Emituo jing 阿彌陀經

Emituo jing 阿彌陀經, the "(Smaller) Amitabha Sutra", also known as Xiao wuliangshou jing 小無量壽經 or Xiaojing 小經, Sanskrit name Sukhāvati-vyūha-sūtra or Amitāyur-vyūha-sūtra, is one of the three central texts of the Pure Land tradition (Jingtu Zong 淨土宗). It is commonly believed that it was brought to China via the kingdoms of Kushana (Ch. Guishuang 貴霜) and Gandhāra (Ch. Jiantuoluo 犍陀羅). The oldest translation of the scripture was made by Kumārajīva (Ch. Jiumoluoshi 鳩摩羅什, 344-413). Guṇabhadra's (Ch. Qiunabotuoluo 求那跋陀羅, 394-468) translation is lost. The version by Xuanzang 玄奘 (602-664) is titled Chengzan Jingtu fo she shou jing 稱贊凈土佛攝受經 "Sutra praising the Buddhas' compassionate reception [of beings] in the Pure Land".

Amitābha (Ch. Emituo 阿彌陀, Emituo Fo 阿彌陀佛) is the Buddha whose name is central to the faith of the Pure Land tradition. Buddhism teaches that he is the lord of the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss (Sukhāvatī, Ch. Jile Shijie 極樂世界) and that he receives and guides those who recite his name, enabling them to be reborn in the Western Pure Land. For this reason, he is also known as the "Buddha Who Receives and Guides" (Jieyin Fo 接引佛). In the distant past, he was a king who later renounced his throne, aroused the aspiration for enlightenment, and left his household life to become a monk named Dharmākara (Ch. Fazang 法藏). Before becoming a Buddha, he made forty-eight great vows. When his practices reached complete fulfilment, the fruits of those vows were fully realised, and his light and lifespan are both immeasurable.

The Emituo jing recounts how the Buddha, while residing in Jetavana at the garden of Anāthapiṇḍada (Ch. Zhishu Jigudu Yuan 祇樹給孤獨園), expounded to Śāriputra (Ch. Shelifu 舍利弗) and other disciples the unsurpassed splendour of the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss. There are forests and pavilions adorned with the seven precious substances; pools of water endowed with the eight meritorious qualities; lotus flowers of wondrous, subtle colours; and flocks of birds whose natural songs proclaim the Dharma. Sentient beings there experience only happiness and are free from all suffering. Those who recite the name of the Amitābha Buddha with single-minded devotion may, after death, be reborn in that land.

Because the Chinese translation of this sutra is relatively short, it is easy to memorise. Combined with the simplicity of its practice, it spread widely throughout China and exerted a profound influence, becoming a daily essential text for followers of the Pure Land tradition. From the Song and Ming dynasties onward, it became a daily recitation text in monasteries, and the influence of the Pure Land tradition continued to expand alongside the dissemination of this sutra.

Versions of this text are also preserved among the Dunhuang 敦煌 manuscripts. Their contents are essentially identical to the received canon versions, with only occasional textual variants, and they may therefore be used for textual collation. In several Dunhuang copies, the copyists added the transcription of the Amitābha Buddha Mantra (Emituo Fo zhou 阿彌陀佛咒), methods for mantra recitation, verses on the merits of recitation, and the „Record of verified experiences of rebirth in the Western Land“ (Wangsheng xifang jiyan 往生西方記驗).

Among extant commentaries and subcommentaries preserved in China, the principal works include the following: During the Sui period 隋 (581-618), Zhiyi 智顗 (538-597) authored the Emituo jing yiji 阿彌陀經義記 (T 1755). In the Tang era 唐 (618-907), Huijing 慧淨 (578-645) wrote the Emituo jing yishu 阿彌陀經義疏 (T1756). Kuiji 窺基 (632-682) composed another Emituo jing yishu and the Emituo jing tongzan shu 阿彌陀經通贊疏 (T1758). There are, furthermore Zhiyuan's 智圓 (976-1022; T1760) and Yuanzhao's 元照 (1048-1116) Emituo jing yishu (T1761), Jiedu's 戒度 (late 12th cent.) Emituo jing yishu wenchi ji 阿彌陀經義疏聞持記, Xingcheng's 性澄 (1265-1342) Emituo jing jujie 阿彌陀經句解, Dayou's 大佑 (1334-1407) Emituo jing lüejie 阿彌陀經略解, Chuandeng's 傳燈 (1554-1627) Emituo jing lüejie yuanzhong chao 阿彌陀經略解圓中鈔, Zhuhong's 祩宏 (1535-1615) Emituo jing shuchao 阿彌陀經疏鈔, Dahui's 大慧 (1564-1636) Emituo jing jijue 阿彌陀經已訣, Zhixu's 智旭 (1599-1655) Emituo jing yaojie 阿彌陀經要解 (T1762), Xu Huaiting's 徐槐廷 Emituo jing shuchao xie 阿彌陀經疏鈔擷, Jingting's 淨挺 Emituo jing shexiang 阿彌陀經舌相, Xufa's 續法 (1641-1728) Emituo jing lüezhu 阿彌陀經略注 and Peng Jiqing's 彭際清 (1740-1796) Emituo jing yuelun 阿彌陀經約論.

In the mid-nineteenth century, a Sanskrit manuscript of this sutra was discovered in Nepal. Based on this text, Friedrich Max Müller (1823-1900) and Nanjō Bun'yū 南條文雄 (1849-1927) published an edition in 1882, which, together with the Amitābha Sutra, was published as Müller, F. Max. 1894. The Sacred Books of the East, Translated by Various Oriental Scholars. Vol. XLIX, "The Smaller Sukhâvatî-vyûha", vol. 2, 87-108. Oxford: Clarendon.