lands, the contemplation of Amitabha and his realm,
nevertheless, historically has come to occupy a signif-
icant position in tantric practice. During the twelfth to
the fourteenth centuries, Sukhavatfigured promi-
nently in visions of RNYING MA(NYINGMA) masters
among whom Dam pa Bde gshegs (1122–1192) devel-
oped a tantric sadhanafor visualizing Amitabha, along
with a prayer for rebirth in his land. The BKA’ BRGYUD
(KAGYU) tradition accorded special significance to a
tantric technique called “transference” (‘pho ba), in
which consciousness at the moment of DEATHcould
be projected to a desired realm of rebirth. Later in his-
tory this goal was explicitly linked to the attainment of
Sukhavat. Yet another type of Pure Land contempla-
tion is found in a “sleep exercise” (nyal bsgom), made
popular by the SA SKYA(SAKYA) order. In this practice,
the adept before sleep visualizes himself as a deity in
Sukhavatbefore a seated Amitabha. The visualization,
which culminates in a dissolving of Amitabha into the
adept, is practiced with the belief that it will lead to
eventual rebirth in Sukhavat.
Other practices
The various meditative disciplines described above
have occupied a significant but by no means exclusive
position in the tradition of Pure Land practice. Some-
times, general Buddhist merit-gaining activities, such
as the strict observance of PRECEPTS, the chanting or
copying of scriptures, the commissioning of carved
images, and other forms of donative activity, have
been imbued with Pure Land significance. Also
throughout Mahayana traditions are found prayers
and, in Vajrayana, the recitation of DHARANIthat seek
rebirth for oneself and members of one’s family. More
proper to the original Mahayana vision, Pure Land
practice has often been integrated into the larger con-
text of the bodhisattva vocation with its concomitant
host of activities aimed at the acquisition and trans-
ference of merit as well as at the aiding of all sentient
beings. In Pure Land accounts, we find devotees tak-
ing the bodhisattva precepts and engaging in bod-
hisattva acts, such as the building of bridges and the
digging of wells, the releasing of living creatures des-
tined for slaughter, the conversion of people from tak-
ing of life, the eating of meat, the providing of hostels
for travelers, and the burial of the dead. On a more
extreme note, some Pure Land adherents undertook
the physical austerities (dhuta) enjoined in the bod-
hisattva precepts and Mahayana scriptures, such as the
LOTUSSUTRA(SADDHARMAPUNDARIKA-SUTRA). Prac-
titioners burnt fingers, limbs, and sometimes even
their entire person both as acts of devotion to the
Lotus Sutraand as deeds done in the hope of rebirth
in Pure Land. Beyond these acts of SELF-IMMOLATION,
religious suicide within Pure Land found expression
in Kamakura Japan when devotees drowned them-
selves in expectation of rebirth.
The goal of rebirth in the Pure Land made the pe-
riod directly preceding and that immediately follow-
ing death a critical time fraught with both danger and
opportunity in the determination of one’s future des-
tiny. This resulted in the creation of deathbed and fu-
nerary practices that aided the dying and the newly
deceased in the attainment of Pure Land. The content
of one’s last thoughts were thought to be the crucial
factor in determining one’s next rebirth, and thus
deathbed rites were designed to assist the dying in forg-
ing a karmic link with the Pure Land by fixing their
mind on Amitabha. Depending on the dying person’s
disposition, deathbed rituals might involve repen-
tance, the chanting of sutras, or, most importantly,
mindful recollection of Amitabha (nianfo, nenbutsu),
deriving largely from the promise of the Guan Wu-
liangshou jingthat ten uninterrupted thoughts on the
Buddha would lead to rebirth even for those who had
accumulated a lifetime of evil karma. Increasingly, this
latter practice was interpreted in terms of vocally recit-
ing the Buddha’s name. The dying person was en-
couraged to intone the Buddha’s name, and, if that was
no longer possible, it was done for him or her by as-
sistants. He or she would be often placed in front of
an image of Amitabha and given a cord to hold that
was attached to Amitabha’s right hand. This symbolic
link portended both the aspirant’s hope for rebirth and
the grace and power of the Buddha flowing through
the connection. Funeral rites in East Asia and in the
Tibetan cultural area have often attended to the theme
of rebirth in Sukhavatthrough liturgical expression
and prayers.
Underpinning deathbed and funeral practices was a
promise articulated in Amitabha’s nineteenth vow that
at the moment of death Amitabha and his attendant
bodhisattvas would appear before the devotee. In
Japan, this belief inspired the creation of artistic and
ritual representations of this crucial event signifying
the attainment of rebirth. Raigozu,paintings depicting
Amitabha and his retinue descending on a white cloud
to meet the dying devotee, became popular during the
Heian period. The same period also witnessed the
widespread enactment of mukaeko,a ceremony in
which the Buddha’s coming was recreated in song and
dance accompanied by verbal chanting of the nenbutsu.PURELANDBUDDHISM