A Message of Remorse and Awakening from the Beyond

August 17, 2018. Recorded by Venerable HaiZe.

I am Zhong Canzeng. When Practitioner Su announced that he would interview the father of Venerable Dinghong, I felt a sensation throughout my entire being here in the Western Land of Dharma Nature, as if I had been struck by lightning. It was as if a powerful force had notified me that I was to be interviewed, and so I waited for the moment I would be called forth. My separation from the mother of Venerable Dinghong was caused by our conflicting personalities and the difficulties we faced in living together. For his life, this separation was a source of deep pain and injury. However, they both endured those difficult days, and that experience helped to cultivate his independent and self-reliant character. Although I felt a profound sense of guilt in my heart toward them, I allowed the days to pass one by one, until I eventually passed away. I never imagined that today, because of the karmic affinity between Venerable Dinghong and Practitioner Su, I would finally be saved.

The Agony of the Mud Hell

Because my personality was indecisive and my way of handling matters was often messy and lacking in clarity, I offended and hurt many people during my life. After I died, I fell into the mud hell. It was the compassion of Practitioner Su that reached into that darkness and pulled me out. My entire body was covered in thick, suffocating mud. In that hell, the mud was the only thing we had to drink; I would vomit it out in disgust, only to be forced to drink it again. The suffering was truly unbearable. I once tried to repent, saying, "I was wrong!" but that was only because the torture was so intense. It was not a sincere repentance for the people I had harmed or the wrongdoings I had committed. My initial intention was born only from my own suffering; it was selfish, and therefore, I remained trapped in the hells, continuing to endure the consequences of my actions.

I truly believe that it was only through the virtue and the power of the merits of Practitioner Su that I was able to be rescued. I wish to express my deepest gratitude to Practitioner Su and to Venerable Dinghong. I also want to offer a sincere apology to Venerable Dinghong and his mother. I am so sorry for all the various hurts I caused you. It is only after death that I have found the words to say this, and I hope that you can hear me. In this human life, one should cherish the time spent together and treat others with a sincere heart. Do not let temporary interests, short-sightedness, or an inability to swallow one's pride lead to actions that harm others. Everything we do carries the weight of the laws of karma and cause and effect. After death, or in the next life, there will inevitably be retribution.

The Peace of the Western Land of Dharma Nature

Now, I reside here in the Western Land of Dharma Nature of the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre. This is a place of transition, a place to dwell peacefully before one is reborn in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. We sit upon lotus seats, listening to the sutras. This place is pure and untainted by the defilements of the world. My heart is so calm, so still. Only after listening to the teachings here have I truly realised the immense value of the Buddha’s teachings and the practice of chanting Namo Amituofo. I have now made the vow to be reborn in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. While this place is already wonderful, the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss is even more magnificent.

A Final Plea to the Living

If I had only known the value of the Buddha’s teachings while I was still alive, if I had sincerely studied the Dharma, focused on chanting Namo Amituofo, and made the vow to be reborn in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss, my life would have been vastly different. Although it is too late to change the past, I firmly believe that the power of the Buddha’s teachings is boundless. If one sincerely chants Namo Amituofo, one can certainly change their destiny and, after death, be reborn in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. I hope that those who have the karmic affinity to read these words will begin, or continue, to study the Buddha’s teachings diligently, to chant Namo Amituofo, and to make the vow to be reborn in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss, so that you will not have to continue suffering in the cycle of reincarnated existence.

The Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre is a true bodhimanda where Amitabha Buddha truly abides. It possesses the genuine skills and power to save people and guide them to be reborn in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. The construction of the Amitabha Village will help even more people to be reborn in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. Believe in this, and you will be saved.

Namo Amituofo