Faith is also the source of all powers, therefore if one wishes to be reborn in the Western Pureland of ultimate bliss, one must first firmly believe that there is such a place; have faith in the compassion and vows of Amitabha Buddha, and the magnificent merit{2} that can be acquired from reciting buddha's name. With the presence of faith and a set goal, it will then be possible for one to be reborn in the Western Pureland.

1.Will (Pranidhana)

Will derives from faith. Once faith is firm, one needs to aspire for the great Bodhicitta{2} to reach for buddhahood while caring for sentient beings when practicing the chanting of buddha's name. Only by doing so will one connect to Amitabha and his forty-eight vows. Furthermore, the practice of transfer of merit and vow making are also essential. One can vow to transfer all merits, wisdom, and provision accumulated from the practice to rebirth{3} in the West, and also to all sen-tient beings, so that everyone can be reborn in the Pureland together.

2.Action

Faith, vow, and action are like the three legs of a tripod, with any one of them miss-ing, the tripod will no longer stand. Once we are equipped with faith, and have made vows, we need tot take a step further and put them into practice. In other words, to prac-tice good deeds, concentrate on chanting the buddha’s name to the extend that we can do so with single-mindedness without dis-turbance. Once the required conditions are present, birth in the Western Pureland will be inevitable.

The truth is, not only are faith, vow and practice required for one to be reborn in the Western Pureland. An unshaken faith in the Three Gems{4} is equally essential to any other practices in Buddhism. One is also re-quired to make vows to make the Four U-niversal Vows{5}:

I vow to liberate the countless sen-tient beings.

I vow to eradicate the infinite af-flictions.

I vow to study the inexhaustible Dharma.

I vow to obtain the supreme Bud-dhahood.{6}

The observance and practice of the Five Precepts{7}, Ten Wholesome Deeds{8}, Six Paramitas{9}, Three Learnings{10}, and Four Boundless States of Mind{11} are equally important. Only by doing so will we be accomplished in our practices. That is why we say that faith, vow and action are the three essential provisions for buddhahood.





【Key Words】

1 merit 功德回向

2 Bodhicitta 菩提心

3 rebirth 往生

4 Three Gems 三寶

5 Four Universal Vows 四弘誓願

6 I vow to liberate the countless sentient beings.

I vow to eradicate the infinite af-flictions.

I vow to study the inexhaustible Dharma.

I vow to obtain the supreme Bud-dhahood

眾生無邊誓願度，煩惱無盡誓願斷，

法門無量誓願學，佛道無上誓願成。

7 the Five Precepts 五戒

8 Ten Wholesome Deeds 十善業

9 Six Paramitas 六度

10 Three Learnings 三學

11 Four Boundless States of Mind 四無量心