English
English version: At night, a strange fragrance and beautiful music were heard, and a voice from the air said, 'The coarse music has passed, and the fine music is about to come; you should be reborn.' Then he recited the Buddha's name for a long time, and finally passed away peacefully amidst the lingering fragrance, which did not dissipate for days. Furthermore, writing scriptures can enlighten sentient beings, and lecturing on scriptures can bring auspicious white cranes. An example of writing scriptures is the Tang Dynasty's Master Shandao (Shandao: a prominent Pure Land Buddhist monk), who used all the donations he received to write 100,000 copies of the 'Amitabha Sutra' (Amitabha Sutra: a central text of Pure Land Buddhism) and encouraged people to uphold it. There were also those who recited the 'Amitabha Sutra' 100,000 times or 500,000 times, and both monks and laypeople admired him. Some were even so moved that they burned themselves as an offering, thereby attaining the Samadhi (Samadhi: a state of meditative consciousness) of Buddha-recitation. Such examples are countless. An example of lecturing on scriptures is the Song Dynasty's Shen Sanlang, who turned to Buddha-recitation in his later years. Due to illness, he asked a monk to lecture on the 'Amitabha Sutra' and passed away after changing his clothes. When he died, his knees were bent as if trying to get up. His two sons, bound by worldly conventions, thought it troublesome to change the coffin, so they straightened his legs. As they were about to put him in the coffin, Shen Sanlang suddenly raised his head, came out of the bedding, and sat up in fright, shocking the whole family. His two sons rushed forward to support him, but he struck them with his elbow, saying, 'I am merely helping my father to sit and depart from this world.' After saying that, he passed away sitting. During the cremation, twenty-nine white cranes flew and cried in the sky, and after a long time, they flew westward. Present-day responses include remotely viewing the Pure Land (Pure Land: the realm of Amitabha Buddha) and achieving rebirth by a set date, which is incomparable to Nirvana (Nirvana: the ultimate state of enlightenment). Such responses have been seen frequently throughout history. An example of remotely viewing the Pure Land is the Tang Dynasty's Great Practice Chan Master (Chan Master: a master of Chan Buddhism), who initially practiced the Universal Worthy Repentance (Universal Worthy Repentance: a Buddhist practice) and later entered the Tripitaka (Tripitaka: the collection of Buddhist scriptures), randomly taking out a scroll and obtaining the 'Amitabha Sutra', which he recited day and night. After twenty-one days, he saw the Buddha and two great Bodhisattvas (Bodhisattvas: enlightened beings who postpone their own enlightenment to help others) manifest on the crystal ground. Emperor Xizong (Emperor Xizong: an emperor of the Tang Dynasty) heard of this and summoned him to the inner court, bestowing upon him the title 'Constant Diligence Bodhisattva'. Later, he saw the crystal ground again and passed away that day, with a strange fragrance lasting for more than ten days and his physical body remaining intact. An example of being incomparable to Nirvana is the Liang Dynasty's Dharma Master Daozhen, who lectured on the 'Nirvana Sutra' (Nirvana Sutra: a Mahayana Buddhist scripture). During the Tianjian era, he rested at Mount Lu (Mount Lu: a mountain in China), admiring Master Huiyuan's (Master Huiyuan: a founder of Pure Land Buddhism) Pure Land practice. In meditation, he