The Heart of the Buddha: The Equality of Awakening

Teachings from Namo Amituofo, recorded and transcribed by Namo Amituofo’s disciple, Venerable HaiZe.

On the twelfth of January, 2025, during the midday offering, Namo Amituofo provided the following discourse:

The Profound Equality of All Beings

Equality is a fundamental aspect of the Dharma-nature, which can also be referred to as our true self. Those who have realised their true nature possess an equal heart. Only with this perspective can one truly perceive the oneness of all existence. One is then able to see clearly that all beings possess the inherent Buddha-nature, yet they are unable to manifest their Buddhahood solely due to their delusions and attachments.

When you treat all beings with this heart of equality, you are fulfilling the first of the Ten Great Vows of Samantabhadra: to show respect for all Buddhas. By seeing that every being is essentially a Buddha, you offer them your deepest respect and reverence, without making any distinctions between high or low, good or bad.

Skillful Means in Guiding Others

However, when it comes to the practical application of helping others, if you wish to save sentient beings, you must observe their individual capacities and provide guidance accordingly. You must teach according to their specific needs, much like a physician prescribing medicine for a particular illness. By doing so, you can effectively:

• Clear away the obstacles that hinder their progress.
• Resolve the difficult situations they face in their daily lives.
• Help them remove defilements and attain purity.
• Provide them with the precious opportunity to realise their true nature.

The Vigilance of Awakening

Awakening refers to our inherent awareness. In the Buddha’s gate, it is often said: "Do not fear the arising of thoughts, only fear the delay in awareness." This means that you should not be afraid when a thought arises, but you must be concerned if your awareness is slow to respond, as this allows deluded thoughts to continue in an unbroken chain.

If you do not have the awareness to detect the moment a thought arises, you lose the opportunity to stop it. Consequently, your practice will find it difficult to achieve success. Therefore, this quality of awareness is an essential condition for success in your spiritual practice.

The Power of Constant Awareness

This awareness manifests as a sharp, sensitive perception. Within a very short span of time, you should be able to maintain a keen sense of awareness regarding:

• The people you encounter.
• The events occurring around you.
• The subtle changes in your surrounding environment.

By maintaining this sensitivity, you can make immediate and appropriate adjustments to your state of mind. The most important aspect of this is your thoughts. If a thought arises and you remain in a state of ignorance, you will easily be controlled by that thought and follow wherever it leads. This is the state of a being governed by karma. However, if you can be aware the moment a thought arises and stop it immediately, you will not easily create karma, especially the karma of evil thoughts.

The Supreme Power of the Holy Name

A wise person, upon noticing a deluded thought, will immediately replace it with the next thought: "Namo Amituofo." The Holy Name of Namo Amituofo is the most pure and virtuous of all thoughts. It is a pure thought that can purify your body, heart, and spirit, as well as your body, speech, and mind. It is the Dharma Jewel for purification in your practice.

The Holy Name contains the magnificent Ultimate Vows of Namo Amituofo and his boundless power of merit. Those who chant the name will receive these benefits. Furthermore, the Holy Name is the king of mantras. Regardless of the time or space, the Holy Name can exert its magnificent power. Even in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss, the Holy Name is heard 24/7 without interruption. This is to provide constant support to the beings of the Western Land, helping them in their practice so that they may attain Buddhahood sooner.

A Kingdom of Eternal Awakening

Therefore, as a practitioner, you should make good use of this. Do not underestimate it, lest you lose out on a great benefit. The Holy Name can help you improve your awareness and eventually attain Buddhahood. The saying, "From the initial resolve to the attainment of Buddhahood, chant one Buddha's name to the end," expresses exactly this meaning.

A Buddha is an awakened being—one who is self-awakened, who awakens others, and whose awakened actions are perfect. Every being in the Western Pure Land is able to attain Buddhahood by relying on the original vows of Namo Amituofo. Therefore, the West is a kingdom of Buddhahood; it is the Buddha-land of Infinite Life, Dignity, Purity, and Equality. This magnificent world is waiting for Pure Land practitioners and all those with karmic affinity to make the vow to chant the name and enter the Western Land to attain Buddhahood. Having heard this great Dharma, you should practise diligently so that you may realise your true nature and attain Buddhahood within this human body.

Namo Amituofo