u/Automatic-One3901

💭My Granddaughter's Journey to the Land of Ultimate Bliss in a Dream 💭 My five-year-old granddaughter seems to have some virtuous roots. She enjoys offering incense and paying homage to the Buddha at our family shrine. When taught basic Buddhist verses, she memorizes them quickly and recites them fluently. Whenever she visits temples with our family, she reverently bows before every Buddha statue with proper form. She also likes to chant along with the Buddha's Name whenever she hears verbal Amitabha-recitation in the car.

As a practitioner of verbal Amitabha-recitation, I often take the opportunity, while driving her home from kindergarten, to tell her about Amitabha Buddha and the splendid environment and beings of the Land of Ultimate Bliss. At home, I occasionally play animated videos depicting the Land of Ultimate Bliss for her. I also teach her to verbally recite "Namo Amituofo," explaining that by doing so, one can avert misfortune, enjoy peace and happiness in this life, and be reborn in the Land of Ultimate Bliss in the next life, where there is no aging, sickness, or death, until one attains Buddhahood there.

One day, she asked me, "Grandpa! How can I go to the Land of Ultimate Bliss?"

I replied, "Only by verbally reciting Amitabha Buddha's Name can you go there. Grandpa is already old, so I single-mindedly recite Amitabha Buddha's Name every day. When the day comes for Grandpa to leave this world, Amitabha Buddha will come to receive me and guide me to the Land of Ultimate Bliss. You are still very young, so you can ask Amitabha Buddha to take you there for a visit. Every night before going to sleep, you can verbally recite Amitabha Buddha's Name. After you finish your verbal Amitabha-recitation, tell Amitabha Buddha your wish. Amitabha Buddha is very compassionate, and He will fulfill your wish."

From then on, she would occasionally tell me that she had verbally recited Amitabha Buddha's Name before going to bed. Unexpectedly, not long ago, she really dreamed that Amitabha Buddha had taken her to the Land of Ultimate Bliss.

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#Journey_to_the_Land_of_Ultimate_Bliss #in_a_Dream

Two days ago, while we were in the car, she voluntarily told me about it.

👧“Grandpa! Last night, while I was dreaming, Amitabha Buddha took me to the Land of Ultimate Bliss to play.”

👴“Really? That’s wonderful! How did you get there?” 👧“I went on a lotus flower. Amitabha Buddha came to receive me holding a pink lotus and a rainbow-colored lotus. The lotus flew very fast, but I wasn’t afraid at all. When we were almost there, Amitabha Buddha gave me a pink dress, a crown, a necklace, earrings, and a bracelet to wear. The dress was so long and beautiful that it trailed on the ground.”

👴“What did Amitabha Buddha look like?” 👧“Amitabha Buddha was very tall, golden in color, and shining brightly!”

👴“Besides Amitabha Buddha, whom else did you see in the Land of Ultimate Bliss?” 👧“Mahasthamaprapta Bodhisattva.”

👴“Did you see Avalokitesvara (Guanyin) Bodhisattva?” 👧“Yes! And there were many, many other Bodhisattvas whom I didn’t know.”

👴“Did you see or experience anything else there?” 👧“Amitabha Buddha gave me lots of candy, as well as grapes, mangoes, and strawberries to eat. They were all my favorites and tasted so good! I also saw many beautiful lotus flowers in a pond. On the lotus flowers were written the names of Grandpa, Grandma, me, and Daddy. I didn’t see Uncle’s name. Grandpa’s lotus was blue, Grandma’s was red, and mine was pink🪷. Grandpa’s lotus and mine were both very big. Daddy’s lotus was withered because he doesn’t verbally recite Amitabha Buddha’s Name.”

👴“Was your lotus written with your official name or with ‘Wanwan’ (her nickname)?” 👧“It had my official name on it. There was also a card attached that said: ‘Happy Birthday, Wanwan! Wishing you good health!’”

👴“What else did you see?” 👧“The whole Land of Ultimate Bliss was shining with golden light. There were many birds—parrots🦜, peacocks🦚, sparrows🐦… One sparrow even flew onto my hand (sparrows are commonly seen near our home). There were also many beautiful houses and many fruit trees, but the fruit grew so high that I couldn’t reach it! There was also pleasant music playing🎶.”

👴“How did you come back in the end?” 👧“Amitabha Buddha brought me back on a lotus flower as well.”

👴“#Did_Amitabha_Buddha_say_anything #to_you?” 👧“#Amitabha_Buddha_said_to_me, ‘#Verbally_recite_the_Buddha’s #Name (Namo Amituofo) #more_often! Happy Birthday, and I wish you good health!’”

Was my granddaughter truly taken to the Land of Ultimate Bliss for a visit through Amitabha Buddha’s compassion, or was it simply a dream caused by what occupied her thoughts during the day? We cannot know.

Regardless, what is truly heartening is that the seeds of Amitabha Buddha and the Land of Ultimate Bliss have clearly been planted in my granddaughter’s consciousness. I pray that these seeds may soon sprout, grow, flourish, blossom, and bear fruit.

Namo Amituofo.

