Amitābha (Sanskrit: अमिताभः, Amitābhaḥ; Tibetan: Ö-pa-me) is a celestial buddha described in the scriptures of the
Mahāyāna school of Buddhism. According to these
scriptures, Amitābha possesses infinite merits resulting from good deeds over countless past lives as a bodhisattva named Dharmakara.
Doctrine
According to the Larger Sūtra of Immeasurable Life Amitābha was, in very ancient
times and possibly in another realm, a monk named Dharmakāra. In some versions of the sūtra,
Dharmakāra is described as a former king who, having come into contact with the Buddhist
teachings through the buddha Lokesvararaja, renounced his throne. He then resolved to
become a buddha and so to come into possession of a buddhakṣetra ("buddha-field", a world produced by a buddha's merit)
possessed of many perfections. These resolutions were expressed in his forty-eight vows 四十八願,
which set out the type of buddha-field Dharmakāra aspired to create, the conditions under which beings might be born into that
world, and what kind of beings they would be when reborn there.
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In the versions of the sutra widely known in China, Vietnam, Korea and Japan, Dharmakāra's eighteenth vow was that any being
in any universe desiring to be born into Amitābha's Pure Land and calling upon his name even as few as ten times will be
guaranteed rebirth there. His nineteenth vow promises that he, together with his bodhisattvas and other blessed Buddhists, will
appear before those who call upon him at the moment of death. This openness and acceptance of all kinds of people has made the
Pure Land belief one of the major influences in Mahāyāna Buddhism. Pure Land Buddhism
seems to have first become popular in northwest India/Pakistan and Afghanistan, from where it spread to Central Asia and China, and from China to Vietnam, Korea and Japan.
The sutra goes on to explain that Amitābha, after accumulating great merit over countless lives, finally achieved buddhahood
and is still alive in his land of Sukhāvatī, whose many virtues and joys are described.
The basic doctrines concerning Amitābha and his vows are found in three canonical Mahāyāna texts:
Through his efforts, Amitabha created the "Pure Land" (净土, Chinese: jìngtŭ; Japanese: jōdo; Vietnamese: tịnh
độ) called Sukhāvatī (Sanskrit: "possessing happiness") . Sukhāvatī is situated in
the uttermost west, beyond the bounds of our own world. By the power of his vows, Amitābha has made it possible for all who call
upon him to be reborn into this land, there to undergo instruction by him in the
dharma and ultimately become bodhisattvas and buddhas in their turn (the ultimate goal of
Mahāyāna Buddhism). From there, these same bodhisattvas and buddhas return to our world to help yet more people.
Amitabha in Vajrayana Buddhism
Amitābha is also known in Tibet, Mongolia, and other regions
where Tibetan Buddhism is practised. In the Highest Yoga Tantra class of the Tibetan
Vajrayana Amitabha is considered one of the Five Dhyāni
Buddhas (together with Akṣobhya, Amoghasiddhi,
Ratnasambhava, and Vairocana), who is associated
with the western direction and the skandha of saṃjñā, the aggregate of distinguishing (recognition) and the deep
awareness of individualities. His realm is called either Sukhāvatī (Sanskrit) or Dewachen (tibetan). As his two main disciples,
similar as the Buddha Shakyamuni had two, are seen the Bodhisattvas Vajrapani and Avalokiteshvara, the former to his left and the latter
to his right. In Tibetan Buddhism, there exists a number of famous prayers for taking
rebirth in Sukhavati (Dewachen). One of these was written by Je Tsongkhapa on the request
of Manjushri, who appeared to him in different visions.
The Tibetan Panchen Lamas[1] and Shamarpas[2] are considered to be incarnations of Amitabha.
He is frequently invoked in Tibet either as Buddha Amithaba - especially in the Powa
practices or as Amitāyus - especially in practices relating to longevity and preventing
an untimely death.
In Japanese Vajrayana, or Shingon Buddhism, Amitabha is seen as one of the thirteen
Buddhist deities practitioners pay homage to. The nembutsu used in Pure Land Buddhist schools is incorporated into Shingon, but Shingon also uses special devotional
mantras for Amitabha as well. Amitabha is also one of the Buddhas featured in the Womb Realm
Mandala used in Shingon practices.
Mantras
Amitabha is the center of a number of mantras in Buddhist Vajrayana practices. The Indic
form of the mantra of Amitābha is oṃ amitābha hrīḥ, which is pronounced in its
Tibetan version as Om ami dhewa hri. The Japanese Shingon Buddhist mantra is On amirita teizei kara un which represents the underlying Indic form oṃ
amṛta-teje hara hūṃ.
