ESSENCE OF THE INFINITE LIFE SUTRA ESSENCE OF THE INFINITE LIFE SUTRA VENERABLE MASTER CHIN KUNG PURE LAND COLLEGE PRESS TOOWOOMBA, AUSTRALIA © 2013 by Pure Land College Press Some rights reserved. No part of this book may be altered without written permission from the publisher. Reprinting is allowed for non-profit use. For the latest edition, contact [email protected] Translation by the Pure Land Translation Team Cover design by Pure Land College Press Cover image © Wong Sze Fei - Fotolia.com 16 15 14 13 1 2 3 4 5 National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication Data Author: Shi, Chin Kung. Title: Essence of the infinite life sutra / Chin Kung Shi. ISBN: 9780980711486 (pbk.) Subjects: Pure Land Buddhism--Doctrines. Buddhism--Doctrines. Dewey Number: 294.3926 Published by: Pure Land Learning College Association, Inc. 57 West St., Toowoomba, Qld 4350, Australia T: 07 4637 8765 F: 07 4637 8764 E: [email protected] www.purelandcollege.org.au Printed in Taiwan by He Yu Publication House CONTENTS Venerable Master Chin Kung AM i Foreword vii Preface ix Excerpt 1 1 Excerpt 21 156 Excerpt 2 12 Excerpt 22 160 Excerpt 3 23 Excerpt 23 162 Excerpt 4 24 Excerpt 24 171 Excerpt 5 27 Excerpt 25 176 Excerpt 6 30 Excerpt 26 180 Excerpt 7 32 Excerpt 27 185 Excerpt 8 38 Excerpt 28 191 Excerpt 9 42 Excerpt 29 196 Excerpt 10 54 Excerpt 30 200 Excerpt 11 65 Excerpt 31 204 Excerpt 12 66 Excerpt 32 207 Excerpt 13 72 Excerpt 33 209 Excerpt 14 81 Excerpt 34 211 Excerpt 15 83 Excerpt 35 219 Excerpt 16 86 Excerpt 36 221 Excerpt 17 104 Excerpt 37 224 Excerpt 18 113 Excerpt 38 227 Excerpt 19 124 Excerpt 39 228 Excerpt 20 141 Excerpt 40 229 Excerpt 41 231 Excerpt 51 292 Excerpt 42 237 Excerpt 52 299 Excerpt 43 244 Excerpt 53 306 Excerpt 44 256 Excerpt 54 308 Excerpt 45 260 Excerpt 55 314 Excerpt 46 269 Excerpt 56 317 Excerpt 47 275 Excerpt 57 323 Excerpt 48 279 Excerpt 58 326 Excerpt 49 284 Excerpt 59 332 Excerpt 50 289 Excerpt 60 335 ESSENCE OF THE INFINITE LIFE SUTRA VENERABLE MASTER CHIN KUNG AM Venerable Master Chin Kung AM, born in 1927, is an eminent monk in the Pure Land school of Ma- hayana Buddhism. He has learned Buddhism for more than sixty years and has lectured on it for over fifty years. He is advisor to over 100 Amitabha Buddhist Societies and Pure Land Learning Centers worldwide. In 2001, he founded the Pure Land Learning College Association, Inc. (PLLCA), Toowoomba, Australia. Master Chin Kung pioneered the use of the Internet and satellite television in propagating the Buddha’s teachings. His recorded lectures are dis- tributed in books and on DVDs, CDs, and other media. He has sponsored the printing and distribu- tion of the Buddhist Canon and Buddhist sutras, books, and images as well as books on moral edu- cation. All these are freely distributed worldwide. To this day, the Master still teaches tirelessly on a daily basis. His lectures are broadcast live to audi- ences around the world. Born in Lujiang County, Anhui Province, i ESSENCE OF THE INFINITE LIFE SUTRA China, the Master studied Buddhism and the clas- sics under the guidance of Professor Fang Dong- mei, a great philosopher of his time; Zhangjia Liv- ing Buddha, a renowned monk of the Tibetan Buddhist tradition; and Mr. Li Bingnan, a lay prac- titioner and master of Buddhism and Confucian- ism. In 1959, Master Chin Kung became a monk at Linji Temple in Yuanshan, Taipei and was given the Dharma name Chin Kung, which means “pure emptiness.” He has served as instructor at the Tripitaka Institute at Shipu Temple, professor of the School of Philosophy at the Chinese Culture University, and president of the Chinese Buddhist College. Master Chin Kung founded the Hwa Dzan Dharma Giving Association, the Hwa Dzan Bud- dhist Audio-Visual Library, and the Corporate Body of the Buddha Educational Foundation in Taiwan. For his achievements in building interfaith harmony and fostering peace, Master Chin Kung was awarded honorary doctorates and professor- ships by the University of Queensland, Griffith ii ESSENCE OF THE INFINITE LIFE SUTRA University, and the University of Southern Queensland; Australia, and Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University, Indonesia. He is the Honorary Founding Patron of the Australian Cen- tre for Peace and Conflict Studies at the University of Queensland. In 2005, Master Chin Kung was appointed to the Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in the General Division by Queen Elizabeth II. He was recognized for service to the Buddhist community in Queensland, particularly through the propaga- tion of Buddhism and the fostering of interfaith activities between diverse ethnic groups, and to the community through support