The practice of Amitabha-recitation embodies a fascinating paradox: it's both utterly simple and infinitely profound. The act of recitation itself is so straightforward that anyone with a voice can do it, yet the name "Amitabha Buddha" encompasses truths so deep that even Bodhisattvas (who are enlightened) cannot fully fathom them. This practice is truly universal. It’s accessible to everyone, excluding no one.

       However, some people often dismiss it as too simple. "How can merely reciting a name be significant?" they ask. Yet this apparent simplicity conceals profound meaning and power.

       It's like our everyday experience with modern transportation. We routinely board planes, trains, and ships without a second thought, yet behind this simple act lies incredible complexity. For example, when we’re taking a flight, we owe everything to the aviation experts! They’re the brains behind such an amazing mode of transportation.  Passengers are not the source of this brilliance.

       Similarly, as practitioners of Amitabha-recitation, our daily routine appears ordinary - we eat, sleep, and recite the Buddha's name, aspiring for rebirth in the Pure Land. Yet the name we recite, "Namo Amitabha Buddha," carries extraordinary power. This name emerged from Amitabha Buddha's forty-eight great vows, which surpass all vows made by other Buddhas and Bodhisattvas throughout the entire universe. These vows, fulfilled through countless eons of virtuous practice, culminated in this name of infinite merit.

       Among these forty-eight vows, the seventeenth is particularly significant. Known as the "Acclamation by all Buddhas," it states:

"If, when I attain Buddhahood, innumerable buddhas in the lands of the ten directions should not all praise and glorify my name, may I not attain perfect enlightenment."

       Consider the profound implications of this. When every Buddha throughout the universe unanimously praises the name "Namo Amitabha Buddha," how can we possibly comprehend its inconceivable significance?

       “Namo Amitabha” is the most profound name, yet the simplest and easiest to recite. In a natural and ordinary manner, it leads us to rebirth in the Pure Land where we ultimately attain Buddhahood.

(Translated by the Pure Land School Translation Team;
edited by Householder Fojin)