Oct 26

Oct 26, 2017
慧淨上人法語
淨土宗宗風真諦

(continued)

When a learned person reaches the final moment of life, no matter how high his intellectual achievements, how deep his study of the sutras pitaka (Buddhist scriptures), he has to put them aside. All the wealth, status, fame, power, and also the academic degrees and knowledge that he has possessed for the whole life are useless, not even his life-long cultivated character and temperament. At the hour of death, all these merits do not have any power, and we cannot rely on these merits to break away from the samsara of life and death, to be reborn in the Land of Bliss. In the final analysis, we have to rely on our faith—i.e. what Master Shandao says, “If sentient beings recite His name, they will certainly be reborn in the Land of Bliss”.  This is same as what the tenet pronounces, ‘always to recite the name of Amitabha exclusively’.

即使有學術，但人到了臨終的時候，有再豐厚的學問，再深入的經藏，都要擱一邊，一生所擁有的包括財富、地位、名聲、權勢，還有學位、學問，都產生不了作用。甚至我們一生的修身養性，到臨終都沒有力量，沒辦法讓我們依靠這些了脫生死輪迴，往生極樂世界。到最後就是靠我們所信仰的，即善導大師所說「眾生稱念，必得往生」，也就是我們宗風裏面所講的「一向專稱，彌陀佛名。」

Namo Amitabha!