Amitabha

A statue of Amitabha Buddha in Kamakura, Japan

Amitabha  (Sanskrit; Amituofo in Chinese, Amida in Japanese): The ‘Buddha of Infinite Light’, whose name is repeated all over the Far East in the hope of being reborn in his ‘Western Paradise’; in Chinese Zen, repetition of his name can lead to concentrative states of mind and enlightenment. See Buddha

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In Japan, the common ways to worship Amitabha are through rituals and ceremonies and the nembutsu (‘remembrance of the Buddha’) where the devotee chants ‘Namu Amida Butsu’ (‘Homage to Amitabha Buddha’). Different sects of Pure Land Buddhism advise their practitioners in various ways of doing this, some recommending several thousand recitations per day, and others stating that just one heartfelt utterance of the nembutsu is enough to be reborn in the Pure Land. Once there, it is agreed that Amitabha’s infinite light will shine peaceful wisdom on his devotees, each of whom will be sat atop a giant lotus flower, meditating their way to enlightenment.