Amitābha

Amitabha English 2017 May 10 Five Dhyani Buddhas Etymology thumb|A 1490–1550 yes Muromachi-period statue of the Amitābha Buddha from Japan, from the collection of the Guimet Museum in Paris, France Borrowed from en sa अमिताभ Immeasurable Light, from sa अमित unmeasured, boundless, infinite1872 अमित a-mita 76 1 + sa आभा splendor, light.1872 आभा ā-bhā 124 2 Pronunciation en /əmiˈtɑːbə/ RP en LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-Amitābha.wav Southern England en Ami tā bha Proper noun - s en Buddhism A particular buddha; an artistic depiction of this buddha. In Pure Land Buddhism, a branch of Mahāyāna Buddhism, the name of the principal buddha regarded as of celestial origin. en Peter Harvey Buddhist Practice: Devotion An Introduction to Buddhism: Teachings, History and Practices Cambridge w:Cambridge University Press 1990 187 https://books.google.com/books?id=bj-ds_jd8QYC&pg=PA187 978-0-521-30815-1 Devotion to Amitābha Buddha is found within most schools of the Mahāyāna, but is the essence of Pure Land practice, which centres on the ‘Buddha invocation’ (Ch. nien-fo, Jap. nembutsu). This is the repetition of ‘Nan-mo A-mi-t’o Fo’ (Ch.) or ‘Nama Amida Butsu’ (Jap.), translations of the Sanskrit ‘Namo Amitābhāya Buddhāya’, meaning ‘Hail to Amitābha Buddha’. en Kenneth K[en'ichi] Tanaka Pure Land Buddhist Development in India and China prior to Hui-yüan The Dawn of Chinese Pure Land Buddhist Doctrine: Ching-ying Hui-yüan's Commentary on the Visualization Sutra SUNY Series in Buddhist Studies Albany, N.Y. State University of New York Press 1990 1 https://books.google.com/books?id=jhKVXrkVlZsC&pg=PA1 978-0-7914-0297-9 "Pure Land Buddhism" refers to a set of beliefs and practices that espouses for its aspirants the realization of the stage of non-retrogression (avaivartika; pu t'ui-chuan) either in the present life or through rebirth in a Buddha land or realm (Buddha-kṣetra; fo-kuo) called "Sukhāvatī" (Land of Bliss). The Buddha Amitāyus (Wu-liang-shou; Immeasurable Life) or Buddha Amitābha (Wu-liang-kuang; Immeasurable Light) is the 'transcendant' Buddha who presides over the Sukhāvatī world-realm. en Mark L. Blum Mahayana Scriptures Kevin Trainor Buddhism: The Illustrated Guide New York, N.Y. w:Oxford University Press 2004 202 https://books.google.com/books?id=_PrloTKuAjwC&pg=PA202 978-0-19-517398-7 The Shorter Sukhavativyuha Sutra is chiefly concerned with describing the wonders of Amitabha Buddha's Pure Land, although it also discusses in some detail the characteristics of Amitabha himself. en Jacqueline I. Stone By the Power of One's Last Nenbutsu: Deathbed Practices in Early Medieval Japan Richard K[arl] Payne; Kenneth K[en'ichi] Tanaka Approaching the Land of Bliss: Religious Praxis in the Cult of Amitābha Kuroda Institute Studies in East Asian Buddhism 17 Honolulu, Hi. University of Hawai‛i Press 2004 77 https://books.google.com/books?id=tFcy_5UItq0C&pg=PA77 978-0-8248-2578-2 Less well recognized, however, is the central role played in much of early medieval Pure Land Buddhism by deathbed practices and accompanying beliefs about the radical salvific power of one's last nenbutsu, whether understood as the contemplation of the Buddha Amitābha (or Amitāyus, Jpn. Amida) or the invocation of his name. en Amy McNair Salvation for One Donors of Longmen: Faith, Politics, and Patronage in Medieval Chinese Buddhist Sculpture Honolulu, Hi. University of Hawai‛i Press 2007 151–152 https://books.google.com/books?id=qsEGIdhcgMoC&pg=PA151 978-0-8248-2994-0 The overall programme of the Pure Land Hall represents the process of rebirth in Sukhāvatī, and the three standing Amitābhas in the shrine represent the three possible manifestations of Amitābha to the dying believer on earth, which is the beginning of that process. en Robert E[vans] Buswell Jr.; Donald S[ewell] Lopez Jr. Amitābha The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism