"Ask thy own self, whether thou art because thou wast created by some extraneous power; or contrariwise whether it is not truer to say that thou art because thou dost will thy own existence. Every man is what he wills to be.

"Thou hast become what thou art of necessity according to the norms that constitute the nature of Amitabha. But thou grewest to be what thou art because thou wantedst to become such.

"Now if an Ishvara had created thee, thou wouldst not have the feeling of freedom that thou now hast, but thou wouldst feel like the vessel made by the potter which is what it is in spite of its own like or dislike."

"But if I am determined to love life," asked Charaka, "is it wrong to do so and shall I be punished for it by suffering?"

Replied Acvaghosha: "There is neither punishment nor reward, my son, though we may use the words in adapting our language to the common mode of thought. There is only cause and effect. The Tathagata gave no commandments,

for what authority has any one to command his brother beings? The Tathagata revealed to us the evils of life, and what people call the ten commandments are the ten ways pointed out by the Tathagata how to avoid the ten evils. He who does not take the Tathagata's advice must bear the consequences. The tiger will be hunted down, and a murderer will be executed. Their fate is the result of their deeds. As to love of life, there is nothing wrong in it. If you love life, you must not be afraid of suffering. While the Tathagata lived in the flesh, he was as much subject to pain as I am and as you are. But when the pangs of his last disease came upon him he bore them with fortitude and did not complain. If you love life, bear its ills nobly and do not break down under its burdens. Avail yourself of the light of Amitabha, for thus you can escape the worst evils of life, the contrition of regret, of remorse, of a bad conscience; and the noblest pleasure of life is that of becoming a lamp unto others. Let your light shine in the world and you will be like

unto your master, Buddha-Amitabha, the omnibenevolent source of all illumination."