In addition to using the mantras listed above, many Buddhist schools invoke Amitabha's name in a practice known as
'nianfo' in Chinese and 'nembutsu' in Japanese.
Names in various languages
The proper (nominative) form of Amitābha's name in Sanskrit is Amitābhaḥ. This is a compound of the Sanskrit words amita
("without bound, infinite") and ābhā ("light, splendor"). Consequently, the name is to be interpreted as "he who possesses
light without bound, he whose splendor is infinite".
The name Amitāyus (nominative form Amitāyuḥ) is also used. This is a compound of
amita ("infinite") and āyus ("life"), and so means "he whose life is boundless".
In Chinese, his name is given as 阿彌陀佛 (Ēmítuó Fó), where Ēmítuó is the Chinese representation of the first three
syllables of either Amitābha or Amitāyus, and Fó is Chinese for Buddha (a very early
borrowing of the first syllable of the Sanskrit word).
The name Amitābha is given in Chinese as 無量光 Wúliàngguāng ("Infinite Light "), while the name Amitāyus is given as 無量壽
Wúliàngshòu ("Infinite Life"). These names are not, however, very commonly used.
In Vietnamese, Korean, and Japanese, the
same Chinese characters 阿彌陀佛 are used to represent his name, though they are pronounced slightly differently:
- Vietnamese: A-di-đà Phật
- Korean: Amit'a Bul
- Japanese: Amida Butsu.
In Japanese, he is also called 阿弥陀如来 Amida Nyorai, meaning "Amitābha the Tathāgata".
In Tibetan, Amitābha is called 'od.dpag.med and, as Amitāyus,
tshe.dpag.med.
Iconography
This altar display at a temple in Taiwan shows Amitābha in the center, flanked by
Mahāsthāmaprāpta on the viewer's right and
Guānyīn on the
right.
It can be difficult to distinguish Amitābha from Śākyamuni, as both are portrayed as
possessing all the attributes of a buddha but no distinguishing marks. Amitabha can, however, often be distinguished by his
mudrā: Amitābha is often depicted, when shown seated, displaying the meditation mudrā (thumbs
touching and fingers together (as in the Kamakura statue of Amitābha)) or the exposition
mudrā, while the earth-touching mudrā (right hand pointed downward over the right leg, palm inward) is reserved for a seated
Śākyamuni alone.
When standing, Amitābha is often shown with his left arm bare and extended downward with thumb and forefinger touching, with
his right hand facing outward also with thumb and forefinger touching. The meaning of this mudra
is that wisdom (symbolized by the raised hand) is accessible to even the lowest beings, while the outstretched hand shows that
Amitabha's compassion is directed at the lowest beings, who cannot save themselves.
When not depicted alone, Amitābha is often portrayed with two assistants: Avalokiteśvara (Guānyīn) who appears on his right and Mahāsthāmaprāpta (Dà Shì Zhì) who appears on his left.
In Tibetan Buddhism, Amitābha is red in color (red being the color of love, compassion, and emotional energy). His direction
is west and so he is envisioned as the (red) setting sun. He is seen as the supreme power and energy
of nature, cast on an earthly plain, accessible to all sentient beings. For this reason he is considered one of the most popular
of all Dhyāni Buddhas.
His unique emblem is the lotus. He is thus associated with the attributes of the
lotus: gentleness, openness, and purity.
Archeological origins
Táng Dynasty Amitābha sculpture — Hidden Stream Temple Cave, Longmen Grottoes, China
The first known epigraphic evidence for Amitābha is the bottom part of a statue found in
Govindnagar, Pakistan and now located at the Mathura Museum. The statue is dated to "the 28th
year of the reign of Huviṣka" (i.e., sometime in the latter half of
the second century CE, during the period of the Kuṣāṇa Empire), and was apparently dedicated to "Amitābha Buddha" by a
family of merchants.
The first known sutra mentioning Amitābha is the translation into Chinese of the Pratyutpanna Sūtra by the Kuṣāṇa monk Lokakṣema around 180 CE. This work is said
to be at the origin of Pure Land practice in China.
The appearance of such literature and sculptural remains at the end of the 2nd century suggests that the doctrine of Amitābha
probably developed during the 1st and 2nd centuries CE.
Footnotes
- ^ Tibet is My Country: Autobiography of Thubten Jigme Norbu, Brother of
the Dalai Lama as told to Heinrich Harrer, p. 121. First published in German in 1960. English translation by Edward
Fitzgerald, published 1960. Reprint, with updated new chapter, (1986): Wisdom Publications, London. ISBN 0-86171-045-2.
- ^ Teachers: Shamar Rinpoche. Retrieved on 2007-10-21.
See also
External links
Meeting The Buddhas by Vessantara, published by Windhorse Publications 2003
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