Generating pure aspirations and dedication

Now, the fourth cause of rebirth in Sukhavati--generating pure aspirations and dedication, that is, to dedicate all roots of virtue to sentient beings, wishing oneself and all other sentient beings to be reborn in Sukhavati.

D.4, (Generating pure aspirations) in four parts: 1. Generating aspirations regarding oneself; 2. Generating aspirations by contemplating the virtues of the pure realm; 3. Generating aspirations by contemplating the qualities of the main deity; 4. Aspire to attain Buddhahood eventually.

E.1, (Generating aspirations regarding oneself) in four parts: 1. Aspire to personally see the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas at the end of life; 2. Aspire to have no attachment to samsara at the time of death; 3. Aspire to be reborn in Sukhavati; 4. Aspire for the merits to be gained after rebirth. 

F.1, Aspire to personally see the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas at the end of life:

The moment I and all who has karmic connection 

with me pass on from this life,

may the emanation Buddha Amitabha 

surrounded by his mendicant sangha

appear openly before us.

Content with the joy of beholding him,

may we not experience the suffering of death.

According to historical records: Chakme Rinpoche's mother, servants, guard dog, etc. also went to Sukhavati with him. We should also strive to do the same. If one only takes the good (family and friends, etc.) with him when he goes to Sukhavati and abandon the bad (enemies, etc.), that is attachment and aversion. Therefore, we should make the following wish: All sentient beings have been my parents, so for those who have agreeable connection with me, such as through the Dharma, or giving me tangible help, and for those who have disagreeable connection with me, such as enemies who harm me by robbing, destroying, or causing me sicknesses, when they are about to go to the next life, when they are dying, may they all be saved by Amitabha.

That is, when they have an incurable disease and their body is weak, have no appetite, feeling uncomfortable no matter how the bedding and clothes are, and start to feel heavy as if they are falling into a pit or are pressed by something heavy; their eyes are blurred, cannot see objects clearly; their ears cannot hear any sounds; they feel the intense pain that their life is at the end. At this time, people who have done evils will see scenes of negative karma, and for people who have done good, pleasant and wonderful scenes appear. People have commited serious misdeeds will have a confused mind, become almost crazy, have incoherent speech, and even cannot help but collapse in feces and urine. All these external signs will appear, and the four elements in the body will gradually come to an end.

At this moment, if one has practiced the four causes of rebirth in Sukhavati, he will definitely see the emanation of Amitabha, surrounded by bhikkhus and followers, descending into the rainbow light in the space in front of him. In addition, pray that all sentient beings, foremost those who have established a connection with one and Sukhavati in this Sukhavati Retreat, will be purified of the confused appearances of negative karma, and see Amitabha and his followers in person. After seeing the Buddha's face, by the virtuous effects of the practice that one engages in now, one will recognize him like a son recognizes his mother. Dying in a state of peace, clarity, and joy, and be liberated in the light without any pain of death.

If one meets a guru at the time of death, how happy it will be, not to mention the indescribable joy if one sees Amitabha face to face. What good and bad practices we have now will come to mind at the time of death, so it is very important to practice repeatedly these four causes of rebirth in Sukhavati. As Nagarjuna's "Chapter on Regimen for Life"(?)(养生篇) says: "The merits and demerits of all living beings, are based on repeated practices, what to practice is decided by oneself, so repeated practice is the most superior."

In the past, among the herdsmen in the north, a man who had slaughtered many marmots shouted when he was dying: "Please kill these marmots, drive them away quickly!" Another hunter died with a scream of "Bring me a gun, these deer want to kill me"; a lover of snuffing died in the posture of snuffing; a tailor died in the posture of sewing; a businessman said "Bring the account book", and he died while counting the records; an old monk in the Dzogchen Monastery often recited the Sadhana of water offering, so he passed away while reciting the water offering mantra "Samba..."; a teacher of Yogacara said "Gei, Jeda Chenjin"(?)(“给，杰达秋坚”) and passed away while making a gesture for debate, etc. There are countless such examples that we have heard and seen, so we must develop a good habit (of praying to and visualizing Amitabha anytime and anywhere). 

