The Joy of Dharma Practice: A Testimony of Wang Dayi

This is a record of an interview with Wang Dayi, who sought deliverance at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Australia. He now resides in the Western Dharma-Nature Land. This account reflects upon his life approximately seven hundred years ago. Recorded by the chief writer, Shi Fa, on October 31, 2018.

Wang Dayi speaks:

"Namo Amituofo. I am Wang Dayi. Looking back at my life seven centuries ago, I see not a path of hardship, but a journey paved with the light of the Dharma. When I first arrived in the Wang family, the atmosphere was heavy with the weight of unfulfilled expectations. My adoptive mother had been told by physicians that she could never conceive, a diagnosis that cast a long shadow over my grandmother’s heart. My grandmother, who had waited so long to see her son married, was inconsolable. She sat in her chair for days, weeping in silence, while my mother felt the crushing pressure of being unable to provide the family with an heir. The silence in our home was thick with the sorrow of unfulfilled desires, and my mother felt the weight of this karmic burden deeply, yet she remained steadfast in her quiet, internal practice."

The Gift of Adoption and the Path of Faith

"My mother was a woman of deep faith. She understood that life in this world is illusory, a fleeting dream. Had it not been for the arrangement of a marriage promised since before her birth, she might have chosen a life of quiet seclusion, dedicating herself entirely to the path of the Buddha. Yet, she was a person of profound responsibility. She honoured her role as a wife and daughter-in-law with grace, and in the quiet moments between her duties, she turned her heart toward the Buddha’s path. When my parents finally decided to adopt, it was as if a great weight had been lifted from the entire household. They were finally free to breathe, to live, and to practise.

I remember the day they found me. I was a tiny infant, wrapped in a simple cloth and placed in a basket, being sold on the street by my birth mother. My adoptive mother saw me, and in that moment, she saw not a commodity, but a soul. She approached the woman, offered the money, and took me into her arms. From that day forward, I was a son of the Wang family. My mother often reflected on the cruelty of the cycle of rebirth, wondering what would have become of me had she not intervened. She looked at me and saw a child who smiled at the world, even when the world offered little reason to smile. I was a happy child, and my mother realised that the suffering of the human world could be softened, even dissolved, by the power of a joyful heart. She taught me that as long as the heart is changed, even the most difficult circumstances can be transformed into something beneficial."

A Village Transformed by the Buddha-Name

"My mother taught me to chant Namo Amituofo from the time I could speak. Even as a small child, the sound of the Buddha-name brought me such immense peace. Relatives who visited our home were often moved to tears, for they had never seen a child who chanted with such genuine delight. My face was always bright with a smile, and that joy was infectious. It wasn't long before my father and grandmother, who had initially been indifferent, began to ask me to tell them stories. Through those stories, they were drawn closer to the Dharma, and eventually, my father became even more diligent in his practice than my mother.

The transformation did not stop with our family. It spread to the entire village. I remember a large festival where the villagers had gathered to watch performances on a stage. I was only ten years old, but during a break in the show, I walked onto the stage and began to chant the Buddha-name with all my heart. The sound resonated through the air, and the noisy, chaotic crowd suddenly fell into a profound silence. People stopped their chatter; they stopped their distractions. They listened, and for many, it was the first time they truly felt the presence of the Buddha. They realised that the Buddha had never left them—it was only their own delusions, attachments, and discriminations that had obscured the light. In that moment, the village changed."

The Power of Joyful Practice

"Our home became the heart of the village. Every day, villagers would gather in our courtyard to hear stories and learn the practice of chanting. We formed a group where parents and children would recite the Sutras together. The village felt as if it had been reborn. People stopped merely asking the Buddha for health and safety; they began to take up their prayer beads and chant for the sake of rebirth in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. They were no longer just seeking blessings; they were transforming their own lives through the teachings of the Dharma. The entire village seemed to vibrate with a new, hopeful energy, as everyone realised that the path to liberation was within their own hearts.

When the day came for me to leave for the monastery, the entire village gathered to see me off. There was no sadness, only gratitude. My parents and grandmother were filled with joy, knowing that I was going to help even more sentient beings. To me, there is no such thing as 'suffering' if the heart refuses to accept it. If you hold a joyful heart, if you are grateful for the opportunity to practise, then every moment is a blessing. I spent my time in the monastery with a heart full of Dharma joy, growing in wisdom and dignity, and my progress was swift because I was driven by the desire to save others. I did not see my growth as a personal achievement, but as a testament to the power of a grateful and joyful heart."

The Eternal Connection

"I have spent my existence since then carrying that same smile, bringing it with me even as I returned to the Western Pure Land. Life is precious because it is a bridge to Buddhahood. Why should we call life 'suffering' when we have the chance to leap from the cycle of rebirth directly into the Western Pure Land? It is the most joyful thing imaginable! I often hear the laughter of Practitioner Su, a sound that has the power to transform the most sorrowful hearts. I, too, am a person who loves to laugh, for in the grand scheme of the universe, there is truly nothing that cannot be resolved with a smile and a sincere chant of Namo Amituofo.

Practitioner Su has guided me to a space of profound connection. I have realised that the entire universe is one. Every person we pass, every piece of land we tread upon, is connected to us by Causal Conditions. We have all been connected since time immemorial, even if we have forgotten each other through the long cycles of samsara. I use this connection to save immeasurable and boundless beings. Whether the past connection was one of kindness or enmity, I use the Buddha-name to transform it into a connection of the Western Pure Land, guiding everyone toward rebirth in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. I am eternally grateful for the compassion of the Buddha and the compassion of Practitioner Su. Namo Amituofo."