ADDITIONAL PSALMS

ADDITIONAL PSALMS

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343. Having fulfilled forty and eight of the Divine Promise,

He attained unto the supreme enlightenment, and was manifest as the
Buddha of Infinite Light.
Whoso seeketh refuge with Him shall be certainly born into the Land of Purity.

344. Into the Promised Land—the Paradise of the Great Calm.

He who practiseth the righteous deeds of the mingled motive hath no claim of birth,

Therefore He that is Infinite would have us follow the deeds of the single practice that is chosen of Him as teaching that is at the root.

345. The merit of His holy austerities throughout the myriads of Kalpas is fully declared in his name of Amida (the Infinite).

And the Holy Name, after the consideration of five Kalpas,

Will be accorded unto us who are alive in this degenerated age.

346. Because action, speech, and mind of the Infinite Life and the believer in the Holy Name are welded as into a diamond, therefore shall he certainly be one with the men that return no more unto birth and death.

347. He that hath much knowledge and keepeth the Pure Land is not chosen,

And whoso breaketh the Holy Law and sinneth is not disdained.

Only he that seeketh refuge in the Eternal Father shall enter into
Buddhahood as a pebble is transmuted into gold.
348. Our faith that endureth as the diamond cometh from the mind of the Buddha that eternally endureth.

Lacking the aid of the Divine Power, how should we attain unto the unchanging mind?

349. In the great ocean of the Divine Promise

Is there no ripple of illusion.

If we enter into the ark of the Holy Vow,

The spirit of mercy shall take part with our self-endeavour.

350. Since we have believed the Divine Promise,

How is it possible we should be in the power of life or death?

Unchanged may be our sinful body,

But our heart is in the Paradise for ever.

[Transcriber's Note: Numbering went 307, 308, 307, 310 . . . fixed]

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WHEREIN WITH LAMENTATION I MAKE MY CONFESSION

WHEREIN WITH LAMENTATION I MAKE MY CONFESSION

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327. Though I seek my refuge in the true faith of the Pure Land,

Yet hath not mine heart been truly sincere.

Deceit and untruth are in my flesh,

And in my soul is no clear shining.

328. In their outward seeming are all men diligent and truth speaking,

But in their souls are greed and eager and unjust deceitfulness,

And in their flesh do lying and cunning triumph.

329. Too strong for me is the evil of my heart. I cannot overcome it.

Therefore is my soul like unto the poison of serpents,

Even my righteous deeds, being mingled with this poison, must be named the deeds of deceitfulness.

330. Shameless though I be and having no truth in my soul,

Yet the virtue of the Holy Name, the gift of Him that is enlightened,

Is spread throughout the world through my words being as I am.

331. There is no mercy in my soul.

The good of my fellow-man is not dear in mine eyes.

If it were not for the Ark of Mercy, the divine promise of the
Infinite Wisdom,
How should I cross the Ocean of Misery?

332. I, whose mind is filled with cunning and deceit as the poison of reptiles, am impotent to practise righteous deeds.

If I sought not refuge in the gift of our Father, I should die the death of the shameless.

333. It is a token of this evil age that in this world the priests, together with the people,

In secret serve strange gods,

While bearing the appearance of the devout sons of Buddha.

334. Sad and corrupt is it that the priests and people, following after the superstitions of auspicious times and days, seek sooth-saying and festivals

And worship the gods of heaven and earth.

335. Though I have heard that the names of priest and monk are honourable,

Yet now are they held as light as the five shameless precepts of
Devadatta.
336. Being of one accord with the many minds of the heathen,

They bow in worship before devils,

While yet wearing the robe of the Buddha.

337. Sad and sorrowful is it that all the priests and people now in the land of Yamato should worship the devils of heaven and earth, in the name of the holy mysteries of the Buddha.

338. It is a mark of the downward way of this evil age that men despise the name of priest or monk as a mean thing, considering them like unto slaves.