The so-called suffering of death, for the accomplished monks who have given up the current life, it is only the the end of life and there are no other sufferings. For those who have committed serious misdeeds, (that is unbearable suffering). Such as: experiencing the pain of the breath leaving; the pain of the appearance of confused and disturbing karmic imprints; the pain of fearing death but not being able to continue to live, although one is unwilling to leave his family and friends and properties, but they cannot follow him to leave this life; the pain of fearing the next life like a death row inmate going to the execution ground; because inferior people regret after the fact, they regret extremely strongly for not correctly choosing between good and evil before, to the point where they scratch their chests with their fingers, cry loudly, their eyes filled with tears, their minds filled up complaints. But they must experience the pain of leaving the world alone, naked, and empty-handed. Such immeasurable sufferings are described in sutras such as the "Adamantine Pinnacle Sutra"(?)(教王经). It is said in the "The Way of the Bodhisattva": "My eyes are red and swollen due to worry, my cheeks are dripping with tears. My family and friends have despaired, One sees Yama's messengers. One recalls his misdeeds and feel sorrow and pain, upon hearing the sound one fears falling into hell. One becomes deranged and covers oneself with filth. What should one do then?" The noble Milarepa also said: "If one sees the death of an evildoer, he meets a virtuous friend who teaches karma cause and effect."        

May the eight bodhisattva brothers miraculously

appear in the sky before us.

And by their knowledge of the path to

Sukhavati may they guide us along that path.

Therefore, when one is on the verge of death, is about to see the terrifying scene of the bardo, pray that Manjushri and the other eight great bodhisattvas will descend in the sky in front of you with their supernatural powers, and say "Welcome, vrituous man" in a pleasant voice, while pointing out the way to Sukhavati, and lead the way in front of you in the colorful rainbow light accompanied by the wonderful music produced by musical instruments. So that one doesn't need to see the bardo and will be led to Sukhavati. Guru Tsongkhapa said, "May it be that, at the end of my life, the Buddha of Infinite Light appears, surrounded by a sea of entourage, may faith and compassion peravde my mind. May it be that, immediately when the scene of the bardo appears, the eight great bodhisattvas appear in their emanations, and show me the right way to be reborn in Sukhavati, guiding the people form the impure world..." is also the same as this. The "Shorter Amitabha Sutra" says, "... then when these people are about to die, Amitabha and his noble retinue, will appear before them. When these people die, their minds will not fall into delusion, and they will be reborn in Amitabha's Sukhavati." Samantabhadra's "The King of Aspiration Prayers" also says, "When the time of death comes for me, May all my obscurations vanish; Seeing Amitabha directly. May I go to his realm of Sukhavati." The "Jewel Box Sutra" says, "Anyone who hears the six-syllable mantra 'Om Mani Padme Hum', will be led by the twelve Buddhas and the eight great Bodhisattvas to be reborn in Sukhavati at the end of his life." We must realize that this is due to the power of Amitabha's aspirations and vows, as well as our own accumulation of merits, clearing of karmic obstacles, and devotion and faith.

F.2, (Aspire to eliminate attachment to samsara at death) in two parts: 1. Develop aversion to the suffering of samsara; 2. Eliminate attachment.

G.1, Develop aversion to the suffering of samsara:

The suffering of the lower realms is unbearable, 

and the happiness of gods and men is impermanent.

May this cause fear to arise in me.

Samsara has endured from beginningless time until now.

May this cause sadness and renunciation to arise in me.

Aspire to clear the obstacles to rebirth in Sukhavati after death - attachment to samsara. First, contemplate on the sufferings of the many harms: If we observe the samsara of the three realms in detail, we will find that there is nothing that warrants our attachment. The happiness of the human and heavenly realms may seem blissful, but it is impermanent. The sufferings of burning in the eight hot hells, the sufferings of severe cold in the eight cold hells, the sufferings of instantaneous birth and death and of being hacked and cut in the isolated hells and the adjacent hells, are all extremely unbearable.

