Nov 17, 2019
Master Huijing’s Short Dharma Teachings about the Contemplation Sutra
《佛說觀無量壽經》
(continued)
The reason why we recite Amitabha’s Name, why we have faith, and why we can be reborn in the Land of Bliss, is the reliance on Amitabha’s compassionate deliverance.
Amitabha’s deliverance is like a lotus flower that opens our mind of faith – the flower to be reborn is the mode of manifestation.
So, the Contemplation Sutra praises us and says, “An Amitabha-reciter is a wonderful lotus flower. The process of the blossoming of the wonderful lotus flower is similar to that mentioned above. There are three stages, namely: “flower bud formed for the sake of lotus seed”,“lotus sprouted while flower blossoms”, and “lotus matured when flower withers”.
我們之所以念佛、之所以有信心、之所以往生極樂世界,都是靠阿彌陀佛的慈悲救度。阿彌陀佛的救度,就像一朵蓮花,使我們開信心的蓮花,往生蓮花之中而蓮花化生。
所以,《觀經》就讚歎說:「念佛人就是一朵妙蓮花。」這朵妙蓮花的開展過程,也跟前面三種階段一樣。所以有:「為蓮故花」、「花開蓮現」、「花落蓮成」三個階段。
Namo Amituofo!