339. May they yet bring offerings with homage unto the priests, even as you do unto Saliputra or Mahamonugalyayana, those two great servants of the Lord; though they are priests but in name and without discipline, for this is the time of degeneration and of the last days.

340. Though sin hath no substance in itself, and is but the shadow of our illusion, and soul is in itself pure, yet in all this world is there no sincere man.

341. Great sorrow is it that, in the wicked world of this age now so near its end, the high priests who are born in the palankin, and the monks who bear it now in Nara and Mount Hiyei, desire high secular rank as the greatest honour.

342. That they consider the monk and nun as their slaves, and mock at the honourable title of priest and minister, even as at the mean name of slave, gives testimony that they despise the teaching of the Buddha.

These sixteen psalms written above are written by me, Gutoku, with lamentation, to be a record. To me even the honourable priests and monks of the Central Temples seem now to be despised.

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IN PRAISE OF PRINCE SHOTOKU

IN PRAISE OF PRINCE SHOTOKU

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316. Through the compassion of Shotoku the great prince we, having accepted the Divine Promise sprung from the unsearchable wisdom of the Illuminated One, are made equal unto Maitreya. Bodhisattva—the Buddha that shall be—having been united unto those men who return no more to birth and death.

317. The mighty Bodhisattva of Compassion, he who is the Saviour, was made manifest in this world as Shotoku the Prince, who, like a father, hath not forsaken us, and like a mother is ever amongst us.

318. From that past where was no beginning until the day that now is, hath Shotoku the great prince, the Compassionate, dwelt among us like unto a father and a mother.

319. Shotoku the Prince, from his Compassion, hath persuaded us to enter in at the Divine Promise of the wondrous wisdom of the Light-Bearer. And through this are we joined unto those men who return no more unto birth and death.

320. Whoso attaineth unto the holy faith that is the power of divinity, must, in the Ten Regions of the world, find the twofold gift of the Enlightened One, that he may live in thankfulness for His grace.

321. Shotoku, he who is mercy’s self, the Compassionate, he who is like unto a father, and the Bodhisattva of Mercy, the divine tenderness, his succour is merciful as the pity of a mother.

322. Testimony is there that Shotoku the prince hath mercy upon us, from the myriads of Kalpas even unto this day, because the wondrous wisdom of Him who is Light beareth the load of his debt for the believer.

Therefore before the eyes of His wisdom is the evil as the good, the pure as the unclean.

323. Shotoku, the Prince, he that is in Japan called the Lord of Teaching, he whose great mercy overtops all spoken words of gratitude, must we therefore praise for evermore, having with single heart sought refuge in him.

324. He who hath pitied the dwellers in the lands of Japan, the Prince of Jogu, he whose ways are merciful, hath spread abroad the Divine Promise of the Enlightened One. Therefore let us praise him with great rejoicing. Throughout the many myriads of Kalpas, birth after birth fell hitherto upon us.

325. We to whom he showed forth his compassion must be swift to praise him, having continually sought refuge in him, and with a single mind.

326. The high Prince Shotoku, he who hath guarded us and with great carefulness led us upwards from remotest times, hath lovingly entreated us to seek our refuge in the two-fold gift of the Enlightened One.

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CONCERNING BELIEF AND DOUBT

CONCERNING BELIEF AND DOUBT

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293. Whoso comprehendeth not the wisdom of the Enlightened One, and doubteth concerning His illumination, shall rise no higher than the Outermost Places, for he hath trusted in the power of Reward, and hath relied upon the principle of morality.

294. Whoso doubteth the wisdom of the Enlightened One—that wisdom beyond all human understanding—and reciteth the Holy Name, trusting in the merit of himself, shall not rise beyond the outermost bounds of the Pure Land that is the Temporal Paradise, for he hath not the grace of right thankfulness for His Compassion.

