The Limitation of the Four Sacred Realms

This is a record of an interview with Yuan Sheng, who sought Chao Du at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Australia. He now resides in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. This account reflects upon his life approximately 15 million years ago. Recorded by the chief writer, Venerable HaiZe, on July 6, 2020.

Yuan Sheng speaks:

"Namo Amituofo. I am already here, waiting to be interviewed.

I dare not! I truly dare not consider myself the highest practitioner of the ten realms. I am merely one among all beings. It was a great honour to participate in the dance performed in the sky before our deliverance to the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. The theme of our dance was 'Dharma Clouds Sprinkled Across the Horizon and the Lotus of the West.' Using the blue sky as our canvas, we wove together the thin clouds and colourful ribbons brought from the twenty-eight heavenly realms and the Four Sacred Realms, dancing out layers upon layers of Dharma clouds and the lotus of the West. We did this to pray for all beings, wishing that the Dharma sounds of Namo Amituofo and Practitioner Su would flow eternally, and that the Pure Land would endure forever. Today, we have entered the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss and become a part of it. On behalf of the immeasurable and boundless celestial beings and holy assembly of the twenty-eight heavens and the Four Sacred Realms, I offer my deepest gratitude to Namo Amituofo, Practitioner Su, and the fourfold assembly of disciples.

A Prehistoric Origin: The Life of Ada

I am Yuan Sheng. I grew up on the Earth's landmass approximately fifteen million years ago, in a location that roughly corresponds to the continent today. Back then, the Earth consisted only of oceans and land. The land was mostly vast clusters of high mountains and plains, inhabited by many prehistoric humans. I was one of those prehistoric humans. My name was a natural sound: Ada.

The world was teeming with life. The high mountains had countless living beings, the oceans had countless living beings, and every flower, blade of grass, tree, and leaf that met the eye was a living being. The humans of that time were incredibly simple and pure; we lived together in peace. I was born into a small tribe. When I was born, my mother used the most natural, primitive method of childbirth. Without any assistance, my father used his own hands to pull me from my mother's body.

I was the third child my mother bore; my older siblings were also brought into the world by my father's hands. At that time, humans were one with the mountains, rivers, and the earth—one with all things in heaven and on earth. We were a part of the land, so the act of reproduction was no different from that of the animals on the earth. It was an instinct, a natural process of bringing forth the child from the womb. There was nothing particularly special about it just because we were human. It was a world where heaven and earth were united. Consequently, in this primitive world, the laws of 'the strong prevail, the weak perish' and 'survival of the fittest' were even more pronounced. Because humans had agile hands and the men possessed robust physiques, they were responsible for the outside world—doing heavy labour and hunting, reacting to changes in the environment. The women, having the instinct for pregnancy and childbirth, were responsible for the interior, performing lighter tasks. Men and women formed families, and several families formed a tribe. It was a harmonious world living alongside nature.

The Awakening of a Pure Spirit

After I was born, I became a member of this family, and I grew up within it—a process as natural as anything could be. My eyes were particularly sensitive; I could see worlds that others could not. I discovered this special ability during my growth. Because I could see what others could not, I developed a keen observational ability regarding the changes in living beings, which gave me more empathy and sensitivity. Consequently, I respected life more than others; I would not harm any living being. Even the small flowers and grasses were equal to me. Later, I understood that this ability existed because my spirit was a purified one that had come to be reborn, retaining a portion of the abilities from my past lives. In a past life, I had been an ancient sage—what is now known as the Arhat realm—and I had descended to be reborn in a karmically connected womb to enhance my own ability for liberation.

Therefore, the existence of the six realms of rebirth and the Four Sacred Realms did not begin five thousand years ago with Chinese history; they existed fifteen million years ago, and even billions of years ago. This is part of the natural laws. As long as the universe has existed, the six realms and the Four Sacred Realms have existed. We can view this through the lens of 'since time immemorial'—they have always been present in the natural world. Although human history constantly evolves, changing the external appearance and capabilities of humans, what remains unchanged is the heart. That pure, kind heart is the eternal destination and the unchanging indicator for the spirit. The more kind, pure, selfless, and luminous a soul is, the more it naturally ascends; the darker, more evil, and more selfish a soul is, the more it naturally falls. This is the eternal spiritual law of the natural world.

