Closing the Highest Grade

Seventh, from "dedicating this and vowing" onward, this makes plain each and every practitioner dedicating the practice cultivated above toward the very destination sought.

Eighth, from "possessing this merit" onward, this makes plain the differing duration, extended or brief, of the time spent in this cultivation — at the very most, across an entire lifetime; at the very least, for a single day, a single hour, or even a single thought-moment; or perhaps from a single thought or ten thoughts extending to a single hour, a single day, or an entire lifetime. The general intent is this: once the mind is given rise to, one vows to carry this through to the end of this present life, without ever once retreating, taking the pure land alone as one's own destination.

Further, as for "possessing this merit": it may be that a single person possesses the first two of these three practices; or a single person possesses the latter two; or a single person possesses all three in full. Should there be a person who possesses none of these three at all, such a person is called an animal wearing human skin — not truly called a human being at all. Further, whether one possesses all three or not, dedicating whatever one has shall bring about rebirth all the same. This should be understood.

Ninth, from "at the moment of being reborn in that land" down through "attains rebirth in that very land," this makes plain the differing ways in which the sages come to welcome the practitioner at the moment life is about to end, and the differing speed, swift or slow, with which they then depart. There are eleven points within it. First, this makes plain the marking out and fixing of the very land one is destined for. Second, this makes plain the renewed revealing of this practice, pointing out one who is resolute and diligent — this too serves to measure the relative strength of this merit. Third, this makes plain Amitābha, the teaching-lord of transformation, arriving there in person. Fourth, this makes plain Avalokiteśvara and the rest, further revealing that countless multitudes all come together with Amitābha to welcome the practitioner. Fifth, this makes plain a jeweled palace accompanying this very assembly. Sixth, this makes plain, once more, Avalokiteśvara and Mahāsthāmaprāpta together holding a golden platform, arriving before the practitioner. Seventh, this makes plain Amitābha emitting light to illuminate the practitioner's own body. Eighth, this makes plain that, once the Buddha's own light has extended and reached them, he, together with the transformation-buddhas, extends his own hand to receive them at the very same moment. Ninth, this makes plain that, once received and raised onto this platform, Avalokiteśvara and the others, with a single voice, praise and encourage the practitioner's own mind. Tenth, this makes plain the practitioner beholding themselves riding upon this platform, following the Buddha. Eleventh, this makes plain the differing speed, swift or slow, with which they then depart.

Tenth, from "reborn in that land" onward, this makes plain that this golden platform, upon reaching that land, encounters no obstruction whatsoever of a still-closed lotus flower.

Eleventh, from "beholding the Buddha's own bodily form" down through "the gate of dhāraṇī," this makes plain the differing benefits gained once this golden platform has arrived. There are three points within it. First, upon first hearing the wondrous Dharma, one awakens at once to the acceptance of non-arising. Second, in but a brief moment, passing through a sequence of events, one receives, in turn, a prediction of future buddhahood. Third, whether in that very land or in other realms, one further attains the twofold benefit of hearing and retaining the Dharma.

Twelfth, from "this, then, is" onward, this gathers together the general conclusion. Though the above has unfolded across twelve distinct points, this concludes the full explanation of the meaning of the highest rebirth of the upper rank.