A Confession from the Western Pure Land

This is a record of an interview with Mao Zedong, former Chairman of the People's Republic of China, who sought deliverance at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Australia. He now resides in the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss. This account reflects upon his life and the consequences of his actions approximately fifty years ago. Recorded by the chief writer, Fa Ning, on April 19, 2026.

Mao Zedong speaks:

"Namo Amituofo. I am Mao Zedong, the former Chairman of China. Today, Namo Amituofo and Practitioner Su have called upon me once again, granting me the opportunity to speak a few words. Fourteen years ago, Practitioner Su extended the grace of guiding me to the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss—a kindness I have never forgotten. Every moment since, I have been trembling with humility, striving diligently in my practice, and hoping for the day when I might finally repay the debt I owe to everyone."

A Legacy of Suffering and the Judgment of Hell

"During my leadership, the policies I implemented—such as the 'Great Leap Forward' and the 'Cultural Revolution'—were utterly ruthless. They devastated the hearts of the Chinese people, destroyed ethics, culture, and the Buddha’s teachings, and caused the cruel annihilation of countless lives. Before I had even passed away, my spirit was dragged before the Hall of King Yama to be interrogated. The list of my transgressions was endless. King Yama examined them one by one, and countless vengeful spirits stood there, pointing their fingers at me, their eyes burning with rage, their teeth gnashing in hatred. I was speechless. The time, the place, and the circumstances of every tragedy were laid bare before me. The scenes of cruel harm inflicted upon the people—the suffering that spread mercilessly to every province and every household in China—were undeniable. I saw the withered bones of farmers who had starved to death, the Red Guards who turned against their own kin, the burning of ancestral tablets, and the humiliation of sages and elders. Countless crimes unfolded before my eyes, and King Yama sentenced me directly to the Avici Hell to endure unimaginable agony."

"I was cast into the Copper Pillar Hell, the Heart-Gouging Hell, the Brain-Gouging Hell, the Throat-Pouring Hell, the Amputation Hell, and the Iron-Pellet-Swallowing Hell. I repented over and over again. In that abyss of absolute darkness and misery, a beam of Buddha-light suddenly shone upon me. In an instant, I was transported to a place of incomparable brilliance, where I encountered Practitioner Su. She asked me who I was and where I had come from. Emerging from the depths of such suffering, seeing that light felt like finding a savior. After Practitioner Su led me in chanting the Holy Name 'Namo Amituofo', she guided me directly into the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss. To this day, the magnitude of this grace is beyond words!"

The Light of Deliverance

"It was Namo Amituofo and Practitioner Su who saved me. This is the compassion of the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas; they knew that Mao Zedong’s sins were heavy and difficult to pardon, and that one must personally repay what one has done. Since entering the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss, I have been exceptionally diligent, never daring to slacken for a moment."

"Today, China is able to stand tall once again. In my heart, I, Mao Zedong, feel immense gratitude for this land. It must have been the protection of the Buddha and Bodhisattvas that allowed the people to reorganize, recover, and stand up again after such devastating destruction. Of course, while everyone may appear prosperous and happy on the surface at this very moment, I, Mao Zedong, clearly understand that the harm I caused in the past remains deeply embedded in the hearts of many, impossible to forget. The afflictions and anxieties within people's hearts are the result of various karmic debts accumulated over one era after another, leading to the tragic state of affairs we see today. I cannot shirk my responsibility; I am willing to shoulder all of it and wish to write a letter of apology to all the people of China."

A Lack of Foundation

"My own story actually stems from an inability to receive a proper education, especially the education of sages and Buddhist education. Growing up in the absence of such guidance, and driven by the massive upheavals of society and the evolution of my environment, I was pushed step by step toward a life defined by an intense personality and the commission of such grave sins. I was born into a small family; I did not read many books, nor did I have the experience of studying abroad. As a child, my mind was always very sharp. I could see the truth of a situation at a glance, piercing through to the essence of all things. This allowed people to be convinced by me and to take me as their role model.

This was a unique personal charisma I brought with me from birth—or perhaps a very distinct and unique personality—which was the only reason I could attract so many people to revere and trust me at the time. However, I truly betrayed that initial trust. Everyone believed I was someone who could stand up for all the people of China, allowing them to no longer suffer the humiliation of foreign enemies among the nations, and no longer see themselves as so humble and insignificant.

The Seeds of Arrogance

The China I lived in at that time had suffered through too many years of foreign invasion, the First and Second World Wars, and the War of Resistance against Japan. This caused immense psychological trauma and a lack of security among the people. They mistakenly believed their own culture was backward and their nation unworthy of respect, thinking that only everything from abroad was powerful. I wanted to block these thoughts and help my countrymen build confidence and move toward the world. At that time, I truly harbored a sliver of Goodness, because I knew the suffering of the people came from their lack of confidence, and I hoped they could stand up. But later, I allowed this confidence to inflate to such a degree that, under the weight of my own excessive self-confidence and arrogance, I caused too many policy errors and harmed too many people.

The early Mao Zedong began to appear on the political stage with great ambition. Later, on the eve of the Civil War, because of my resourcefulness, courage, and extremely keen judgment, I led everyone to drive the Nationalist army to the other side, unifying all the people of China in one stroke. I once relied on a tenacious will to break through the incredibly painful battlefield experience of the Long March. When my most elite Communist soldiers endured the long march, resisted the fierce suppression by the Nationalist army with their high-tech equipment, and survived the brutal outdoor conditions, it truly ignited immense cheers and admiration from all the people of China.

The Bond with the People

In the series of campaigns that followed, I invented unique strategic methods that led and united the hearts of the vast peasantry, making them willing to let go of everything to serve the country. We used guerrilla tactics on a large scale to break through and strike the Nationalist army. At that time, my status in the hearts of the farmers was very high, and I cherished everything they did. The mutual appreciation between myself and the vast peasantry made them truly obedient and reverent toward me, willing to serve the Communist Party for a lifetime.

