This is a record of an interview with Wei Shaoqing, who sought deliverance at the Hsiang Kuang Buddhist Centre in Australia. He now resides in the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss. This account reflects upon his life and his subsequent service as a prison official in the underworld. Recorded by the chief writer, Shi Fa, on February 18, 2022.
Wei Shaoqing speaks:
". First, I must express my deepest gratitude to Namo Amituofo and Practitioner Su of the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre for guiding me to the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss, where the ground is paved with gold. The purity of this Western Land has finally allowed my heart to return to a state of true serenity.
The Causal Conditions of the present day are truly extraordinary. I never imagined I would have the opportunity to be interviewed. My life was likely not much different from the lives of most people today; the only real difference is that I passed away a bit earlier. When my soul followed my body to the crematorium, I watched with my own eyes as my physical form was reduced to ashes. In that moment, I found it incredibly difficult to accept the reality of my situation, but I knew then that I could never return to the life I once led.
The Weight of Public Discourse
When I was summoned before King Yama, I shared many of my thoughts and justifications with him. However, King Yama simply shook his head at my subjective views and my criticisms of society. It was then that I realised that while I had worked so diligently in this life to dig for news and report on the happenings of the world, I had unknowingly created immense through my biased perspectives. At first, I did not think much of it. But King Yama allowed me to see how many people in the human world had read my reports and were led astray by my opinions, developing criticisms and evil thoughts toward society. All of these negative causes were pushed back onto me, and I was required to bear the burden of the harm these thoughts caused to society.
A single article, which seemed to be the truth at the time, carried such a heavy karmic weight that I never could have imagined. When King Yama explained this to me, my heart was filled with sorrow, for no one in the world knows of this specific law of cause and effect. It is precisely for this reason that King Yama sent me here to share my experience, so that everyone may know the truth and be careful.
A Life Defined by Ambition
We live in an era of information explosion. I was born not long ago, and I died not long ago. Like many people in this era, I developed cancer. People usually only feel pity when they hear of someone so young falling ill, but today I will tell you the truth behind it, so that society may use my life as a mirror. I am deeply grateful for this opportunity to atone for my past sins.
My name is Wei Shaoqing. I am from Guangdong, and I came from an ordinary family. I do not have many clear memories of my childhood, only that my parents were very loud. Whenever they encountered someone of refinement, they would urge me to get close to them, though the methods they used often made me feel ashamed. Because my parents lacked cultural refinement themselves, they always liked to curry favour with others. The way they acted when trying to please people always made me feel uncomfortable. I believed that to be successful, one should rely on one's own efforts rather than clinging to the powerful.
My parents planned my future for me, hoping I would work for a government agency. They invested a lot of effort into my upbringing, hoping I would bring them honour. My grades were quite good, and my academic path was smooth until university, when I stumbled due to carelessness and failed a subject. That was when I realised that one must be serious about studies. Because I knew that when I entered society, employers would use academic performance as the first stage of screening, I began to work hard to ensure I would have a good job in the future.
The Struggle for Recognition
I studied media and communications. After graduation, I first worked as an editor at a second-tier newspaper. It was not a particularly prestigious job, and whenever relatives asked me about it during the holidays, I could sense their subtle disdain. Their expressions and the tone of their voices were etched deeply into my memory, and my parents often felt they could not hold their heads high because of it.
I hated the holidays most of all. Every time the relatives met, after the initial pleasantries, they would start gossiping—asking who had made a lot of money, who was working where, and who had a high salary. Every word I heard, combined with their exaggerated facial expressions, filled my heart with annoyance.
I worked as an editor for five years, becoming familiar with all the official formats and layouts. For those five years, I was waiting for my boss to give me a chance for promotion, but the competition in the company was fierce, and I never found my opportunity. Finally, I decided to summon my courage and take the initiative. I submitted my resume to the largest newspaper. After sending the letter, my heart was quite anxious. One month passed, then two, then three—there was no news. I had almost given up and decided to just focus on my current editing work, but suddenly, I received an interview notice. I searched my wardrobe for the most presentable clothes I owned and brought along the works I had edited over the years.
The person who interviewed me was an experienced supervisor who looked bald but sharp. He used a few simple questions to draw out my thoughts. The interview lasted about half an hour. My palms were sweating the entire time, and I was incredibly nervous, though I tried my best to maintain a smile and speak steadily. After the interview, the supervisor told me to wait for notification, saying the results would be out in about three weeks. I expressed my gratitude and left.
During those three weeks of waiting, I prayed constantly and even bought fruits to offer at a nearby local deity temple. Finally, on the last day of the third week, I received the acceptance notice. Before starting work, I bought several new sets of clothes, intending to have a fresh start.
The Rise of the Digital Editor
On my first day, I familiarised myself with the environment. The newspaper was huge, and the work was very specialised. I felt excited—a new job, a new challenge. Because I already had years of editing experience, I was assigned to the news department. The pressure of meeting daily deadlines for the columns was not small, but the salary, the title, and the company's reputation were all excellent. Finally, when the holidays came and we talked about work, I could hold my chin a little higher and let my relatives look at me with envy.