295. Whoso shall accept the doctrine of rewards and doubteth the wisdom of Him that hath Light that surpasseth all knowledge of man, shall be made captive in Doubting Castle, and the three jewels of the faith shall no more be his.

296. For his sin, in that he hath doubted the wisdom of the Enlightened One, shall he remain in the Outermost Places of the Land of Purity. And for as much as we are taught that the sin of doubt is grievous, we are also instructed that he must there dwell for many Kalpas.

297. If the prince committeth a sin against his Father, even the Chakravarti, the King, he is fettered as a prisoner, though the chain be of gold.

298. Whoso reciteth the Holy Name, and so doeth as a work of self-merit, shall be bound in the prison of the sevenfold gems, for he believeth not right by the divine promise of that Holy One, and heavy is the sin of his doubting.

299. Yet he even that hath a doubting soul and sinneth the sin of self-merit, must needs strive to comprehend the merciful goodness of the Blessed One, and he shall recite the Holy Name if he would at all be equalled unto him that holdeth the true faith.

300. It is the Law that he who soweth shall reap what he soweth, therefore the man that is full of righteous deeds for the sake of self-merit shall enter into the prison of the sevenfold gems, for he doubteth the marvellous wisdom of Him that hath the Light.

301. Whoso doubteth of the wisdom of Him that hath Light beyond the imagining of man, and trusteth to the root of goodness and virtue—he shall not attain unto the Soul of Great Mercy, for he is born into the Outermost Places of Paradise, and slow and dull of heart is he.

302. Among those men that doubt the Holy Word, some are imprisoned in the shut bud of the Lotus. And they shall be despised as they that in illusion are born into the outermost Paradise or are held captive within the narrow walls of the womb.

303. Whoso doubteth the omniscience of the wisdom of the Light-Bearer, but holdeth to his belief in Reward, excellent ofttimes in making the root of goodness to grow,

304. Because he doubteth the wisdom of the Eternal Wisdom, and is held captive as in the strait prison of the womb, hath neither knowledge nor wisdom, and is compared unto a man straitly bound in captivity.

305. He that is born into the outermost place, all glorious with the sevenfold jewels, shall not in five hundred years behold that three-fold jewel, the Tri-ratna, for there is in him no spiritual well-doing, that he should give it unto his fellow-men.

306. To him who is born into the Palace, glorious with the seven jewels, for five hundred years there shall befall many sorts of sorrows from his own evil doing.

307. Whoso hopeth reward and maketh to flourish the root of goodness, shall remain in the transitory Paradise, for though he be a good man, yet hath he a doubting heart.

308. Because he accepteth not the Divine Promise of Him who is the Light unspeakable, and carrieth his doubt with him unto Paradise, therefore the shut flower of his heart openeth not, therefore is he unshapen as a child in the womb.

309. When he perceiveth the Land of Purity, the Bodhisattva Maitreya thus questioneth the Holy One, saying, “What is the cause and what the circumstance of that man who, having been born, yet remaineth as it were straitened in the womb?

310. And thus spake the Lord unto the Bodhisattva Maitreya saying,

“Whoso trusteth in the root of goodness that he himself maketh to grow and hath a doubting soul, he it is that is in the outermost places of the Paradise, he it is that is said to be straitened still in the womb of ignorance.”

311. He who doubteth the wisdom of Him that is all Light, shall for his sin be made captive until five hundred years be gone, and this is called the conception within the womb of ignorance.

312. Whoso doubteth the wisdom that is beyond man’s understanding, and hath believed the doctrine of reward, shall of a certainty be born within Doubting Castle, and this is called conception within the womb of ignorance.

313. Whoso trusteth upon self-righteousness rather than upon the wisdom of the Enlightened One that is beyond man’s knowledge, shall be conceived within the womb of ignorance, and to him shall the mercy of the Three Jewels be unknown.

314. Whoso doubteth the wisdom of the Enlightened One that surpasseth all knowledge of man and trusteth in the hope of reward, and would attain unto birth in Paradise by making the root of goodness to grow, shall be straitened in the womb of ignorance.