When they joined the scope of our Communist Party's work at that time, many farmers pushed small carts on the battlefield, delivering warm food and blankets to the soldiers, allowing everyone to focus wholeheartedly on the fighting without any worries. This was the foundation for the later victory against the Nationalist army. Therefore, the emotion between the farmers and me was inseparable; they worshipped me, and I was grateful to them.

The Peak of Power and the Descent

This was the most glorious moment of my political life. After experiencing brutal wars of all sizes, the people of China finally welcomed someone who had the courage to unite everyone and push them toward a state of unification. After the Civil War, the country was finally unified. When I stood on Tiananmen and everyone cheered 'Long Live,' the surging emotions in the hearts of the Chinese people—after more than a hundred years of immense humiliation and insecurity—were filled with hope for the future. People's confidence in the future grew, and the gratitude in their hearts for me was beyond words. Their reverence for me inflated daily, which caused my arrogance and my desire to hold absolute power to inflate to the extreme.

At this time, I appeared very glorious, but in truth, I did not know that deep within my heart, I was no longer the one in control. The day my hands were stained with blood and I walked step by step toward unifying the nation was also the day I began to be attacked and controlled by more beings and vast demon crowds. I was fifty-six years old then, and the number of demon crowds controlling me from head to toe was truly immense. This was a massive karmic vortex attracted by my personal personality and karma, and also by the beings attracted by the Collective Karma of the vast Chinese people and myself. This domineering air, this arrogant air, and this violent energy, which was extremely lacking in moral foundations and righteousness, were the main reasons that attracted the demon crowds to come and control me.

The Era of Purges

After so many years of frequent warfare and various foreign invasions, people had developed estrangement, anxiety, and distrust toward one another. This bit-by-bit moral decay led to an increasing control of the Chinese people by the demon crowds. As the primary leader who unified the country at that time, I was certainly the first to bear the brunt of it.

In the decades that followed, although I was still passable when I first took office and the country was relatively stable, less than ten years later, I launched a great purge targeting all the intellectuals of China—teachers, professors, scientists, writers, and the like. At that time, the distinction between the 'Right' and the 'Left' was very sharp. Everyone had to strictly stand with the Left, which was the Communist Party. If one's thinking deviated even slightly, standing with the Right, they would be classified by me as Rightists and suffer great humiliation and attack. I initially welcomed everyone to provide me with opinions, appearing very open-minded, but in reality, it was all a facade.

Because after that, these opinions made me restless. My powerful personality could not tolerate even the slightest criticism or the pointing out of errors by others. Later, when more and more people courageously hoped that our party could hand over some power, the bottom line of my deep-seated anxiety finally exploded.

A Nation in Crisis

Under the heavy control of the demon crowds, what I carried out was not a series of education or counseling actions. Even though everyone disagreed with my political views, if I had been the clear-headed Mao Zedong who could master his own mind, perhaps I could have been more rational and only targeted a small group of people for such attacks and criticism, or perhaps arrested the main figures to 'kill the chicken to scare the monkey.' That would have already been a very intense measure, but I did not do that. For the sake of the attacks and comments some people made against my party, I actually plunged the entire nation into an unprecedented crisis. I directly ordered that every unit at the time must hand over a certain number of 'Rightists' to the government.

These individuals were not all so-called Rightists; they might have been scapegoats, or they were forced to become Rightists just to fill the quota. In order to suppress the freedom of speech of all the scholars in the land and prevent them from uttering a single word of opposition against me, I arrested hundreds of thousands, or even millions, of these so-called Rightists. I sent them to border regions for hard labor, where they lived lives of extreme suffering and could never return to their homelands to reunite with their families. Many never had news of them again, or soon died in foreign lands—starving to death, dying of pain, dying of illness, or dying of misery.

The anxiety in my heart grew day and night; I was always worried that someone would try to seize my power. I treated my comrades-in-arms around me in this way. Although everyone had previously performed great military deeds and were people who had been a grace to me, Mao Zedong, if there was even the slightest disobedience to my will, I would either have them executed, send them to the border, or ensure they would never have a day to lift their heads again. All kinds of cruel acts—it is hard to speak of them! Heavens! I was truly too wrong, too wrong!

I never imagined that because of a momentary personality flaw, I would attract such a large number of demon crowds to control me collectively. Many beings were attached to me, and they were not just controlling me; they wanted even more to put their enemies to death. Because I possessed a powerful personality, I could easily attract them and be used by them. Therefore, as long as these beings and demon crowds reached me, they could exert greater force because of my powerful personality, carrying out brutal attacks, counter-attacks, or acts of revenge against their enemies. This was entirely because of the karmic vortex I fell into, attracted by my own personality! Namo Amituofo."

"As I look back upon all of this from the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss, I can see the causes and consequences of these events with much greater clarity. I now realise that the Universal Principle, the Truth, and the Right Way described in the Buddha’s teachings are truly real. If one violates the Universal Principle, the Truth, and the Right Way, demons can enter one's body. If a person holds such a high position and wields such immense influence, they become a prime target for the demon crowds. A life controlled by demons is never easy, because every step you take is merely creating more sins. Yet, most of the time, one remains completely unaware, mistakenly believing that these actions are driven by one's own 'proud' nature, or that these are rules, powers, and decisions made by one's own free will. In reality, that is not the case at all.

The Weight of My Sins

I can see clearly that when I was young, Mao Zedong still seemed like a person capable of self-governance, though my personality was already extremely fierce and overbearing. However, as more and more demons attached themselves to me, and as my status grew higher and higher, my controlled actions expanded further and further, affecting an unimaginably vast scope of people. All of these sins must be repaid by me personally. When I think about it, these are truly grave sins that would be enough to condemn me to the Avici Hell hundreds of times over! The pain and remorse in my heart are beyond words. I can only silently implore my fellow countrymen to carefully read this letter. The Mao Zedong of today truly knows he was wrong, and he knows that his personal mistakes affected so many people.

