This is a record of an interview with Hsu Wen-tsung, who sought deliverance at the Hsiang Kuang Buddhist Centre in Australia. He now resides in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. This account reflects upon his life and the profound karmic cycles that spanned two lifetimes. This interview was recorded on January 5, 2020.
Hsu Wen-tsung speaks:
". I am Hsu Wen-tsung. Representing sixty prison guards who were delivered to the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss today, I, along with my companions, offer our most sincere gratitude to Practitioner Su and everyone here. We perform the three prostrations to express our deepest thanks.
A Childhood of Stunted Growth
From a very young age, I was frail and plagued by illness. My grandfather and father searched everywhere for renowned physicians to help me build a strong constitution, but to no avail. When I was five years old, I was only as tall as a two-year-old child. By the time I reached ten, I was the size of a five-year-old, and at fifteen, I was still only as tall as a seven-year-old. The doctors told my family that I had no major terminal illness, but that I was destined to be short-lived and would never grow taller than a seven-year-old. They called it dwarfism. They prescribed many medicines, but none had any effect on me. My mother shed countless tears over my condition. She visited every fortune teller she could find, hoping to change my fate and help me grow, but it was like throwing silver into the vast ocean—it was all in vain.
My personality was timid. Even though I was born a man, I was terrified of even the smallest insects like cockroaches or ants. My home had to be kept spotlessly clean, for the sight of a tiny bug would make me cry for hours. Heavens! Looking back on those days, I truly caused my parents so much suffering. I was so unfilial!
The Sacrifice of a Past Life
This life continued until I was seventeen. One day, a man arrived in our village. He was not particularly handsome, but he was tall, strong, and robust. He was looking for a short boy, and upon asking, he was directed to the grandson of the Hsu household. As soon as he entered our home and explained his purpose to my grandfather, he saw me and immediately knelt, kowtowing to me. He said that I had saved his entire family.
It turned out that during a time of war, men were being conscripted into the army. In a previous life, he and I were close friends. Because he was short, he had been unable to enlist. At that time, his family was destitute and desperately needed the military rations and salary to feed his family of six. I, having no parents or family of my own, saw his distress and prayed to Heaven: 'If only I could use my life or my body to exchange for his height, so he could grow taller and enlist to support his family.' Strange as it may seem, two days later, when I woke up, I had become short and aged, while he had become tall and strong. Everyone was astonished. He successfully enlisted, but I passed away two months later. Before I died, I dreamt of an old man who told me that in my next life, I would have the same stature I had then and would be born into a wealthy family in the village behind the eastern mountain. After my friend retired from the army, he spent his life searching for me. When he finally found me, he knew it was me the moment he saw my height, which matched my appearance in that previous life.
The Cycle of Cause and Effect
From that day on, he stayed in my home. To repay my kindness, he vowed to take care of me for the rest of my life. By then, my mother had already begun working as a volunteer at a temple, practising generosity and performing good deeds, all to pray for my well-being in this life. My body, which was never expected to live past twenty, actually survived until I was forty. My height even began to increase gradually; although I was not as tall as an average person, I was much taller than before. Both my friend and I entered the temple to serve as resident volunteers.
Not long after I returned home at the age of forty, two officials came in the night to take me before the King of the Sixth Hall of the Underworld. He explained the events of my life. It turned out that in my previous life, I was a physician who had made a mistake in prescribing medication, which caused my friend to suffer from stunted growth. Because of that, we became friends in this life, and I had to repay that debt by suffering through two lifetimes of dwarfism. However, because I had also used my medical skills to save my friend's mother in that past life, he was destined to care for me in this life to repay that debt of gratitude! Because my mother performed good deeds and volunteered, and because I also made the vow to serve as a volunteer, my lifespan was extended. All of this is the Law of Cause and Effect!
Deliverance and Gratitude
The King of the Underworld, seeing that I was destined for the ghost realm, compassionately offered me the position of a prison guard. By then, my height was no longer restricted by my physical body, and I stood as tall as any adult, so I accepted the position. Later, I was blessed by the of the King of the Sixth Hall, who nominated me to be included on the list of spirits to be delivered to the Western Pure Land by Practitioner Su. After waiting for three and a half years, my wish was finally fulfilled today.
I am so grateful to Namo Amituofo and to Practitioner Su. Through this opportunity, I wish to share my life story so that the public may understand that physical stature and bodily suffering are all results of cause and effect. They are all things we have brought upon ourselves. Do not complain, do not blame others, and accept them with a willing heart. Through sincere repentance before the Buddha, one can obtain the opportunity for rebirth. This is something that cannot be bought with money. The most important thing is a sincere heart and the vow to work for the benefit of all beings.
I thank the Buddha and Practitioner Su for giving me this opportunity to form this affinity with everyone. I hope that the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre will be able to lead even more beings to rebirth in the Western Pure Land.
Hsu Wen-tsung and the sixty prison guards bow in gratitude for the Buddha's grace."
