From the Hells to the Western Pure Land: The Testimony of Wang Jinxuan

This is a record of an interview with Wang Jinxuan, who sought 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 life in the human realm, beginning in 1957. Recorded by the chief writer, Venerable Shi Faru, on April 25, 2026.

Wang Jinxuan speaks:

"Namo Amituofo. I am Wang Jinxuan. It is with a heart full of gratitude that I thank Namo Amituofo and Practitioner Su for leading us—sixty prison guards in total—to rebirth in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. Now that we have all stepped onto this incredibly bright and radiant land, I can see clearly how much more magnificent and dignified it is compared to the lessons we heard while listening to the Dharma in the hells.

Standing here on this ground paved with gold, I look back at those dark, dim days in the hells, and I am struck by the wonder of it all. I never imagined that I could exist in a place filled with such brilliant Buddha-light. When Practitioner Su used to come to the hells to perform work, he would bring the immeasurable light of Namo Amituofo with him. But today, having arrived in the Western Pure Land, I have discovered that this light is everywhere. It radiates from every corner; it is truly, truly magnificent.

A World Without Suffering

Everyone here greets one another with a smile. There are no 'hard days' here. It is nothing like the hells, where life is filled with extreme hardship and where the prisoners are constantly trapped in states of profound sorrow and agony. I am Wang Jinxuan, born in Taiwan in 1957. I grew up in a rural village during an era of rapid economic and population growth. Even as a child, I longed to venture into the city. Life in the countryside felt so limited. When relatives and friends who had moved to the city returned home for the holidays, they would share stories of life in the urban centres, and I listened with such longing. I truly believed that life there was far more interesting than the quiet, predictable rhythm of the village.

I spent my youth dreaming of urban development, but because I was young and unfamiliar with the world outside, I remained in the village to finish my schooling. It was not until high school that I finally decided to travel alone to a nearby city to attend middle school. I was so excited! I finally had the chance to leave home and study in the city.

The Allure of the City

At first, the friends I met seemed so fashionable. Even though we all wore school uniforms, there was a certain 'city quality' about them that was quite different from us simple village children. The stationery and personal items they used—their wallets, their book covers—were all so novel. I had never seen such things in the countryside, where everything was defined by simplicity, frugality, and saving money. Seeing these trendy items with their intricate patterns and colours filled me with envy.

However, my family did not have the extra money for me to purchase such luxuries, so I had to live a life of extreme diligence and thrift. I lived at the school, and I did not spend much money; I ate all three meals in the school cafeteria with the other students. After graduating from high school, I wanted to go to university, but my financial situation was limited. Following the advice of my teachers, I decided to start working instead.

I began by working part-time in various restaurants, school cafeterias, and beverage shops in the city. The pay was decent, and before long, I had saved a small sum of money. I decided to start my own business. I opened a buffet restaurant, and business was booming; customers came in an endless stream. I laughed and chatted with everyone, and we all became good friends. Through this, I met a great many people.

The Turning Point: The Call for Vegetarianism

I did not really know the 'tricks of the trade' when it came to business, but the nearby companies loved to order their lunch boxes from us. Over time, we became friends, and it became very convenient for us to cooperate on various things. In truth, I did not know what kind of problems this business would bring me until one day, a customer suggested that I should consider selling vegetarian food. When I first heard this, I did not agree at all. I felt that not many people would want to eat vegetarian food. As far as I knew, even if I didn't serve a fully vegetarian menu, if the meat portion of the day was even slightly reduced, customers would complain. How could I just change to vegetarian food so easily?

Furthermore, my vast base of regular customers had supported me for a long time; they identified with my cooking and my meals. They were familiar with the taste of my food. If I switched to unfamiliar vegetarian dishes, I feared they would not adapt. On top of that, I had no concept of vegetarian cooking. I always felt that if I didn't cook meat, the food wouldn't be fragrant or flavourful enough. How could I serve that to customers? At the time, I was very confused and even somewhat repulsed by the idea.