Later, as I neared the twilight of my life, I initiated a series of even more insane actions, causing the people of all China to fall from the edge of suffering directly into a zone of total collapse. I launched a policy called the 'Great Leap Forward,' which resulted in at least thirty million people across China dying due to famine and various illnesses caused by this policy. This was, quite simply, a most tragic and catastrophic disaster!

The Illusion of Power

If you were to ask me, 'Did you know that the policies you set would harm so many people?'—as the Chairman of a nation and a person of supreme intelligence, how could I possibly have pushed the country into a state of repeated destruction? Many people assume that I was fully aware and simply chose to commit such grave errors over and over again to consolidate my power, refusing to admit my mistakes. But today, Mao Zedong will be honest with everyone: there were many matters and policies where I was in a state of only partial understanding. This is not me trying to shirk responsibility; rather, I want to tell the world how, under the manipulation of my own intense personality, I became so incapable of self-governance and how I was controlled by so many demons to influence the people of all China. The most vivid example of this is the 'Great Leap Forward' policy I launched.

At an international conference at the time, I watched the economies of many countries developing remarkably well, and a very intense feeling of competition and struggle arose within me. I desperately wanted to surpass all these Western nations. With the massive manpower of my own country, I was very confident, believing that after being bullied and humiliated for so many years, the Chinese people must stand up and let the world see China's strength. Consequently, driven by this intense vanity, jealousy, desire for revenge, and a competitive, combative heart, I was once again controlled by even more demons, and I launched the 'Great Leap Forward.' This policy could be called one of the most foolish in history, yet it was conceived within my 'brilliant' mind and was truly implemented upon the entire population of China.

The Folly of the 'Great Leap Forward'

This policy included many elements:

• First, I frantically encouraged everyone to smelt steel, because at that time, the amount of steel produced was considered one of the most important indicators of whether a nation's economic development was on track. To 'surpass Britain and catch up with America,' I vigorously encouraged the entire nation to smelt steel together. This seems like an absurd thing now—if everyone is smelting steel, who is left to farm the fields? Who is left to handle other essential tasks? It was indeed so. I made many people abandon their primary duties, put down their hoes, and stop farming, instead operating one backyard furnace after another in their own homes. People even took the only pots, pans, and iron tools they owned—when they had no steel or mineral resources—and threw them into the furnaces to smelt iron. The steel produced was not only useless, but it also wasted a tremendous amount of human and material resources. Why was I completely unaware of this at the time? As someone who considered himself pragmatic and who hoped to win face on the international stage, how could I have committed such a low-level error? Do not think I was truly that stupid, but under the control of the demons, my eyes were truly obstructed! All the false appearances I saw were the bitter fruits of the seeds I had planted, which made people afraid to speak the truth.
• Furthermore, another very famous aspect of the 'Great Leap Forward' was making everyone eat from the 'big pot' [communal dining], with no private land ownership. The most tragic part was not even this; it was that many of my subordinates, in order to please me, satisfy my vanity, and gain my approval, lied to the central government about the figures. They reported that their crops were growing vigorously and that they had bountiful harvests. After all these falsified figures were presented, my arrogance indeed inflated to the extreme, and I believed these policies were truly successful and that China would soon become one of the world's great powers.

Consequently, the central government vigorously confiscated these lands from the people, hoping to sell the grain for money to cover the nation's expenses, whether for military or international affairs. I did not realise that what I was squeezing was the very livelihood of millions of ordinary farmers. At the beginning, I did not know they were in such a painful situation—dying of hunger and illness—and I thought everything was peaceful. These falsified figures filled my vanity, and this was yet another massive catastrophe invited by my own personality!

A Legacy of Regret

By the time I truly woke up to how many people this policy had pushed to the brink of starvation and death, everything was already beyond repair. Tens of millions of people across China died simply because of this erroneous policy of mine. When you get to the root of it, this mistaken policy still stemmed from my own intense, arrogant, and conceited heart—a heart that could not listen to counseling, a heart that could not accept even the slightest threat to my Communist Party, and a sense of intense self-protection. My intense personality led the people of all China into this painful situation.

At that time, I had been under the control of demons for a long time. My entire being had already scattered, and my soul had long since gone to the hells to suffer. The various hells I mentioned earlier that I had descended into caused many contradictory phenomena in my psychology at the time. My mental state appeared on the surface to be able to hold things together, but the internal collapse and anxiety—the total disintegration of my spirit—was perhaps something the world could never know.

After the Mao Zedong of that time learned the truth of all these facts, a sliver of remorse did indeed arise in my heart. I knew that I had dealt such a tragic blow to the vast number of farmers who trusted me the most. The root cause of everything was still the errors in my policies. However, my intense personality did not allow me to admit my mistakes. I pushed everything onto factors I could not control, onto others, and onto natural and man-made disasters. Under such circumstances, the guilt in my heart still made me hope that I could let the people live a good life.

Therefore, when I could not do much else, and in a state of great grief, I gathered a few people I believed I could trust and who could shoulder great responsibilities to temporarily take over the most important work of the economy. The famous figures at the time included Liu Shaoqi and Deng Xiaoping. After they made slight modifications to my policies, the economic level of the Chinese people actually improved again, and they began to have food to eat and lived more stable lives. They actually returned some public property to the people, allowing farmers to have their own rights and autonomy to manage their lives and economic affairs.

