Editing Mandala (section)

===Pure Land Buddhism===
[[File:Pure Land Mandala (Kyushu National Museum).jpg|thumb|Pure Land [[Taima mandala|Taima Mandala]], Kamakura period, 14th century, Japan (Kyushu National Museum)]]

Mandalas have sometimes been used in [[Pure Land Buddhism]] to graphically represent [[Pure Land]]s, based on descriptions found in the ''[[Larger Sutra]]'' and the ''[[Contemplation Sutra]]''. The most famous mandala in Japan is the [[Taima mandala]], dated to about 763 CE. The Taima mandala is based on the ''Contemplation Sutra'', but other similar mandalas have been made subsequently. Unlike mandalas used in [[Vajrayana]] Buddhism, it is not used as an object of meditation or for esoteric ritual. Instead, it provides a visual representation of the Pure Land texts, and is used as a teaching aid.{{Citation needed|date=November 2008}}

Also in [[Jodo Shinshu]] Buddhism, [[Shinran]] and his descendant, [[Rennyo]], sought a way to create easily accessible objects of reverence for the lower-classes of Japanese society. Shinran designed a mandala using a hanging scroll, and the words of the ''[[nembutsu]]'' ({{lang|ja|念仏}}) written vertically. This style of mandala is still used by some [[Jodo Shinshu]] Buddhists in home altars, or ''[[butsudan]]''.{{citation needed|date=November 2021}}