In the past, the two nephews of Venerable Ananda did not practice virtuous deeds and lived a lazy life. At this time, Maudgalyayana took them to hell. They were terrified and developed a desire to leave samsara. They thought of hell in the morning, and they have difficulty swallowing at lunch. They recalled hell in the afternoon, and they would vomit all the food they ate. So they practiced hard and finally attained Arhathood.

Nagarjuna's "Letter to a Friend" says: "Even if one sees or hears a painting of hell, or think of, read, or form a mental picture, one can also feel fear, let alone truely experiencing the retribution fruit." Just seeing a painting of hell or hearing the suffering of hell can also cause fear, let alone experiencing it personally...

There are many different kinds of sufferings in the realm of hungry ghosts, mainly the suffering of hunger and thirst.

In the past, when Venerable Shronakotikarna went to the realm of hungry ghosts, he came to a big hungry ghost city. Because he was thirsty, he asked, "Is there any water here?" As a result, thousands of hungry ghosts with bodies as thin as firewood gathered around Shronakotikarna and clamored, "Give us water!" Shronakotikarna said, "I am also extremely thirsty, how can I give you water?" The hungry ghosts said, "It has been twelve years since we were reborn here. During this time, let alone drinking water, we have never even heard of the term 'water'. We only heard it from you today." This is because: when they were reborn as many stingy rich people, they did not make offerings or give alms, and also ridiculed others with pride, so they were reborn here.

The common sufferings of all hungry ghosts, such as even the sun is cold in winter and even the moon is hot in summer, and the upset conditions of the four seasons. Sufferings like these are countless.

The Buddha said in the sutra, "We should look at and think about the beings in the animal realm." Through what we hear and see, we can fully understand that all animals are experiencing the suffering of being enslaved by humans, eating each other, and so on. There are many kinds of sufferings such as the animals living in the sea or in the mountains eating their own flesh, the small animals building nests on the bodies of the big animals and eating them. Generally speaking, animals are constantly experiencing the suffering of ignorance.

If you find it unbearable to just hear the sounds of the sufferings in the three lower realms, then it will be even more unbearable when actually experiencing it. If you can't even endure the insignificant cold, heat, hunger, and thirst in this life, just like a live fish falling into hot sand, then how can you endure the sufferings of the evil realms that last for several kalpas? Before this, we have been reborn in the three evil realms countless times. From now on, we must find ways and work hard to strive not to fall into the evil realms, and we must develop the desire to renunciate like Ananda's two nephews.

Even if one has the fruit of being a deva or human in the good realms, one still cannot be free of sufferings. The so-called suffering of the heavenly beings falling at death refers to the fact that death signs start showing seven days before they die, (with their divine eyes) they will see themselves falling into the evil realms (after death). As a result, the suffering they feel in the seven days before death is greater than the happiness they have enjoyed in the previous kalpas; humans suffer from the impermanence of life and death, separation from loved ones, being together with the despised ones, diseases, wars, famines, etc. This is obvious. The sentient beings in the human and heavenly realms, due to confusion, regard suffering as happiness. In fact, all superficial happiness is like the mirage of spring, which lasts only an fleeting instant, and absolutely cannot be separated from the nature of impermanence and suffering. As it is said in Nagarjuna's "Letter to a Friend": "Indra is worthy of offerings by humans in the world, but he also fell to the earth when karma takes effect. Even if he was once a wheel-turning king, he is still a servant in the cycle of samara." Thinking about this truth, how can our happiness, which is like a beggar eating his fill, be permanent?

