If it’s so easy, why am I still here?
(Part Two)
While buddha-name chanting is indeed straightforward and the easiest of all the methods the Buddha taught, it’s not all that we do. Chanting needs to go hand in hand with cultivation. Why?
To attain birth in the Pure Land, we need an absolutely focused mind in our last moments. For this, we need the right conditions. What conditions? We need to be awake and coherent. If not chanting peacefully on our own, we need companions who chant to remind us that we have to chant.
How do we ensure we’ll have such rare conditions? We cultivate ourselves through moral, compassionate living. We live simply, using just what we need. We give our energy, time, and resources to those who have less good fortune than we. We strive to alleviate the fears and worries of others. We view the needs and concerns of others as seriously as we view our own.
Doing these, we will create the necessary good fortune to be able to chant “Amituofo” in those crucial last moments.