Namo Amitabha Buddha.
Hi, everyone.
I am sorry about the confusing topic title. My English and Buddhism vocabularies are limited, so I tried every word I could think of. I hope there is someone who knows both Vietnamese and English here to help me to explain, if my wording is wrong.
A bit of background about myself and the Pure Land school where I come from:
I am a Vietnamese Buddhist and Pure Land practitioner. Pure Land school in Vietnam is influenced by Chinese Pure Land school, so I also read/watch dharma talks (translated into Vietnamese) from Chinese monks. For an example, Venerable Master Chin Kung and Venerable Master Hsuan Hua talks/books are quite popular in Vietnam. Honen is also well known in Vietnam, so I got to read some his books (translated into Vietnamese).
It's generally agreed (at least among folks I know) that the three main reasons to be reborn in Pure Land are Trust (Vietnamese: Tín), Vow (Vietnamese: Nguyện) and Practice (Vietnamese: Hạnh). The first two are the most important. The last (Practice) just determines the level of rebirth. However, since we are not sure how we would die (i.e. peacefully at home, painfully in hospital, in a traffic accidence, etc. ), so we must practice diligently, anytime, anywhere.
In meditation, there are different levels of concentration/samadhi/dhyana (I use several words, because I am not sure which one is right) to mark your progression. In Pure Land, people generally just practice nianfo/nembutsu and rarely talk about the level or the depth of their practice.
Recently, I met some folks at a pagoda/template. They said if you practice diligently, then you could hear the sound of nianfo/nembutsu/Buddha-recitation. As I understand from what they described, it is like auditory hallucination: You can hear the sound of yourself or some are reciting Namo Amitabha Buddha but it's not the actual sound. The sound comes from within your mind, but it's not the same as thinking/reciting Amitabha Buddha name in your mind. The sound is really like sound, not just thoughts. Some even hear the sound of nianfo/nembutsu from every sound (e.g. the sound of the fan, the sound of the rain, ... all becomes the sound of nianfo/nembutsu).
According to them, there are several different levels:
Level 1: You can hear the recitation sound sometime while you are awake, but not while you sleep. You should listen to the recitation sound when there is, and practicing Buddha recitation there is not.
Level 2: You can hear the recitation sound all day long while you are awake, but not while you sleep. Your practice is then mainly about listening mindfully to the recitation sound.
Level 3: You can hear the recitation sound 24/7, even while you sleep. Every sound is now the recitation sound. Your mind is free from confusing thoughts. There may be some confusing thoughts sometime, but they are wiped away quickly by the recitation sound.
(From what I observed from people who might have achieved level 2 or 3, they can sit still for many hours without discomfort. It might like like they are mediating, but actually they are just listening to the recitation sound and enjoy it.)
Achieving Level 2 and 3 pretty much guarantee a rebirth in Pure Land. There are also higher levels which is said to be equal to achieving enlightenment in this life time.
Interestingly, Venerable Master Hsuan Hua also said similar things (http://online.sfsu.edu/rone/Buddhism/BT ... lness.html):
"The pure heart is like the moon in water. The mind in samadhi is like a cloudless sky.If you can recite so completely that you enter the Buddha-recitation samadhi, then hearing the wind, it's "Namo Amitabha Buddha," and hearing the rain, it's "Namo Amitabha Buddha." Every sound you hear recites the Buddha's name."
More interestingly, some time later after I met those folks, I also heard that there are people who have achieved this level, but they got sick (there are probably other reasons) and lost it (they don't hear the nianfo/nembutsu sound anymore). So they switched to practicing Phowa to ensure the rebirth in Amitabha Pure Land.
I am curious if you also have the similar experience or heard something similar to this. Please share with me.
Namo Amitabha Buddha,
an_user
Buddha-recitation samadhi, hearing recitation sound, auditory hallucination
Re: Buddha-recitation samadhi, hearing recitation sound, auditory hallucination
Bumping this old thread for some discussion.
