Sukhavati (

IAST The International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration (IAST) is a transliteration scheme that allows the lossless romanisation of Indic scripts as employed by Sanskrit and related Indic languages. It is based on a scheme that emerged during ...

: ''Sukhāvatī''; "Blissful") is a

pure land A pure land is the celestial realm of a buddha or bodhisattva in Mahayana Buddhism. The term "pure land" is particular to East Asian Buddhism () and related traditions; in Sanskrit the equivalent concept is called a buddha-field (Sanskrit ). The ...

Amitābha Amitābha ( sa, अमिताभ, IPA: ), also known as Amitāyus, is the primary Buddha of Pure Land Buddhism. In Vajrayana Buddhism, he is known for his longevity, discernment, pure perception, purification of aggregates, and deep awaren ...

Mahayana Buddhism ''Mahāyāna'' (; "Great Vehicle") is a term for a broad group of Buddhist traditions, texts, philosophies, and practices. Mahāyāna Buddhism developed in India (c. 1st century BCE onwards) and is considered one of the three main existing br ...

. It is also called the Land of Bliss or Western Pure Land, and is the most well-known of Buddhist pure lands, due to the popularity of

Pure Land Buddhism Pure Land Buddhism (; ja, 浄土仏教, translit=Jōdo bukkyō; , also referred to as Amidism in English,) is a broad branch of Mahayana Buddhism focused on achieving rebirth in a Buddha's Buddha-field or Pure Land. It is one of the most wid ...

East Asia East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The modern states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. China, North Korea, South Korea ...

Etymology and names

The word is the feminine form of ''sukhāvat'' ("full of joy; blissful"), from ''

sukha ''Sukha'' (Pali and ) means happiness, pleasure, ease, joy or bliss. Among the early scriptures, 'sukha' is set up as a contrast to 'preya' (प्रेय) meaning a transient pleasure, whereas the pleasure of 'sukha' has an authentic state ...

'' ("delight, joy") and ''-vat'' ("full of"). Sukhavati is known by different names in other languages. East Asian names are based on Chinese translations, and longer names may consist of the words "Western", "Blissful" and "Pure Land" in various combinations. Some names and combinations are more popular in certain countries. Due to its importance, Sukhavati is often simply called "The Pure Land" without distinguishing it from other

s. * Only common in Chinese.

Nine levels of birth

In the final part of the ''

Amitāyurdhyāna Sūtra The ''Amitāyurdhyāna Sūtra'' (Sanskrit; , ''Guan-wuliangshou-jing;'' Vietnamese: Phật Thuyết Kinh Quán Vô Lượng Thọ Phật; English: ''Sutra on the Visualization of he BuddhaImmeasurable Life'') is a Mahayana sutra in Pure Land Bu ...

'',

Gautama Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in L ...

discusses the nine levels into which those born into the pure land are categorized.Ceremony of Sukhavati
/ref>

Buddhist funerals

Tibetan Buddhism Tibetan Buddhism (also referred to as Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, Lamaism, Lamaistic Buddhism, Himalayan Buddhism, and Northern Buddhism) is the form of Buddhism practiced in Tibet and Bhutan, where it is the dominant religion. It is also in majo ...

, the world of Sukhavati is invoked during Buddhist funerals as a favorable destination for the deceased. Such rituals are often accompanied with the tantric technique of ''

phowa ''Phowa'' (, ) is a tantric practice found in both Hinduism and Buddhism. It may be described as "transference of consciousness at the time of death", "mindstream transference", "the practice of conscious dying", or "enlightenment without medita ...

'' ("transference of consciousness") to the pure land of

, performed by a lama on the behalf of the departed. Halkias (2013:148) explains that "Sukhavati features in funeral rites and scriptures dedicated to the ritual care of the dead (das-mchod''). The structure and performance of Tibetan death ceremonies varies according to a set sequence of events...For the duration of these rites, the consciousness of the dead is coaxed into increasing levels of clarity until the time for the ritual transference to Sukhavati." in

Japanese Buddhism Buddhism has been practiced in Japan since about the 6th century CE. Japanese Buddhism () created many new Buddhist schools, and some schools are original to Japan and some are derived from Chinese Buddhist schools. Japanese Buddhism has had ...

is the appearance of the Amida on a "purple" cloud (紫雲) at the time of one's death. The most popular belief is that the soul would then depart to the Western Paradise. A number of hanging scroll paintings depict the western paradise.

Namesakes

A number of temples are named after Sukhāvatī: *

Kek Lok Si The Kek Lok Si Temple () is a Buddhist temple situated in Air Itam, Penang, Malaysia. It is the largest Buddhist temple in Malaysia, and is also an important pilgrimage centre for Buddhists from Hong Kong, the Philippines, Singapore and othe ...

, Malaysia *

Kek Look Seah Kek Look Seah Temple (; also called as Kek Lok Seah Temple) is a Chinese temple located in Taman Happy of Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia. The temple is known for its planchette divination and has a medical room where Chinese medicine is given – which i ...

, Malaysia *

Jile Temple Jile Temple () of Harbin, China, is the biggest Buddhist building complex in Heilongjiang Heilongjiang () formerly romanized as Heilungkiang, is a province in northeast China. The standard one-character abbreviation for the province is (). ...

, Harbin, China *

Shinshōgokuraku-ji or is a Buddhist Tendai temple in Kyoto. It was established in 984 AD by the monk Kaisan, who was originally from Enryaku-ji. The word ''gokuraku'' in its name refers to Sukhāvatī, the Pure Land of the West. See also *Glossary of Japanese ...

, Kyoto, Japan

Gallery

File:'Amitabha in Sukhavati Paradise', Tibetan, circa 1700, San Antonio Museum of Art.jpg, Painting of Amitabha in Sukhavati. Tibet, circa 1700. File:Artist Unknown, Japan - Taima Temple Mandala- Amida Welcomes Chûjôhime to the Western Paradise - Google Art Project.jpg, Amitābha welcomes Chūjō-hime to the Western Paradise.Japan, 16th century. File:Painting of the Paradise of Amida Buddha (Sukhavati), Unknown Author, Heian period, 794-1185.jpg, Silk painting of the paradise of Amitabha (Sukhavati). Japan,

Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kanmu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means "peace" in Japan ...

, 794-1185.

References

External links

The Shorter Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra
the Amitabha Sutra
Dol-po-pa’s
A Prayer for Birth in Sukhāvatī {{Authority control Amitābha Buddha Pure lands Conceptions of heaven Afterlife places