The primary objective of Amitabha Buddha’s vows is the assurance of our rebirth in the Pure Land after this life, while worldly benefits in this life are secondary. If one can achieve rebirth in the Pure Land, then worldly blessings naturally follow.

       It’s like someone effortlessly stepping over a one-foot ditch if he can leap a ten-foot trench, or gathering straw as a byproduct of harvesting rice. If even worldly blessings - such as averting calamities, increasing prosperity, or longevity - were unattainable, then rebirth in the Pure Land would be even more inconceivable.

       The uniqueness of Amitabha Buddha’s name is that it encompasses two-fold blessings. While other practices (such as reciting the Diamond Sutra, calling out the name of the Medicine Buddha, or chanting the Great Compassion Mantra) can bring worldly benefits, only the recitation of Amitabha’s name guarantees both blessings in this life and rebirth beyond this life.

       Some newcomers of the Pure Land path may be wondering why Amitabha’s 48 vows do not explicitly mention worldly benefits. In reality, these vows provide only the broad framework of Amitabha’s merits and power. If one were to speak tirelessly, day and night, for an entire eon, one would not be able to describe all the benefits such vows bring.

       As Shakyamuni Buddha declares in the Infinite Life Sutra:

“The majestic radiance of Amitabha’s light is so wondrous that even if I were to extol it continuously, day and night, for an entire kalpa, I could never fully convey its magnificence.”

       Amitabha’s  majestic light is most exalted and magnificent. It symbolizes the Buddha’s boundless merit and power, which bestow both worldly blessings and assured rebirth - benefits so inconceivable that even Shakyamuni Buddha could not fully describe them.

       It’s clear that the 48 vows provide only a broad outline. Since Amitabha’s name is endowed with infinite, inconceivable virtues, it naturally encompasses all the merits and blessings found in the teachings of the Buddha. Otherwise, why would  Shakyamuni Buddha and the countless Buddhas of the ten directions unanimously extol its inconceivable power?

       Reciting Amitabha’s name brings the two-fold blessings of this life’s good fortune and rebirth in the Pure Land. However, in “this age of the five defilements,” such a teaching is considered a “hard-to-believe and hard-to-explain path.” In the Amitabha Sutra, Shakyamuni Buddha laments:

“I have for the sake of the world delivered this teaching, which is so hard for [people] to accept in faith. This is indeed an extremely difficult task.”

       From these verses, we can see that even Shakyamuni Buddha acknowledged how difficult it is for people to believe that reciting “Namo Amitabha Buddha” can bring about the twofold blessings. It is not easily accepted, nor is it easy to explain it fully and convincingly to others.

       Philosophy, science, and medicine rely on human reasoning and observation. However, such methods are incapable of comprehending the inconceivable state of Amitabha Buddha. The finite mind cannot fully grasp the boundless and infinite.

      The Infinite Life Sutra states:

“Arrogant, corrupt, and  indolent people cannot readily accept this teaching.”

       By contrast, those who are humble are more likely to develop faith in Amitabha’s deliverance, enabling them to receive worldly blessings in this life and assured rebirth in the next.

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