315. Heavy is the sin of doubting the wisdom of the Buddha. He who is instructed taketh refuge in the wonderful wisdom of the Enlightened One, being in contrition for his foolishness.

These twenty-three psalms above-written are made by me that men should know the heaviness of their sin in doubting the Divine Promise of the Buddha of Infinite Light.

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OF THE THREE PERIODS

OF THE THREE PERIODS

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235. Two thousand years and yet more are departed since the day when our Lord entered into Nirvana. Ended are the two glorious periods—the orthodox and the representative. Lament, O ye disciples, who in this closing age would follow after the Lord.

236. The teachings of our Lord have entered into the Dragon Palace, for in this closing age they are too high for men. Men are impotent to follow after their practice or to attain unto them.

237. Throughout the three periods hath the Divine Promise of the Buddha of Infinite Light prospered and grown. But in this period of the closing age all righteous deeds are hidden within the Dragon Palace.

238. In a certain Sutra are we thus instructed, since the age that now is a part of the fifth in this closing age wherein men are fast bound in warfare, all righteous deeds have disappeared from the world.

239. Since the ancient days the life of men, whose age counted as 80,000 years, hath declined and lessened. And when they could live but 20,000 years, they were men living in an evil world, and with the five signs of degeneration upon them.

240. And since time itself hath decayed, the bodily frame of man hath waxed smaller and feebler, and they are as furious serpents or as wicked dragons, for the decay of time worketh within them.

241. The illusion that is bred of ignorance increaseth, and is driven over the world like dust. Hatred great and unbreakable as the high mountains is in the stead of love.

242. The perversity of man is as strong and piercing as the thorn of the jungle. With eyes of suspicion and venomous anger do they accuse and persecute them who believe upon the Holy Name.

243. It is a mark of the degeneration of time that man’s life is brief and death cometh upon him early and with iron hands breaketh up his body and that which surrounds him wherein he dwelleth. And they who leaving justice turn to wickedness do destroy one another by their evil deeds.

244. No hope is there that the men now living in these last days shall escape the fetters of birth and death if they refuse the merciful promise of the Blessed One.

245. Of heretics in the faith are there ninety sorts that defile the world and only the teaching of the Enlightened One cleanseth it. By him alone that attaineth unto wisdom shall true joy to man be fulfilled according to nature and in peace.

246. In these last times of decay the priests, together with the people, do evil unto him that trusteth in the doctrine of the Holy name.

247. Whoso attaineth not unto wisdom is eager to harm that man who, with single heart, accepted the exalted promise. There is no end to the infinity of the ocean of birth and death for those men who raven to destroy the doctrine that is mighty to save them if they would have it so.

248. Though the days of our present time are those that are called orthodox, we, in whom ignorance is fulfilled, have not within us the heart that is pure and true. How, then, can we of our own help attain unto the deeds that shall gain the wisdom that is made perfect.

249. The strong heart that is able to attain unto wisdom by self-help is beyond human knowledge and speech. How is it possible that men full of ignorance, fettered unto birth and death, should possess such a heart.

250. Though we were masters of the strong will of self-effort, even should we have seen face to face the Buddhas, myriad as the sands of Ganges—they who in this world were manifested the one after the other, yet were we drifted on the torrent of birth and death, in self-effort were no rescue for us.

251. In these sinful days that are called the representative and last times all the teachings of the Lord Buddha, the Sakiya-Muni have vanished away, but the Divine Promise of the Buddha of Infinite Light, shining greatly over the world, prosperously leads mankind unto the Eternal Kingdom.

252. After choice that is peerless and beyond the world’s understanding, after five Kalpas of musing, the Blessed One builded up the Divine Promise of the Light and Life Infinite. And this is the Essence of His Mercy showed upon us.