However, when the people's lives began to show signs of improvement, my intense personality flared up again. Watching Liu Shaoqi, Deng Xiaoping, and others do these things—was this not overturning everything I had done before? Was this not proving that everything I had done was wrong? My intense personality could not tolerate such things; I wanted to grasp all power. This involved my own personality, but it also involved the control of the vast demon crowds, which made me completely unable to act autonomously, wanting to monopolize all power. Thus, filled with resentment and surging jealousy, I lay low for a few days to accumulate strength, wanting to strike a heavy blow against the figures led by Liu Shaoqi. Consequently, I launched one of the greatest cultural disasters in human history—the 'Cultural Revolution'—and the 'struggle sessions' that caused countless families to be broken and destroyed the lives of countless people who had contributed to the country.

I encouraged my fellow countrymen to destroy the culture of our ancestors to consolidate my own ideological status; then, I encouraged the masses to vigorously criticize those they deemed to be rebels. Anyone who was named would inevitably face a tragic end. These innocent people were subjected to punishment and humiliation on the streets. This was the origin of the 'Red Guards.' Many people, in order to curry favour with me and to preserve their reputation as 'innocent' people, actually began to cooperate with my policies under my verbal incitement. They publicly conducted 'struggle sessions,' groundlessly exposing their enemies as 'people who opposed Mao Zedong.' This allowed that person to lose all freedom and even their life, being pelted with stones and spat upon by others on the streets. Namo Amituofo."

This was akin to encouraging the descendants of the Yellow Emperor to slaughter and torment one another, causing all sense of social trust to vanish completely. Some families even fractured; there were instances of husbands and wives denouncing each other, and children denouncing their mothers. When a society lacks even the most basic moral foundations, it is a truly heart-wrenching reality.

You may wonder why I, Mao Zedong, chose to go down such a path. Why lead the entire nation into such a terrifying abyss? Forcing the people to act like madmen, criticizing and tormenting one another, devoid of all morality—this was a complete betrayal of our ancestors' legacy and a total violation of the Universal Principle, the Truth, and the Right Way.

The Puppet of Darkness

All of this horror was not caused by me alone. Let me tell you, the person I was back then was no longer truly myself. I had become entirely like a demon, performing every act that demons do. Looking at the physical body, the Mao Zedong of that time was on the verge of madness, his mental state far worse than before. If someone could have truly seen into my heart, they would have judged me as insane, completely controlled by demon crowds and other beings. My own soul had long been suffering immense torture across countless hells and spiritual realms.

Because there were officials I did not trust, I encouraged university students and farmers across the country, or those from the lower classes, to rebel against everything I deemed to be old thought and culture. At first, I simply used this as an outlet to redirect people's dissatisfaction with me toward a place where they could vent their emotions. In truth, this meant shifting their resentment away from me and onto the destruction of our ancestors and traditional Chinese culture. At the same time, I aggressively instilled the idea that the culture left behind by our ancestors was the reason for the nation's backwardness. Everything I did thereafter was to consolidate my position in the hearts of the nation and its people, hoping to exist forever in their minds like a god.

The Destruction of Heritage

Many people believed it to be true. Due to a long-standing sense of inferiority, they genuinely thought their own national culture was useless and harmful. These people believed my words, especially the young people and students who lacked any social experience. They followed me blindly. Many demon crowds, using my words, began leading people across the country to find the most precious cultural relics and antiques, burning them to ashes. Buddhist education in China suffered a devastating blow once again. Many Buddhist artifacts, antiques, various precious scriptures, and invaluable assets were destroyed or directly incinerated, never to see the light of day again, and monks were forced to return to lay life. There were even instances of ancestral graves being dug up—it goes without saying that this was a national disgrace. Looking at the history of any country, this would be considered a shameful, humiliating act. Those who contributed to the nation and society, the key figures who formed the bedrock of our culture for thousands of years—including Confucius—were subjected to such tragic, humiliating insults even after their deaths. I, Mao Zedong, have committed such grave sins; I was completely, utterly wrong!

A Body Without a Master

People might think I am pushing all the blame onto the control of demon crowds, but that is not the case. If I did not possess such a strong, stubborn personality, and if I had not deviated so far from the Universal Principle, the Truth, and the Right Way, it would have been impossible for so many demon crowds to rise up and control me. At that time, I was completely integrated with the demon crowds. They controlled my entire body, and I willingly allowed them to take charge, to coordinate, and to cause such immense mental, physical, and spiritual harm to so many people.

If Mao Zedong were to look at the state of his own body, mind, and spirit back then, it would be truly unbearable to witness. Practitioner Su often says, 'A person is no longer like a person, and a ghost is no longer like a ghost.' This describes exactly who I was. A single human body could actually carry such a massive, overwhelming number of demon crowds—and these were highly active demons controlling every action, every wrong judgment, and every heavy price paid for those errors. If Practitioner Su had been in the human world at that time and could have used her spiritual eyes to look at my body, she would have seen that I was pitch-black from head to toe. That blackness was absolute; not a single cell was under my own control. I was entirely a puppet for countless demon crowds.

The Illusion of Power

It is clear that the Cultural Revolution was me searching for errors where there were none—what is known as 'creating something out of nothing.' Everything was done to satisfy my own selfish desires and to consolidate my power, hoping that through the process of obeying me, people would soothe my desperate need for strength and authority. The infinite expansion of this heart was exactly what the demon crowds looked for in a target. As long as I continued to act with such a nature, the demon crowds could control even more people, leading countless beings toward destruction.

What is even more terrifying is that the demon crowds did not just control me; they also controlled many of the officials closest to me, the Red Guards of that time, and all the civilians who were willing to believe my absurd rhetoric. Whether they were from the lower classes, students, workers, or farmers, they believed me because, beyond their lack of character education and inability to distinguish right from wrong, they had grown up in ignorance and hardship, and they were truly surrounded by many demon crowds.

The Collective Karma of an Era

Today, as I look back at all of this from the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss, I see it very clearly. The reason the demon crowds could control the people of China so thoroughly is that in this Dharma-ending age, most people in China have forgotten the character education left by our ancestors. This selfishness and arrogance in our character attracted too many demon crowds to gather here, creating a massive Collective Karma. This was the moment of a huge eruption, the accumulation of thousands of years of Collective Karma from countless beings meeting with the demon crowds.

