"If, when I attain Buddhahood, sentient beings in the lands of the ten quarters who sincerely and joyfully entrust themselves to me, desire to be born in my land, and call my Name, even ten times, should not be born there, may I not attain perfect Enlightenment. Excluded, however, are those who commit the five gravest offences and abuse the right Dharma." - Primal Vow of Amida Buddha
Dear to the hearts of ardent Jodo Shinshu adherents is the Nembutsu.
When uttered in sincerity, the faithful are promised rebirth in the Pure Land of Bliss, which is akin to a kind of Purgatory where one is reborn to be instructed in 48 Vows of Amida, only to be reborn on Earth to spread the word of the Buddha, and thus to help others to be reborn in that Pure Land.
In the eyes of people who are blind to the obvious fact that this world is both material and spiritual, this seems like it is beyond them. This is due to free choice of each person, though those of us who choose to see the material world are blind to the spiritual.
Thus, chanting the Nembutsu which assures the faithful of rebirth in the Pure Land is also affirmation of the choice of being open to both the material and spiritual world, which is this world of reality.
Likewise, reality is both material and spiritual.
With each utterance of the Nembutsu life become much more real, for one's afterlife is determined. The Pure Land of Bliss is surely the faithful's destination. Indeed, when one says the Name, it is like she is there already.
Thus is the merit of the Nembutsu returned to the faithful.
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Could it not be then that when one prays to God, that one is closer to Heaven?
And that when she sincerely is grateful of God's mercy, that the merits of her prayer is return to spread bounty in her life?
Perhaps prayer itself bring a little bit of Heave on earth only when it is done out of sincere gratitude for God's grace!
To deny the spiritual is to deny reality itself. To deny the material, too, then is to deny reality.
For reality is both spiritual and material.
In accepting one aspect of it over another, the foolish are deluded, and know not reality at all.
Thus in accepting both its spiritual and the material aspects, the wise person affirms the holistic nature of reality.
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