The Journey of Lay Practitioner Huang Zhongchang: Lessons from the Pure Land Path

A Humble Reflection on the Path

Namo Amituofo. I am Huang Zhongchang. Through the introduction of the venerable and respected Venerable Master Chin Kung, many fellow practitioners of the Pure Land school came to know of me. Many believed that after my two years and ten months of closed-door retreat, I had successfully achieved rebirth in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. I feel deeply humbled and ashamed to admit that I did not reach the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. Instead, I entered the twenty-eighth level of the Celestial Realm.

I was merely an ordinary person with an indescribable reverence for the Buddha’s teachings and the Pure Land. While volunteering at a library in Shenzhen, Guangdong, I heard Venerable Master Chin Kung speak of ancient sages who achieved rebirth in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss after three years of dedicated Buddha-recitation. I approached the library director, Xiang Xiaoli, and expressed my desire to test this teaching. With her compassionate support and protection, I began my life of closed-door retreat, vowing to remain in silence and focus entirely on chanting.

The Struggle and the Breakthrough

In the beginning, I was filled with restlessness and anxiety. I spent my days chanting, repenting, and attempting to purify my heart. I often felt anxious, wondering why, despite my diligent practice, I had not yet achieved the state of single-minded concentration where the Buddha-name flows without interruption. It was only later that I realised my own intense desire for results was the very obstacle hindering me. How could the pure and perfect Buddha-name remain uninterrupted when my mind was cluttered with such strong, self-centred thoughts?

Upon this realisation, I decided to let go of every thought. I focused entirely on the name of Namo Amituofo. Every word I spoke was the Buddha-name; every sight I beheld was the Buddha; both sentient and insentient beings were seen as the Buddha. My mind was filled with nothing but the Buddha. It was a state of unified, pure, and untainted stillness. However, I learned that one must not become attached even to this state. To let go means to not linger, not look back, and to continue chanting straight ahead. I chanted until there was no self, no external world, and no internal conflict. My body and mind seemed to shatter, leaving behind all physical sensations and constraints. The Buddha-name flowed through my entire being, transcending all concepts of time and space. This was the state of my practice in those final days.

The Golden Light and the Celestial Realm

As the days passed, a moment arrived when I saw my room filled with a brilliant golden light. The sound of the Buddha-name echoed incessantly in my ears. I dared not act rashly, yet a powerful force compelled me to enter the light to investigate. To my surprise, I was carried away by this golden light into the twenty-eighth level of the Celestial Realm. I had failed the test of entering the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. I had not yet seen the Buddha, nor had I seen the lotus throne, yet I had entered the golden light. I knew that to be reborn in the West, one must see Namo Amituofo, who comes with the lotus throne to lead the practitioner. Why, then, did I enter the light so easily? The knowledge I had acquired in my daily life seemed to fail me at that critical moment. Once my spirit left my body, I was brought directly to the twenty-eighth level of the Celestial Realm.

The Call of Compassion

One day, I suddenly heard a voice calling out, "Huang Zhongchang, Huang Zhongchang, where are you?" It was the voice of Practitioner Su—now respectfully known as Practitioner Su—which pierced through the dimensions and reached me in the Celestial Realm. A beam of golden light then transported me to the Fragrant Light Chamber of Practitioner Su. The truth was revealed: I had not reached the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. I remained in the Fragrant Light Chamber, listening to the Dharma, until the Thrice Yearning Ceremony was held, during which I was finally sent to the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss through the process of Chao Du. This account of my transition is only now being shared. Regardless of the past, I am now in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss, and this message is transmitted from there and recorded by the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre.

A Lesson for All Practitioners

This revelation may have been shocking to those who believed I had already reached the West. However, I believe this was the compassion of the Buddha, allowing me to serve as a demonstration for others. I was an ordinary person with a strong personality, heavy ego-attachment, and deep-seated views. Through nearly two years and ten months of retreat, listening to the Dharma, and repenting, I was able to cleanse the dust from my character. Reaching the twenty-eighth level of the Celestial Realm was a great fortune, yet it was also a result of my own carelessness in following the golden light without discernment. I urge everyone: seeing golden light is not enough for rebirth in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. You must see Namo Amituofo come to lead you before you follow. Otherwise, even if the lifespan in the Celestial Realm is long, one remains trapped within the six realms of rebirth.

The Precious Opportunity at the Amituofo Village

I am deeply grateful to Namo Amituofo, to Practitioner Su, to Director Xiang Xiaoli for her care, and to Venerable Master Chin Kung for his nomination, which allowed Practitioner Su to know my name and provided me with the opportunity to truly reach the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. My journey can serve as a mirror for all of you. You must wait until you see Namo Amituofo before you depart. Even if one has cultivation and virtue, or if one's body leaves behind relics after cremation, it does not necessarily mean one has truly achieved rebirth in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. Even those in the Celestial Realm can leave behind relics.

The Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre is now preparing to build the Amituofo Village, where Practitioner Su can assist residents in achieving rebirth in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. Practitioner Su truly possesses this profound ability; he is a rare treasure in this world. I urge you all to cherish this opportunity. In this human world, how many people truly understand the Pure Land, can truly chant the Buddha-name, and can truly let go of all worldly attachments? Even those who sincerely vow to be reborn in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss may find it difficult when the critical moment arrives. Now that this opportunity exists, and Practitioner Su is willing to come forward to help you, you must have faith in the Universal Principle, the Truth, and the Right Way. I, Huang Zhongchang, am a living example. I hope that all your vows to be reborn in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss will come true. Namo Amituofo.

This interview was recorded by the Buddha's disciple, Venerable HaiZe.