The Animal Lover's Journey to the Western Pure Land

This is a record of an interview with Lin Chunmian, who sought deliverance at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Australia. She now resides in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. This account reflects upon her life in the human world and her subsequent experiences in the cycle of rebirth. Recorded by the chief writer, Shi Fa-jing, on February 8, 2025.

Lin Chunmian speaks:

"Namo Amituofo. I am Lin Chunmian. I am so incredibly grateful to the compassionate Practitioner Su for reaching out and guiding us—all sixty of us jailers—to the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. Right now, we are all beaming with such joy that we can hardly keep our mouths closed! We are so deeply thankful for the Causal Conditions that allowed us to come here and witness the Buddha. Every single one of us jailers treasures this moment immensely. In our hearts, we are constantly chanting the Buddha-name, and we are filled with such profound Dharma joy. I offer my deepest gratitude to Namo Amituofo and to Practitioner Su.

In that lifetime, my name was Lin Chunmian, and I was a woman. From the time I was a small child, I had an innate affinity for animals. I loved every single creature, regardless of what it was. A neighbour of ours, an elderly man, once told me that in my past lives, I must have been an animal myself, which is why I felt such a deep connection to them in this life, treating them as if they were my own kin. When I heard him say that, it felt entirely logical to me. Indeed, I did view them as my own kind, and it was the most natural thing in the world for me to be in their company."

A Childhood Bond with the Wild

"I remember one occasion when I went up into the mountains with my father. We encountered a massive bear. My father was absolutely terrified and shouted at me to run, but I didn't run. Instead, I kept walking closer to the beast, trying to greet it. My father was so frightened that his legs went weak and he nearly collapsed. I truly loved all animals; there was no creature, no matter how fierce or terrifying, that I feared. To me, every single one of them was adorable and delightful. I used to dream of growing up and moving into the forest, living there every day, playing and existing alongside them. Of course, I knew in my heart that this was just a dream. My family had so much work to do every day; it was impossible for me to just go off and live a life of leisure in the mountains. That was simply not the reality of my life.

We were a traditional farming family, just like almost every other household in our village. Each family had their own plot of land to cultivate, and every day, we would load up the vegetables and fruits we had grown to sell at the market. As the eldest child in the family, I had a great deal of responsibility. Beyond helping with the farm work, I also had to run to the market and help manage our stall."

The Market Conflict and a Kindred Spirit

"However, I wasn't allowed to work at the market right from the start because I had a habit of getting into arguments with people. I simply could not stand the sight of the meat stalls. Whenever I arrived at the market, I would go straight to those stalls and confront the vendors: 'Why are you selling meat? Why must you kill these poor, innocent animals?' I have always been a very straightforward person; I say exactly what is on my mind. I do not beat around the bush, and I certainly do not keep my thoughts bottled up. So, whenever I saw those meat sellers, I felt compelled to walk over and scold them.

My parents felt that my behaviour was incredibly embarrassing and that it was ruining our reputation at the market. After I had been going to the market for only a week, they ordered me to stay home and forbade me from returning. For an entire year, I was confined to working only in the fields. It was only after I promised that I would no longer argue with the meat vendors that my parents finally allowed me to return to the market to help sell our produce.

The entire village and everyone at the market knew of my love for animals, but I never expected that this would lead to something wonderful. When I reached the age where marriage was being discussed, many people wanted to act as matchmakers for me. They would say, 'Lin, let me tell you, I know several handsome men who love animals just as much as you do. I guarantee you will be satisfied.' I would just laugh until I couldn't speak. These matchmakers were quite clever; they knew that if they found a man who shared my passion for animals, I would be much more likely to choose him."

The 'Animal House' and the Mystery of Reincarnation

"Eventually, my mother chose one of her old friends to be my matchmaker. This woman also understood the importance of finding someone who shared my values. She found a man who was a vegetarian and who kept a whole collection of animals at his home. I asked him, 'Are the animals you keep being raised to be slaughtered for food?' He replied, 'No, these are animals I saw were about to be killed, so I paid a high price to buy them back and save them.' When I heard him say that, my heart skipped a beat. I felt a sudden surge of emotion—I knew right then that this man was my soulmate. He was so compassionate, just like me, and he was willing to spend a fortune to save so many creatures: chickens, ducks, cats, dogs, sheep, cows, pigs—every kind of meat you could find at the market was present in his home.

I eventually married this man. After I moved into his home, the number of animals we kept grew larger and larger, because I learned to do exactly what he did. Whenever we saw an animal that was about to be slaughtered, we would pay a high price to bring it home. My life with him was quite comfortable; his family was well-off, which allowed him to purchase and care for so many animals in our backyard. Our backyard was essentially a zoo. Some of the animals were ones I had rescued myself, so we had a little bit of everything.

