 The disciples of Hōnen who pursued the teaching that birth in the Pure Land became settled with a single utterance in trust explored the reasons this should be so and also its consequences for ongoing life in the present. As we have seen, Hōnen taught that the vocal nembutsu was qualitatively distinct from all other practices, being effective as practice because it has been fulfilled by Amida and given to beings. Precisely how it was given remained an issue. For disciples like Shōkō, the nembutsu was determined by Amida but retained its quality as practice in that it was to be repeated by a person throughout life, even though a single utterance was taught to be sufficient. Thinkers like Shinran and Shōkū, however, both understood the utterance of nembutsu to be fulfilled practice because it arises from the oneness of being and Buddha expressed as shinjin or taking refuge. Further, because of this oneness, a person’s attainment of birth in the Pure Land is completely settled in the immediate present.