Sukhavati

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Sukhavati

Sukhavati (Skt. Sukhāvatī; Tib. Dewachen; Wyl. bde ba can or bde ba chen) is the blissful buddha field of Amitabha. One of the buddha fields of the five families, said to be located in the western direction.

Four Causes of Rebirth in Sukhavati

According to Jamgön Ngawang Lekpa, the four causes of rebirth in Sukhavati are:

  1. Generating bodhichitta
  2. Accumulating merit in many ways
  3. Repeatedly bringing the buddha field to mind
  4. Dedicating all one's sources of merit as causes for rebirth in that pure realm

Lala Sonam Chödrup, in his famous commentary on the Prayer of Sukhavati (bde smon), gives them as:

  1. the support, visualizing the pure realm
  2. accumulating merit and purifying obscurations
  3. the aid, generating bodhichitta
  4. the circumstance, pure prayers of aspiration, dedicating all sources of virtue so that oneself and others may be reborn in Sukhavati

Literature

Sutras

Prayers to Be Reborn in Sukhavati

Teachings Given to the Rigpa Sangha

Further Reading

  • J. Eracle, La Doctrine bouddhique de la terre pure (Paris: Devry Livres, 1973)
  • Trois Soutras et un traité sur la terre pure (Geneva: Aquarius, 1984)
  • Tulku Thondup, Peaceful Death, Joyful Rebirth (Boston & London: Shambhala, 2005), Ch.7 'The Buddha of Infinite Light and His Blissful Pure Land'.