This interview was recorded on December 16, 2019, featuring Venerable Yongning, a monastic who has sought deliverance through the teachings of the Hsiang Kuang Buddhist Centre. In this reflection, Venerable Yongning shares profound insights into the nature of the universe, the suffering of sentient beings, and the transformative power of the Buddha-name.
Venerable Yongning speaks:
". Within the vast expanse of space, there exists an infinite ocean of wisdom, radiating boundless light. It is so dazzling and brilliant that it naturally attracts all beings to draw near and follow its path. I have witnessed subtle vibrations and tugs—a group of beings from the Demon Realm once intruded, attempting to test the strength of this attraction. They sent their 'demon children and grandchildren' to force their way in. Yet, the moment they entered that light, their expressions completely transformed. The intensity within their hearts and their deep-seated grievances against the world vanished in an instant. Their entire beings were bathed in warmth and .
The Unceasing Flow of Compassion
In the universe, this moment does not linger; time continues to march forward. Practitioner Su’s work of never ceases. Driven by compassion for the drought-stricken land of Australia, Practitioner Su has allowed many spirits to come forward with the most sincere hearts to help this land. What was created in the past is what is being experienced now, yet we hope that everything can be transformed through compassion. To the earth, to the insects, to all crawling things—have you ever regretted coming into this world? A pure, clean spirit, constantly cycling through rebirth, becoming covered in thicker and thicker layers of mud with every lifetime. How many lives have you spent trying to pull yourself free, only to be dragged back down by 'emotion,' or drawn away by the space created by your own stubborn personality?
The Mirror of Our Own Thoughts
The intensity of the space you inhabit is a direct reflection of the intensity of your own thoughts. Life after life, we come and go. What role are you playing right now? In the vast space, many voices answer: some are a fish, some a mountain spirit, some a worm crawling on the ground, or perhaps a butterfly that earns the praise of others. Some are elders clinging to their attachments, while others are spirits with nowhere to go. In this space, so many spirits are struggling; spirits who are suffering and enduring agony are wailing. There are women trapped by emotion, caught within the space or even within the blood of human bodies. Everyone has reached this point because they cannot let go of this physical body.
The Call to
Everything the eye can see, and even the void itself, is where these spirits reside and gather. If everyone could truly see these spaces, they would never again dare to cling to their bodies or to any worldly things that they cannot take with them. Because these 'things we cannot let go of' are exactly what keep us bound to the universe's cycle. The boundless Buddha-light of Chao Du and the brilliance of the Buddha-name shine forth, and Practitioner Su’s moves and traverses rapidly, all because he sees the endless spirits in these spaces who are unable to find a way out. If you cannot wake up, you are simply one of them. But if you can awaken, you will be like Practitioner Su—soaring through the heavens, without worry or obstruction, cool and refreshed, taking every step toward the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss."
