From a Distant Star to the Western Pure Land

This is a record of an interview with Domanda, who sought Spiritual Deliverance at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Australia. He now resides in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. This account reflects upon his journey across dimensions and his eventual liberation. Recorded by the chief writer, Shi Fa-xin, on November 3, 2023.

Domanda speaks:

"Namo Amituofo. At this very moment, I am resting within the lotus flower that bears my name. As I gaze upon the magnificent beauty of the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss, my heart is overflowing with joy and profound gratitude. I am deeply thankful to the Buddha and to Practitioner Su for allowing me, Domanda, and fifty-nine other prison guards to be reborn in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss.

A Fall from the Stars

I am Domanda. If I were to describe my origins from the perspective of an Earthling, I would say I came from a distant star. Back then, I was filled with an insatiable curiosity about the universe, wandering along the very boundaries of the interstellar void. I never imagined that one careless moment would lead me to slip beyond that boundary. In an instant, I began to plummet. The force of gravity accelerated my descent, pulling me down, further and further down. My heart was filled with intense anxiety. With a thunderous 'Bang!', I crashed into a surface, creating a massive crater upon impact.

Before long, many beings approached the crater to investigate what had occurred. I was aching all over, my face twisted in shock and panic. I assumed my appearance would terrify them, but to my surprise, they simply peered into the crater, seemingly studying me as if I were a specimen. After a long time, their faces were filled with confusion. They muttered to one another, 'What on earth is this? Why is there no logical explanation for this? The force of this impact seems immense.'

Invisible Among the Living

A great number of people surrounded me, studying me for a long time, yet they could not see me sitting there on the ground. Someone even bumped into me, yet they felt nothing at all. It was only then that I realised they were completely unable to perceive my presence.

I moved my hands and feet and slowly stood up. I knew then that I had fallen onto a different planet. The inhabitants of this world looked somewhat like me; they also walked upright. However, the difference was that the spatial dimension of my home planet was much higher, and we lived as spirits. My knowledge was limited, and it was only then that I realised there were countless dimensions beyond my own—some of lower vibration, others of higher vibration. Every planet exists within its own unique layer of space.

Upon arriving on this planet, I was a spirit with a slightly higher level of consciousness than the beings here. Since I had fallen here and had no idea how to return, I decided to first observe and understand this world.

The Web of Human Emotion

I spent most of my time observing the humans of this world. Because humans possess complex thoughts, I could receive their mental waves and understand what they were doing and what they desired for the future.

For a long time, what I received most were the emotions radiating from these humans—laughter, tears, anger, competitiveness, and arrogance. Their physical energy fluctuated constantly, rising and falling. I was observing what these fluctuations truly were. Before I could even fully comprehend this, I witnessed even greater waves—the waves of deep emotional attachment. I continued to study why these emotions vibrated so intensely within every person. I walked everywhere, observing the emotional currents between men and women, and the deep, thick bonds of affection between the old and the young. I saw that as long as they possessed these emotions, humans felt a sense of satisfaction.

Yet, I also saw that many people, even with these attachments, remained deeply unsettled. Human emotion is far too complex; it is like a dense, tangled web, pulling and connecting everyone. I saw that every single person carried such a web upon them.

A Debt of Lives Past

One day, while walking on the street, I saw a horse-drawn carriage rushing toward a little girl. A collision was imminent. In that split second, images of the past and the future flashed before my eyes.

I saw the entire life of the little girl and her grandmother, who relied on each other for survival. If the grandmother lost the girl, she would be plunged into unbearable agony; her heart would sink to the depths of despair, and she might even lose her own life, suffering immensely throughout the process. I realised that the connection between myself and the little girl stretched back several lifetimes—I once owed her a life. I knew that if the girl died, her spirit would linger around her grandmother, but her time had come, and she had to leave. I felt a profound willingness to fulfil the girl's wish and take over the responsibility of caring for her grandmother.

And so, the carriage struck. In that instant, the people around us screamed and wailed, and the little girl’s body was severely injured. At that very moment, the girl’s spirit departed, and my spirit entered her body. As my consciousness shifted, I felt pain throughout my entire being. A gentle, anxious voice seemed to be calling me to wake up. I struggled to emerge from the fog, finally managing to open my eyes.

The Warmth of Human Care

Before me was a grandmother in tears. I knew she was the girl's grandmother. She grabbed my hand, asking over and over, 'Does it hurt? Does it hurt?' My body instinctively knew not to let her worry, so I shook my head.

Although my spirit had entered the girl's body, all of her habits and ways of speaking remained ingrained in the physical form. I did not need to learn them; the body naturally possessed those memories. The grandmother spoke to me with such tenderness. It was the first time I had ever felt such care; a sense of warmth surged into my heart. In that moment, I understood: this is what emotion is—a feeling of such warmth. I felt an indescribable sense of being moved.

While I was bedridden and incapacitated, the grandmother stayed by my side, feeding me and wiping my body, caring for me until I recovered. During this process, I, an alien spirit, learned what it felt like to be cared for. Gradually, I learned how to care for others—to care for the grandmother and those around me. I discovered that when one becomes a person who cares for others, everyone likes to be near you. It is a joy born from sincere connection.

A Life of Service

In our daily lives, we grew our own vegetables and sold them; life was very simple. When I was in the girl's body, I never specifically asked the grandmother about my parents. I knew that human life is composed of parents, but since I did not belong to this world, I did not care about such things. One day, the grandmother fell in the field, and from that day on, she could no longer stand. I took on the responsibility of caring for her and earning a living. Although the work was exhausting, I knew the grandmother had been good to me, so I had to be good to her. Everyone said I was a very filial child.

The grandmother often worried, muttering to herself, 'When I am gone, what will you do?' In truth, besides the grandmother, I also cared for others in the village, so everyone was very close to me. I comforted her, saying, 'If you pass away, I will go and help others and treat them as my own family.' The grandmother was very happy to hear this.

When the girl's body reached the age of twenty-one, the grandmother passed away due to the infirmities of old age. After she left, I travelled everywhere helping people, treating everyone in the village as my family, and in return, I earned their respect. This body lived until the age of sixty-one, when it finally decayed. In the instant my spirit departed, I remembered the umbrella the grandmother had held for me on rainy days, and in a flash, my spirit entered an umbrella.

The Path to the Buddha

I was somewhat stunned. Whoever picked up my umbrella was either kind-hearted or someone who helped others. It was a form of attraction. Finally, one day, a practitioner rented the umbrella. I heard him silently reciting the Buddha-name in his heart; it was so bright and luminous that I was deeply shocked. As I followed along, reciting the Buddha-name 'Namo Amituofo' one phrase after another, it was not long before someone brought me to the underworld, where I knelt before the King of Hell. The King of Hell examined my many lifetimes and, seeing that I was a person with a kind heart, gave me the opportunity to serve as a prison guard to help other beings. I am deeply grateful for this Causal Condition.

During my time on duty, I heard Practitioner Su giving Dharma talks, explaining the principles of reincarnation throughout our many lives. My heart was deeply moved, and I made a vow to seek liberation. To have been a life from a distant star system and to have had the chance to encounter the Great Dharma and the Buddha—I am truly grateful.

Domanda, kneeling in reverence."

Namo Amituofo.