Later, I gave birth to three children, and something truly miraculous happened. From the moment they were born, my three children looked like animals. My eldest son looked like a cow, my second son looked like a pig, and my youngest son looked like a chicken. It wasn't just us who thought so; all our relatives and friends who saw them said the same thing. They said, 'You two must love animals so much that even the animals have come to reincarnate as your children.' I believe this is true; it must be the case. How else could they look so much like them?"

Advocating for Compassion

"Some people would mock my children and give them nicknames, calling them 'Big Brother Cow,' 'Second Treasure Pig,' and 'Little Brother Chicken.' I told those people that they were being incredibly boring. Because my children looked like animals, I loved them even more. I loved my children, and I loved animals, so my love was doubled. Fortunately, my children were just like me; they didn't care when people laughed at them. Instead, when people teased them, they would use the opportunity to advocate for the importance of loving animals. They would tell people to eat vegetarian and not to kill. These were the values I had instilled in them, and they remembered them well.

In that lifetime, I was a very kind and enthusiastic person. I had a very loud voice; you could hear me coming long before you saw me. Many people laughed and called me the 'loud-mouthed woman,' but I didn't care what they called me. I have always been easy-going; I didn't mind how people treated me, so I was quite popular. I encouraged many people to adopt a vegetarian diet, and slowly, I influenced more and more people to join me. Later, I met a group of friends who also loved animals, and we joined forces to rescue those poor, unwanted, injured, or abandoned creatures. Of course, we couldn't take them all home, so we had to find people who were willing to care for them, clean them up, and send them to owners who would look after them for the rest of their lives."

The Final Years and the Cycle of Suffering

"We did this work voluntarily; we didn't take any money, nor did we seek any personal gain or benefit. However, we were very happy because we were able to help these animals avoid suffering. To us, this was a deeply meaningful task, and we were more than willing to spend our time helping them. Although many people laughed at us during this process, saying that we couldn't save many animals and that countless others were still being killed that we couldn't see, they were right. There are certainly many animals being killed all over the world, and we couldn't possibly save them all. But our philosophy was simple: save as many as we can. So, for the rest of our lives, we did our best.

My three sons eventually married women who also loved animals, and our family was jokingly referred to as the 'Animal Home.' And you might wonder, did my five grandchildren look like animals when they were born? Hahaha, of course they did! If the father looks like an animal, the children certainly will too. Our family really was like an 'Animal Home.' My eldest grandson, in particular, looked very much like a mountain goat, but not an ordinary one. He looked incredibly wise. I suspect that in a past life, he might have been a very wise old goat who reincarnated as my eldest grandson.

I spent my entire life rescuing animals until I reached the age of seventy-eight. That year, my body began to experience many situations. I would treat one illness, and another would appear. I spent almost that entire year seeing doctors, and I became very thin. My friends who came to visit were shocked and felt terrible seeing me in that state. At the end of that year, my lifespan came to an end, and I passed away on my hospital bed."

Finding Liberation in the Western Pure Land

"My spirit left my body and immediately entered the womb of a mother wild boar. Within minutes, I was born as a little piglet. I began a life as a pig. In the space of a pig's body, I naturally didn't remember my past life. It wasn't that I couldn't remember; it was just that in the space of a pig, one simply doesn't think about such things. I didn't just live as a pig; I lived as other animals as well. After about three lifetimes, my spirit was brought into the hells to serve as a jailer.

I never expected that my efforts in rescuing animals would have accumulated some merit, giving me the opportunity to serve as a jailer in the hells. In the hells, I witnessed many people from the world killing animals. Everyone is unaware that these animals and livestock also possess spirits. When they kill them and eat them, the animals feel it; they suffer, and they harbour hatred. I desperately wanted to help these animals, and I also wanted to help the criminals who were suffering their karmic retribution. Later, I heard Practitioner Su giving Dharma talks. I was so happy to hear them; Practitioner Su's talks felt so intimate and resonated deeply within my heart.

It was only after listening to the Dharma that I began to know the Buddha. I learned that I must chant 'Namo Amituofo.' I introduced this to many of the criminals in the hells and to the animals as well, telling them to chant the Buddha-name and seek rebirth in the Western Pure Land. I, too, wanted to seek rebirth in the Western Pure Land. The cycle of rebirth is truly terrifying; I have seen so much, and I have become afraid myself. Although I love animals, I do not want to be an animal again. Only by returning to the Western Pure Land can one achieve true liberation.

Today, with the help of Practitioner Su, all sixty of us jailers have arrived at the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. In our hearts, we are so grateful to Namo Amituofo and to Practitioner Su. We kneel before the Buddha, bowing again and again, filled with gratitude, and even more gratitude.

Namo Amituofo.

Lin Chunmian bows in reverence."