The True Value of Life

Teachings from Namo Amituofo, recorded by Venerable HaiZe on September 3, 2022.

Namo Amituofo asks: When you are gasping for your final breath, wracked with immense pain and suffering, can you maintain your focus on chanting Namo Amituofo without interruption? Or will you allow your mind to follow the rhythm of your breath or the intensity of your pain, thereby forgetting the sacred Buddha-name?

The Ultimate Test of Concentration

If you can maintain a single-minded focus on chanting Namo Amituofo, remaining unmoved by the agony within your physical body, this is a sign that your meditative concentration is well-developed. You are no longer swayed by external circumstances. In that state of pure, focused chanting, your spirit can peacefully depart from your body, waiting for Namo Amituofo to arrive and guide you onto the lotus throne to return to the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss.

However, if you let your mind drift with your breath or succumb to the pain, losing the Buddha-name, then the hope of reaching the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss becomes dim. This is the mark of being caught once again in the cycle of rebirth.

Defining the Value of Life

What, then, is the true value of life? Are we merely living in this human world to pay off the debts of birth, aging, sickness, and death, walking through a life dictated by karma? Or can we, amidst the inevitable cycle of birth, aging, sickness, and death, discover the true value of life and break free from the illusory realm where the suffering of rebirth relentlessly pursues us?

If you can rediscover your true self, this is true awakening. The value of life lies in several key areas:

• Recognising the brevity of life and the reality of impermanence.
• Understanding the profound suffering inherent in the cycle of rebirth.
• Committing yourself to diligent practice and moving forward with fierce determination.
• Seeking to recover your original face and see your true nature.

A Legacy of Compassion

Furthermore, the value of life is found in saving the world and rescuing suffering beings. We must exert our full strength to pass on the Buddha’s teachings, ensuring that the Pure Land lineage and the sacred name of Namo Amituofo are passed down forever. Namo Amituofo.