“The light of Amitayus (Amida) shines brilliantly, illuminating all the Buddha lands of the ten directions.
There is no place where it is not perceived."
_ Shakyamuni Buddha
I woke up with rambling thoughts floating around my head about Amida’s Light and this is probably going to be the first of many reflections on the significance of Amida's Light and Its several interwoven aspects.
Amida's Light is a non-discriminating light that not only pervades every corner of Nirvana but equally reaches into the deepest and darkest depths of the various samsaric realms.
Reverend Josho explains,
So, Amida’s Infinite Light is a transcendent manifestation capable of going anywhere in the universe. It can be felt in the hearts and minds of the believers in the aspect of shinjin (faith). Amida’s Light is a permanent presence upon beings everywhere, opened or not opened to it. Through His Light Amida tries permanently to influence beings and make them accept His salvation contained in the Primal Vow (18th). It is like an immense magnet attracting all beings to him. Some become opened to it sooner while others will do so in the future. Amida will continue sending it until all hells are empty and all beings will become Buddhas.
Like feeling the sun upon our skin, as believers we respond spontaneously to this Light with gladness of heart through the Nembutsu. It is a simple, intuitive response similar to how a plant turns and grows spontaneously towards the sun. We recognise the Nembutsu as our true source of life and light.
The Light of Amida warms our hearts and bestows faith (shinjin) upon us for which we gratefully respond by saying the Name. Thus, we receive Amida’s salvation through His Light and, in turn, we reciprocate by entrusting ourselves, aspiring to be born in His enlightened Land and say His Name. We do this in gratitude without any attempt to appropriate It nor divert It from its true intent and function.
As Hokai Sylvie is my name, Amida Buddha’s name remains Amida Buddha’s, in the same way that the rays of the sun warming our skin or lighting the room we are in, belong to the sun.
Amida's Light and Amida's Name are inseparable as Reverend Josho explains,
To praise Amida’s Name is to praise Him and His method of salvation. Amida’s Light is His Name because He is called the Buddha of Infinite Light and Infinite Life. Thus, Amida’s Light and Name are one, and so to praise His Name is to praise His Light. The majestic glory of this Name and Light is impossible to describe even by Shakyamuni himself.
Yet, we are not mere recipients of the workings of Amida Salvative Light. The words NAMO AMIDA BU do not end their journey on our lips or in our minds, they can be heard.
When we say the name, NAMO AMIDA BU, to express our relief and gratitude towards Amida, it has an UNINTENTIONAL secondary effect in that It can be heard by all the seen or unseen, dwelling beyond our conscious awareness, sentient beings, around us.
The unintentional aspect of our saying the Name is extremely important to understand because we mustn’t fall into the trap of self-power by turning the Nembutsu into some kind of mission, where we imagine ourselves having a role to play in the saving power of Amida Buddha. WE DON'T and we can’t, the power of salvation is Amida's Light and the method of salvation is His Name.
Self Power is the hindrance
Whatever good intentions we may think we may have, these are far too charged with the heavy static from our defiled karma, rendering any intentional saying of Amida's Name inaudible. Through saying the name with intention we become a hindrance and the humble awareness of our limitations to do any sustainable good through self power practice is given to us when we receive Amida’s Light.
Reverend Josho explains:
This Light of Amida dispels the darkness of the minds of sentient beings giving them the capacity of seeing themselves as they really are, that is, with no chance of attaining Buddhahood by any self power practice, and of perceiving the salvation of Amida as true and real, capable of liberating them forever from birth and death. This twofold vision is the effect of Amida’s Light into the minds and hearts of the devotees. This is what we feel, understand and accept when we become open to the Light of Amida, that is, when we receive shinjin (faith).
It is the Nembutsu that is heard, NOT us.
Simply saying the Nembutsu without any underlying self powered motivation or intent is as close as we can get to true compassion in this lifetime. It's only when we are reborn in the enlightened realm of Amida Buddha and become Buddhas ourselves that we can manifest true unhindered compassion to help all sentient beings.
All we need to do now is say the Nembutsu and let Amida do the rest.
From this perspective, we are merely passive relays, the passive source for something, the Nembutsu, which belongs to someone else, Amida Buddha. It is not our saying but the HEARING of the Nembutsu that is infused with Amida’s Vow Power. Only Amida has the power to enter into the minds and hearts of all who are in hear His Name and who, in turn, if they are ready, may open and accept His Name in faith.
We say the Nembutsu solely in grateful response and to entrust ourselves but NEVER as an intentional purpose because it is only the Nembutsu that holds the Light of Amida's purposeful intention to shine, be heard and thus save all sentient beings.
Namo Amida Bu
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