The elderly Mao Zedong no longer had any autonomy. The control of the demon crowds and other beings had invaded every marrow and every cell. Each cell had layers upon layers of demon crowds piled within it, so my mental instability was inevitable. No matter how others tried to offer counseling, I would push all responsibility onto the outside world—onto nature and natural disasters, onto other countries, and onto the people and officials. My heart of arrogance never changed; it only increased day by day, never ceasing to grow.

The Final Years of Suffering

In my later years, I was completely unable to master myself. The most painful part was that final period of time. My legs could no longer walk normally; I had to rely on a wheelchair. My muscles began to atrophy, my entire body became unrecognisable, and I was almost completely blind.

At that time, my heart began to experience immense fear and loneliness, and many hallucinations appeared. In my most bitter and painful moments, I saw layers of past scenes rushing toward me, presenting themselves with extreme realism. There were Red Guards, many political enemies I had killed, and members of the Kuomintang; or there would appear a vast sea of students protesting everything I had said. I wanted to do something, to say a few words to them, to tell them my position, but I could not utter a single word.

In these illusions, some people would spit on me and say the most hateful things, as if they were truly standing right in front of me. Some were sharp-tongued, some were filled with rage, and some even hovered before me, covered in blood. I wanted to ask them what they were doing, but no matter how I tried to make a sound or express myself, they continued their actions, showing me their fierce, demonic faces. I was in such agony, such deep suffering, and there was no one to whom I could tell this pain.

A Useless Existence

By the very end, I could not speak at all. For a year or two, I could only make 'ooh' and 'aah' sounds, unable to communicate like a normal person. People speculated about what I was saying, but those close to me seemed to have their own hidden agendas. They did not necessarily take my words seriously, and they might even have twisted my meaning when relaying it to others.

I still had a shred of consciousness, knowing that those around me only despised and used me. Once this body had no further use, no one looked up to me, Mao Zedong, anymore. On the surface, they were subservient and claimed to want to help me, but I knew none of them were sincere. Although I nominally held power, the actual power was in the hands of those around me. They saw the most insane side of my later years—sometimes shouting like a madman, sometimes looking at everything around me with the eyes of a demon. Many times, they did not even dare to come near me.

What pained me most was that my last wife, Jiang Qing, who had been with me for decades, was the same. She seemed to crave my power, doing many things under my name, thinking I did not know. In fact, I saw it all clearly. As the leader of the Gang of Four, she also did many evil things. Not long after I died, her fate also reached its end.

Practitioner Su says that when the breath stops, the body is of no use. But I had become a useless person while my body was still alive, left to be despised and used by others. This is the tragedy of the human world. I played out this role for many years before I died, and this was because my karmic creditors would not let me find liberation. Some hated me and wanted me to die quickly to face retribution, while others still longed to use my body to achieve their own ends, especially the demon crowds. Therefore, this body was truly of no use at all. Practitioner Su always says that if a person cannot follow the Universal Principle, the Truth, and the Right Way, the body is entirely used by other beings. Namo Amituofo.

The case of Mao Zedong is the ultimate manifestation of this phenomenon, where every action completely violated the Universal Principle, the Truth, and the Right Way. Everything I desired was aimed at satisfying my own body, inflating my desires, and infinitely expanding my power. Within this, there was an immense amount of tyranny, malice, and demon nature. Consequently, the karmic retribution I received was that my entire life and my very body were controlled by demon crowds, and the negative karma I created is something that my suffering spirit must now repay.

The Era of Demons and the Loss of Faith

It is often said that in this Dharma-ending age, the demon crowds hold sway. When the world lacks the true Buddha’s teachings, it is the time for demon crowds to wreak havoc on a massive scale. In China, the Communist Party, led by people like me who placed themselves at the centre of everything, sought to establish the Party’s supreme authority in the hearts of the people. To achieve this, they obliterated all religions, especially Buddhism, causing it to disappear and lose its footing in China. We must all bear the burden of these sins.

The education provided by the Buddha’s teachings, along with the sage education of our Chinese ancestors, once held a profound foundation in China for thousands of years. Many people took Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism as the bedrock of their lives. However, after the Cultural Revolution, many people suddenly found themselves without faith and without any spiritual anchor to rely on. Consequently, the nation’s self-confidence did not grow; instead, it collapsed due to the emptiness, loneliness, and helplessness within their hearts. I remember Deng Xiaoping saying that he led people toward a path where money was the only important indicator, leaving people with nothing to rely on but wealth. At the time, I relied on my own supreme power, hoping that everyone would treat me as the primary focus. It was always 'I, I, I'—everything had to revolve around me, Mao Zedong, making people feel that everything Chairman Mao said was the only true path.

The Agony of the Copper Pillar Hell

I have already mentioned the extreme torture I endured in hell. The suffering in the Avici Hell is varied, with different torments in different realms—my body being torn apart, and the agony of the Copper Pillar Hell. Speaking of the Copper Pillar Hell, I seem to have forgotten to mention that I had several marriages in my life, and I once had the experience of moving from one woman to another.

This is also why I suffered in the Copper Pillar Hell after I died. In fact, during the earliest stages of my marriage, a part of my soul was already suffering in the Copper Pillar Hell, though I did not know it at the time. I had four women in my life—those are the ones known to the public; but there were several others I had been with that no one knew about. I had an extreme need for women to satisfy my vanity. What I loved most was the look of adoration in a woman’s eyes. I could not control myself when faced with such a gaze. The more they worshipped me, the more crazily I would fall for them, because everything they did satisfied the urgent needs of my heart.

