The Demon's Confession: A Healer's Tragic Fall

This is a record of an interview with the plague-spreading demon Mo Deng, who sought deliverance 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 as a healer approximately 1,300 years ago. Recorded by the chief writer, Shi Fa Jing, on June 23, 2021.

Mo Deng (Shi Xianshu) speaks:

"Namo Amituofo. Runny noses, nasal congestion, coughing, sore throats—these symptoms that Practitioner Su experienced, which mimic a common cold, were entirely our doing. If we had not been playing our tricks, Practitioner Su would never have developed these symptoms for no reason. However, we found that we could not cause any real chaos within Practitioner Su's body. We could not stay for long; everyone was desperate to get out because the pure, meditative concentration of the magnetic field within Practitioner Su was completely incompatible with us. We are accustomed to causing trouble in chaotic spaces, much like the chaotic magnetic fields within the bodies of ordinary humans. That is the environment most suitable for our survival, so we scrambled to rush out of Practitioner Su's body."

"The reason we came to this place was to see just how capable Practitioner Su is at saving the world from this pandemic! Even the legendary divine healers of ancient times would never dare to boast that they could handle a pandemic by inviting it to come to them. If anyone were to say such a thing, they would surely be the first to perish. Yet, Practitioner Su dared to say it, and not just once. He seemed so incredibly certain, so we came to see exactly how Practitioner Su intended to save everyone."

The Failed Attack on Practitioner Su

"We all followed our leader—the plague toxin—to this place. We shrank our bodies, hiding within the air, and then infiltrated Practitioner Su's body. Our first target was Practitioner Su's throat. It is the first line of defence for the human body; if we could break through there, entering deeper would be much easier. But we hit a wall at the throat. Practitioner Su's body was not something we could enter just because we wanted to. Even when we managed to force our way in, we could not exert any real influence. We thought Practitioner Su was using thought power to control us, but that was not the case. It was simply that there was a powerful, natural energy within Practitioner Su's body that was resisting us. Why did he possess such energy? It was something we had never encountered in any other human being. No matter how hard we tried, we could not overcome this energy, so we could not reach the depths of Practitioner Su's body. We only managed to cause a few superficial symptoms—a runny nose, a cough, a sore throat—which left us feeling absolutely astonished."

"Everyone shouted, 'Go as deep as you can! Even if we cannot reach the depths, we can still cause trouble on the surface and make Practitioner Su feel miserable, let him taste the bitterness of being sick!' We acted accordingly. Some made Practitioner Su cough, some made him have a runny nose, some caused congestion. But then, something strange happened! At first, we were proudly displaying our abilities, but as time passed, our power began to wane. We looked at each other, confused, and asked, 'What is going on? Why could we exert force just a moment ago, and now we have no strength left?' This was a serious matter. We were deeply puzzled and began to investigate the cause. After observing for a while, we realised that there was a constant stream of 'Righteous Qi' surrounding us within Practitioner Su's body. Compared to this Righteous Qi, we were evil and wicked; we were fundamentally incompatible. But this Righteous Qi was very gentle; it did not harm us, yet it caused our power to diminish continuously until, eventually, we had almost no strength left and could do nothing at all. We all decided to flee Practitioner Su's body immediately. If we did not leave, we would all be destroyed."

The Bitter Truth of Karma

"Now that we have all left Practitioner Su's body, he has kept us here and brought us into this incredibly tranquil space. We are all sitting on lotus seats, listening to Practitioner Su give Dharma talks. Only then did we slowly calm down and listen to what he was saying. It turned out to be all about the truth of the Dharma. If you want to talk about principles, we understand them well enough. We could easily spout long-winded theories to humans, but humans rarely want to listen. Instead, they prefer to listen to our twisted logic. That twisted logic is particularly effective in the human mind, which is why it is easy for humans to do evil and difficult for them to do good. This is the nature of humanity, and we know it very well."