Information on the buddha-recitation samadhi is hard to come by. Can anyone provide some reading or resources?
I've seen buddha-remembrance practitioners from Jodoshu, Chinese, and Vietnamese all describe something like above, an experience of hearing Amida's name "external" to one's own chanting. It's sometimes accompanied by heavenly music, wonderful aromas, or light.
Information on the buddha-recitation samadhi is hard to come by. Can anyone provide some reading or resources?
I've seen buddha-remembrance practitioners from Jodoshu, Chinese, and Vietnamese all describe something like above, an experience of hearing Amida's name "external" to one's own chanting. It's sometimes accompanied by heavenly music, wonderful aromas, or light.
Namu Amida Butsu
Re: Buddha-recitation samadhi, hearing recitation sound, auditory hallucination
Shan-Tao's Kannenbomon might be a good start. While his Commentary on the Visualization Sutra is probably the best resource, it's not translated into English at the moment, and this one will give a good overview of what to do with the mind while reciting. The descriptions are meant to supplement what's in the Visualization and Pratyutpanna Samadhi Sutras. He also recommends reciting the Amitabha Sutra. The Amitabha Sutra's description of the Pure Land is about the only one I've ever been able to wrap my head around. FWIW - his recommendation of 10,000 nembutsu a day would probably take 2 to 2.5 hours based on my standard pace. Just doing the math on what he wrote, most of his recommendations are definitely geared towards full-time Dharma practitioners (ie monks) - so I wouldn't get discouraged.
In regards to hearing the recitation - what I've read only tangentially relates to the OP. Maybe my interpretation is off, but I always understood it as reciting to the point that recitation flows naturally, without effort, such that one hears one's own recitation while having absolutely no intention/effort to recite - as if the mouth recites all on its own.
In regards to hearing the recitation - what I've read only tangentially relates to the OP. Maybe my interpretation is off, but I always understood it as reciting to the point that recitation flows naturally, without effort, such that one hears one's own recitation while having absolutely no intention/effort to recite - as if the mouth recites all on its own.
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Re: Buddha-recitation samadhi, hearing recitation sound, auditory hallucination
This sort of thing is taught in my tradition, this idea of a mind-made "sound" arising. I personally don't think that it's necessarily samadhi, but I do think it's a sign of access concentration (upacara-samadhi). At some point, the recitations become sort of autonomous, and are a sort of mentally-generated music. If you've ever heard ghosts speak to you before, it's like that--it's sound, but not sound coming through the ears. I feel it's analogous to access concentration, because it effectively occurs at that same point as breath-meditation when the breath vanishes and must be replaced by a mind-made object to continue cultivating concentration further. Likewise, the object of the recitation "disappears", as no effort is given to reciting, but the recitation object remains in the domain of the mind.Admin_PC wrote: ↑Sun Nov 11, 2018 9:34 pm In regards to hearing the recitation - what I've read only tangentially relates to the OP. Maybe my interpretation is off, but I always understood it as reciting to the point that recitation flows naturally, without effort, such that one hears one's own recitation while having absolutely no intention/effort to recite - as if the mouth recites all on its own.
That said, I've never heard of these three levels OP is talking about.
Nam mô A di đà Phật
Nam mô Quan Thế Âm Bồ tát
Nam mô Đại Thế Chi Bồ Tát
Nam mô Bổn sư Thích ca mâu ni Phật
Nam mô Di lặc Bồ tát
Nam mô Địa tạng vương Bồ tát
Nam mô Quan Thế Âm Bồ tát
Nam mô Đại Thế Chi Bồ Tát
Nam mô Bổn sư Thích ca mâu ni Phật
Nam mô Di lặc Bồ tát
Nam mô Địa tạng vương Bồ tát
Re: Buddha-recitation samadhi, hearing recitation sound, auditory hallucination
The mental recitation is covered in Taming the Monkey Mind as "8) Silent Recitation", but I guess I never thought of it rising spontaneously when one wasn't already reciting.