Princeton, N.J. w:Princeton University Press 2013 35, column 1 https://books.google.com/books?id=DXN2AAAAQBAJ&pg=PA35 978-0-691-15786-3 In East Asia, the cult of Amitābha eventually became so widespread that it transcended sectarian distinction, and Amitābha became the most popular buddha in the region. In Tibet, Amitābha worship dates to the early propagation of Buddhism in that country in the eighth century, although it never became as prevalent as in East Asia. In Vajrayāna Buddhism, the name of the western buddha, one of the Five Dhyani Buddhas representing the five qualities of the Buddha. en Asiatic Society of Calcutta The Oriental Herald, and Journal of General Literature London Printed [by J. R. Gordon, 147, Strand] for the editor, and sold by all booksellers July 1827 XIV 43 147 https://books.google.com/books?id=gZgeAQAAIAAJ&pg=PA147 40958619 A letter from Mr. [Brian Houghton] Hodgson to Mr. Bayley, was then read, giving an outline of the theocracy of the Buddha system of Nepal. According to the information now communicated, the northern Buddhas acknowledge four sets of divine beings, or of superhuman objects of veneration. The first of these is, contrary to the generally supposed atheistical tendency of the faith, one primæval and uncreated deity. This first Buddha manifested five of his attributes, as five secondary Buddhas; in one of whom, Amitabha, or the 'immeasurably splendid,' in Prakrit and Pali, Amitabo, we recognise the Amito of the Japanese. en W[alter] Y[eeling] Evans-Wentz Description of Illustrations The Tibetan Book of the Great Liberation: Or the Method of Realizing Nirvāṇa through Knowing the Mind New York, N.Y. w:Oxford University Press 2000 xxi https://books.google.com/books?id=D61iSASAJYsC&pg=PR21 978-0-19-513315-8 In the upper corner, above Mañjushrī's sword, is the figure of the Dhyāni Buddha Amitābha, the 'One of Boundless (or Incomprehensible) Light', of whom the Tashi Lāmas are believed to be incarnations. Amitābha presides over the Western Paradise known as Devachān. en Hinduism A class of deities. en H[orace] H[ayman] Wilson Of the Seven Future Manus and Manwantaras. Story of Sanjná and Chháyá, Wives of the Sun. Sávarńi, Son of Chháyá, the Eighth Manu. His Successors, with the Divinities, &c., of Their Respective Periods. Appearance of Vishńu in each of the Four Yugas. The Vishńu Puráńa, a System of Hindu Mythology and Tradition, Translated from the Original Sanscrit, and Illustrated by Notes Derived Chiefly from Other Puráńas London Published by John Murray, Albemarle Street 1840 267 https://books.google.com/books?id=8-BoAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA 492725401 In the period in which Sávarńi shall be the Manu, the classes of the gods will be the Sutapas, Amitábhas, and Mukhyas; twenty-one of each. en male Sanskrit used in India. Alternative forms en Amitabha Synonyms Pure Land Buddhism en Amida, en Amituofo Vajrayana Buddhism en Amida Nyorai Japanese Derived terms en Amitābha Buddha Translations Pure Land Buddhism: name of the principal buddha Chinese: Mandarin: cmn 阿彌陀佛 Āmítuó fó, Ēmítuó fó, cmn 無量光佛 Wúliàngguāng fó Hindi: hi अमिताभ बुद्ध m Japanese: ja 阿弥陀仏 あみだぶつ, Amida-butsu, ja 無量光仏 むりょうこうぶつ, Muryōkō-butsu Korean: ko 아미타불, ko 무량광불 Malayalam: ml അമിതാഭൻ Marathi: mr अमिताभ m Mongolian: mn ᠴᠠᠭᠯᠠᠰᠢ ᠦᠭᠡᠢ ᠭᠡᠷᠡᠯᠲᠦ Russian: ru Амита́бха m Sanskrit: sa अमिताभ Tamil: ta அமிதாப புத்தர் Telugu: te అమితాభ బుద్ధుడు Thai: th อมิตาภ amídtaapʰo Tibetan: bo འོད་དཔག་མེད Classical Tibetan: xct འོད་དཔག་མེད་ Urdu: ur امیتابھ بدھ m amitābh buddh Vietnamese: vi A-di-đà Phật, vi A Di Đà Phật Vajrayana Buddhism: name of the western buddha Chinese: Mandarin: cmn 阿彌陀如來 Āmítuó rúlái, Ēmítuó rúlái Japanese: ja 阿弥陀如来 あみだにょらい, Amida Nyorai Marathi: mr अमिताभ m Thai: th อมิตาภ Amídtaapʰo Vietnamese: vi A-di-đà Như Lai, vi A Di Đà Như Lai male given name Hindi: hi अमिताभ m References en Buddhas Hindu deities