Elder Upasaka Li Bing Nan: Our Current Predicament and The Way Forward
Human Life is Full of Misfortune:
Who in the world is immune from illness, aging, the loss of family members, impoverishment and feuds? Moreover, even though the poor yearn for wealth, the childless seek to have children and the jobless pine for employment, how many actually have their wishes fulfilled? In the face of such misfortunes, what could we do?
This World Mired in Calamities:
Whenever storms sweep through and earthquakes strike, myriad ruined homes and corpses are the result. Too little rain and there is drought ; too much rain and the harvest is likewise ruined. Without grain, famine arises. Floods drown whole villages, infernos scorch whole neighborhoods, leading to countless casualties.
Such disasters occur on a yearly basis and take lives regularly without mercy. But that is not all, for there is also the ever looming threat of war. Nations who do not cherish humaneness and peace not only engage in conflict, but create ever more fearsome weapons of mass destruction. It is almost as if their only fear is that humanity does not become extinct. Perpetrators of genocide claim they are “purifying the world” but are simply turning the world into a savage slaughterhouse. Thus, faced with all these omnipresent disasters, what could we do to escape?
The Pains of Death and Rebirth:
To add insult to injury, there is no rest even in death as the consciousness lives on, locked in the Six Realms of the Samsara (the Heavens, Humanity, Asuras, Animals, Hungry Ghosts and the Hells). While the Heavenly and Human realms are marginally better than the other paths, it is still excruciatingly painful to cycle among them all. Just imagine being a heavenly being in one life, an animal in another, and a hell being in the life after? Having suffered birth and death under such conditions since time immemorial, our accumulated bones pile higher than mountains and the tears we have shed enough to fill oceans. Such unbearable suffering urgently begs the question: How do we escape the Samsara and gain lasting peace?
How to Reverse Adverse Situations and Eradicate Calamities :
Pain and pleasure are but the workings of karma, which spans more than just this life and encompasses both past and future. Today, as we meet adverse conditions and or calamities, we must recognize them as karmic manifestations. The fastest way to neutralize adversity or calamity is through recitation of the name of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. The Sutras state: “Single-minded recitation of the Buddha’s name can eradicate eight thousand million eons of heavy karmic offenses.” Therefore, if the evil karma has been dissolved, how could we suffer from any adversity or disaster?
The Sutras also affirm that those who recite the name of Amitabha are blessed and protected by the myriad Buddhas of the six directions. Buddhas are spiritually omnipotent and have limitless virtues, thus, with the Buddhas’ blessings, what is there to fear?
The Ultimate Way Out of the Painful Samsara to Reach Lasting Peace:
So what exists beyond the Samsara? It is a most curious question. The answer is that the Samsara is the dimension of common beings, and beyond it are the Sagely realms of the Buddhas. West from this world is the Land of Ultimate Bliss, the Buddha-land of Amitabha. Entirely composed of the seven treasures, pure, august, and surpassing the wonder of the heavenly palaces by a myriad-fold. Its foremost advantage is that all who dwell there have infinite life, unlike the heavenly devas of the Samsara who have limited lifespans and undergo ceaseless rebirths. The Sutras also say that all who rise to the Pure Land are bestowed golden bodies, august resplendence, divine powers, infinite life and food and clothes that manifest on demand. They will all attain Buddha-hood. So how do we attain the Pure Land? The Sutras clearly state that we must recite the name of Amitabha, recite it until we reach the serene state of one heart unconfused, and we will be welcomed into the Land of Ultimate Bliss by Amitabha when our lives end.
