This interview was recorded on May 17, 2022, by Chief Writer Shi Fa Jing. It features the testimony of the Demon King Mo Di Guang, who sought deliverance from Practitioner Su at the Hsiang Kuang Buddhist Centre. He now resides in the Western Land of Nature, where he continues his practice.
Mo Di Guang speaks:
". I am Mo Di Guang. It took me five thousand years to earn this name. During those five millennia, I constantly used my demonic power to invade and control other planets. Every time a planet fell to me, my territory in the galaxy expanded. For five thousand years, I did nothing but attack and attack, until I finally earned the title 'Mo Di Guang'—a testament to my strength and my successful record of conquest.
The Ambition of a Demon King
Other demon kings often wanted a piece of the action. They would ask me to gift them a few planets. Whenever a demon king made such a request, I would always oblige. After all, my name, Mo Di Guang, implies that my territory is vast and that I possess countless planets. Giving away a few was nothing to me. I could generously agree to hand over some of the planets I controlled to them.
I never allowed myself a moment of relaxation. Every single day, I continued to attack other planets, strengthening my forces, expanding my territory, enhancing my demonic power, and spreading my reputation. I was busy every single moment, never allowing myself a time to rest, which was the only way to maintain the name 'Mo Di Guang.' I kept charging forward, targeting any planet that appeared to be losing its energy. There are so many such planets in the galaxy that expanding my territory was easy. The only hardship was the necessity of fighting without pause to achieve such results.
The Logic of Destruction
Many demon kings asked me, 'Why do you occupy these planets that are already losing their energy? Won't they run out of power soon?' I told them, 'The sentient beings on these planets are about to scatter because of the planet's destruction. At that moment, I take control of them. They listen to me, obey me, and become my demon children and grandchildren. They follow my footsteps every day to conquer other planets, so they no longer have to wander aimlessly. When these sentient beings join my team, I find my own work becoming easier. Once a planet is successfully conquered, I drain its remaining energy until it can no longer function. Many simply explode, crack, or fall, disappearing from the galaxy forever. This method allows me to gain energy effortlessly, strengthening my power so I can go on to conquer other planets still rich in energy. Wouldn't you say I am quite clever?' Hearing this, the other demon kings would applaud, praising my methods as truly ingenious.
A Vision of Universal Domination
The entire galaxy is vast, containing countless planets—hundreds of millions upon hundreds of millions. Within this, I am still just a minor force. But I will not let myself remain a minor force. I am working continuously to enhance my demonic power. I believe that with such diligent management, one day I will become the King of Kings, residing above all demons, possessing the most powerful demon clan, the most territory, and the most dazzling record of victory. Doesn't that sound impressive? My future is boundless; it is truly a bright path.
Regarding everything I have done, I do not consider it a bad thing; in fact, I feel it is a good thing. It may look like I am invading planets everywhere, but if you look closely, I am actually saving these sentient beings. I help them avoid the hardship of searching for other planets to cling to; instead, they can simply rely on me. Therefore, when I do these things, I believe I am performing Goodness, helping immeasurable and boundless sentient beings find salvation.
The End of an Era
Although my actions were repetitive, I was deeply intoxicated by them. I felt that the future was entirely in my hands and would surely be as wonderful as I expected. Perhaps one day in the future—maybe in one hundred thousand or two hundred thousand years—I could conquer the entire galaxy. Such a beautiful imagination kept me smiling every day. No other demon king was as happy as I was, because no other demon king was as successful as I was, with every day bringing full harvests and great achievements. I truly, truly never expected that such days would ever come to an end. The one who ended my beautiful days was a human from Earth—Practitioner Su."
The Encounter with the Golden Light
"While I was attacking other planets, I suddenly saw a massive energy in the distance. That energy radiated golden light, forming the shape of a 'sphere.' I thought it was an extremely huge 'planet'—so huge that if compared to the size of Earth, it was about 'ten thousand times' the size of Earth. I thought to myself, 'When did such a massive planet exist in the galaxy? And its energy is so abundant, constantly radiating dazzling golden light.' I instantly halted my day's itinerary; otherwise, we would have targeted three million planets for invasion and attack that day.