Living in Harmony with Nature

At that time, humans used only the simplest vocal sounds, expressions, and gestures to express their meanings. Most of the time, we communicated through heart-to-heart understanding, using mental notes to convey our thoughts. People expressed the intentions of their spirits through their bodies with pure and simple thoughts. The simpler and purer one is, the closer one is to one's original nature and true self. Although we had no clothes then, using only simple furs or leaves to cover ourselves, people would not mock you for wearing little or exposing important parts of the body. Because people had no 'mind'—they were selfless—there was no such thing as mockery, nor was there the thought that such things were wrong or shameful. Yuan Sheng grew up in such a simple, natural environment. The rising and setting of the sun and the waxing and waning of the moon were as natural to us as breathing.

When heaven and earth suddenly unleashed great winds—typhoons or hurricanes—or when the ocean waters surged back to cause tsunamis, people, animals, and plants would be injured or lose their lives because they could not escape in time. We would feel the pain of our companions as if it were our own when they groaned in agony, naturally giving rise to feelings of sadness and grief. Other companions, seeing this, would naturally come to their side to keep them company.

The cycle of birth, aging, sickness, and death has existed from the prehistoric human era fifteen million years ago to the colourful world of today. Even if some humans have successfully challenged aging and sickness, the 'gate of immortality' has always been sought by people, yet no method has been found. Even if news of immortality has occasionally surfaced, it has been like a flash in the pan, disappearing without a trace. Thus, the gate of immortality has always carried a mysterious aura and has been a topic of much discussion. Now, it has appeared at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre—we have found it! The spirit is eternally immortal in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. This is why everyone admires and seeks the Western Pure Land. Now, Yuan Sheng is here—in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss.

Returning to the Original Nature

Today, practitioners who wish to retrieve their true nature must return to simplicity and truth, returning to the original heart of humanity—pure, kind, unpolluted, selfless, without thoughts, and without 'self.' These are the true facets of one's original nature. These heart-states, which are as natural as can be, are truly possessed by every human, every living being between heaven and earth, and every sentient being! They have always been there!

Yes! Yuan Sheng comes from that world which was as natural as natural could be. Everyone comes into this world crying with a long 'waa,' and then, after aging and sickness, dies powerlessly and breathlessly, leaving this world. Yuan Sheng believes that there is not a single bit of the body that is created by one's own power. It is received from parents and formed naturally; it should be offered to all beings, and after death, the body should return to the earth. That is how it should be.

So, when the land was dry and waterless, and many of the fruits and vegetables that people relied on for food became shrivelled and inedible, even the animals had nothing to eat and starved to death. The elderly and children in the tribe were as thin as sticks, unable to walk, and even fell ill. At that time, my heart ached so much. Seeing them hungry and unable to eat made me shed tears; it was more painful than my own hunger. I was in the prime of my life then. There were no records of age; people understood each other's age, seniority, and the changes in nature through heart-to-heart connection. Moreover, because our spirits were clear, these intuitions were accurate. Yuan Sheng was among them, and my intuitions were the most accurate of all. I would tell everyone the truth of the facts, rather than keeping them for my own benefit, because these truths belonged to everyone, not to me alone. I never thought of keeping what I knew to myself for personal gain; such thoughts were far too complex! At that time, I knew everyone had nothing to eat—they were so hungry and suffering, and all the edible plants and animals on the land had been consumed. The hungry people looked at each other helplessly, so I thought: let Yuan Sheng's flesh nourish everyone.

