The Extreme Suffering of Illness

Words of Namo Amituofo. Recorded and transcribed by Namo Amituofo’s disciple, Venerable HaiZe.

18 July 2026

Namo Amituofo’s discourse:

In the Infinite Life Sutra (The Buddha Speaks the Mahayana, Infinite Life, Adornment, Purity, Impartiality, and Enlightenment Sutra), it states:

"You should know that people in the ten directions have been revolving through the five paths for aeons, with endless sorrow and suffering. Birth is painful, aging is painful, the extreme suffering of illness is painful, and death is painful. It is foul-smelling and impure; there is nothing to be happy about."

The extreme suffering of illness is the reality of the human world; it is the manifestation of the suffering of birth, aging, sickness, and death that reincarnated beings are powerless to escape, and it is also the manifestation of the laws of karma and cause and effect.

For countless aeons, the true self has experienced countless, immeasurable sufferings.

Many times, in seeking a solution, one has endured much hardship and been through the wringer, only to end up still revolving within the cycle of karma and cause and effect.

When one suffering from the extreme pain of illness is near death, if they are still in a state of extreme suffering,

then anger will arise, and their spirit will enter the hells to endure the retribution of extreme suffering.

This is the reality of cause and effect; when can one leave suffering behind?

The extreme suffering of illness,

people often do not know, is because karmic creditors and other karmic beings manifest to interfere,

demanding repayment and seeking revenge.

Chant one Buddha's name to the end is the essential method to save one's life and protect one's body.

If one’s practice of chanting the Buddha’s name is successful, before the pain manifests, one can subdue the sensations and bring peace to the minds of these beings,

stopping the illness from manifesting. At this time, one can also proceed with resolving the conflict, inviting spirits, and performing Chao Du.

"Change personality traits" is the fundamental method of healing.

In addition to the merit of sincere practice of chanting, prostrations, and reciting the Sutras,

one can also, through inviting spirits, resolving the conflict, and performing Chao Du,

receive the assistance of the power of merit and majestic power of Namo Amituofo to directly relieve the suffering of beings.

This is one of the Body-Mind-Spirit healing methods practised at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Goombungee, Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia—the place where Namo Amituofo truly dwells—and is a wonderful method for saving the world, delivering beings, and helping them leave suffering behind.

Practising the Pure Land Dharma Gate at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre,

one can purify the body, heart, and spirit, move away from the extreme suffering of illness and the suffering of birth, aging, sickness, and death,

and enter a state where one does not grow old, does not get sick, and the spirit does not die,

enabling one to end the cycle of birth and death, transcend the three realms, and attain rebirth in the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss.

This is the goal and ideal of our practice.

Namo Amituofo