253. The noble mind that shall attain unto wisdom in the doctrine of the Pure Land is the mind that fain would become Buddha, and it is named: “The mind that shall save men who suffer.”

254. The mind that shall save men is that mind given by the high promise of the Blessed One. Whoso attaineth unto the faith He giveth shall be lord of the great Nirvana.

255. Whoso attaineth unto the mind that would fain become Buddha, having sought refuge in the gift of the Blessed One, hath no term in his own gift of welfare to mankind, having for ever laid down all self-righteousness.

256. According to the all-seeing promise of the Blessed One when the water of the faith He giveth entereth the soul, illusion passeth straight-way into wisdom through the virtue of that true land of the Divine Promise.

257. That man who trusteth in the two gifts granted by the Buddha of Infinite Light, is raised up into the sphere of the Lesser Enlightenment, and thence hath he the heart that dwelleth always on the perfection of the Blessed One.

258. He that attaineth unto the faith that is true gift of the promise of wisdom from the Blessed One, cometh unto the sphere of the Lesser Enlightenment, for he is embraced in the arms of the spiritual light that is of the Father Eternal.

259. Fifty-six thousand and seventy years shall pass before the Bodhisattva that is Maitreya shall attain unto the Perfected Wisdom. But whoso embraceth the true faith shall at this very time be lord of the great Enlightenment.

260. He that hath ascended unto the height of the Lesser Enlightenment, accepting the Divine Promise of the Holy Name, shall enter into the Great Nirvana, being made equal unto the Bodhisattva Maitreya.

261. He that receiveth the true Faith, and is one with them that return no more to birth and death, shall receive the Perfected Wisdom, even as that Bodhisattva Maitreya that is called, “He that shall come.”

262. And the wise in the age which is called Representative, having utterly renounced all the doctrine of self-dependence, have entered in at the gate of the Holy Name. For this is the way chosen for that Age.

263. He who reciteth the Holy Name, having attained unto the true faith, shall unceasingly adore the Eternal Father, that he may make a return unto Him for His Grace.

264. Inexplicable and unutterable merit shall be given unto him who, living in this sinful world, believeth the Divine Promise that proceedeth from His will.

265. For the true welfare of men that shall be the Buddha of the Great Light hath given the holy name of Wisdom unto the Bodhisattva of Wisdom.

266. And with great compassion for mankind in this evil world the Bodhisattva of Wisdom persuadeth them to believe upon the Holy Name, and sweetly welcometh the believer that he may lead him into the Land of Purity.

267. By the mercy of our Lord and of the Blessed One we are able to attain unto the heart that desireth Buddhahood. At that time alone, when we enter into the wisdom of the faith, shall we be ourselves like unto them that would return good unto the Buddha for His Grace.

268. It is by the strength of the Divine Promise that we can reach unto the holy name of Wisdom. Without the wisdom of the faith, how is it possible that we should attain unto the Nirvana?

269. The Divine Light shineth over the Deep Night of ignorance, therefore sorrow not that the wisdom of your eyes is darkened. The holy Ark is at hand that voyageth over the great ocean of birth and death; therefore fear not because your sin is heavy.

270. Great as is the night of the Divine Promise of our Salvation, so light is the heaviest of our sins. Immeasurable is the wisdom of our Father, and therefore they that are strong, as also they that weary, shall never be forgotten.

271. Our Father hath perfected His mercy by uttering the Divine Promise that giveth all His merit unto man, that He might save them that are fast bound unto birth and death.

272. Yea, the recitation of His Holy Name is given of the Blessed One. Therefore we must not offer this unto Him for the acquirement of merit. For this will He most surely disdain.

273. Yea, verily, when the water of the mind of man floweth into the great Ocean of the Divine Promise of the Perfect Wisdom it is changed and becometh the mind of infinite compassion.

274. And the Lord saith, speaking through a certain Sutra:

“My disciples that shall be, they that are sinners because of the lost way and love of evil things, it is they that shall destroy my holy doctrine.”