I quickly issued orders to recall all my demon children and grandchildren who were stationed at those three million planets. I shouted, 'Children, return! Update today's target. Look at the huge golden light in the distance! That incomparably huge planet is our new target. We must conquer it!'
My demon children and grandchildren replied, 'That planet seems to possess incomparably huge energy. Look at its golden light; even from such a distance, it still shines upon us. Great King, do we really have the ability to conquer it immediately?' I answered them, 'I have worked so hard in the galaxy for so long and successfully conquered so many planets. Look, you were all saved by me. With such great ability, how could I not win against this huge planet? Believe in our ability. As long as we successfully conquer this great planet, we will never have to go to war again, because I estimate the energy of this huge planet will be enough for us to use permanently, never to be lacking again.'
The Trap of the Holy Name
These demon children and grandchildren were very moved by what I said. They were actually tired of fighting and wanted a good rest. Because I have always been ambitious, I never allowed them a chance to rest; I required them to conquer other planets every day to ensure I could dominate the galaxy in the shortest time. Now, they finally saw an opportunity to never have to go to war again, so they used all their strength, preparing to move toward the great planet, determined to conquer it.
To take down this 'giant star,' I had to use all the energy I had stored over five thousand years. Some asked, 'Great King, this energy took us a long time to save. If we use it all like this, isn't it a waste?' I laughed and told them, 'Children, you are too foolish! Think about it: this planet is so big and has so much energy. If we can successfully conquer it, why worry about lacking energy later? We are only sacrificing a little now; we will gain much more later. It is not a waste at all; it is very worthwhile.' They understood my meaning and laughed, saying, 'As expected of our wise Great King, your thoughts are always the most thorough and correct!'
With their support, we headed toward the giant star. It took us a long time to fly near it. When we approached, we realized it was not a planet at all, but a vast expanse of dazzling 'golden light.' We all gasped in surprise and admiration. How could there be such a huge expanse of golden light!
We originally wanted to circle the light, but it was too large; circling it would take too much time. It was better to use that time to think about how to obtain its energy. We were also puzzled: where did this golden light come from? I led my large group of demon children and grandchildren to stop beside the light. The energy was extremely strong, and the light contained a warm power that constantly warmed us. We observed for a long time before realizing that this golden light was radiating from a string of characters: 'Namo Amituofo.' What kind of characters were these? We kept hearing a sound—a voice of someone singing, and what they were singing seemed to be this string of characters.
Before we understood what was happening, my demon children and grandchildren began to imitate the chanting, humming along loudly. When they hummed, they discovered that the same energy began to emerge from their own bodies, and the energy flowed endlessly. They were all excited, one after another, and began to sing loudly. Seeing them all radiating golden light, I followed suit. A very warm energy began to emerge; it was truly miraculous!
We sang for a long time, and our bodies were already full of energy. My demon children and grandchildren said to me, 'Great King, we probably don't need to waste effort snatching the energy of this golden light. Now that we know the secret method of generating energy—which is chanting this 'Namo Amituofo'—why not just chant it every day instead of snatching the energy?' They were right. Our bodies were full of energy, all thanks to chanting 'Namo Amituofo.' I thought about it and issued an order: 'Retreat! This mission is complete; the energy is abundant, a great harvest! Everyone, retreat!'
The Path of the Light
Just as we began to retreat, the golden light in front of us suddenly disappeared. We all turned to look at the place where the light had appeared, and it had returned to its original state. What was going on? I was too curious, and my followers wanted the answer, so we decided to investigate.
The galaxy is so big; we didn't know where to start. Then, we discovered a strange phenomenon: many planets that had previously lost their energy were now full of energy again, and each planet radiated the same light as the golden light we had just seen. We flew around these planets and listened carefully; we heard them chanting 'Namo Amituofo' inside. This proved that the golden light had been there, and that was why these planets knew how to chant 'Namo Amituofo.'
These planets that knew how to chant 'Namo Amituofo' were like beacons, shining one by one, illuminating a bright path for us. We followed this path. I believe this was the path the golden light had traveled. Wherever the golden light passed, the sentient beings on those planets would follow by chanting the Buddha-name and radiating light.