for educational and health institutions. In 2006, Master Chin Kung and the PLLCA were invited by UNESCO to co-organize the event “Celebrating the 2550th Birth Anniversary of the Buddha” at UNESCO Headquarters, Paris. The subject of the event was “Discover the Buddhist Contribution to Humanity” to enable more people to learn from the Buddha how to reconcile conflict and promote social stability and world peace iii ESSENCE OF THE INFINITE LIFE SUTRA through education. The goal was to prove that through the moral teachings of sages and saints, it is possible to teach people to be good, and it is pos- sible to teach people of different faiths to live to- gether harmoniously. In 2009, Master Chin Kung was appointed as an International Trustee of Religions for Peace, an international peace organization that is active on every continent. Its mission is to create multi- religious partnerships to confront issues such as stopping war, ending poverty, and protecting the earth. Since the late 1990s, Master Chin Kung has both initiated and participated in interfaith forums and summits in many countries speaking on the importance of education. He explains that it is im- perative that all religious teachers sincerely “learn to be a teacher and act as a role model for all” and encourages these teachers to practice the teachings of the sages and saints in their daily life, delve deeply into the teachings of their own religions, and also humbly learn from other religions. Currently he is lecturing on the Infinite Life iv ESSENCE OF THE INFINITE LIFE SUTRA Sutra, hoping that the daily teachings can trans- form the current mindset of people today and help foster world peace. Master Chin Kung’s message of loving-kindness and compassion for all has been the central theme of his teaching. With thoughts of sincerity, respect, humility, and harmony, he dedi- cates himself to help all beings gain long-lasting happiness and joy. This has been his life's work. v ESSENCE OF THE INFINITE LIFE SUTRA FOREWORD In August 1993, Venerable Master Chin Kung gave an eight-hour lecture series titled Essence of the Infinite Life Sutra at Ta Kioh Buddhist Temple in San Francisco, USA. The Hwa Dzan Lecture Notes Team transcribed the recorded lectures and organized them. In addition, relevant segments from the lectures on the Infinite Life Sutra given in San Jose in June 1992 were excerpted as a sup- plement. This compiled transcription was given to Vener- able Master Chin Kung for correction and editing. Originally titled Lecture Notes on the Essence of the Infinite Life Sutra, it has now been translated and published under its original name. Freely circu- lated, it is humbly offered to readers for them to benefit from the Dharma. Pure Land Translation Team Toowoomba, Australia November 2013 vii ESSENCE OF THE INFINITE LIFE SUTRA PREFACE For this lecture series at Ta Kioh Buddhist Temple, I plan to give four lectures, eight hours in total, to introduce the Infinite Life Sutra. The Infinite Life Sutra is called The Longer Sutra in the Pure Land school. I have given several lecture series on it in the United States. In the past few years, the Buddhist Canon has been printed in Taiwan and distributed worldwide. After more than ten reprints, the number of copies in circulation is very impressive. Chinese classics such as the Complete Library of the Four Branches of Literature and Selections from the Four Branches of Literature have also been published and given to libraries around the world. Therefore, there is no fear of their being lost to the world. The literary treasures are abundant, but it would be a shame if no one read them. How many people have an opportunity to read the Buddhist Canon from beginning to end even once in this life- time? And when they attempt to read it, they may not be able to comprehend it. ix ESSENCE OF THE INFINITE LIFE SUTRA It occurred to me that important passages in the sutras can be excerpted and compiled into a book to facilitate reading, studying, and practicing in life. In this way, traditional Chinese culture and Mahayana Buddhism will truly be able to benefit all beings. Master Hongyi’s Wanqing Ji is a collection of excerpts from the sutras and quotations from the patriarchs, 101 of them in all. I once lectured on the Wanqing Ji in an easy-to-understand way and the audience liked it very much. Therefore, I feel studying the excerpts is worth trying. This time I have taken sixty excerpts from the Infinite Life Sutra. If this experiment is successful, I think that the Buddhist Canon can be studied in this way. The Taisho Buddhist Canon is one hundred vol- umes. If it is condensed into one volume, studying it will be more convenient.