Three Extraordinary Powers
From Amitabha Buddha’s Great Vows 6, 7, & 8
Three Extraordinary Powers
Amitabha Buddha’s Great Vows 6, 7, & 8
Sakyamuni Buddha speaks of the monk Dharmakara, his practice, and his forty-eight vows before he became Amitabha Buddha. Excerpted from the Infinite Life Sutra:
When I become a Buddha, all the beings born in my land will innately know all past lives over infinite kalpas and all good and evil deeds. They will thoroughly see and completely hear all happenings in the past, present, and future in the ten directions. If I do not fulfill these vows, I will not attain perfect enlightenment.
- Vow 6. The extraordinary power of knowing past lives.
- Vow 7. The extraordinary power of the heavenly eye.
- Vow 8. The extraordinary power of the heavenly ear.
Dharmakara vowed that the bodhisattvas in his land would be able to access six extraordinary powers perfectly. These powers lie dormant in all of us but since we beings in samsara have not uncovered our true nature, we cannot yet access them.
The first three powers are to know all past lives, see all forms, and hear all sounds. Dharmakara first ensured that we will know all past lives, not just our lives but also those of other beings. Every name, every appearance, every thought, every action in every lifetime. There is no need to wonder or try to deduce what occurred in eons past — all are known intuitively.
By knowing our own past lives, we will know how Buddhas and bodhisattvas taught and helped us life after life. How, in past lifetimes, our parents and teachers nurtured and guided us. Once we see for ourselves all the help we have been given, we will be filled with gratitude. Gratitude to our parents and teachers. To the many others who cared for and helped us. To the Buddhas and bodhisattvas who were always there for us. Filled with the joy of knowing the help we got from the Buddhas, we will not just strive to learn more, we will do so happily. And then we will earnestly and diligently practice what the Buddhas teach us.
But such gracious help is not all we will know. We will know that our child who causes us constant heartache was a person we harmed in a past life or that the coworker who spread malicious gossip and got us fired was someone we once similarly mistreated. Knowing our past bad deeds that caused others so much hurt and suffering, and consequently our own suffering, we will be aghast and determined to never repeat those deeds. It is this ability to know all past lifetimes that enables arhats to remember their lifetimes in the hells and the suffering they had to endure there. Suffering so intense that it is said that arhats, upon remembering, sweat blood.
Currently, our ability to know the past lives of others lies dormant. Without such knowledge, we are prone to misjudgment. But if we can access the ability to know all of a being’s past lives, we will understand why they act as they do and their various interactions. We can then help them properly and in the best way. We will do so from our bodhi mind, the mind that aspires to help all beings attain enlightenment.
We can see how this works when we learn about Sakyamuni Buddha’s life. He was adept at helping others because he knew everything that happened in all their past lifetimes over innumerable kalpas. Knowing the causes of a person’s action, he was able to help the individual resolve their situation.
For example, once, a man requested to become a monk. The Buddha asked the arhats, who like all arhats, could see a being’s 500 past lifetimes, about the man’s request. They said that he did not have any cause, any connection to Buddhism, and, therefore, he did not have the conditions to become a monk.
The Buddha replied that much longer than 500 lifetimes ago, the man was being chased by a tiger. Terrified, he clambered up a tree, and with all his energy, he concentrated on one thought and called out, “Homage to Buddha!” With that single thought, the man planted a cause. Now, conditions were right for that seed to mature and for the man to become a monk. Because the Buddha knew all the man’s past lives, not only the most recent 500, he knew the man’s conditions were right. The Buddha’s ability thus allowed for a proper decision.
In the Western Pure Land, the past is not all we know. We will thoroughly see and completely hear all happenings in the present and future lives of all beings as well. And so, we will also hear and know the suffering of those in the hells and hungry ghost paths. Perceiving such suffering, we will know the fear of others, and we will want to learn how to eliminate our afflictions and teach others to do the same. Perceiving true happiness, we will want to attain it for ourselves and others.
We will also hear the teachings of all Buddhas in the infinite buddha-lands. Hearing these teachings, we will learn how to alleviate others’ suffering.
Presently in our world, we cannot see, hear, or feel the suffering of all beings in the hell, hungry ghost, animal, and human paths. Because we are unable to, we are not fearful and thus do not feel the urgency to summon the unwavering diligence required in our practice to help them.
Unable to see the wondrous joy of the Pure Land, we cannot let go of this world.
Unable to see the painful retributions that our deceased parents and other loved ones are undergoing, we are not diligent enough in our cultivation and practice.
Unable to see everywhere throughout our buddha-land, much less other buddha-lands, our commitment to help others is but a mere fragment of what it could be.
But these things should not hold us back from aspiring to go to the Pure Land. Our belief, vows, and practice will bring us there. We should not be lax in our practice, nor be deterred by not being able to “see and hear” the sufferings. These are just excuses. The suffering is real and intense. We just need to cultivate and focus on going to the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss in this lifetime.
>> Learn more: The Initiation, Amitabha Buddha’s Forty-eight Vows
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Dedication of Merit
May the merits and virtues accrued from this work
adorn the Buddha’s pure land,
repay the four kinds of kindness above,
and relieve the sufferings of those in the three paths below.
May all those who see and hear of this
bring forth the bodhi mind
and at the end of this life,
be born together in the Land of Ultimate Bliss.
Note: The above is excerpted from the book “Awakening the Bodhi Mind: Amitabha Buddha’s Forty-Eight Vows”, which is available for download at eLibrary collection, Amitabha Gallery.
The Amitabha Buddha’s forty-eight vows is derived from the Chinese verses of the Infinite Life Sutra, that we are immensely grateful to the compilation efforts by Mr Xia Lianju. Translation credits go to The Pure Land Translation Team, Pure Land College Press.
