The Conception of "nien-fo" in the Ching-t'u-shih-i-lun (Treatise on the Ten Doubts Concerning the Pure Land)

Abstract

<p>This thesis examines the conception of "nien-fo" (literally, "thinking of the Buddha") in the Ching-t'u-shih-i-lun, an eighth century Chinese text on the Buddha Amitābha and his Western Pure Land.</p> <p>Nien-fo has always been an important part of religious practice for many different schools of Buddhism in China, especially for the T'ien-t'ai and Pure Land schools. In T'ien-t'ai Buddhism, the nien-fo samādhi is considered as a means to accomplish concentration and insight; it is but one among the various methods of mediatation. Considered as such, the nien-fo practice implies that salvation is achieved through the practitioner's own diligent cultivation of mind. On the other hand, the Pure Land nien-fo samādhi is essentially devout invocation of tho name of Amitābha Buddha. Nien-fo as invocation emphasizes salvation as an act of the Great Compassion of Amitābha. The concern of this thesis is to clarify the link between these fundamental meanings of nien-fo in the context of one particular text in which both forms or the practice appear.</p> <p>The first chapter gives an overview of the T'ien-t'ai and Pure Land practices of nien-fo based upon a careful analysis of relevant passages taken from standard works of the two schools.</p> <p>The second chapter undertakes a thorough examination of the nien-fo concept in the Ching-t'u-shih-i-lun.</p> <p>The thesis concludes with a look at the relationship between the meditational and devotional paths to salvation in Chinese Buddhism. The two paths are essentially related, expressing two aspects of the bodhisattva path.</p>