This path was very, very long, representing the great distance the golden light had traveled. We flew forward for a long time, unable to see the end, until the moment we decided to give up, we finally found it. The golden light was within a planet. The sentient beings around the planet told us that this planet was 'Earth.' I asked curiously, 'Who is chanting this 'Namo Amituofo'?' They told us, 'The compassionate Practitioner Su, who uses the '' and 'Namo Amituofo' to enter the galaxy every day to the sentient beings of the planets.' So it was Practitioner Su on Earth, using the immense energy of Namo Amituofo to help the planets in the galaxy.
Captured by
We quickly found Practitioner Su's location. We looked at the life forms on Earth, called 'humans.' Each human's energy was different; some had large energy, some small. When we saw Practitioner Su, we could see that his energy was immense—incomparably huge compared to the humans around him, shining brightly. Those humans with small energy looked very dim to us, as if their lights were about to go out, and their movements were not agile, with obstacles existing in The Head. These phenomena were all very clearly visible to us.
We wanted to obtain Practitioner Su's skills and possess them forever, so that I, Mo Di Guang, could quickly dominate the entire galaxy. I couldn't wait to explore everything here, so I quickly issued an order: 'Attack!' We treated Practitioner Su like any other planet, surrounding him densely. Practitioner Su's groin and legs were the first to feel it, and he immediately sensed our presence.
We had never been defeated in the galaxy, nor had we ever been captured, so naturally, we never thought Practitioner Su would capture us. In our carelessness, we were all sucked away by a powerful suction force. We were stunned; we had been captured by Practitioner Su.
It has been over ten days since this whole thing happened. Now, my demon children and grandchildren and I are all sitting on lotus seats in the Western Land of Dharma Nature, listening to Practitioner Su give Dharma talks. Listening to every word, we have benefited greatly. We realise that in the past, we were not performing Goodness but committing evil. Our hearts are filled with repenting, and we ask for the Buddha's forgiveness every day.
Mo Di Guang
Practitioner Su gave Mo Di Guang the Dharma name Shi Ming Zong.
Reflections on the
How is Practitioner Su's energy generated? Besides chanting the Holy Name 'Namo Amituofo,' there is Practitioner Su's 'pure and good' heart, and his 'compassion' that always considers all beings.
Now I finally know why our Demon Realm had no energy: because our hearts were evil and we committed evil deeds, going against the Buddha. Of course, no energy would be generated. But Practitioner Su is different. Everything Practitioner Su thinks of is for the sake of beings, to save beings. This mental note allows Practitioner Su's heart to be connected to the Buddha, naturally resulting in an endless flow of energy. This energy also represents Practitioner Su's vow, which is truly eternal.
During the Thrice Yearning Ceremonies, we saw Practitioner Su exert his vow to the fullest. A single Buddha-name can turn immeasurable space in the invisible realm, which is truly admirable. Practitioner Su turns these spaces not to control them, but to open every existing invisible space so that all sentient beings within can be saved. Practitioner Su does not open these spaces one by one slowly, but through countless manifestations, using this 'Namo Amituofo' to open them all at once. The scene was spectacular and magnificent—a sight I had never seen in all my time in reincarnated. We demon crowds and other sentient beings, seeing Practitioner Su save beings like this, all wanted to learn Practitioner Su's skills. The first thing to learn is Practitioner Su's 'compassion.' Therefore, we follow him in chanting the Buddha-name to save beings, chanting the Buddha-name with a focused heart, moving the sentient beings around us, and saving all sentient beings who have karmic affinity with us in our surroundings or spaces.
My heart is so moved. After committing evil for so long, I actually encountered Practitioner Su. For those planets I once invaded, I have sent the signal of 'Namo Amituofo' to them, so that the sentient beings still existing there can all follow along and chant 'Namo Amituofo.' As long as they chant diligently every day, I believe their planets will soon recover their energy and show vitality again. But I do not want them to live the same lives as before; instead, I want them to change and start transforming into planets that promote 'Namo Amituofo,' so that whoever visits their planets will know how to chant this 'Namo Amituofo' upon leaving.
In this way, I can also be said to have conquered the galaxy, but the only difference is that I am using this 'Namo Amituofo' to conquer the galaxy. This is truly the most perfect ending, and my heart is filled with Dharma . Namo Amituofo.
