Can You Become a Buddha Merely by Wishing to?

The Śūraṅgama Sūtra states: When the mind thinks of ascending to a height, the soles of the feet feel sore and astringent; the physical body is the most solid and primary delusion. When the mind thinks of ascending to a height, the mental faculty (manas) believes it is truly standing atop a high mountain, inducing fear within, which causes the soles of the feet to feel sore and astringent. Similarly, the physical body is also a delusion fabricated by the mental faculty—it is produced by the most deeply entrenched delusion.

Then, can the thought of attaining Buddhahood lead one to become a Buddha? The key lies in the fact that the mental faculty has not been cultivated to the point where it genuinely aspires to Buddhahood. To be precise, the mental faculty lacks sufficient faith in attaining Buddhahood. If faith were complete and unwavering, Buddhahood would assuredly be attained—it would merely be a matter of time. At present, as our faith gradually strengthens, we draw incrementally closer to Buddhahood. Those who truly aspire to Buddhahood exhibit immense diligence in their practice; they will disregard all else, renounce all worldly entanglements, and concentrate single-mindedly on cultivating the path. This resolve will be manifested in every action.