Everyone can practice the Buddha-recitation Dharma-door. All you have to do is recite "Namo Amitabha Buddha," and at the end of your life you will be born in a lotus in the Land of Ultimate Bliss, where you will hear Amitabha Buddha speak Dharma and eventually attain Buddhahood. "Death is still far off," you say, "why should we recite the Buddha's name now?" You must develop your skill in reciting right now, so that you will remember to recite at the time of death. Just as a tree must grow for many years before it becomes a hundred feet tall, you must begin practicing reciting the Buddha's name now so that when it comes time to die, you will be able to recite single-mindedly, without sickness, greed, hatred, stupidity, or confusion, and Amitabha Buddha will come to guide you. If you don't recite now, you won't remember to when your body starts to fall apart at the time of death, unless a Good and Wise Advisor is there to remind you and help you. Therefore, it's important to recite the Buddha's name every day and enter the Buddha-recitation samadhi, so that reciting will come naturally at the time of death and you won't forget. Or if you are unable to recite Namo Amitabha Buddha, Amitabha Buddha won't forget you and so he will come riding the ship of his great vows, receive you onto a golden dais, and take you to the Land of Ultimate Bliss. He won't forget about you.

You are mindful of the Buddha,
I am mindful of the Buddha;
Why are we mindful of the Buddha?
To end birth and death, to transform the Saha,
So that everywhere is ultimate bliss, everywhere Amitabha.
With no you and no me, what is there?
In still contemplation, the myriad things are understood.
Cut off afflictions, smash through ignorance;
Leap out of the Triple Realm's great river of love.

Foolish people recite the Buddha's name, hoping the Buddha will give them some good food to eat. Some recite, "Namo Amitabha Buddha, Namo Amitabha Buddha, please give us some warmer weather!" Other people recite hoping to obtain good luck and happiness, or to escape problems and suffering. The primary purpose of reciting the Buddha's name is to end birth and death, that is, to have control over our own births and deaths. If we want to live, we can recite Amitabha Buddha's name day after day and live forever. If we want to die, then we recite "Namo Amitabha Buddha" and the Buddha will come to receive us. We will be free of illness, greed, and delusion, as if entering samadhi, and we will be reborn in the Land of Ultimate Bliss with no problem at all. Secondly, if we recite the Buddha's name, we can transform the Saha world itself into the Land of Ultimate Bliss, where beings endure none of the sufferings and enjoy every happiness.Recite to the point that you, me, the Buddha, and everything else disappears. "That's too dangerous! If everything is gone, won't we all be finished?" you say. It's only to be feared that you won't be finished. If you are truly "finished," then you are free. At that time, you will understand the myriad phenomena of the world, such as why crows are black and cranes are white, why pines are straight and brambles are twisted. Since you understand everything, afflictions are cut off, ignorance is smashed, and you leap out of the great river of love that courses through the Desire, Form, and Formless Realms. In the Triple Realm, we are so deluded by love, loving each other until we die, and then coming back for another round, never waking up enough to escape. Now, however, we want to leap out of the river of love. "I don't want to," someone says. Then you can undergo a few more rounds of birth and death. With each round, you sink lower and lower, until you sink to the very bottom of the river of love! Drowning represents your soul being split into many small creatures, such as mosquitoes and ants. These insects have low intelligence, few blessings, and very short lives.