佛。

因為心念的念佛不普遍，而口稱念佛能夠普遍；心念的念佛，於臨終的慌亂和恐懼中難以提起，而口稱的念佛卻能讓他聲聲消除八十億劫生死重罪。

難道我們念佛只可以嘴巴念佛心中不能念佛嗎？不是的，是因為那個人是下品下生的根機，他已經臨命終了；如果是我們，平常可以 一方面口念，口念累了就可以改為心中默念。

Namo Amitabha!