Buddha contemplation (Chinese: guānfo 觀佛), is a central Buddhist meditation practice in East Asian Buddhism, especially popular in Pure Land Buddhism, but also found in other traditions such as East Asian Yogācāra, Tiantai and Huayan. This practice involves the visualization and contemplation of a mental image of a Buddha and the attributes of their Pure Land, aiming to develop faith, devotion, and a deep connection to the Buddha's spiritual qualities.[1][2] As such, Buddha contemplation is a Mahayana type of "buddha mindfulness" (buddhānusmṛti) meditation which focuses on imagination or visualization. The most popular Buddha used in this practice is Amitābha, but other figures are also used, like Guanyin, Maitreya, Cundi, and Samantabhadra.
The practice of Buddha contemplation is taught in various Mahayana sutras called Contemplation Sutras (Chinese: 觀經, Guān jīng, sometimes also translated as Visualization Sutras), which teaches contemplative practices based on fantastic visual images of Buddhas, bodhisattvas and their buddhafields.[3][1] These works mostly survive in Chinese translations dating from about the sixth century CE.[3][1] In Pure Land Buddhism, one of the most important sutras is the Amitāyus Contemplation Sūtra.[4]
- ^ a b c Quinter, David (2021-09-29), "Visualization/Contemplation Sutras (Guan Jing)", Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Religion, ISBN 978-0-19-934037-8, retrieved 2024-12-12
- ^ Payne, Richard K."Seeing Sukhavati : Yogacara and the Origins of Pure Land Visualization", p. 265-283. in The Pure Land, Journal of Pure Land Buddhism, New Series, No. 20 (IASBS, Dec. 2003); 304 pp. The 9th Block Conference at Duesseldorf & The 11th Biennial Conference at Berkeley : Conference Papers. Etc.
- ^ a b Yamabe, Nobuyoshi. The significance of the "Yogalehrbuch" for the Investigation into the Origin of Chinese Meditation Texts, 1999, The institute of Buddhist Culture, Kyushu Ryukoku Junior College
- ^ Luk, Charles. The Secrets of Chinese Meditation. 1964. p. 85