Defending the Homeland: A Spirit's Journey

This is a record of an interview with Liu Kai-an, who sought Chao Du at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Australia. She now resides in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. This account reflects upon her life as an Ami indigenous woman in Hualien, Taiwan. Recorded by the chief writer, Shi Fa, on October 17, 2020.

Liu Kai-an speaks:

"Namo Amituofo. Representing sixty prison guards, I kneel before Namo Amituofo and Practitioner Su to express my deepest gratitude. I am so thankful for the compassion of Practitioner Su, who guided me and my fellow guards to be reborn in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss today. The joy and emotion in my heart are impossible to express in just a few words. With the most sincere actions, we all kneel to thank the Buddha for His boundless grace, and to thank Practitioner Su for her immense kindness."

A Life of Strength and Spirit

"I am an Ami indigenous woman from Taiwan. My Han name is Liu Kai-an, but my true name is Buluba Shiwa. I grew up in Hualien. Our Ami tribe is a matrilineal society, where women often take on the most important roles in the community; in most households, women are held in higher regard than men. As for me, I am a woman, but both my name and my appearance are quite masculine. I have a sturdy, athletic build, thick eyebrows, a deep, resonant voice, and skin the colour of dark bronze. If you do not look closely, you would truly mistake me for a man. I keep my long hair tied in many thin, small braids, usually gathered into a ponytail to keep it out of the way while I work. I am a very capable woman. I began learning to work alongside my mother when I was only three years old. I never picked and chose what I liked or disliked; if it was something I could do, I did it. Because of this, I became proficient in everything—there was nothing that could stump me."

"My physical stamina was in no way inferior to any man's. If we were talking about running, my legs were like they had motors installed; my speed was truly astonishing—I could keep pace with a black horse! That is why, since I was a child, I earned the nickname 'Black Horse.' I was just as fast and just as impulsive as the name suggests. My mother especially loved to send me on errands, and every single time, I would complete the task in the fastest time possible. I was always very satisfied with my own performance."

The Joy of the Mountain Tribe

"Our tribe was nestled along the mountainside, surrounded by scenery that was absolutely breathtaking. The air was filled with the songs of birds and the scent of flowers, the four seasons were pleasant, and there was always the sound of beautiful mountain songs accompanied by our traditional dances. I loved our tribe deeply. I loved the environment we lived in, I loved our people, and every day was filled with happiness and contentment."

"I still remember how, when I was a child, my siblings and I loved to jump onto the large trees as a game. It was a competition. The rules were simple: each person would stand a few metres away from a large tree, holding a long bamboo pole. When it was your turn, you had to run forward at full speed with the pole, plant it firmly into the ground, and use the reaction force to launch your body upward. You would then quickly leap onto the tree branches. Those who succeeded could stand steadily on the branches, while those who failed would fall to the ground, or perhaps catch a branch only to lose their grip and tumble down shortly after. We found this game so thrilling; we never grew tired of it. Sometimes, we would even challenge ourselves with higher difficulty, like jumping onto the roofs of other people's houses. Once, my 'fast legs' were running too quickly, and I jumped with such force that I crashed right through the roof of a neighbour's house, leaving a massive hole. I was punished severely by my mother for that! Another time, I jumped so high and so fast that I actually cleared a neighbour's roof and landed straight into the fish pond in their courtyard. Everyone burst into laughter, crying with tears of joy. That must have happened when I was about ten years old. Thinking about it now, it really is quite funny! My childhood was incredibly joyful, and the tribe was filled with laughter. Growing up in such an environment shaped my optimistic, cheerful, and broad-minded personality. I rarely had any worries; even the most complex matters, once filtered through my simple mind, became simple. I suppose that is one of my strengths."

The Encroachment of the Outside World

"From a young age, I loved to take the lead. Because I was big, spoke loudly, and moved faster than others, everyone liked to have me in charge. Whenever I led, everyone would become as lively as I was. I never thought only of myself; I would pay attention to everyone's situation. If someone was struggling, I would reach out to pull them along so they could join in and be just as happy as we were! I love seeing people happy; I love seeing smiles on their faces. I believe that is how life should be—living in happiness every single day."

