Urtobang, a venerable from the ancient Lupawa realm, sought deliverance at the Hsiang Kuang Buddhist Centre in Australia. He now resides in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. This interview, recorded on September 16, 2018, by the chief writer, Shi Fa Jing, details his transformative journey from a life of complex spell-casting and illusory 'treasure towers' to the ultimate truth of .
Urtobang speaks:
"Namo Amituofo. I am Urtobang. I was born in a space far beyond the Earth, in a realm known as Lupawa. My mother was a beautiful and powerful leader of a religion we called 'Mitaism,' a faith that has long since been lost to the annals of history. My mother possessed extraordinary, almost incomprehensible abilities in the art of spell-casting. She could manifest anything she desired simply by manipulating the molecular structure of soil. She understood the high malleability of earth and the spiritual essence contained within it, which allowed her to transform a tiny, almost invisible speck of dust into an apple, a tree, a chair, or even a human being in the blink of an eye. She was a master of creation, weaving the very fabric of our reality through her profound understanding of the elements.
I, too, was created by my mother from a piece of soil. She intended for me to be her successor, to carry on the legacy of Mitaism and use its magic to 'save' people. In our realm, Mitaism was the dominant religion, practiced by almost everyone, including our King, Babaha. The core of our practice was the use of complex incantations to ensure physical health and ward off external interference. We even compiled a 'Great Collection of Mitaist Spells,' which contained over fifteen million distinct incantations. Every organ and structure of the human body had its own specific spell, and there were over a hundred different chants just for the eyes, depending on the specific ailment or the desired outcome—whether one wanted clearer vision or the ability to see into the void. It was a life defined by constant, meticulous chanting, where every breath was dedicated to a specific, calculated purpose."
The Illusion of the Mita Treasure Towers
"Beyond the daily chanting, the followers of Mitaism pooled their wealth to construct 'Mita Treasure Towers.' These were not like the ossuaries you see in the human world; they were towers imbued with divine power. The belief was that if you could enter one of these towers after death, you would enjoy an existence of infinite beauty, endless food, and the fulfillment of every desire. However, entry was conditional. You had to be a sincere follower, chant daily according to the doctrine, and master the most important incantation of all: the 'Spirit Entering the Tower' mantra, 'Bula-Bula-Mitu-Sa.' If you practiced this diligently throughout your life, you were promised a smooth transition into the tower upon death. It was a system built on the promise of eternal comfort, yet it was fundamentally an illusion.
My mother, the leader of this faith, was the successor to the founder, Nubada. After Nubada passed away, his spirit entered the treasure tower, and he passed the mantle to my mother because she was the most capable of all his disciples. She was brilliant and had mastered all fifteen million spells, even developing new techniques that had never been seen before. She was worshipped by many, and her beauty attracted countless suitors, but she had performed a spell on herself to remove all emotional entanglements. She had no personal desires; her only goal was to save people from the suffering of illness and death through the power of her spells. She was a figure of cold, calculated perfection, yet she was trapped in the same cycle of ignorance as the rest of us."
The Encounter that Changed Everything
"I was born with intelligence far exceeding that of my peers, thanks to my mother’s magic, and I quickly mastered all her techniques. Yet, I felt a deep sense of unease. Our people did not live long—rarely past fifty—and despite their constant chanting, they were not happy. I could not understand why they remained dissatisfied if the spells were truly effective. Driven by this confusion, I used my magic to transcend the boundaries of our realm and arrived in the human world on Earth. I wanted to see if there was a truth beyond the limitations of Lupawa.
The humans I observed were different. They were busy with their work, not obsessed with chanting spells like my people. I noticed a stark contrast: some looked miserable, while others radiated a bright, joyful light. The happy ones were those who constantly chanted 'Namo Amituofo.' They were healthy, lived long lives, and possessed a serene inner peace. I was fascinated. What was this 'Namo Amituofo'? Why had I never heard of it in Mitaism? I followed a young boy who was constantly chanting and singing 'Namo Amituofo.' He was so full of life and . When I asked him why he was so happy, he looked at my strange attire and asked who I was. I told him about Lupawa and Mitaism. He shook his head and said, 'My mother told me that only by chanting Namo Amituofo can one be reborn in the Western Pure Land. The treasure towers you speak of are created by magic; if that magic is broken, where will those spirits go?' His words struck me like a lightning bolt. I had never considered that our 'paradise' was merely an illusion, a fragile construct that could crumble at any moment."
Returning to Save My People
"The boy directed me to Red Fortune Mountain, where a group of practitioners lived. Their hearts were pure, and they had no thoughts other than 'Namo Amituofo.' They taught me that life is like a dream and that the only reality is the heart focused on the Buddha-name. I realized then that the Mita Treasure Towers were nothing compared to the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss, which is the only true liberation. I spent twenty years on Earth practicing, and my progress was rapid. When I finally returned to Lupawa, I saw my home for what it truly was: a place of darkness. I had been blind to the suffering of my people, but now, the light of the Buddha-name revealed the truth.
I gathered all the followers of Mitaism. I knelt before them, apologized for the deception, and introduced them to the Buddha-name. I taught them that only through sincere faith and chanting 'Namo Amituofo' could they achieve true rebirth. The Mitaist faith was abandoned, and my people became devout Buddhists. They traded their fifteen million spells for one single, powerful name. They stopped seeking the illusory towers and began seeking the Western Pure Land. The darkness lifted, and they finally found true happiness. It was a profound shift, a transition from the artificiality of magic to the genuine, compassionate embrace of the Buddha."
A Mission of Universal
"Today, I have come to this world again, not from Lupawa, but from the Western Pure Land. I am deeply grateful to Practitioner Su for giving me the opportunity to assist in her recovery and to help deliver sentient beings across the universe. I have traveled to many planets where the beings have never heard of Namo Amituofo. Today, Practitioner Su has sent me back to those places. The causal conditions have ripened. I shine the Buddha-light upon them and call out to all spirits: 'Chant! You do not need to die to be saved! Chant Namo Amituofo and seek rebirth in the Western Pure Land!' In that instant, they all awaken and join in the chanting. It is a magnificent sight to see them turn from their confusion toward the light of the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss.