In short, as the Satipatthana Sutra says: "Hell beings suffer from the fire of hell, hungry ghosts suffer from hunger, animals suffer from devouring each other, human beings suffer from short lives, asuras suffer from fighting, devas suffer from laxity. Samsara is like the tip of a needle, there is no peace and happiness at any time." Realize that all places in samsara, upper or lower realms, are like the land of Rakshasa and a prison without liberation, then pray to have a fear of samsara. After knowing that the difference between the suffering of samsara and the happiness of Sukhavati is like the difference between a fire pit and a cool room, one must make a choice. Thinking about the long suffering of samsara, the long suffering experienced from the beginning of beginningless samsara till now, if a person with the ability to see past lives observes, he will really spit blood. 

That is to say, the molten copper and iron that one has drunk in hell, the pus and filth that one has eaten when reborn as hungry ghosts, the milk that one drank, the blood that one sucked each other when being animals, the tears that one shed because of grief, the milk that one sucked from his mothers as human beings, etc., if accumulated in one place, would be more than the water in the (four) oceans; even the heads, hands, and feet that one fell, the skeletons that scattered after death when one was reborn as ants or beings above, etc., if accumulated in one place, would be higher than Mount Sumeru. After Reza(?)(热扎) recalled his past lives, he wrote a Confession with Sorrow, in which he said: "If the bones and flesh were gathered they would be as high as Mount Sumeru, if the pus and blood were gathered they would be as much as the sea, if karmas created in the past were accumulated they are endlessly, and I am floundering in the three realms of life and death, still engaging in meaningless and futile things."

In addition, the "Letter to a Friend"", "Satipatthana Sutra", and "The Words of My Perfect Teacher" also describe the disadvantages of samara in detail. One can understand them if he can read them.

For example: Bhikkhu Huajie(?)(华杰比丘) was still very lazy in his old age and could not practice the dharma diligently. In order to generate aversion to samara in him, Venerable Maudgalyayana took him to the seaside. There was huge skeleton that is hard as stone and as big as a high mountain, which was 700 yojanas high. It blocked the sun, and the shadow of the mountain casted on the sea created an area of darkness. The two of them climbed up the mountain and crossed the ribs which is like a valley. At this time, the Bhikkhu Huajie asked the Venerable Moggallana: "How did this mountain come into existence?" The Venerable said: "This mountain is the skeletons of your previous lives." Then he told the story in detail: "Long time ago, you were a king named Dharmajaya. At that time, a man broke the law, and the ministers reported the matter to the king. The king was busy playing cards and having fun, so he said casually: "Punish him according to my law!" The ministers checked the law codes and found that the man should be sentenced to death, so they executed him. After the king finished playing cards, he asked his subordinates: "What crime did that man commit and how was he punished?" The ministers reported: "Following your majesty's will, he has been executed according to the law." The king regretted it greatly after hearing this, and said: "I killed a person, and has become a fatuous king. I don't want to rule anymore." 

Then he wandered in the mountains. Because of this crime of killing, he was reborn as a big whale in this sea after death, its body was 700 yojanas long. When it closed its mouth and fell asleep, it would not wake up for a hundred years. When it woke up, it was extremely hungry, so it opened its mouth wide, and the sea water flowed into its mouth like a rushing ocean. All the ministers and others who had committed misdeeds were reborn into small whales or parasites in its body, and ate its flesh. It was in unbearable pain, so it rubbed itself against the crystal mountain, killing all the living beings on its body. The blood diffused in the sea water, making the area within a hundred krosa(*) blood red in the ocean. The whale continued to experience this pain for thousands of years. Its body was washed here by the waves after it died. It was dried by the scorching sun, and soaked by rains. All the flesh worn off, and the remaining skeleton became this mountain. "

(*one krosa is about 833 meters)

If one must experience such sufferings killing just one person, then it goes without saying that how, caused by killing many people, (the sufferings of) being in hell for a long time would be.

May we develop aversion from the bottom of our hearts to such a long and painful samsaric cyclic existence. Now that we have received a human body, and know the Dharma, that we can understand samsara clearly at this moment, we should say without any regrets: "Samsara, may you rest in peace. From now on, I will no longer accompany you, but will go to Sukhavati." We must wave goodbye to samara. Otherwise, small misdeeds like drops of water commited in the past will also cause you to experience ocean-like sufferings in the future.