suddenly saw hundreds of people riding a treasure ship forward on the sea. Dharma Master Daozhen asked them where they were going, and they replied, 'We are going to the Land of Ultimate Bliss (Land of Ultimate Bliss: another name for the Pure Land).' Dharma Master Daozhen requested to board the ship, and they replied, 'Although Dharma Master is good at lecturing on the 'Nirvana Sutra' and is also very inconceivable, you have not recited the 'Amitabha Sutra', so how can you go with us?' Thereupon, Dharma Master Daozhen stopped lecturing on the scriptures and focused on reciting the Buddha's name, reciting the 'Amitabha Sutra' 20,000 times. Twenty-eight days before his death, at four o'clock in the night, he saw a silver platform coming from the west in the sky, as bright as day, and a voice said, 'Dharma Master should ride this platform to be reborn.' At that time, everyone heard heavenly music and a strange fragrance, which did not dissipate for several days. That night, the monks of Fengding Temple (Fengding Temple: a Buddhist temple) remotely saw dozens of torches brightly illuminating the valley entrance all night, and the next day they learned that it was Dharma Master Daozhen who had been reborn. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chinese
知师逝如上所录皆修因证果此感彼应叠见层出自古及今未易枚举。 持名往生 若持名者或一念而飞一光或一声而出一佛或响弥林谷或音彻宫闱或六时系念而依正盈空或十字标心而圣贤入会洎于昭代续有名流。 此正明执持名号也净业诸贤多不繁载姑举昭灼世人耳目者一二以为激劝飞光者唐善导大师人问念佛得生净土否答曰如汝所念遂汝所愿于是导乃自念阿弥陀佛一声则有一光从其口出十声至百光亦如之光明满室帝闻其事来所居为光明寺后登柳树端坐而化出佛者少康法师在鸟龙山建净土道场劝人念佛众见师念佛一声口出一佛至于十念十佛次出犹若连珠临终之日口旋异光数道奄然而逝响弥者唐道绰禅师平居为众讲无量寿经将二百遍人各掏珠口称佛号或时散席声播林谷音彻者唐法照于并州五会念佛感代宗皇帝宫中闻念佛声遣使遥寻见师劝化之盛遂诏入宫宫人念佛亦及五会号五会法师六时者晋慧远法师居庐山制莲华漏六时念佛澄心系想后十九年七月晦夕于般若台方从定起见阿弥陀佛身遍虚空圆光之中无量化佛及菩萨众水流光明演说妙法佛言我以本愿力故来安慰汝汝七日后当生我国至期端坐而逝十字者宋长芦宗赜禅师禅理洞悟宗说兼通而远遵庐阜之规建莲华胜会其法日念阿弥陀佛或千声万声各千日下以十字 现代汉语译本： 正如上面所记载的，所有修行都是为了证得果位，这种感应是相互的，层层叠叠地显现，自古至今，这样的例子数不胜数。 持名往生 如果有人执持名号，或者念一声佛号就飞出一道光，或者念一声佛号就出现一尊佛，或者声音响彻山谷，或者声音传到宫廷之中，或者六时（昼夜六个时段）系念佛号，使得依报和正报都充满虚空，或者以十字作为念佛的标记，使得圣贤都来参与法会。到了昭代（指清朝），仍然有名人遵循这种方法。 这里正是说明执持名号的重要性。净业的贤者很多，不能一一记载，姑且举出几个在世人耳目中非常显著的例子，以此来激励劝勉大家。所谓‘飞光’，指的是唐朝的善导大师，有人问他念佛能否往生净土，他回答说：‘如你所念，遂你所愿。’于是善导大师自己念阿弥陀佛一声，就有一道光从他口中出来，念十声乃至百声，光也像这样，光明充满房间。皇帝听说了这件事，把大师居住的地方改为光明寺。后来，大师登上柳树顶端，端坐而化。所谓‘出佛’，指的是少康法师，他在鸟龙山建立净土道场，劝人念佛，众人看见法师念佛一声，口中就出现一尊佛，念十声就出现十尊佛，依次出现，就像连珠一样。临终之日，口中旋转出奇异的光芒，数道光芒忽然消失。所谓‘响弥’，指的是唐朝的道绰禅师，他平时为大众讲解《无量寿经》将近两百遍，人们各自拿着念珠，口中称念佛号，有时散席后，声音仍然传播在山谷之中。所谓‘音彻’，指的是唐朝的法照，他在并州五会念佛，感应到代宗皇帝在宫中听到念佛的声音，派遣使者遥远地寻找，见到了法师劝化的盛况，于是诏请法师入宫，宫人也念佛，并且学习五会念佛的方法，法照因此号称五会法师。所谓‘六时’，指的是晋朝的慧远法师，他居住在庐山，制作莲华漏，六时念佛，澄心系想。十九年后，七月最后一天晚上，在般若台，正从禅定中起来，看见阿弥陀佛身遍虚空，圆光之中有无量化佛以及菩萨众，水流光明，演说妙法。佛说：‘我以本愿力的缘故，来安慰你，你七日后应当往生我的国度。’到了约定的日期，慧远法师端坐而逝。所谓‘十字’，指的是宋朝的长芦宗赜禅师，他禅理洞悟，宗门和教理都通达，并且远远地遵循庐山的规矩，建立莲华胜会，其方法是每天念阿弥陀佛，或者念一千声，或者念一万声，各自念满一千日，下面以十字作为标记。
English
English version: As recorded above, all cultivation is for the sake of attaining fruition. This kind of mutual influence and layered manifestation has been seen countless times from ancient times to the present. Rebirth Through Recitation of the Name If one upholds the name, perhaps a single thought emits a ray of light, or a single recitation produces a Buddha, or the sound resonates through the forests and valleys, or the sound penetrates the palace chambers, or the six periods (six divisions of day and night) are devoted to mindfulness, causing the environment and the being to be filled with emptiness, or the 'ten' character is used as a mark of mindfulness, causing sages and worthies to join the assembly. Even in the enlightened era (referring to the Qing Dynasty), there were still famous individuals who followed this method. This precisely clarifies the importance of upholding