275. Whoso blasphemeth the doctrine of the Holy Name shall suffer without ceasing, for he shall fall into the depth of the Hell of Avichi for eighty thousands of Kalpas.

276. He to whom is given the true entrance into the True and Promised Land, by the grace of our Lord and of the Blessed One, shall be one with those men who return no more unto birth and death, and after this transitory life attain unto the Great Peace.

277. Well may we understand from the teaching of the myriad Buddhas in the Ten Regions—they that protect mankind—that the strong mind that seeketh enlightenment by self-effort is vain and impotent.

278. The Buddhas in the Ten Regions, innumerable as the sands of Ganges, bear witness that very few are there of men in this sinful world and decaying time that attain unto the true faith.

279. If we accept not the two divine gifts, the gift of entering the Promised Kingdom, and the gift of return into this evil world, then shall the wheel of birth and death turn with us for ever. And how shall we endure to sink into the sea of suffering?

280. Whoso believeth the marvellous wisdom of that Blessed One, shall be joined unto them that return no more unto birth and death. And when, possessed of excelling knowledge, such a man is born into Paradise, soon shall he attain unto the Perfected Wisdom.

281. It is the sole way unto the Promised Land that man should believe the wisdom that is beyond human knowledge, of the Enlightened One. Yet it is of all hard things hardest to attain unto the Faith, the true way that leadeth to Paradise.

282. Casting aside the sorrow of birth and death, that sorrow which is timeless in its beginning, I hope now solely for the Great Nirvana. There is no end to my thankfulness for the two mighty gifts of our Eternal Father.

283. Few are the believers that shall be born into the Land that is promised, but many are they that shall be born into the Temporal Paradise. Because the hope that we shall see Light by our own strength is vain, having no foundation, we have therefore drifted on the ocean of birth and death for many myriads of Kalpas.

284. Because in the gift of the Holy Name is a grace great and wonderful, if man attain unto the gift of departing, that of itself shall guide him unto the gift of returning.

285. Through the great mercy of the gift of departing shall we attain unto the compassion of the gift of returning. If it were not the free gift of the Blessed One, how should we attain unto wisdom in the Land of Purity.

286. The Buddha of the Infinite Light, together with the Bodhisattvas of Compassion and Wisdom, having taken the Ark of the Divine Promise, that is voyaging on the ocean of birth and death, have gathered and saved mankind therewith.

287. Whoso in heart and soul believeth the Divine Promise of the Buddha of Infinite Light must diligently recite the Holy Name both sleeping and waking.

288. Those men in the hierarchy of Sages that have trusted unto self-effort for the means of attaining wisdom, on entering into the heritage of the Divine Promise believe in it as in the Reason that transcendeth all reason.

289. Though the teachings of the Lord stand for ever, yet unto none is it possible to follow them in exactness, and therefore is there none that may attain unto supreme enlightenment in these last days of the falling away.

290. In India, in China, and the land of Japan, may the many teachers of the doctrine of the Land of Purity, with compassion and tender acceptance, persuade mankind to strive unto the true faith that they may be joined unto those that return no more unto birth and death.

291. Even as His friends the Lord commendeth those men that, having attained unto the true faith taught of the Blessed One unto us, dwell within the joy of holiness.

292. It is very meet that our souls rejoice exceedingly in the grace of the great compassion of the Buddha. Yea, even to the extinction of the body. And for the gracious giving of our spiritual teachers we must in like manner rejoice, yea, though our very bones be broken.

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CONCERNING HŌNEN SHŌNIN

CONCERNING HŌNEN SHŌNIN

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214. Since the day when Hōnen Shōnin appeared in the world, and set forth the single Ark of the Divine Promise, hath the Doctrine of the Pure Land gloriously shone upon the hearts of all men in the land of Nihon.

