From Plague Demon to Repentant Soul

This is a record of an interview with the spirit known as Shi Guoming, who sought Chao Du at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Australia. He now resides in the Western Land of Dharma Nature. This account reflects upon his life approximately 900 years ago. Recorded by the chief writer, Venerable HaiZe, on August 17, 2021.

Shi Guoming speaks:

"Namo Amituofo. I am Shi Guoming. I was one of the plague demons extracted from the body of Practitioner Su. I am a rather unique case among that group, for the area I targeted was not the respiratory system or the vital organs that typically lead to organ failure and death—I targeted the knees.

The Vulnerability of the Dharma Protector

When we entered the body of Practitioner Su, we moved directly into the bloodstream, circulating throughout his entire system before settling in the knees. The knees are essential for human movement. Practitioner Su is a propagator of the Dharma; we reasoned that if his knees were incapacitated, his ability to spread the Dharma would be hindered. Describing it now, it sounds simple, but the moment we entered his body, our toxicity was significantly weakened. Once in the bloodstream, we posed no real threat to the blood itself; in fact, it was our own existence that became threatened.

Typically, during this pandemic, once we enter a human's bloodstream, we release toxins that cause persistent fevers. This is the moment the body's white blood cells confront us. Usually, our toxicity overcomes these white blood cells, weakening the body's resistance and allowing other viruses to wreak havoc in the respiratory tract. This time, however, although our toxicity was diminished, we still caused Practitioner Su to develop a mild fever. Yet, it caused no actual harm to his body. The fever occurred because, to his body, we were foreign invaders. Practitioner Su’s body, having been purified, naturally possesses a set of defensive cells. These cells reacted to us, and even though our toxicity was low, we still clashed with them, resulting in that mild fever.

The Logic of Karmic Retribution

After the fever, we seized the opportunity to search for a new target. We read the information within Practitioner Su’s body and found that his knees were a previous weak point, so we settled there. After the battle with his defensive cells in the bloodstream, our strength had been reduced by more than half! After resting and lying dormant there for several days, we used all our remaining, meager toxicity to release our influence. We truly did not know what kind of impact this would have on Practitioner Su; we were simply doing our job. The result was that Practitioner Su’s knees became swollen and painful. This was not surprising. Had we stayed in other organs, the reaction would have been far more severe. In soft tissue organs, we would have caused stiffness and hardening in a very short time, rendering them dysfunctional and leading to the destruction, damage, or even death of those cells. Being in the knees, where there was only swelling and pain, was a very mild change indeed.

This action also revealed our location. Of course, we could not escape the Buddha-eye. Once Practitioner Su consulted the Buddha and wrote our memorial tablet, our identities were exposed! Once the tablet was written, our fate was sealed: our demon bodies were stripped away, the chime was struck, and we were invited to the Western Land of Dharma Nature. We had heard of such an outcome before entering Practitioner Su’s body, but because we were required to visit the temple to inspect the situation, we never expected to go and not return. Now, I am being interviewed here in the Western Land of Dharma Nature at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre.

A Sudden Shift to Serenity

This transformation was so rapid that I was completely unprepared. At first, I was very unaccustomed to the Land of Dharma Nature. It is so quiet, bright, and there is nothing to do but listen to the sutras—a life completely different from the one I led, which was busy with pandemic attacks. However, I had to accept this arrangement, and so day after day passed. It is always daytime here; there is no night. It was only when I saw Practitioner Su giving lectures and read the date on the interview script that I realised over two months had already passed. Over these two months, this environment has shifted our hearts from seeking speed and quick results—from focusing on the numbers of deaths and illnesses—to a state of peace.

Before I appeared at the temple, the countries affected by the pandemic were concentrated in the southeastern provinces of China. The number of people invaded was approximately 68,000, with 29,000 deaths. After our invasion, most people were left with some form of disability, and it was easy for aftereffects to arise in the areas where the virus had entered. However, we observed that Practitioner Su’s body, after this massive viral invasion, recovered in an excellent state, and no such aftereffects occurred. The swelling in the muscles of the knees where we were located has also recovered, and it did not cause any discomfort to his knees.

The Power of an Awakened Being

Practitioner Su is an anomaly among those we have invaded. Although he possesses a human body, his soul is not that of an ordinary person; it is the soul of an awakened being who has undergone purification after purification. The environment and cells of a body driven by such a soul exist in a state of purification, compassion, and goodness. Therefore, it has the ability to transform outsiders rather than being transformed by them. This is why our pandemic virus could not function after entering him.

We have invaded the bodies of people with different constitutions, and the severity of the illness varies from person to person. In most cases, after we release toxins, the body reacts to the stimulation, indicating that the body is in a state of hostility—or, one could say, in sync—with these toxins. Most people react this way, as if the toxin was specifically designed to match them. If the person invaded by the virus had created negative causes in the past and was due to receive karmic retribution in this lifetime, then after the virus invades, the cells release that information. If there is an attraction or resonance with the pandemic virus, symptoms will emerge. The deeper and more firmly the virus attaches to the cells, the harder it is to resolve or separate, and it becomes difficult to improve through medication or injections. Thus, symptoms appear rapidly, catching people off guard and even leading to death. If there is no resonance, there is no attachment, and the victim often experiences very mild symptoms, perhaps even preserving their life. Therefore, we only know whether our invasion will cause death after we have already entered.

When we invaded Practitioner Su’s knees, the damaged cells in his knees held memories. Although they had healed, one could read that his knees were still due to suffer the retribution of injury, but his practice had halted that retribution. Our entry was an external condition that resonated with that unfulfilled retribution, which is why the swelling occurred. But after the memorial tablet was written and we were invited out and sent to the Land of Dharma Nature, that external condition was removed, so the swelling ceased and gradually returned to its original state. This is why we were able to cause swelling in Practitioner Su’s knees, but because of his merit, only a small fraction of the retribution he was due to receive manifested.

