Is this true? Sakayamuni = Amitabha Buddha?!

• Spnw07

  21 Feb 08, 18:01

  阿难：彼久远实��法身常��无�寿佛者，岂异人耶�今日世尊，我身是也。�念�等，一切有情，无明大夜阇故，从彼安养无为界，示现此�时�世界中，迦耶王�等，说彼佛�����议功德因缘。是谓难值�难��难得�难闻。是故若有有情，闻此�者，皆应信�，如法修行。

  http://www.jingtu.org/jtjl/wlsfmhj.htm

  According to the above quote from the sutra 佛说无�寿佛��利益大事因缘�, Sakayamuni Buddha admits that he is in fact Amitabha Buddha, manifesting in our evil saha world to proclaim and promote the merits of the name of Amitabha Buddha.

  Since many of you know that I'm practitioner of Amitabha Buddha Pureland dharma door, I'm sure I would be seen as biased and partisan.

  So I wish to ask the Buddhist community to provide proofs for or against the above quote.

   

• JitKiat

  21 Feb 08, 18:11

  �方三世佛，�共一法身。

   

  Honestly I also don't understand but once I am in Sukavathi then Amitbha can explain to me :-)

• An Eternal Now

  21 Feb 08, 18:55

  It should be talking Dharmakaya (法身), and all Buddhas have One Dharmakaya. Just as the whole sea have only One Taste. But maybe I'm wrong, didn't read the whole sutra.

• my2106

  21 Feb 08, 20:16

  赞佛�
  
  阿弥陀佛身金色　相好光明无等伦
  白毫宛转五须弥　绀目澄清四大海
  光中化佛无数亿　化��众亦无边
  四�八愿度众生　��贤令登彼岸

  http://www.amita.cn/

   

• my2106

  21 Feb 08, 20:21

   

  光中化佛无数亿　化��众亦无边

• sinweiy

  21 Feb 08, 21:24

  tot might be Insightful for ppl:
  
  There is a passage from the Avatamsaka Sutra (Book5,9.Gatha)
  
  Some lands have a Buddha
  And some land do not.
  Some have just one Buddha
  And some have countless Buddhas.
  
  If a land has no Buddha,
  Then a Buddha from another world
  Will mistically appear there
  To manifest the works of Buddhas-
  
  Our world, the Southern Jambudvipa was without a Buddha,so Shakyamuni mistically appeared here, to teach us the activity of Amida Buddha. He Did not intended to teach a supramundane doctrine,only wanted to reveal the 48 vows of Amitabha, especially of his 18.th vow. In this vow Amida promised us, that whoever think of Him, or utter His Name, with faith that person in the end of the life will enter in His Paradise, moreover He will appear at his deathbed,and personally escort him to the Pure Land.
  Amitabha is the primordial Buddha,and His Land is out of the Samsara.
  Shakyamuni many times called the Nirvana as Amita. This Land is an environmental appearence of Nirvana. As Vasubandhu wrote in the Jodoron:
  
  "The adornaments of the Land of Amitayus Buddha are phenomenal
  aspects of a wondreous realm wich has arisen from the utmost reality."
  
  Amida Buddha incarnated Himself as Dharmakara Bodhisattva in order to
  create the Pure Land. His Name has three meaning:
  
  1."The letter "A" of the Dharma" (The A is the symbol of the Pure
  Land and Amitabha)
  2."The essential mode of Dharma activity.
  3."Dharma Tresury".
  
  Amitabha, the Dharma Treasury (That is, Dharmakara) with essential
  mode of Dharma-activity, created the Pure Land.
  
  The Dharma Tresure has four parts: Nitya (permanence)
  Sukha (blessing) Atman (true self) Subha (purity)
  
  They are called the Four Gunaparamita, and are in contrast to the Trilakshana, wich is: Anitya (Impermanence), Dukha(suffering),Anatman (no-self),
  as well as to Asubha(impurity).
  
  So Dharmakara Bodhisattva inkarnated from Dharmakaya Amitabha, (Lokanatha Amitabha, or Lokesvararaja,also known in His secret Name as HRIH) created the Pure Land and become Samboghakaya Amitabha. His emanation (Nirmanakaya Amitabha) appeared in our world as Shakyamuni Buddha.NAMUAMIDABUTSU --Rev.Anraku
  
  /\

• Spnw07

  22 Feb 08, 14:36

  Originally posted by An Eternal Now:

  It should be talking Dharmakaya (法身), and all Buddhas have One Dharmakaya. Just as the whole sea have only One Taste. But maybe I'm wrong, didn't read the whole sutra.

  I agree with you that it can refer to Dharmakaya, but that is only when you want to point to the ultimate essence or reality.

  In the Dharani sutra of the Buddha on Longevity, Extinction of offences and protection of young children (佛说长寿�罪护诸童�陀罗尼�），the Buddha clearly hinted that he had already gained Buddhahood long ago and had assumed a different Buddha name at the time the sutra was spoken.

  "Manjushri, you should know that the past Thus Come One Pervasive Lights (普光正�如�) was my former existence; while the woman Confusion (颠倒) was your former existence. The forty-nine men are the present forty-nine Bodhisattvas who have just brought forth the Bodhi Resolve."

  The same is also mentioned in the Brahma net sutra by Sakayamuni himself: 

   ""I have come to this world eight thousand times. Based in this Saha World, seated upon the Jeweled Diamond Seat in Bodhgaya and all the way up to the palace of the Brahma King, I have spoken in general about the Mind-Ground Dharma Door for the benefit of the great multitude^"

  So the question is if Sakayamuni Buddha had already attained Buddhahood long ago and had come to the saha world for at least 8000 times, is it possible that he could be a Buddha by the name of Amitabha Buddha , who first made vows to deliver all beings into his Western Paradise Pureland, in one of his previous stays in the saha world?

   In essence, Earth Store is Guan Yin, Guan Yin is also Earth-Store. However, when earth store bodhisattva was still a human being in samsara world making vows to save sentient beings, so did Guan Yin and all other bodhisattvas when they were humans cultivating the Buddha way.

  So at this point, we cannot just lump together and say they are the same. In the goal of realising the Buddha nature or practising wisdom and compassion, they are the same.