"We continued to listen, and suddenly, we felt that the more we heard, the more profound it became. It seemed that the truths Practitioner Su was speaking were not entirely the same as what we had known. Especially when we heard Practitioner Su say that we were currently creating karma, we pricked up our ears. I saw many of my 'demon children and grandchildren' listening in a daze; some even turned pale, terrified at the thought that they were about to face retribution. Watching their reactions, I realised just how cowardly they truly were. However, we genuinely did not understand how deep the karma we were creating really was. We were just following the rules of the Demon Realm every day, never realising that everything we did would ultimately harm ourselves and cause us to suffer."

A Healer's Life and a Family's Ruin

"This wave of the pandemic was something we joined later on. Originally, we did not intend to participate, thinking it would be just another short-lived disturbance. Who would have expected it to last for such a long time? This piqued our interest, and not long ago, we joined in. We were assigned to invade several places, particularly the Asian region, which is the main sphere of influence for our demon crowd."

"Among those who were destined to face retribution, we specifically targeted people who moved around frequently—those who had to travel everywhere for work or other needs. Once we latched onto them, we could spread the virus much faster. One person could infect a whole group, and everyone would fall ill very quickly."

"Now, we regret it. If we had known, we would never have joined this pandemic. We have created so much more karma. If we infected ten people, we created ten sins, and that is not even counting the hundreds of thousands, the millions of people affected. We have now withdrawn. We can clearly see that as we exit, new members of the Demon Realm are joining in; the power of the Demon Realm remains just as vast. Everyone wants to seize this opportunity to achieve great merit within the Demon Realm and quickly elevate their status. If the Earth were successfully conquered by our Demon Realm, that would be an unparalleled achievement. Everyone is eager to jump in, actively spreading the virus everywhere."

"I hope everyone will stop soon, because we now know the terror of creating karma. No matter how long you are a demon, one day you will have to face retribution. It is better to create less karma so that you will not have to suffer for too long in the future."

The Betrayal of a Blood Relative

"Before I became a demon, I was a human. That was about 1,300 years ago, I believe. I was a healer. Our family had understood medicine since my great-grandfather's time. Our unique medical techniques were passed down through generations—from my great-grandfather to my grandfather, from my grandfather to my father, and then to me. Beyond the medical skills my father taught me, I was born with an innate understanding of certain special healing methods; perhaps that was an ability from a past life. No matter what illness came to me, I could use unique methods to heal them, and combined with our ancestral prescriptions, my medical skills were doubled, allowing me to successfully cure many patients who were considered incurable."

"Some called me a divine healer, but I never dared to call myself that. I was just a simple healer who understood a little bit of medicine, relying on my own methods to treat people for free. Every day, I was incredibly busy because there were so many sick people—whether it was a child's cold, an adult's chronic illness, a patient bedridden with a serious disease, or someone injured in an accident on the road. Anyone with any illness would come to me for treatment. I loved helping others; as long as it was within my power, I did my best. Sometimes I was so busy I would forget to eat for the whole day, yet I continued happily. Seeing these patients slowly recover and return to their normal lives because of my treatment made me very happy for them."

"I started treating people when I was fifteen. That life continued for over ten years, until I was nearly thirty, when my life took a drastic turn."

"One night, as I lay in bed resting, someone suddenly broke into my room. My senses were sharp; the moment he opened a crack in the door, I woke up from my sleep. Unexpectedly, this person was faster than me. Before I could even open my eyes, he covered them so I could not see who he was. He used a disguised voice to tell me, 'If you do not listen to me, your entire family will die by my hand.' I asked him, 'Who are you? Why are you doing this?' He said, 'Do not ask who I am; just listen to me and do as I say.' I asked, 'What do you want me to do?' He said, 'Tomorrow, a man in a black coat will come to you for treatment. He has heard of your ability to cure all diseases and is coming to you for help. I want you to put poison in his prescription. I have already prepared the poison for you; you just need to put it into the medicine you give him. You do not need to worry about anything else. If you do this, you will save the lives of your entire family; otherwise, I will not spare your family members.' I told this person solemnly and seriously, 'Impossible! I absolutely cannot do that! I am an honest healer; I exist to treat people. How could I possibly use poison to kill my patient? It is impossible! Even if you kill me, I will never do it!' He said, 'Whether you do it or not is up to you. But you will have to bear the consequences of not doing it. I have already warned you.'"