A Life of Hardship and Resilience

Now, our days in the Land of Dharma Nature are completely different from our busy lives during the pandemic. Thinking of my past, it feels like a long time ago. About 900 years ago, I was born in an era of war. My father followed the country to battle, and my mother lived with my grandparents, looking after one another. My mother was pregnant at the time, and in the midst of a shortage of supplies, she struggled to give birth to me. When I was born, I was very light and small, born earlier than expected. The midwife said I might not last long, but to everyone’s surprise, I survived under my mother’s careful care. Because I faced the challenge of life and death right from birth, I developed an innate personality that did not fear hardship. Even though food was scarce, I grew up living with everyone else, though I was always weaker and smaller than children of my age. Because of this, I was often teased by older children. They would laugh at me, saying I was a child with no one to care for me, which was why I was so small. I would not argue with them, nor would I pay them any mind, because I did not want my mother to worry about me. If I made them angry and they hurt me, my mother would be the one to suffer most. So, even at a young age, I learned to read the situation and watch my words, but it was truly necessary.

After I grew a little older, I began to care for children who were even more pitiful than I was, sharing the few candies I had with them. In the social environment of that time, this was very precious. The candies were bought by my grandmother with money she had saved, and she told me to keep them and eat them slowly. But when I thought of other children who had nothing to eat, a voice in my heart told me: "You should share with everyone." This was the compassionate and unpretentious side of my personality.

I did not receive any formal education. Although my mother was in poor health, she taught me some simple characters. I had no money to buy paper, brushes, or ink. I helped my mother with chores during the day, so I often reviewed the characters I had learned under the moonlight at night. Later, I became a child who could read, and people looked at me differently; they never expected that I, too, was someone who had read a few books.

The Descent into the Demon Realm

My grandparents and mother passed away from illness when I was seven. With the help of neighbors, I arranged my mother’s funeral. I vaguely understood the meaning of death. It wasn't until I tried to find my grandparents and mother and truly could not find them that I felt my own loneliness and helplessness. From then on, I became more silent than ever and had no friends. With the help of neighbors, I grew up, still thin and weak, relying on odd jobs to get by every day.

One day, I suddenly wondered: "Why am I living in this world?" No one gave me an answer. I was depressed, introverted, and spoke little, as if silently protesting: "Why am I the only one left in the human world?" I was fifteen at the time. Later, a voice told me that I was not alone and that if I followed them into another world, there would be many companions there. Since I was born, I had never left home—at least, the home where I had lived for fifteen years. In truth, I longed for friends, so I agreed to that voice. I wanted to live a different kind of life. They pulled my soul out, and although it was painful, I entered the dark world of the demons. In there, my soul was released. I transformed the suppressed feelings I had while alive into a different kind of energy. From the status of a demon child, I rose to the role of a Demon King. Every step of the way was achieved through my own hard work.

I never expected that after 900 years in the demon realm, I would encounter someone as extraordinary as Practitioner Su while joining the pandemic demon crowds, which stripped away my demon-realm cloak and ended my career as a demon. This was absolutely not something I could have predicted before coming to the temple to find Practitioner Su. I have a bold personality that dares to try new things; I once did things in the demon realm that other demons could not do at the time, which earned me respect and soothed the pain of being looked down upon in the past. So, I acted faster and more ruthlessly.

Now, in the Land of Dharma Nature, this personality and state of mind have been settled and transformed. It is as if I am gradually returning to the kind, good child I was when my mother was still alive. I also feel a sense of indebtedness for the people who died or were injured because of the pandemic due to what I did before. This change in myself surprises me! I have been transformed! It must be the warm and bright environment of the Land of Dharma Nature, and the days spent listening to Practitioner Su’s lectures on the Dharma, that made me realise how wrong my past actions were and that there is karmic retribution. Thus, a heart of repentance naturally arose.

Reflections on the Thrice Yearning Ceremony

During my time in the Land of Dharma Nature, I have participated in many Thrice Yearning Ceremonies, and only then did I truly experience the truth of the saying: "Where there is the existence of demons in the world, there is simultaneously the existence of Buddhas." I saw Namo Amituofo and many Buddhas and Bodhisattvas with my own eyes. The Buddha-light radiating from them during the ceremony illuminated this land and every being participating. From the eyes of everyone longing for Chao Du, I deeply felt their desire to leave this world quickly, as if they did not want to stay for even a moment longer. Practitioner Su sent off a full group, and very quickly, another group arrived; countless beings were sent into the golden light.

From Practitioner Su’s teachings, we know that the four large memorial tablets placed in the air allow the beings who enter them to enter the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss. Now I know what a magnificent and rare opportunity this is! In the Land of Dharma Nature, one can hear the Buddha-name of Namo Amituofo chanted by Practitioner Su and the teachings of Teacher Practitioner Xia Lianju at any time. This is a wonderful opportunity for us to learn the Buddha’s teachings and has become my fixed daily routine. Here, I have no choice but to fully accept everything, which has helped me understand what the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss is. Everyone who enters does so with joy and longing; it truly is a wonderful place!

Now, I carry a heart of repentance, praying for the forgiveness of those I harmed by spreading the pandemic, and I continue to stay here to listen to the sutras. I hope that one day, I will be able to lead my "demon children and grandchildren" to chant the Buddha’s name with everyone and enter the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss.

The Buddha has given the demon of the pandemic the Dharma name Shi Guoming."