"In our deep mountains, unless you were a local who knew the area well, it was rare for anyone to enter. We were so remote and secluded, like a paradise on earth, untouched and unspoiled by outside tribes, preserving our original purity and nature. Because we lacked outside resources, we had no medical care, no hospitals, and no clinics. If someone fell ill, we used the most primitive methods—our ancestral secret recipes, gathering the right herbs to prescribe the right medicine. Whether it was an external injury or an internal ailment, we could treat it, and the results were always excellent."

"However, starting from the time I was twenty-three, the entire tribe began to change. Young people from the tribe started going outside to seek employment. They brought outside culture into our tribe and began bringing Han people into our village. These Han people were amazed by our environment; they could not believe such a place still existed! They began to scheme, wanting to develop our pure environment, promote tourism, and boost the national economy. I was vehemently opposed to this. If we really turned our home into a tourist attraction, our peaceful life would be completely destroyed. Our descendants would never again be able to have the happy, innocent childhood we had. It would be a form of harm to the children, so I fought against it. I hoped they would respect our community and let us keep our own way of life."

A Protector to the End

"To defend our home, I rallied the people of the tribe to resist collectively. I was not trying to rebel; I only wanted to uphold the basic human rights of my people. We should not be easily deprived of our rights just because we are indigenous. The tribespeople all shared my thoughts; we all wanted to protect our land. But our entire tribe had fewer than one hundred people. Our influence was very limited, and in a society ruled by the Han, once a decision was made by them, we rarely had a chance to successfully argue against it."

"Just like that, from the time I was twenty-five, the entire structure of the tribe became increasingly different. All the landscaping became artificial and deliberate. They set up many mechanisms for profit and built many structures imitating our tribal features, but none of them were like our original home. They were all created by the Han just to attract the craze of tourism, turning the whole tribe into a resort."

"Watching the changes in the tribe, my heart truly ached. My childhood existed only in my memories. Every blade of grass, every tree, and every house in the tribe had changed—from something real to something fake. The residents of the tribe were no longer just our own people. Han people began to yearn for our place, building houses nearby and moving into our area to enjoy the 'tribal village life' outside the city as a vacation spot. With the arrival of outsiders, our own people began to come into contact with outside information. We were no longer living in our own space; we began to learn about outside news and the state of the country. The young people of the tribe stopped farming and hunting; everyone yearned to develop in the cities. It became a trend to work in the city. You could hear it from the mouths of ten-year-old children. One child proudly said, 'My mother promised me that when I turn twelve, she will let me move to Taipei to study!' The children around him all looked on with envy. Another child said, 'My father also said that when I grow up, he will let me go to the big city to work. There are more job opportunities there, and I can earn a lot of money.' Hearing the children say this, I let out a long, heavy sigh. The purity of our tribe was gone. The children were starting to follow the Han lifestyle from a young age, and they were soon going to forget what our tribe was originally like."

"I am not a stubborn old person; I just wanted to protect our home. But no matter how much effort I made, I could no longer restore our original state. After the young people left the tribe, all that remained were the elderly who could no longer move or produce. Their children had all gone to work elsewhere, returning to the tribe only during holidays. Looking at these elders—they were the uncles and aunts who had watched me grow up—I had grown up, and they had grown old. I often went to every household to care for and accompany these elderly uncles and aunts. If they needed help with anything, I would enthusiastically assist them. This was the only contribution I could make to the tribe: to protect and care for every single person in our village."

"Once, an eighty-three-year-old uncle asked me, 'When are you going to get married?' I laughed out loud, 'Get married? Uncle, don't joke! Look at me—I look no different from a man. Who would want to marry this tomboy?' The uncle looked at me for a few moments and said, 'There is someone, there definitely is!' And indeed, the uncle was right. When I was thirty-six, someone did fall in love with me and said he wanted to marry me. He was a Han man, but I refused him. Since I have the appearance of a strong man and dress and act like one, I have no interest in the emotions between men and women. I do not touch those entangling things. To me, a person's life should never belong to a second person. My life is governed by me alone, and I will not waste my life in the world of romance."

"Throughout my life, I never once left our tribe. I dedicated myself to caring for the elderly, who had become a forgotten corner of our community. Everyone else was only concerned with making money and economic development; no one ever stopped to consider how lonely and dull the lives of these elders had become. Every day, I would take them for walks around the village, sharing interesting stories to bring a little joy into their lives.

