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Jōdo Wasan 57–62

15th of December 2023

These wasan primarily outline various important vows in the larger sutra.

57

The light of the Buddha of Unhindered Light
Harbors the lights of purity, joy, and wisdom;
Its virtuous working surpasses conceptual understanding,
As it benefits the beings throughout the ten quarters.

Unhindered: not obstructed by karmic evil and blind passions.
Purity, joy, and wisdom: since it saves one from the blind passion of greed and eliminates the karma of greed, it is called purity and joy. Since it saves one from the blind passion of anger, it is called joy. Since it saves one from the blind passion of folly, it is called wisdom.

The working surpassing conceptual understanding means that with our limited human perspective we cannot understand how bodhisattvas and Buddhas work to awaken us to the truth, however do know that it cannot be confined to our own limits, that is, even if we commit huge evil or do not study or struggle in our lives, this can't have any effect on the working of Amida's great compassion.

58

Encouraging the beings of the ten quarters with the words,
“With sincere mind entrust yourselves and aspire for birth,”
Amida established the Vow beyond conceptual understanding
And made it the cause of birth in the true and real fulfilled land.

Note: This is the meaning of the Primal Vow – the Eighteenth, selected Primal Vow.
Beings: the sentient beings of the twenty-five forms of delusional existence.

While Amida encourages us by telling us to entrust, the working of the Vow is inconceivable and out of our control, therefore while we are encouraged to entrust, it is really beyond our working to entrust. The threefold mind of shinjin, which has the three aspects of sincerity, entrusting, and aspiration, arrive to us from outside our limited bubble as a helping hand. They do not arise from inside.

59

Those who attain true and real shinjin
Immediately join the truly settled;
Thus having entered the stage of nonretrogression,
They necessarily attain nirvana.

True and real shinjin: shinjin of sincere mind and entrusting. “True and real” signifies sincere mind.

As said above, the light of Amida is unhindered, therefore once we are aware of it there is nothing we can do to avoid it. Truly settled and nonretrogression mean that our mistakes no longer matter.

60

So profound is Amida’s great compassion
That, manifesting inconceivable Buddha-wisdom,
The Buddha established the Vow of transformation into men,
Thereby vowing to enable women to attain Buddhahood.

Note: This is the meaning of the Thirty-fifth Vow

I don't have an answer for this yet.

61

Provisionally guiding sentient beings of the ten quarters with the words,
“Aspire with sincere mind and desire to be born,”
Amida revealed the temporary gate of various good acts
And vowed to appear before them [at the time of death].

Note: This is the meaning of the Nineteenth Vow – birth through various practices.
Aspire with sincere mind and desire to be born: The Nineteenth Vow. This Vow is called “the Vow of Buddha’s appearance and guidance to birth,” “the Vow of Buddha’s appearance at death,” and also “the Vow of Buddha’s coming to receive us.”

It is commonly said in other Pure Land traditions that Amida and his retinue must appear to you at the moment of death in order to be reborn in the Pure Land. Shinran takes the radical step of saying this is only a provisional teaching, and that since the receiving of shinjin means entering the stage of the truly settled, there is no requirement for what should happen on the deathbed. Instead, this is a teaching adapted for people who are too attached to the idea of achieving something or being good people, so that they are still compassionately not abandoned.

62

Based on Amida’s Vow to appear at the time of death,
Sakyamuni presented all the various good acts
In one scripture, the Contemplation Sutra,
To encourage those who perform meditative and nonmeditative practices.

Rather than seeing Shakyamuni as teaching a path for its own sake in the Contemplation Sutra, it is instead inverted, and we see that Shakyamuni presented that path in order to fulfil the possibility for Amida to appear at the time of death, for those beings who have not realised shinjin but still endeavour in their practises.

Joe Bentley