Amitabha, also known as Amida or Amitayus, is a celestial buddha according to the scriptures of Mahayana Buddhism. Amitabha is the principal buddha in Pure Land Buddhism, a branch of East Asian Buddhism. In Vajrayana Buddhism, Amitabha is known for his longevity attribute, magnetising red fire element, the aggregate of discernment, pure perception and the deep awareness of emptiness of phenomena. According to these scriptures, Amitabha possesses infinite merits resulting from good deeds over countless past lives as a bodhisattva named Dharmakara. Amitabha means "Infinite Light", and Amitayus means "Infinite Life" so Amitabha is also called "The Buddha of Immeasurable Light and Life".

The Infinite Life Sutra is a Mahayana Buddhist sutra, and the primary text of Pure Land Buddhism. It is the longest of the three major texts of Pure Land Buddhism. In the Longer Sukhavativyuha Sutra, the Buddha begins by describing to his attendant Ananda a past life of the Buddha. Amitabha. He states that in a past life, Amitabha was once king who renounced his kingdom, and became a bodhisattva monk named Dharmakara ("Dharma Storehouse").Under the guidance of the buddha Lokesvararaja ("World Sovereign King"), innumerable buddha-lands throughout the ten directions were revealed to him. After meditating for five eons as a bodhisattva, he then made a great series of vows to save all sentient beings, and through his great merit, created the realm of Sukhavati ("Ultimate Bliss").This land of Sukhavati would later come to be known as the Pure Land.The sutra describes in great detail Sukhavati and its inhabitants, and how they are able to attain rebirth there. The text also provides a detailed account of the various levels and beings in the Mahayana Buddhist cosmology.The sutra also contains the forty-eight vows of Amitabha Buddha to save all sentient beings. The eighteenth vow is among the most important as it forms a basic tenet of the Pure Land school. This vow is most commonly known as shi nian bi sheng yuan, because it states that if a sentient being makes even "ten recitations" of the Amitabha Buddha's name they will attain "certain rebirth" into the Pure Land.

A Buddhist story spoken by Venerable Master Miao Lien

The larger sutra on Amitāyus (Taishō volume 12, number 360) -- The sutra on contemplation of Amitāyus (Taishō volume 12, number 365) -- The smaller sutra on Amitāyus (Taishō volume 12, number 366).

A Buddhist story spoken by Venerable Master Miao Lien

"Infinite Life Sutra" by Anonymous (translated by Max Müller). Published by Good Press. Good Press publishes a wide range of titles that encompasses every genre. From well-known classics & literary fiction and non-fiction to forgotten−or yet undiscovered gems−of world literature, we issue the books that need to be read. Each Good Press edition has been meticulously edited and formatted to boost readability for all e-readers and devices. Our goal is to produce eBooks that are user-friendly and accessible to everyone in a high-quality digital format.