Mappō

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One of the Three Ages of Buddhism, Mappō (末法 Cn: mòfǎ; Jp: mappō), or the Age of Dharma Decline, is the "degenerate" Third Age of Buddhism. Traditionally, this Age is supposed to begin 2,000 years after Sakyamuni Buddha's passing and lasts for "10,000 years", it follows the Age of Right Dharma (正法 Cn: zhèngfǎ; Jp: shōbō) and then the Age of Semblance Dharma (像法 Cn: xiàngfǎ; Jp: zōbō).^[1] During this degenerate age, people will be unable to attain enlightenment through the word of Sakyamuni Buddha, and society becomes morally corrupted. In Buddhist thought, even during the Age of Dharma Decline the teachings of the Buddha are still correct, but people are no longer capable of following them.

References to the decline of the Dharma over time can be found in such Mahayana Buddhist texts as the Diamond Sutra and the Lotus Sutra, but also to a lesser degree in some texts in the Pali Canon such as the Cullavagga of the Vinaya Pitaka. The Pure Land schools of Buddhism in China and Japan believe we are now in this latter age of "degenerate Dharma". Pure Land followers therefore attempt to attain rebirth into the Pure Land of Amitabha Buddha, where they can practice the Dharma more readily.