Saving Lives Like Fighting Fire

This is a record of an interview with the spirit of Lee Kuan Yew, who sought Chao Du at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Australia. He now resides in the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss. This account reflects upon his perspective from the Western Pure Land, as recorded by the chief writer, Haipin.

Lee Kuan Yew speaks:

"Namo Amituofo. I am Lee Kuan Yew. In the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss, many things have become much clearer. Over these past days, I have listened to Practitioner Su’s Dharma talks. Looking back at my own life, I was also a practitioner, but because I was so deeply attached to the affairs of the red dust, I failed to return to the West. If I had not been fortunate enough to encounter Practitioner Su in this life, I do not know how many more kalpas I would have been left to wander through the six realms of existence.

A Reflection from the Western Pure Land

Today, we have once again encountered the grand event of the Thrice Yearning Ceremony. In this Dharma assembly, how many spirits have had experiences similar to mine? I was merely more fortunate to have become a public figure, which gave me the rare and difficult opportunity to be reborn in the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss, even without having had direct contact with or true faith in the Buddha’s teachings during my lifetime.

There are too many untold life stories in the underworld. The ever-changing clouds contain ten thousand varieties of life. Trees, flowers, grasses, the smallest crawling creatures, the mountains and rivers of the physical world, the dust, the air, the water, and everything we eat or touch in our daily lives—whether sentient or non-sentient—which of these is not a transformation of living beings? Only when one reaches this state can one truly and thoroughly understand the real meaning of these things.

The Unparalleled Work of Practitioner Su

Batch after batch of spirits, like a surging tide, are constantly pouring into the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre. Everyone has long heard that there is a Practitioner Su here whose skills in Chao Du and saving beings are unparalleled throughout history. She is able to truly bring the teachings of Namo Amituofo to their fullest expression, truly practising what she preaches and setting an example, which is why she has moved Namo Amituofo to reside at this temple.

Within the temple, every day in the early hours, Practitioner Su waves her sleeves to travel across the seas and even beyond the skies to save beings. She saves people without taking a holiday; she is always there, at any time and in any place, responding to the needs of beings to save them.

A Father's Plea to His Son

The Dharma Body skill of countless manifestations is something I truly hope can be passed on to young, outstanding children who possess a heart for saving the world. It is a pity that I am no longer in the human world; otherwise, I would be willing, from the perspective of government funding, to select children with great ambition to come here to study, to acquire the Great Dharma, and to spread it everywhere to help save the world.

Practitioner Su often says that saving lives is like fighting a fire. This is not false at all. If my son, Hsien Loong, has the opportunity to read this article, as a father, I hope you will look into it deeply. Bring our outstanding citizens here to learn and to seek the true treasure—to do something beyond the red dust of this world, something that transcends the mundane. If you do this, your father will be much more at ease in the West, and I will feel that this is the only way to repay the Buddha’s grace and the grace of all sentient beings. My child, you may not yet understand the meaning of this, but if you are willing to put down your status and return to zero, you will see a completely different horizon. This cannot be replaced by striving for the economy or chasing money. Listen to your father’s words; you will not regret it."