However, my regular customers kept actively encouraging me to sell vegetarian food. I once asked one of them, 'If you want to eat vegetarian, why don't you go to another restaurant? Why must you come to mine?' He replied that it was just more convenient to come here, and that eating pot-side vegetarian was fine, but if I could offer dedicated vegetarian dishes, that would be the best.

I thought to myself, if it was just to satisfy the needs of one or two customers, preparing a couple of vegetarian dishes to make things easier for them would be fine. So, I agreed and started with one or two dishes. To my surprise, as the days went by, I discovered that making vegetarian food was not difficult at all. Moreover, most people who eat vegetarian food have simpler requirements for the dishes and flavours, and everyone ate with great joy. I slowly began to feel that making vegetarian food actually brought me an inexplicable sense of joy, and the pressure was much lower.

The Realisation of Karmic Debt

Consequently, I gradually increased the proportion of vegetarian dishes. Later, customers realised that apart from the main course, every side dish could basically be eaten as a vegetarian meal. Therefore, more and more people who visited our restaurant were vegetarians. Everyone knew that we used completely different pots and utensils for cooking vegetarian food compared to meat dishes; it was very clean, specifically to meet the needs of vegetarians.

About six years after I started trying to make vegetarian food, I completely gave up meat. At first, it was because I started making vegetarian food and gradually came into contact with many Buddhist books. I understood the laws of karma and cause and effect, and that was my 'aha!' moment: all the meat dishes I had prepared every day for people to eat were acts of killing. The more delicious the food was, and the more people enjoyed eating it, the greater the karma I was creating.

Once I understood this principle, I stopped the meat business and switched entirely to vegetarian food. Although I lost many customers, for me, I had already earned enough money in this life to establish myself and make a living in the city, without having to return to the countryside to farm.

Service in the Hells

After I married, I had a son and a daughter, and I let them study in the city. Their future development would be much luckier than mine; after all, they had the educational resources of the city and could adapt better to urban life. I continued my lunch box business until I was fifty-three. After that, my health slowly began to degenerate, and I suffered from chronic illnesses. My wife advised me to let go of the work and hire someone to take over. I thought this was the only way, so I retired. At the age of fifty-six, I passed away at home.

After death, I fell into the hells. King Yama explained to me that although I had created a great deal of the karma of killing in the first half of my life by providing meat for people to eat, I had later made up for it by promoting vegetarian food for many years. By virtue of this merit, I could temporarily suspend my previous spiritual obstacles and the karma from my past lives. King Yama asked me if I was willing to serve as a prison guard in the hells to serve other beings. I agreed, thinking this was a wonderful opportunity to serve.

I served the beings who had fallen into the hells, counseling them to change their ways, especially those who had committed the karma of killing just to satisfy their appetite. I felt a special karmic affinity with them, so I spent more time persuading them. Some understood how to repent and woke up, which allowed them to shorten their time suffering in the hells.

The Truth About Meat-Eating

Later, when I heard Practitioner Su giving Dharma talks, I was shocked to discover that the significance of eating vegetarian food is truly profound. Eating meat actually causes immeasurable and boundless killing karma and resentful beings to occupy the space, which even affects the weather, causes droughts, and in turn affects people's lives. It sounds truly terrifying. Moreover, creating the karma of killing makes people more susceptible to epidemics and diseases, and as for chronic illnesses and cancer, that goes without saying.

Having heard so many shocking truths, I actively shared them with the beings in the hells, hoping they could wake up, stop creating the karma of killing, and no longer be deluded by the desire to satisfy their appetite. After serving in the prison for thirteen years, I was included on the list to be led to the West. I am grateful for the compassionate deliverance of Namo Amituofo and Practitioner Su. I never expected that a rough person like me—someone who didn't understand anything and was illiterate—would still have the opportunity to be reborn in the Western Pure Land. The Western Pure Land is truly a beautiful and equal realm; I am amazed that it was willing to accept someone like me.

I sincerely thank Namo Amituofo and Practitioner Su for their compassionate help. On behalf of the sixty prison guards, I once again bow in gratitude to Namo Amituofo and Practitioner Su. I am grateful for the Buddha's grace.

Namo Amituofo.

Wang Jinxuan"