A Trail of Broken Lives

I abandoned my first wife, having absolutely no emotional connection to her as a husband. That was an arranged marriage set up by my father, and at the time, I was extremely resistant to anyone deciding my marriage for me, so I essentially ignored my wedded wife. Later, I met my second wife; she was the woman I loved most during my youth. She was an intellectual, far more learned than I, and she was completely devoted to me. Yet, in the end, on the battlefield, I forgot her for the sake of a third woman. She died for me, while I was already drowning in my obsession with another.

The third woman shared both joy and hardship with me, but when her health began to fail, I abandoned her and moved on to the fourth. What I never expected was that the fourth woman who accompanied me for the rest of my life, Jiang Qing, whom I mentioned earlier, had a personality very similar to mine. She, too, had great ambition and a desire to enjoy supreme power. Our personalities were like two demons merging, bringing out the worst in each other. Because our characters were so similar, the negative karma we created together was even more immense.

The Awakening in the Depths of Hell

When I was suffering those tortures in hell, if you were to ask if I had a heart of repenting, I must say that I did, and it was extremely sincere. While suffering, I seemed to become much clearer. I do not know why, but I could always see images of the many people I had harmed appearing in hell. As my heart gradually cleared, I wept while being tortured, knowing I was wrong but unable to undo it. That endless grief and despair made the physical and mental suffering I endured in hell incredibly heavy. I knew I had to repay this debt, and I knew the sins I had committed were not just large, but truly, truly immense. Therefore, every second in hell was agonizing, and my heart was filled with suffering. The negative karma I created in my life was so vast, yet it was only in hell that I truly woke up. This was the first time I sincerely repented, shouting loudly in hell: 'I was wrong! I am sorry! I was truly wrong!'

Although I did not know if anyone could hear my cries and my repenting, I did not know what else to shout to vent the suffering in my heart and seek comfort, so I just kept shouting, 'I was wrong, I was wrong, I was wrong!'

The Light of Deliverance

I do not know if I had formed a deep connection with the Buddha in a past life, but in hell, I heard the six-character name 'Namo Amituofo' more than once. At the time, Mao Zedong probably understood that this was a Buddha in Buddhism, but I did not chant it aloud. I only knew that this phrase gave me a little strength in hell, and 'Namo Amituofo' kept echoing in my mind. But at that time, my mouth was still incessantly shouting, 'I am sorry, I am sorry, I was wrong, I was wrong!'

Until one day, I encountered a beam of light shining upon me. Just as I mentioned before, when I heard the six-character name 'Namo Amituofo' again, I clearly knew that this light had come to save me! This was the first time I sincerely shouted the six characters 'Namo Amituofo'. After I shouted it, I went directly into the light, and Practitioner Su, who is now known as Buddha Su, took my hand and led me directly into the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss.

A Vow to Repay the Debt

Today, as a resident of the Western Land, having experienced decades of purification and immersion in the Buddha’s teachings, my state of mind is vastly different from the past. My original vow has not changed: to return to the human world and save all the beings I once harmed. This great vow to my fellow countrymen has not changed, and my heart’s desire to diligently repay my karma has not changed. I will certainly use all my strength to repay it. However, at this moment, I am focusing more on my practice, hoping to be diligent, to undergo purification and then more purification, so that every bit of filth in my heart can be removed, until all confusion and afflictions are severed, and I can realise my true nature and attain Buddhahood. Only then will I be able to truly shoulder the great vow of saving the immeasurable and boundless beings I have harmed.

As the leader of the People's Republic of China, the debts I owe and the people I have harmed are simply too many. For every person in the country, there is a life that was harmed by my hands. Such karma is something that cannot be repaid even if I were to be reborn as a human countless times! Even being sliced into a thousand pieces would not be enough.

A Warning to the Living

There is one very important point I want to share with my fellow countrymen: looking at my life’s ups and downs, and all the good and evil I have done, everyone must have a heart of vigilance. You must be alert to what the Buddha’s teachings call the 'Universal Principle, the Truth, and the Right Way.' These are the natural laws that everyone must follow. If one violates these natural laws—if one has selfishness, a strong personality, and acts for oneself rather than for others—these are all violations of the 'Universal Principle, the Truth, and the Right Way.'

I am precisely the product of that era. Because the environment did not provide me with sufficient education, and because of the social instability and the century of humiliation that had not yet ended, everything I absorbed was based on selfishness and self-preservation. This was also driven by the karma of my past lives, which led me into such an environment. All these factors combined meant that for most of my life, Mao Zedong was a puppet of the demon crowds, paying a painful price for my own strong personality. My spirit had long been locked away in suffering, and many of my soul fragments were in hell enduring torture, yet this physical body continued to do many things that harmed people.

If you ask whether the Mao Zedong of that time was suffering, looking back now, it was truly suffering! No matter how glorious or brilliant I appeared on the outside, that was only the sensation of the physical body; it was not the joy of my true self. My true self had long ceased to exist; it was no longer a spirit capable of self-governance. The spirit was locked away and was in the midst of suffering.

Although this happened to me, and the power it exerted was so great, everyone must absolutely guard their moral foundations. That is, do not have any selfishness, and make the greatest effort to change your personality and to follow the Universal Principle, the Truth, and the Right Way. Because without the Universal Principle, the Truth, and the Right Way, everyone will be possessed and controlled by demon crowds, only to varying degrees. I, Mao Zedong, am an extreme example, but I hope everyone can use this as a mirror and not follow in my footsteps into the abyss.

This is an endless vicious cycle: having a strong personality leads to control by demon crowds, which in turn makes the personality even stronger, leading to even more control by demon crowds. Layer upon layer, whose body could withstand that? The illnesses and torments of my later years are the best example of this!

