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Building the Pure Land Together
Building a Pure Land is the natural desire of a practitioner who has tasted the joy of the practice and wishes to share it. Like Amitābha Buddha, we create a practice center—a mini Pure Land—where a Sangha can enjoy the practice and welcome others. Entry into such a place does not require getting rid of all suffering first; one can bring their luggage of pain, provided the Sangha has the capacity to embrace and heal it. Even in the time of the Buddha, some struggled with jealousy and unhappiness, highlighting that the purpose of being in the Pure Land is to have the opportunity to practice and transform habit energies.
In the land of Sukhāvatī, the environment itself provides the teaching. The wind through the trees and the songs of birds offer the basic teachings of root Buddhism:
- The four foundations of mindfulness
- The four right efforts
- The five faculties
- The five powers or energies
- The seven factors of enlightenment
- The Noble Eightfold Path
Through these sounds, practitioners are reminded of the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha. In the morning, residents collect celestial flowers, visit other Buddha lands, and return in time for lunch and walking meditation, or phạn thực kinh hành. In Plum Village, this is mirrored by the sounds of the bell, the clock, and the telephone, which serve as calls to return to the true self and touch the wonders of life.
Amitābha means limitless light, an energy of mindfulness and compassion that radiates constantly and transforms those it touches. Every practitioner has the capacity to emit this light. By walking, sitting, and eating mindfully, we become children of the Buddha, contributing to Sangha building through our very presence. True Sangha building is not merely organizational work but the act of living mindfully so that our peace and freedom can strike others like a beam of light. A Buddha requires a strong Sangha of bodhisattvas to support the many who seek transformation and healing.
