Can One Become a Buddha Simply by Thinking of Becoming One?

The Śūraṅgama Sūtra: When the mind thinks of climbing to a high place, the soles of the feet feel sore and astringent—this shows that the material body is the first, most solid false thought. When the mind thinks of ascending a height, the manas believes it is truly standing on the peak of a high mountain, and the mind becomes afraid, causing the soles of the feet to feel sore and astringent. By the same token, the material body is also a false thought projected by the manas—it is produced by the most solid of all false thoughts.

Then, if the mind thinks of becoming a Buddha, can one actually become a Buddha? The key is that the manas has not been cultivated to the point of truly wanting to become a Buddha; more precisely, the manas lacks sufficient faith in attaining Buddhahood. If the faith were full and complete, one would certainly become a Buddha—it would only be a matter of sooner or later. Right now, our faith is being strengthened bit by bit, and as it grows, we draw bit by bit closer to Buddhahood. One who truly wants to become a Buddha will practice with great diligence and vigor, disregarding everything else, renouncing all worldly concerns, and single-mindedly cultivating the Path—all of this will be manifest in one's every action.