Looking out from where I am now, I, Mao Zedong, see that many people in China are suffering from physical illnesses and inner unrest, which fills me with profound remorse. In the China of the past—long ago, when everyone still upheld their duties and adhered to the moral foundations of Confucian thought—such phenomena would not have occurred. This is because China today lacks genuine Buddhist education and the social moral norms once guided by Confucian principles, leaving the people in a state where both their bodies and spirits are in agony. Such suffering is the result of the collective karma of the Chinese people, yet it is also a process that must be traversed within the laws of karma and cause and effect. The karma created must be repaid, and that is the situation today.

The Only Path to True Liberation

You may all be suffering from various ailments of the body, mind, and spirit, or perhaps you feel wounded, but do not be afraid. You must persist in transforming your own hearts. If those of you who read this manuscript can believe my words, you must learn the Buddha’s teachings, have faith in the Buddha, and believe in Namo Amituofo and the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss. From the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss, I see that only the Buddha can truly save the beings of the human world in a complete and perfect way, including my fellow countrymen in China.

If you do not wish to be controlled by demon crowds, if you want to have an autonomous life, if you want your bodies to be free from pain, your hearts to be open and joyful, and to possess the right to self-determination—to no longer be controlled by birth, aging, sickness, and death—then the only way is to truly learn the Buddha’s teachings. Not just superficial learning, but truly taking everything taught by Namo Amituofo as your reliance for the Universal Principle, the Truth, and the Right Way. Only in this way can you avoid walking the path I once walked: the suffering of birth, aging, sickness, and death; the suffering of being unable to control one's own destiny; and the suffering of being controlled by demon crowds throughout one's life, creating heavy sins that cannot be repaid.

The Unparalleled Power of Practitioner Su

However, if I could possess the skills of Practitioner Su—to truly realise one's true nature, attain Buddhahood, and return to the human world to exert the power of an awakened being—that would be immense! This is what I, Mao Zedong, admire most about Practitioner Su. Never in history have I seen a person who could shoulder such a vast mission of Chao Du with a single body.

In my life in the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss, I often look back at the Chao Du actions Practitioner Su carries out in the human world. I see everything clearly, and my heart is moved beyond measure every single moment. This is because, at this very time, Practitioner Su is conducting a vast and boundless Chao Du for the masses of the Chinese people.

A Dream Beyond Imagination

I am struck with awe. Having once harmed and killed so many people, I am deeply grateful that Practitioner Su has brought Namo Amituofo to perform Chao Du, allowing so many beings the opportunity to leave suffering behind, gain happiness, and achieve rebirth in the Western Pure Land. My heart is filled with gratitude at every moment. The sins I created myself have yet to be repaid. Now, because of the Ultimate Vow initiated by Practitioner Su, which has moved Namo Amituofo to descend and perform this series of great Chao Du together with him, I am truly overwhelmed with gratitude. These beings can leave the space of suffering early and enter the Western Land of Dharma Nature sooner—this is a dream I never dared to imagine! To be honest, such things are not easily encountered. I never met them in my lifetime, nor did I believe in the Buddha, but everything happening before my eyes now flashes by like scenes in a movie. This spectacle of Chao Du is truly breathtaking!

It can be said that Practitioner Su has progressed with incredible speed over these past ten-plus years. Because of his Ultimate Vow in this life and the merits and Dharma-wealth accumulated from saving beings, each Chao Du session is more spectacular than the last, and the number of beings saved grows with every instance. I have heard Practitioner Su refer to this as carpet-style Chao Du, and the name is truly fitting. By carpet-style, it means Practitioner Su can lift the entire ground as if it were a carpet, and because of the illumination of the Twelve Lights, the beings on the surface and the infinitely layered beings deep underground can all receive the Chao Du of countless manifestations, thereby escaping the space within the earth and achieving rebirth in the Western Land of Dharma Nature.

The Subjugation of Demons

Even more astonishing is Practitioner Su’s vast Chao Du for the demon crowds. The demon crowds in China have only increased since ancient times; they were already rampant during the era I led, permeating the entire country. One could see the presence of demons in every person’s body, mind, and spirit, and in every space. At that time, I was naturally controlled by these endless demon crowds, creating immeasurable and boundless karma. Of course, one cannot blame the demon crowds; it was certainly my own character that deviated and attracted them. But seeing this vast Chao Du action now, which includes the delivery of so many demonic beings—especially seeing demon palaces instantly razed to the ground under the illumination of the Twelve Lights—is a skill that feels like magic. It is something I never dared to imagine, never heard of, and never saw before!

Watching all of this, I cannot help but admire Practitioner Su even more. This is the breadth of heart of those who have realised their true nature; only by exerting such immense power could we have the current situation where beings throughout China and even the whole world can receive Chao Du. I, Mao Zedong, feel deep sorrow seeing how few people in China are learning the Buddha’s teachings today. The karma I created at the time has made China a country that shuts the Buddha’s teachings out, which is truly tragic compared to the flourishing of the Dharma in China in the past.

A Beacon of Hope

What gives me some comfort is that the Buddha’s teachings still exist in Taiwan, and there are still many people willing to learn the Dharma without burden. To be honest, the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Center also has many followers from China. These followers are very devout; they truly have the Buddha in their hearts and deeply believe in the fact that Namo Amituofo is residing at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Center and that Practitioner Su has realised his true nature and achieved the power of Chao Du. These people are the rare treasures of China today; each one is a treasure! In China, they promote the Buddha’s teachings in their own ways, which is the best thing possible! I silently applaud and encourage these few people I see. It is truly not an easy thing for them to bloom in such adversity. Although they encounter layers of obstacles and barriers on the path of propagating the Dharma, they continue to move forward directly, wanting to contribute their strength to the Buddha’s teachings in China without fear.

One situation that moves me is that Practitioner Su has established these Namo Amituofo billboards throughout the world, especially in Australia, Taiwan, and Japan, which can save immeasurable and boundless spirit realm beings. This is a vast undertaking, and it is a great pity that it cannot be implemented through official channels in mainland China. If the Chinese government could allow these Namo Amituofo billboards to be placed in China, it would save immeasurable and boundless suffering beings.