One month into the job, I had mastered the company's workflow and began working overtime every day, sometimes even on weekends. When I first joined, in order to gain the company's trust, I had no choice but to burn myself out and work like my life depended on it. Naturally, with such dedication, the company highly recognised me and was happy to have found such a talent.
In my fourth year of work, I was promoted to a junior supervisor. Thinking I wanted to expand this career even further, I began to study the internet, hoping to use online platforms to grow the newspaper's business. I came up with a new method of communication: the electronic newsletter. I recruited some newcomers who understood the internet and began developing the newspaper's exclusive online platform. Once the platform was set up, I found ways to promote it. It took over a year to stabilise everything and make the viewership soar. The company was very satisfied with my performance and gave me the title of Online Editor-in-Chief.
From that point on, I stopped reading newspapers and started reading the internet every day. The world of the internet is vast and boundless. I spent every day thinking about how to expand, and expand further. I felt as if I had buried myself in the internet, becoming a researcher within the website. My salary was directly proportional to my efforts. I was busy every day, throwing my heart and soul into my work. I missed the age for dating and marriage, and although my parents would nag me, I remained deeply passionate about my work.
The Trap of Sensationalism
From the moment I developed the online newsletter, more and more newspapers followed suit. Everyone moved from the original market competition model to include a virtual market competition model. To stimulate more readers, I established a column specifically for analysing and commenting on current affairs, and then opened it up for many people to express their opinions, using this interactive method to increase the website's popularity.
At first, the column was not very popular, but as it became more successful, many people began to post their thoughts. Sometimes a single article would have over a hundred, or even two hundred comments. The topic of the website was very important; every day, I would carefully consider what to publish. Eventually, I simply became one of the columnists myself. My writing style was direct, which often gave readers a lot of room for debate.
When my career was at its peak, I suddenly fainted in the office. My colleagues rushed me to the hospital. The hospital performed tests but could not find the cause, so they arranged for a three-day full-body health check-up.
After the incident, I rested at home for two days, and a week later, I returned to the hospital to hear the results. I still remember the doctor's serious expression as he explained the preliminary results: I might have leukaemia. The cancer cells were flowing through my blood, affecting the operation of my organs, and I needed further tests. He told me to be hospitalised immediately. That day, I went for the tests with an uneasy heart. For the first time, I felt nervous and helpless. Nothing was certain yet, and I dared not tell my parents; I could only bear it silently on my own.
The final results came out: I was diagnosed with stage three leukaemia. Looking back, the symptoms of discomfort had actually been present for a long time, but I had ignored them, thinking I had no time. I never expected things to turn out this way, and I was absolutely stunned.
The Final Reckoning
This physical condition forced me to stop all my work and move into the hospital for palliative treatment. The chemotherapy process was extremely painful. I gradually became emaciated, unable to pass stool, my eyes went blind, my hands and feet trembled, and my head was often in a state of confusion. Before I went blind, I saw my parents worrying about me, their eyes becoming weary, and my heart was filled with reluctance. I once cried bitterly and apologised to them, but everything was beyond repair. After more than a year of treatment, one night at the age of thirty-five, my whole body felt as if it were being torn apart. After a heavy dose of anaesthetic, I stopped breathing and died. After death, my soul saw my parents crying uncontrollably, and my heart was so painful, but nothing could be undone.
When I arrived at the underworld, I believed that I had not created any karma in my life, but King Yama questioned me for causing chaos in society and speaking with evil intent. I thought for a long time before I realised that because I had developed the online news platform, I had allowed many people to be influenced by negative social news. Furthermore, because of my inappropriate column posts, I had incited people to stir up trouble. All these sins were reported on me before I died. Now that I am dead, the sins created in the human world must be punished in the hells. The brain-gouging hell, the throat-gouging hell, the eye-gouging hell, the blood pool hell—these were all the fruits of the karma I had to bear because I influenced people's hearts, causing them to feel restless after reading my columns and creating more karma through their comments. I was shocked that the success of my career was actually the creation of sin. For a time, I could not accept it, but when I suffered and endured the punishment, I knew I was truly wrong, and I repented deeply.
Because of my deep repentance, King Yama allowed my sentence to be halved after I had served my time. I was allowed to serve as a prison official to accumulate merit and repay my debts. Thus, I took on the role of a document officer in the hells, seeing the criminal records of many inmates, which served as a constant warning in my heart. In the hells, I also listened to Practitioner Su give talks, which made my heart much calmer. I hoped that one day I would have the chance to see the Buddha. After serving as a prison official for seven years, I was recently added to the list for the interview offered by Practitioner Su of the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre. I am very grateful. After telling my story, I hope that the I received for my actions can serve as a warning to everyone: do not follow in my footsteps.
Now I have arrived at the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss, and together with the other fifty-nine prison officials, I am filled with gratitude. I kneel and bow. I am grateful for the of Namo Amituofo, the compassion of Practitioner Su, and the compassion of King Yama.