the name. There are many virtuous individuals in Pure Land practice, and they cannot all be recorded. Let us cite one or two examples that are very prominent in the eyes and ears of the world, in order to encourage and exhort everyone. The 'emitting light' refers to Master Shandao (Shandao) of the Tang Dynasty. Someone asked him if reciting the Buddha's name could lead to rebirth in the Pure Land. He replied, 'As you recite, so shall your wish be fulfilled.' Thereupon, Master Shandao himself recited 'Amitabha Buddha' once, and a ray of light came out of his mouth. When he recited ten times, or even a hundred times, the light was the same, filling the room with light. The emperor heard of this and changed the place where the master lived into the Guangming Temple (Temple of Light). Later, the master ascended to the top of a willow tree, sat upright, and passed away. The 'producing a Buddha' refers to Dharma Master Shao Kang (Shaokang). He established a Pure Land practice center on Niaolong Mountain and encouraged people to recite the Buddha's name. The people saw that when the master recited the Buddha's name once, a Buddha appeared from his mouth. When he recited ten times, ten Buddhas appeared, appearing in succession, like a string of pearls. On the day of his passing, strange lights rotated from his mouth, and several rays of light suddenly disappeared. The 'resonating' refers to Chan Master Daochuo (Daochuo) of the Tang Dynasty. He usually lectured on the Infinite Life Sutra to the masses nearly two hundred times. People each held prayer beads and recited the Buddha's name. Sometimes after the assembly dispersed, the sound still spread through the valleys. The 'penetrating' refers to Dharma Master Fazhao (Fazhao) of the Tang Dynasty. He recited the Buddha's name in the Five Assemblies in Bingzhou, and Emperor Daizong (Daizong) in the palace heard the sound of reciting the Buddha's name. He sent envoys to search from afar and saw the flourishing state of the master's conversion. Thereupon, he summoned the master to the palace, and the palace people also recited the Buddha's name and learned the method of reciting the Buddha's name in the Five Assemblies. Fazhao was therefore known as the Five Assemblies Dharma Master. The 'six periods' refers to Dharma Master Huiyuan (Huiyuan) of the Jin Dynasty. He lived on Mount Lu (Mount Lu) and made a lotus clock, reciting the Buddha's name in the six periods, clarifying his mind and focusing his thoughts. Nineteen years later, on the last night of July, at the Prajna Terrace, just as he was rising from meditation, he saw Amitabha Buddha's body pervading the empty space, and within the circle of light were countless manifested Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, the flowing water was light, expounding the wonderful Dharma. The Buddha said, 'Because of the power of my original vows, I have come to comfort you. You shall be reborn in my land in seven days.' On the appointed date, Dharma Master Huiyuan sat upright and passed away. The 'ten' refers to Chan Master Zongze (Zongze) of Changlu (Changlu) of the Song Dynasty. He had a thorough understanding of Chan principles, and was proficient in both the Chan school and the doctrinal school. He followed the rules of Mount Lu from afar, and established the Lotus Victorious Assembly. The method was to recite Amitabha Buddha every day, either one thousand times or ten thousand times, each reciting for one thousand days, and below, the character 'ten' was used as a mark. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------