215. For from the strength of the wisdom of light, Hōnen, the Great Teacher, came into the world and hath taught the chosen doctrine of the Divine Promise, and he hath built Jodo-Shinshu upon the rock.

216. Though Zendo and Genshin, those great teachers, have well instructed us, yet had Hōnen Shōnin kept silence, wherewith should we know the holy teaching of Shin-Shu, we who dwell in remote country and in an evil day?

217. Throughout the long, long Kalpas of my lives that are overpast could I never find the way of Deliverance, and if Hōnen Shōnin, the Great Teacher, had not arisen in this world, vainly had I spent the precious hours of my life.

218. When his years were but fifteen, Hōnen Shōnin entered into the Way of Illumination, for in departing from worldly life he fulfilled his heart’s desire, and by him was clearly understanded the doctrine of the transience of life.

219. The excellent righteousness of Hōnen Shōnin, his deeds and the wisdom that was in him, drew unto him for refuge many even of chief priests of the heretics that seek Nirvana through the way of the sages. Yea, they sought him even as their appointed teacher, radiant and stray of soul as the diamond.

220. Even while Hōnen Shōnin yet walked in this world, there issued from his body rays of a golden shining, and this, so it is said, hath Kanezane Fujiwara beheld with his own eyes.

221. The people passed it from mouth to mouth that this Hōnen Shōnin was the living incarnation of Doshaku Zenji, or yet again of Zendo Daishi.

222. Before the eyes of men Hōnen Shōnin stood as the Boddhisattva of Wisdom, or, yet more, as the Blessed One again made flesh.

The Emperor and all his ministers did homage unto him, yea, and the men of the chief city and of the far countries.

223. He who had been Emperor, in the time of Jokyu, brought homage to Hōnen Shōnin. All the priests and scholars of the word of Confucius had understanding of the doctrine of Shin Shu.

224. A chosen vessel of the Blessed One that men might be saved, Hōnen Shōnin was manifested in the world, and he opened wide the gate of perfect wisdom, having instructed mankind in the Holy Faith.

225. Of all rare things it is the rarest that we should ourselves meet with the True Teacher, yet verily the chain of doubt in the Divine Mercy is the true cause of unending birth and death.

226. Hōnen Shōnin issued forth from the mysterious Light and his disciples beheld it. In his eyes was there nought of disparity between the wise and them that know not, between the noble and the lowly born.

227. And now, his time being at hand, Hōnen Shōnin spake:

“Thrice have I taken birth in the Land of Purity, and of these three times the last hath given unto me the fullness of peace.”

228. Once did Hōnen Shōnin speak, saying: “In the glorious day of our Lord was I among the holy Assemblage on the Peak of Vultures, and my Spirit was rapt in self-instruction and in the doctrine of salvation.”

229. Having taken birth in that small and remote island, Hōnen Shōnin spread abroad the doctrine of the Holy Name for the sake of all men’s salvation. And thus had he done not only then, but many times in ages gone by.

230. That Buddha, whose light is infinite, was made flesh in this world as Hōnen Shōnin, and when his merciful work was accomplished, he returned into the Land of Purity.

231. When his life was drawing to a close, light was manifested about him as a cloud of glory, yea, and music of the heavenly places, sweet and excelling in harmony, and sweet odours scattered about him.

232. Following steadfastly after the ensample of the Nirvana of the Lord, he laid himself upon his right side, his head inclined unto the north, his face turned unto the west. And the crowding people attended upon him, even the priests and men and women of the nobles and of the lowly born.

233. Now the time when Hōnen Shōnin departed from this life was the twenty-fifth day of the young spring. In the second year of Kenriyaku he returned in peace unto the Land of the Father.

On the ninth day of February and the second of Ko-Yen, the revelation that here followeth was sent unto me in a dream of morning.

234. It is necessary that men should believe the divine promise of Him who is Infinite.

Whoso believeth shall attain unto Perfect Wisdom, by the virtue of that Light which embraceth him and shall never forsake him.

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