"The next day, a man in a black coat really did come to me for treatment. I did not listen to what that person said, and I had already thrown away the bag of poison. I could not do it; I never could. After the man in the black coat left, it happened. My mother suddenly died, struck in the neck by a dart. When I saw my mother lying on the ground, covered in blood, I was truly terrified! My first instinct was that the man from yesterday had done it. He had warned me that if I did not listen, my family would suffer. I never expected him to actually do it! I held my mother's body, heartbroken, and a powerful force within my heart told me that I must not let this person go!"

"That night, I lay in bed, but I did not sleep. I was waiting for him to appear, and he knew I was waiting. When he approached my door, I told him, 'I have extinguished the lamp; you can come out! I have things to ask you!' Hearing this, he opened my door and stood by the frame, saying, 'I do what I say. Today, your mother was just the beginning. If you do not use the poison tomorrow, your father will be the next to suffer.' After saying this, he threw another bag of poison on the table. I asked him, 'Why are you doing this?' He told me, 'I have a grudge against your father, and I also have a grudge against that man in the black coat. You are all my enemies, and I want revenge!' I did not know when my father had created enmity with others. What was I to do? If I listened to him, I would have to harm others, but if I did not, my father's life would end tomorrow! What was I to do?"

"That entire night, I did not sleep. I kept watch before my mother's altar, looking at her remains, feeling incredibly sad. My father was so devastated he could not even stand; he lay in bed, weeping and missing my mother. I could not imagine what it would be like if my father were lying there tomorrow. No, I could not! I could not personally kill my parents!"

"The next day, the man in the black coat came to me for treatment again. I gave him the prescription. My heart was beating so fast, and my hands were trembling slightly. He took the prescription and left. That day, nothing happened to my father, but my heart was filled with anxiety because I had personally harmed someone!"

"At night, the man with the disguised voice clapped his hands outside my window, satisfied. He told me, 'He is dead! He is dead!' I was too shocked to speak. I had really killed someone! I could not believe I had really killed someone! He said, 'Humans are always selfish. Even a person with the best medical skills will kill for the sake of their own family! Hahaha! I have long seen through human nature!' After saying this, the man left."

"The next day, the constables came to my house. As soon as I opened the door, they pinned me to the ground and began searching everywhere. I asked, 'Why are you arresting me? What are you looking for?' The constable said, 'We are looking for poison! We heard you intentionally poisoned someone to death!' Not long after, they found that paper bag of poison in my room. After testing it, they confirmed it was the exact same poison, and I was immediately taken away and thrown into prison."

"I do not know why my life took such a drastic turn. A few days after I was imprisoned, I received news that my father had been murdered. I immediately guessed that it must have been that man again! I hated him! Why did he destroy my life and kill my parents? The powerful anger and hatred in my heart made me choose to use my internal energy to cause my internal organs to burst instantly, finally rupturing my stomach and intestines. I used this method to express the intense hatred in my heart, and I used it to end my own life."

"My hatred caused me to quickly enter the Demon Realm. I immediately wanted to find that person to take revenge; unexpectedly, that person was my uncle—my father's older brother! I was shocked. Why was it him? It turned out that my uncle hated my father for learning all of my grandfather's medical skills. He also hated my father for taking my mother away; my uncle had fallen for my mother first, but she ended up falling in love with my father. This past caused my uncle to hold a grudge, and he decided to start with me, harming me and my parents."

"Does humanity even exist in this world? Even if it does, human nature is equivalent to demon nature; humans are always selfish! Always selfish! I went everywhere looking for humans to take revenge, using my demonic power to make them sick. Any illness, big or small, could be easily manufactured by us, including the current pandemic. For us demons, that is a simple task."

