Self-Rescue and Buddha's Rescue: The Path of Two Powers

The Synergy of Two Powers

The Pure Land dual-power method is a unique path where the Buddha’s blessings are bestowed upon the practitioner, but only when the practitioner’s own power is activated. Under the compassionate blessings of Namo Amituofo, if you can live according to your faith and vows, you will be able to progress day by day. Through diligent practice and purification, you will surely achieve success on this path.

How, then, does one’s own power arise? It depends entirely on the practitioner. You must be able to live according to your vows while maintaining faith in the Buddha. You must translate these vows into actual, concrete actions in your daily life. Only when you take these steps does the Buddha’s power have a place to take hold and provide support. It is a partnership of heart and spirit.

The Responsibility of the Practitioner

The Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Goombungee, Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia, is a place where Namo Amituofo is residing here. Here, Namo Amituofo, Practitioner Su, and I are able to guide the fourfold assembly, teaching you how to act and how to change your personality traits. However, we cannot do the work for you. We cannot change your habits or purify your mind on your behalf.

You must rely on your own power to act. You must be willing to do the work and willing to change; this is what we mean by self-rescue. If you are a member of the fourfold assembly and you possess the vow and the determination to change your personality traits, we can offer guidance, reminders, and constant encouragement. We can provide the teachings repeatedly, but we cannot replace you in your practice or in the transformation of your own character.

The Law of Cause and Effect

Everything we do proceeds within the Universal Principles, Truth, and the Right Path. This is also the Law of Cause and Effect. Consider the nature of life and death: we are born alone, we die alone, and we come and go alone. No one can replace us in these fundamental experiences. The same is true for the processes of ageing and illness. Regardless of who you are, you must face these facts of existence yourself.

The Buddha’s blessings are what we call Buddha’s rescue. I hope that every practitioner can clearly understand that the Buddha’s blessings are only effective when they are received by a practitioner who is already exerting their own power. Without your own effort, the Buddha’s power has no foundation upon which to rest.

Sincerity in Daily Practice

During the morning service and prostrations at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre, the Buddha radiates light to bless those who are focused with a single heart. This blessing is for those who are truly concentrated on their prostrations and who hold the Buddha-name in every single bow.

If you prostrate with a scattered mind, if you become drowsy and drift into other spaces, or if you are not prostrating with a sincere heart, then you are not demonstrating the self-power required for self-rescue. If your heart is not sincere, how can the Buddha’s power be received? Therefore, it is through the activation of your own power that you receive the Buddha’s blessings. It is through self-rescue that you truly receive the Buddha’s rescue. Namo Amituofo.