The Warning of the Ancient Stone Spirit

Our tribe has always held animistic beliefs. We believe in many spirits, and we believe that everything in nature possesses a spirit—and that one can communicate with them. One day, I heard the spirit of an ancient stone in the mountains, one that had been there for thousands of years, speak to me: 'Take everyone and flee! A disaster is coming!' This ancient stone spirit rarely spoke; it remained silent most of the time. For it to suddenly break its silence, the situation had to be dire. I didn't dare to alarm the elders, so I didn't tell them a disaster was imminent. Instead, I used various excuses to try to lead them away from the tribe. But the elders were stubborn. They insisted that even if they were to die, they would die in the village. No matter what I tried, they refused to leave with me.

The Night the Mountains Collapsed

A week later, in the middle of the night, a violent storm lashed the mountains. The earth and stone, saturated with massive amounts of rain, began to loosen. That night, I clearly heard many voices in the forest, all crying out for us to run for our lives. I didn't dare sleep any longer. I threw on a thin layer of clothing and ran out, braving the torrential rain to knock on every door, urging everyone to run with me. Some of the elders had difficulty moving, so I quickly gathered more people to help, rushing everyone to a safe place to take shelter. However, I was not faster than nature. Very quickly, the mud and rocks began to slide down. Those who couldn't escape in time were buried in the debris. I was carrying an elderly man who had lost both his legs when I took a terrible fall in the heavy rain. The elder pinned my body down, and my legs were severely injured. In the end, we could not escape our fate, and we departed from the human world amidst the rain and the landslide.

A Final Look at the Human World

After I stopped breathing, I continued to try to save people. My spirit had forgotten that I was already dead, and I kept rushing about in the rain until someone called out to me: 'Liu Kai-an!' At first, I didn't hear it, but then they called again: 'Liu Kai-an! Stop! There is no need to keep busy!' Only then did I hear the voice. I turned around and saw two Han Chinese men dressed in ancient clothing. I wondered how they could have appeared here. The two told me, 'We are officials from the hells. Your lifespan in the human world has ended. Come with us!' I was dead? I turned my head back to take one last look at the chaotic disaster scene. Sure enough, lying face down near my feet was a corpse—it was me. I never imagined my life would end like this, at the age of thirty-nine.

Serving in the Third Court of Hell

When I arrived before the Yama King of the Third Court, he ordered the officials beside him to list my merits and demerits one by one. I was astonished; every single detail was recorded clearly, and not a single thing was missed. Some things I had already forgotten, but here in the court of the Yama King, they were remembered in great detail. There was no way to escape it. I had not committed any major sins in my life; most of the time, I had been helping others. The Yama King told me, 'Although you are a woman, everyone here is treated equally. Whether male or female, if you create karma, you must face the retribution; if you accumulate merit, you receive equal reward. I appoint you as a jailer of the Third Court, responsible for guarding the prisoners of hell. If anyone dares to escape, capture them immediately!' This was truly my specialty. My speed was unmatched; no criminal could ever outrun these legs of mine! The Yama King certainly knew how to make good use of one's strengths!

The Golden Dharma Body of Practitioner Su

In hell, I was very diligent in my duties. We had no time to rest; spirits do not need rest, and we worked every second of every day. Several years ago, I unexpectedly saw the golden Dharma Body of Practitioner Su from within hell. I asked the jailer beside me and learned that it was Practitioner Su, who descended into the hells every day to save these suffering spirits. From that day on, I was able to hear Practitioner Su give Dharma talks every day. Every sentence of the sutras touched my heart deeply. Only then did I understand that this was the Buddha’s teachings, that the Buddha’s teachings could save all beings and spirits, and that there was such a place as the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss.

A Journey to the Western Land

I never dared to hope that I would be on the list to be sent to the Western Land. I never expected to have such blessings. Perhaps it was because after I heard Practitioner Su’s Dharma talks, a desire to save beings naturally arose in my heart, which gave me the opportunity to be placed on the list. I was even chosen as a representative to be guided by Practitioner Su to the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss today. My heart is filled with immense gratitude. On behalf of the sixty jailers, I, Liu Kai-an, pay my respects to Practitioner Su once more. I am grateful to Practitioner Su for leading us to the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss. This place is magnificent and dignified beyond compare, and we all praise it endlessly.

Gratitude to the Buddha for his compassion.

Gratitude to Practitioner Su for his compassion.

Namo Amituofo."

This interview was recorded by the chief writer, disciple Shi Fajing.