A Demon's Repentance and Redemption

"Everything I just said is in the past. Now, I have stopped, and I regret it. I knelt before the Buddha to repent, begging the Buddha to forgive my ignorance. It was only by accidentally coming to this place that I was thoroughly awakened. I have created boundless sins, and I do not know how to repay them, but I am willing to change my ways. I beg the Buddha to give me another chance."

"The sinful Mo Deng"

"The Buddha gave Mo Deng the Dharma name Shi Xianshu."

"Note: Mo Deng's original name was Zhang Jiexiu. His father's name was Zhang Zhu, who resides in a space of longing for his wife. His mother's name was Huang Sunmei, who resides in the home space. They have both been guided by Practitioner Su to the Western Land of Dharma Nature at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre to listen to the Dharma."

Shi Xianshu (Mo Deng) shares his reflections on participating in the Dharma Assembly:

"Coming here to Practitioner Su, I have recovered my original appearance, and it feels wonderful! I do not want to be a bad person at all; I do not want to be a demon. It was the hatred in my heart that could not be eliminated that made me a Demon King, going everywhere to take revenge on humans. Now it is all over, but I must pay the price for the sins I have created. I regret it; I truly regret it. But no amount of regret can change the fact that it has already happened. Now, I can only strive to deliver sentient beings and save the immeasurable and boundless spirits I have harmed in order to eliminate my sins."

"I knelt and kowtowed with my father and mother to thank Practitioner Su. Practitioner Su saved my father and mother. It was because my father and mother were harmed that I became a demon to seek revenge. My father and mother were both good people; they taught me to do good and asked me to provide free medical consultations. Everything I learned from my parents was about doing good and helping others, yet they were harmed by others. To save my parents, I extinguished my conscience, violated medical ethics, and harmed my patients. I am not qualified to be a healer. Even if I have the best medical skills, I am not qualified to practice medicine again. For me at that time, this was so painful because healing and helping others was what I wanted to do my whole life, yet I lost the qualification. Under the double blow of this pain, I became a demon after death, obsessed with revenge."

"I am very fortunate to have met Practitioner Su. Practitioner Su gave me and my parents the chance to reunite. We truly never expected that there would be a day we could meet again. I cried out loudly, 'Father! Mother!' They suddenly woke up from their space, and as soon as they saw me, they hugged me tightly and asked, 'Are you hurt anywhere?' My parents were still in that space from back then and had not fully recovered. They did not know that 1,300 years had passed since then. It was not until I told them that they woke up, shocked that 1,300 years had passed since the incident."

"I held my father's and mother's hands tightly and told them, 'It was Practitioner Su who saved our whole family.' My father and mother immediately knelt with me to thank Practitioner Su. They kowtowed vigorously to express the immense gratitude in their hearts."

"Now, my parents and I actively chant Namo Amituofo to deliver sentient beings during every Thrice Yearning Ceremony. My parents are kind and honest people; they never knew that there were so many beings in space with nowhere to go, some of whom are still suffering retribution. They wept when they saw this, hoping that the Buddha could save all these spirits so they would not have to continue suffering. My heart is the same as my parents'; I also hope to help these beings, so in every Dharma assembly, I do my utmost to deliver the spirits."

"Seeing Practitioner Su's Dharma Body manifest in countless ways, actively delivering sentient beings everywhere, I feel great respect. I am trying hard to learn from Practitioner Su, but unfortunately, I no longer have a body and cannot cultivate a Dharma Body. Even so, I am still determined to help sentient beings. Whether it is chanting Namo Amituofo while circling the Earth or participating in the weekly Thrice Yearning Ceremony, I actively participate in chanting to deliver beings."

"I am grateful to Practitioner Su for giving me this precious opportunity, allowing me to repent and turn towards goodness, and to rediscover the version of myself that loved to help others. Now I am no longer Mo Deng; I am Shi Xianshu. As a disciple of the Buddha, my responsibility is to help sentient beings."

"Grateful for the compassion of the Buddha. Grateful for the compassion of Practitioner Su."

"Namo Amituofo."

"Shi Xianshu"