Amitābha

American  

[uh-mi-tah-buh] / ˌʌ mɪˈtɑ bə /

noun

Sanskrit.

1. a Buddha who rules over paradise, enjoying endless and infinite bliss.

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Amitabha British  

/ ˌamiˈtɑbə /

noun

1. Japanese name: Amida.  Buddhism (in Pure Land sects) a Bodhisattva who presides over a Pure Land in the west of the universe

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Etymology

Origin of Amitābha

First recorded in 1830–40; from Sanskrit Amitābha- “Infinite Light,” equivalent to amita “infinite, boundless” + ābhā “light, splendor”

Example Sentences

It is a term of later Buddhism and has been personified as Amitābha Buddha, or Amita.

From Project Gutenberg

The invocation of the all-saving name of Amitābha Buddha is a favorite tenet of the Lotus or Pure Land sect, so popular in China and Japan.

From Project Gutenberg

That mendicant does right who does not think: 'People should salute me'; who, though despised by the world, yet cherishes no ill-will towards it.8 "That mendicant does right to whom omens, meteors, dreams, and signs are things abolished; he is free from all their evils.9 "Amitābha, the unbounded light, is the source of wisdom, of virtue, of Buddhahood.

From Project Gutenberg

However, the repetition of the name Amitābha Buddha is meritorious only if thou speak it with such a devout attitude of mind as will cleanse thy heart and attune thy will to do works of righteousness.

From Project Gutenberg

The Blessed One after having explained his doctrine of Amitābha, the immeasurable light which makes him who receives it a Buddha, looked into the heart of his disciple and saw still some doubts and anxieties.

From Project Gutenberg