弥陀净土理念:净土宗与其他重要宗派终极信仰的共同基础

净土思想是两千年来中国佛教信仰者的基本旨趣。净土宗思想的基本特质是极乐往生和念佛往生,即以较小的心力(念诵南无阿弥陀佛)而得到极大的收获(进入西方极乐世界),符合行为学的基本要求,以致阿弥陀佛成为中国佛教信徒的普遍的崇拜对象,成为包括后来禅宗在内的中国佛教重要宗派的共同的终极信仰。这从宗教学说体系构成的视角来说,也决不是偶然的。

Amitabha's Idea of Pure Land: A Common Ground for Ultimate Faith of the Pure Land Sect and the Other Sects

The idea of Pure Land has been a basic purpose for Chinese Buddhists in the past two thousand years. The author points out that the primary features of the idea of the Pure Land Sect is to regain life in a bliss and by reciting Buddha s name, i. e. , to have the biggest gain by smaller mental and physical efforts. This conforms to the basic requirement of behaviorism, thus Amita-bha has become the generally worshiping object of Chinese Buddhists, and has become the ultimate common faith for all the important Buddhist sects in China, including Zen Sect later. This is absolutely not accidental in the viewpoint of theoretically constructing a religious system.