Translated by Zuio H. Inagaki
Pada 2 (51-100)
50 "This is good," "This is bad" -
Such calculation is self-power faith.
51 Amida became Namo Amida Butsu, the Enlightened One;
Our birth is made possible by the Power of its Virtue.
52 "Having fulfilled the Forty-eight Vows,
[Dharmakara] became Amida, the Enlightened One;
All who entrust themselves to him
Are unfailingly assured of attaining birth."
(A hymn not included in the Collection)
53 The Tathagata's Wisdom of Enlightenment is unfathomable;
It transcends time and space, causal relationships, and all changes;
It is profound and subtle, and is beyond our concept and speech.
54 The Buddha Body in which the Dharm Body of
Dharma-nature and the Dharma Body of Expediency
are united is called,
"The Tathagata of Light Unhindered throughout the Ten Quarters."
55 Namo Amida Butsu is the Name of Merit and Virtue
in which his own benefit and benefit
for all beings are fulfilled;
It is the all-comprehensive notion
embracing the whole of the Pure Land teaching.
56 "How sad! I cannot distinguish right from wrong,
good from evil"; (A Tract on Naturalness)
Through the virtues of the Dharma we can go to
the Land of Bliss.
57 When driven to the most difficult situation,
You come face to face with your naked self and the Tathagata.
58 "Nembutsu of the Other-Power" is the practice which we do not need
to direct to Amida;
Hence, the all-powerful working of Namo Amida Butsu.
59 "Nembutsu of the Other-Power" is shinjin
that trusts in the Vow-Power;
It is the glorification of the Buddha's Virtue.
60 If you have fully received the Tathagata's Compassion,
you naturally become kind to other people;
The secret of success in life is kindness.
61 The Tathagata's Merit of Truth is realized in Namo Amida Butsu,
the Revered Name promised in the Vow.
62 "Birth through the Nembutsu" reveals "the working of
Namo Amida Butsu."
63 Don't worry, don't worry!
The mother of Great Compassion is waiting for you.
64 Those who think that they have attained shinjin
and are negligent in remembering the Power of the Primal Vow
Are conceited practitioners who are dependent for refuge
on their own thought.
65 "You will be definitely saved,"
Amida confidently assures us;
The Buddha's confidence becomes our confidence.
66 In daily life, selfish desires arise and anger fills my mind;
Besides, I do not feel gratitude to Amida;
Amida saves me just as I am;
How grateful!
67 One's real value is found at one's deathbed,
where one's power is nothing.
Don't be conceited!
When you face death, you will hear the voice,
"How great the Vow-Power is!"
68 "One word of truth (Amida's Name) turns one's evil karma
into a good karma." (Kyogyoshinsho, chapter on Practice)
69 By believing in the law of causality,
we realize that we are destined to hell;
By going beyond the law of causality,
we adore the Power of the Primal Vow
originating from the inconceivable Buddha's Wisdom.
70 From the bottom of the deep belief that we are destined to hell,
the voice "How great the Vow-Power is!" is heard;
From the bottom of the deep belief that we will be born
in the Pure Land by the Vow-Power, we become aware
that we are inescapably destined to hell.
71 Whenever we hear the Buddha-Dharma,
we feel as if this is the first time.
It is a pleasure to hear the inexhaustible Dharma-gates
without end;
It is the duty of a true disciple of the Buddha
to develop the inexhaustible Dharma-gates
endlessly.
72 Great awakening comes from great doubt;
Whenever you have doubt, speak out
and make a thorough inquiry.
73 The problem of shinjin should not be left halfway;
Just as a smith tempers a sword thoroughly,
One needs to test and retest shinjin a thousand times.
74 Listening to the Buddha-Dharma and
keeping the mind calm and joyous
- Apart from that, there is no way of securing health and long life.
75 In this life of impermanence in the World of Burning House
anything could happen at any time;
Let us live each coming day with humble repentance.
76 In the pitch darkness facing death, you will hear the voice,
"The Primal Vow's Power! How great it is!"
Life is found in death; death resides in life.
'Death' is the faith of accepting your course of karma
as though heading for hell.
77 "I deeply believe that I will definitely be born in the Pure Land
by riding on the Buddha's Vow-Power." (Master Shan-tao)
78 Whatever you may think, reflect on, or do,
you will not be able to attain birth;
"You will definitely be born,"
so we are assured by the Primal Vow.
79 "The cause of right assurance is shinjin alone" (Shoshinge);
To attain birth after having received shinjin
means to attain birth by the Primal Vow's Power.
80 "No reasoning is true reasoning" means:
when ordinary people's self-power calculations
are completely exhausted,
We shall attain birth by the Primal Vow's Power.
81 Bombu, ordinary people, are beings
who constantly create storms of greed and anger
through self-attachment, self-love, and self-pride.
82 "The Name of the Tathagata of Unhindered Light
and his Light which is the embodiment of Wisdom
Destroy the darkness of the long night of ignorance
and fulfill the aspirations of sentient beings."
(Hymns on the Seven Masters)
Destruction of our ignorance and fulfilment of our aspirations
result from the Nembutsu; they are the benefit of the Name;
again, they are the benefit of shinjin.
83 The Buddha is an embodiment of Prajna (transcendent wisdom)
and is the One of Great Compassion based on non-ego;
The Primal Vow of Namo Amida Butsu is deep and mysterious,
and lies beyond our conception
84 After savoring and digesting the Primal Vow's Power,
we are brought back to the Primal Vow's Power.
85 Amida's Call produces shinjin in us;
Amida's Call saves us.
86 When I am alone oppressed by indescribable sadness,
I feel that the compassion of my True Parent is trustworthy.
87 My calculations have proved futile;
I follow my Parent's Call and return to his home.
88 If you believe in the law of karma, revere the Buddha,
and are kind to other people,
you are not likely to fail in human relationships.
89 "I don't want to die, I don't want to die, I don't want to die;
However reluctant to die, I cannot help but die.
Nobody can help me - helplessly I go to the Pure Land.
90 My benevolent teacher Riken used to say:
"We have only to leave ourselves to the current of
the ocean of the Primal Vow."
91 Once we have heard 'Namo Amida Butsu,'
our birth is already realized in 'Namo Amida Butsu.'
92 "Our birth is enabled by the Power of the Vow;
there is nothing we have to do."
By the Power of the Primal Vow we attain birth;
there is nothing we can contribute to realize it.
93 Death is coming closer and closer day by day;
the law of karma is fearful indeed.
At the moment of realizing this,
we hear Amida's Call!
94 "I understand very well but I have no settled mind" -
this is because you have not yet encountered
the Compassion of the Power of the Primal Vow.
95 Having died the Great Death, we go to the Pure Land
embraced by Amida Tathagata.
96 Because the Primal Vow is inconceivable,
our shinjin and birth are also inconceivable.
97 I am doomed to fall into hell;
Amida Tathagata is sure to save me;
The Power of the Primal Vow takes me to the Pure Land.
98 What have I heard and learned for eighty long years?
Only "the Primal Vow and the Name."
Following the Call of my Parent,
I return to the Parent's Home.
99 To attain birth nothing is required, nothing!
Indeed, just as you stand; nothing - really nothing - is required.
100 Boundless is your wisdom, like the open sky,
Limitless is your compassion, like the great ocean.
I am at peace
while my evil karma and spiritual hindrances remain intact.
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