What comforts me is that although these billboards cannot be established in an official way, there are countless fellow countrymen who believe in the Buddha and are working hard to promote them in China using small billboards. Everyone carries a small billboard when they go out, takes them up mountains, posts them everywhere, and distributes them, hoping that these immeasurable and boundless beings can be saved. This heart of compassion moves me deeply, and I hope our fellow countrymen can continue to exert this effort. There are also some small billboards that can be set up in temples or in remote, uninhabited places. I have seen several such cases, and I am silently supporting these actions, sending them a little bit of encouraging strength.

A Final Reflection

I no longer have a human body, so I cannot propagate the Buddha’s teachings myself. It is also difficult to eliminate any karma. But if I can say a few words of encouragement to my fellow countrymen to inspire them, so that everyone can contribute to the propagation of the Dharma, that is the small, humble effort I can make! Watching everything Practitioner Su does in the human world, I feel nothing but admiration and being moved. The Buddha has come to the world; this is the first time it has happened, and Practitioner Su has achieved it. I truly hope there will be a second Practitioner Su and a third Practitioner Su to take up this great cause, so that Namo Amituofo can permanently reside in the world, allowing the suffering spirits of this world to have the opportunity to leave suffering behind and gain happiness.

Whether a person has created great Goodness or great evil, they originally possess a pure and flawless Buddha-nature, and they need the education of the Buddha’s teachings to correct their thoughts and actions. I did not handle education well in the past, but now, in the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss, I understand the importance of education. The education of the Buddha’s teachings is truly what people urgently need. If I had a human body, I would vigorously promote Buddhist education, allowing everyone to know Namo Amituofo and the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss, and also allowing people today to know the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Center and Practitioner Su. This is the only chance for people to be saved.

No matter how developed or prosperous China’s economy is today, or how leading its technology may be, it may seem wonderful, but it also buries some unfathomable time bombs for the future of the motherland. First of all, the human heart must not have greed. Greed can grow from small to large, and then to immense, which is harmful and not beneficial to the future of a country. Everyone living in this prosperous age, do not lower your guard. The booming economy is also a result of temporary causes and conditions. Do not think that creating negative karma will allow this prosperity to last forever. Namo Amituofo.

"The Universal Principles, Truth, and the Right Path as taught in the Buddha’s teachings must be embraced and implemented by both national leaders and the people. Only through this collective effort can a nation truly secure lasting peace, stability, and a future free from the scourge of war. This is a truth that every single person in China must come to understand. Think about it—everything in this universe operates according to the immutable laws of karma and cause and effect. While you enjoy the prosperity of the present moment, do not lose sight of the ultimate reality of life and death. Do not turn your backs on the earnest, heartfelt teachings left to us by our ancestors! This monumental task of restoring our spiritual foundation can only be accomplished through the profound Buddhist education offered by the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre, under the guidance of Namo Amituofo, the venerable Teacher Practitioner Xia Lianju, and Practitioner Su."

A Heart Full of Regret

"I, Mao Zedong, once exhausted all my strength and energy in an attempt to eradicate the very roots of the Buddha’s teachings and the traditions left by our ancestors in China. Yet, here I am now, wishing for nothing more than to see the Chinese people rediscover, embrace, and fully implement these very truths. Ah, to speak of this is to feel a shame so deep, so profound, that words can barely contain it. I truly hope that Namo Amituofo and Practitioner Su can look into my heart at this moment—a heart that burns with an intense, desperate desire to save all beings, yet one that is burdened by the inability to act upon it in the way I once could."

A Promise of Redemption

"Regardless of the past, I am committed to dedicating every ounce of my effort to my practice, so that I may one day repay the kindness shown to me. My fellow compatriots in China, I pray that you have the opportunity to read these words—my true, unfiltered testimony. The debt I owe you has never ceased to weigh upon my soul. I vow that I will return in another form to assist you all, to help you rediscover the beauty and wisdom of Buddhist education. This is my most sincere and heartfelt wish. I hope you can hear me, and I hope you can believe that these words come directly from the lips of Mao Zedong, now residing in the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss."

A Mirror for Future Generations

"Finally, I wish to express my deepest gratitude once more to Namo Amituofo and Practitioner Su for their guiding light. It is only because of their intervention that I have been spared the agonising suffering of the hells. Most importantly, I have been granted this precious opportunity to communicate through the spiritual realm, to speak to my vast number of compatriots, and to express my sincere repentance. I want to share with you everything I have witnessed in the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss. I hope that you will use the story of my life—and the karmic consequences I have faced—as a mirror for your own. This is the most important thing I can offer you now. If my rebirth remains unknown to those I left behind, and if my story is not shared among my fellow countrymen, it would be a truly tragic loss."

The Compassion of the Buddha

"It is the Great Compassion and the supreme Wisdom of the Buddha that makes it possible to guide so many leaders, like myself, to the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss. Today, we are all stepping forward to share the truths from within our hearts. I have seen the testimonies of others, and our sentiments are much the same. Under the nurturing influence of the Buddha’s teachings, we are all the same—using our most purified hearts and our most honest confessions to articulate the events of the past and the state of our hearts in the present."

An Unpayable Debt

"For such a magnificent opportunity, I, Mao Zedong, am profoundly grateful. I am also deeply thankful that the Buddha not only guided me to this place but also extended His grace to my family—my parents, my wife, my children—leading them all to the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss. Such immense kindness and virtue are beyond my ability to repay. My only path forward is to chant Namo Amituofo to the end, to truly achieve success in my practice, and then, when the time is right, to return to the human world to save the very compatriots I once harmed.

I am filled with gratitude for Namo Amituofo, for Practitioner Su, and for all my fellow compatriots. Thank you all!

Namo Amituofo.

Mao Zedong"