Master Jing Jie - Can I Chant the Buddha's name All the Way Through? 可不可以就一句佛號念到底?

(English Subtitles) Lectured by Master Jìng Jiè (淨界法師) from Taiwan.
Subtitles:
Master, I have a question. It is precisely because we do not understand ourselves, we are not professional as doctors to know how to prescribe medicine, that we choose the Pure Land Dharma. Can we chant the Buddha's name all the way through?
If you have thin vexation; If you have deep good roots; If you have sturdy vows, yes, you can do it. Because you are not ill, you don't need them, dharma is to treat illness. When you are sick, you have to take that medicine. Of course, if you don't have that illness. First, your don't have heavy karmic hindrances, then you don't have to repent. You don't need that medicine.
1:00
You naturally won't commit killing, theft, obscenity, or lie. You don't need to hold the 5 precepts. Since you are peaceful, taking precepts is not necessary. Basically you don’t have much affection for this world. You don't need to contemplate the truth of suffering or subdue affections. It's natural for you to live in true thusness. You don't need to practice living peacefully in the emptiness of Mahayana. Then you don't need these dharma. But the prerequisite is that if these are true. If you are sick and you don't take medicine, you are in trouble, because it won't vanish by itself. It depends on whether you can rush through by chanting Buddha's name. It's unknown if you can rush through. Because there are many variables when a person is dying. The human heart is complex and intricate.
2:00
When you reach the first place, only then the Buddha will make a prophecy about your achievement. When you dwell in the stage of positive certainty, the Buddha will give you a prophecy. Until you reach the stage of positive certainty, not even the Buddha can accurately tell what will happen to you tomorrow. If you want to be reborn(in the Bliss World), you have to understand yourself clearly. It seems that many people don't understand themselves very well. Why? Because you rarely sit still. You see, a person is usually contradictory. Do you think you understand others well? You can clearly analyze the mentality of the people living next to you. You could spend an hour talking about him. However, you don't know yourself, which is a problem. Because our 6 roots point outward, you don’t reflect light back onto yourself. It's troublesome that you don't understand yourself. You never meet a sage, who knows you very well. If you live in the age of righteous dharma, you don't need to understand yourself.
3:00
You worship Manjushri Bodhisattva as your master. Manjushri said: In the first 3 years, you have to worship and repent truthfully. The next 3 years, you have to practice the 4 Foundations of Mindfulness, then just chant the Buddha. That's enough, no need to look for others. He has paved your roads. You are lucky enough to grow up in the time of Buddha and the place where sages are born. But when you reach the era of degenerated dharma, you are still walking around blindfolded, that's awful, because there is no sage in the world, and you don't know yourself. Then I have no idea why you learn this dharma. There is no doctor here, you can take medicine as you like. Now, everybody take medicine randomly.
4:00
You shouldn't practice by feeling. The Vajra Sutra said that the Buddha never talked dharma. If you say the Buddha talked about the Dharma, you are slandering the Buddha. If the Buddha never talked dharma, where did the dharma come from? The Buddha spoke of this in response to the need of sentient beings. This is crucial. It's because you need it that he says it. Therefore, dharma has no self nature. If the buddha talked the dharma in the world, whether you need it or not, the dharma has self nature because it doesn't wait for cause and condition. But it's not the fact. Every word he said was in response to people's requests, so he didn't teach the dharma. So from this concept, we know the dharma is for curing illness. Do you take cold medicine when you're okay? No, absolutely not. Therefore, prescribe for yourself is crucial. I suggest you have a course to practice sitting in meditation every day.
5:00
You will know yourself gradually. Don't always turn the light of your heart outward. Turn 180 degrees once in a while and reflect on inner activities. How does it act? Which way does it like to go? In fact, your inner heart has a track.
It has a habitual track. When you encounter some things, everyone has different habitual actions. So, you have to catch the pulse so you know what your problem is. Then you can cut down on a lot of wasted time. We have talked a lot about Buddhism in general. Then you know which piece I'm in need, and this is crucial to me. So after you have learned Buddhism in general, you need to know yourself. How you seek or give up is your job.