B06 The Effects of Amitabha-Recitation: Eyewitness Accounts

Brief Introduction

The present volume records some very special episodes from the lives of ordinary Pure Land practitioners. The accounts are remarkable, revealing and inspiring. The diverse contents of the book can be summed up in a single phrase: Namo Amitabha Buddha. After reading through these stories attentively, you may find yourself unexpectedly touched by something deep in your heart, a delightful discovery.

Each account is either related or written by eyewitnesses to the events described. In every story, the genuine benefits of reciting Amitabha Buddha’s great six-character name manifest themselves in one way or another. Such experiences may not be as familiar as the sun rising in the east every morning. However, they are as real as the fact that the earth circles around the sun. (Indeed, we never actually see the earth circumambulating the sun, but may feel it is the sun that revolves around the earth. Yet we do not deny the fact, even though we never see it with our own eyes.)

Not all the protagonists of these stories know the underlying causes of their experiences. They simply practice Amitabha-recitation and enjoy the resulting benefits. They just happen, like flowers growing and blossoming in the sun without necessarily knowing why. That’s simply the way flowers are – and the way “Namo Amitabha” works. By reciting the six-character name, we spontaneously, naturally reap the benefits.

When something is real and genuine, it is usually universal rather than particular, free from limitations of person, time, space and occasion. Yes, people may be separated by mountains and oceans, and divided by time zones, skin colors and languages. They may have different backgrounds and personalities, or worship disparate things in diverse rituals. And they have dissimilar livelihoods and achievements.

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