Hells Bells and Buddhist Purelands

 

As I write this essay, there is an AC/DC album playing in the background.  I like AC/DC for a couple of reasons.  

First, they are objectively the greatest rock band of all time; putting out bangers like You Shook Me All Night Long, Thunderstruck, and the infamous T.N.T.

Second, the incongruity in their early videos is hilarious.  You have Colin Burgess drumming in the background, doing his job like it's just a 9-5.  Then you have Angus Young running all over the stage, playing guitar in a schoolboy uniform.  

The icing on the cake is the raspy, growling voice of Brian Johnson.  I have a strong suspicion his vocal style influenced 90's grunge bands like Nirvana and Creed.

Finally, there's that ever-present groove that the band finds in every song.  It makes their albums perfect "blowing off steam" music after a long day.  There are few things I enjoy more than sitting in my lounge chair with a cup of tea as the music washes over me.

One song of theirs that I've always enjoyed both for the lyrics and the bassline is "Hells Bells" I've listed some of the lyrics below:

I won't take no prisoners, won't spare no lives
Nobody's putting up a fight
I got my bell, I'm gonna take you to hell

I'm gonna get ya, Satan get ya

The general thrust of the song is that they're riding through the sky, snatching up concertgoers and taking them to hell where there's endless amounts of sex, drugs, and rock n' roll.  That's how I always understood it, at least.

As a sheltered kid who grew up in the Pentecostal church, the song seemed edgy.  I used to listen and try to imagine what an AC/DC party would be like.  Now when I listen to the song, I think of Amitabha and Buddhist Purelands.

Hear me out.

The central doctrine of Pureland Buddhism is that the monk Dharmakara Bodhisattva was so saddened by the state of the world that he practiced Buddhism for endless kalpas until he gained miracle powers, becoming Amitabha Buddha.

Then he used his powers to create a pureland free of sickness, aging, and death, where inhabitants would have the perfect conditions to realize enlightenment.

What I always liked about the story is Amitabha isn't passive in his efforts to save humanity.  He is aggressively kind, creating a home and swinging the doors wide open for anyone who wants to live there.

All that's required is that we have faith in him, chant his name, and accept his gift.

I can picture Amitabha hosting a rock concert.  The drummer is setting the tempo.  The guitarist is dancing across stage in a monk's robe.  And Amitabha is on vocals, chanting the scriptures, encouraging the crowd to sing along.

We pump our fists as the music washes over us.  We laugh, we sing, and we all reach enlightenment together.

Namu Amida Butsu

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