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🙏Postscript

About half a month later, my granddaughter drew a picture of a birthday cake. She said that during her afternoon nap, Amitabha Buddha had taken her to the Land of Ultimate Bliss to celebrate her birthday (her birthday was approaching at that time) and gave her a beautiful birthday cake.

At the same time, Amitabha Buddha also invited Melody, Mario, Pikachu, Jigglypuff… (all cartoon characters) to celebrate her birthday together. It was a very lively occasion! After bringing her back, Amitabha Buddha also gave her many gifts, including chocolate sticks and delicious toast.

She said that anyone who eats the chocolate sticks will grow wings. After she grew wings, she flew off to the world of Pokémon to play…

Laypeople Guocheng

May 22, 2026 (Republic of China, Year 115).

Edit- the "9" is the title is a typo.

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I'm a buddhist here, I just wanted to let some people read this-

So, a lot of people assume that buddhism is NOT a religion but merely a philosophy. But I think it's much of an oversimplification because, yes, buddhism has its own philosophy but it also includes ideas about afterlife and anything that makes up a religion.

For example, I see a lot of people assuming that buddhism is just about meditation and strict moral rules and detachment. While it is a valid view but it often ignores the most followed buddhist tradition practiced all across asia. I.E, Pureland buddhism.

I find it quite fascinating how Pureland tradition is almost never talked about in buddhist conversations between people who lived in non-buddhist backgrounds.

I mean, pureland tradition has its own SAVIOR figure named Amitabha buddha who is pretty much like buddhist Jesus. You have to have faith in him as your savior and also recite his name (namo Amitabha Buddha) to be reborn in his land to attain enlightenment. It is easily the biggest tradition of buddhism because anyone (even people who lack faith, concentration, morality, knowledge of texts) could still be saved by Amitabha buddha.

There was a time when pureland tradition had spread rapidly in china because whenever someone was dying, there were masses of people who witnessed auspicious and it had spread word-of-mouth. In fact, they compiled books called wanseng zhuan.

And yet, it's often ignored somehow. And its kinda hilarious for some reasons because given its simplicity and openess. It should've exploded because people are waking away from organized religion while wishing to have a personal savior.

Do some christians believe that Jesus taught about kindness and compassion than just displaying himself as a savior because one's deeds matter just as much as their faith ? And even the non-christians who do good deeds with kindness and compassion still have very strong chances to gain heaven ?

Edit- The idea that preaching about goodness can be more important than preaching Gospel and admit that they shouldn't judge non-christians' afterlife because only God can do that.

I guess it'd be fun to see whatever most westerners know about buddhism 👀

Om mani padme hum.

In the summer of 1994, Qiu Yongchang and his wife took their grandson Xinzhang for Amitabha-recitation at the home of their neighbor, Xu Qinggui.

Xinzhang recited loudly and earnestly. His childish voice impressed everyone there.

After a while, Xinzhang suddenly told his grandmother, who was sitting next to him, "Grandma, I saw Amitabha Buddha teaching inside a golden house."

His grandmother replied, "A child should never lie."

"Grandma, I′m not lying," Xinzhang insisted. "I really saw Amitabha Buddha."

After they returned home, Xinzhang said to his grandmother again, "When we were reciting, I saw Amitabha Buddha speaking in the golden house. His lotus flower was large, while those of Avalokitesvara and Mahasthamaprapta were smaller. I also saw golden birds and golden trees, and the houses were golden."

He went on: "In Amitabha′s place there was no dirt but gold on the ground. It was shining everywhere and so beautiful."

Another day, Xinzhang and his grandmother were watching the TV show Wonders of Mainland China, which introduced the country′s scenic spots.

While she was praising the beautiful views, Xinzhang said to her, "Granny, the views on TV aren′t beautiful at all. The Western Land of Bliss, on the other hand, is gorgeous!"

Grandma had just started learning the Dharma; she was illiterate and never read a Buddhist scripture before. Since Xinzhang seemed so serious, she asked Householder Qiu, "Our Xinzhang told me that when he recited Amitabha's name, he saw the Western Land of Bliss and its Three Sacred Beings. All the houses, trees and birds there were golden. Is that true?"

Householder Qiu replied, "The Amitabha Sutra says that in the Land of Bliss, the ground is made of gold, and the palaces and pavilions are adorned with the seven jewels. All the trees are made of gems and are neatly arranged. The birdsong is soft and pleasing to the ear, expounding the marvelous Dharma."

After hearing these words, she finally was convinced that her grandson was telling the truth.

From Records of the Effects of Amitabha-Recitation III.

The best way to gain maximum benefits of your practice (meditation, chanting, deity yoga or even small charity) is by rejoicing in the practice.

And how to find that joy ? That joy can be found when you realize that having a human birth with a healthy mind and the merits to encounter is dharma has way less chances than winning a lottery. And yet, here we are.

The point is, we should try to find joy from our practices by admitting the fact that it is very rare to encounter and it can bring tremendous benefits not just to ourselves but our loved ones too!

Therefore, we should take some time and appreciate and even praise ourselves for practicing the dharma.

Om mani padme hum. 🪷

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