The Sacrifice of the Body

It was like animals that are about to die; they know their time is near, so they drag their weak bodies to their companions or to humans, allowing them to eat their flesh if they are hungry. Their hearts have no resentment or anger, because they are willing and happy to do so. Because the hearts of those animals are the most natural hearts: letting their own bodies be eaten by companions so they can survive, have something to eat, or even be satiated, is equivalent to letting themselves have something to eat and be satiated. Such behaviour is so natural. The animals did not know they were 'selfless' or 'compassionate'; they simply and naturally wanted to do it, and so they did. To people today, such behaviour is called selflessness and compassion. At that time, Yuan Sheng only wanted to prevent the starving elderly and children from suffering, so I used a knife to cut off my own flesh, enduring the pain, and gave it to the starving elderly and children to cook and eat. In my heart, there was not a single trace of complaint—not even a sliver. There was only overflowing gratitude, gratitude that my body could be of such use to help my companions survive. Even though the pain made tears stream down my face, I was smiling!

I knew that while I was alive, the fresh flesh of my body was good to eat, but if I died, the meat would not keep and would not be good. So, where I bled, I tried my best to stop the bleeding. I let myself stay in the cold and low temperatures to slow the bleeding, so I could live one more day, and then another. I went from the large pieces of meat on my legs and buttocks to the smaller pieces, until finally, the blood in my body was drained. By then, I felt no pain at all, because I was numb to it. When my eyes closed, I breathed my last. I know I left the human world with a smile, and because of the cold weather and the low temperature of my body, the remaining flesh could still be cut off by my companions to last them another day or two. It was so worth it! Offering my body to nourish my elderly and weak companions so they could live ended that lifetime of mine.

Entering the Golden Light

After death, my soul had no trace of blood, no pain, no defects, and no burden at all. It was very, very light, and it kept floating upwards. A force attracted me, carrying me through space after space of light. Those spaces are what people today call the twenty-eight heavenly realms, the Arhat, Pratyekabuddha (Sound-Hearer, Solitary Realizer), and Bodhisattva realms of the Four Sacred Realms, directly entering a place that was entirely bright and golden. My spirit stopped in that place. All around were circles of golden light, and I looked at myself and saw that I, too, was a circle of golden light. It was so clear, so bright! I rested in the present moment, without a single thought. It was so empty, so pure! There was not a sound, not even the sound of breathing. I was completely empty and pure. What was that situation, or what realm was it? Nothingness—not even a trace of 'nothingness.' It was concentration, total concentration. To call it 'extinction' would be incorrect. To say I entered samadhi—I was in samadhi, with nothing sought, nothing used, nothing hoped for, and nothing moved. Every little thing was clear and bright. Just like now, if the interview wants to know about past events, it is known immediately, manifested immediately. If there is nothing to know, then there is nothing. Pure concentration and pure purity—not moving at all, not knowing, and no need to know. In this state, for a long, long, long time...

I do not know how much time passed. Looking at it now, it must have been over fourteen million years ago; that is to say, from the time I entered the Buddha realm until now, over fourteen million years have passed. Those days were spent entirely in concentration. It sounds like a long time, but it seems like only an instant—it is as if it were happening right before my eyes. In my concentration, I suddenly heard the reverberating sound of a large chime from a distant place, opening up my space. The reverberation of the chime entered my state of concentration; my spiritual golden light was shaken by the chime, waking me up. My spirit was awakened from concentration by the sound of the chime! At the moment of being awakened, I emerged from concentration, opened my eyes, and rolled my pupils. I woke up in this vast expanse of golden light; that was the realm of the Buddha, and I was one of them.

The Awakening to the Western Pure Land

I looked around to see where the sound of the chime came from. I looked down towards the heavenly realms and the human world, and I saw a golden light emanating from the human world. The two words 'Practitioner Su' naturally appeared in my mind. Subsequently, the things Practitioner Su did at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Australia appeared before my eyes like a play, scene by scene. Even now, it is still like that. So, I quietly received the teachings, listening to Practitioner Su's lectures, and only then did I wake from my long dream. I learned that there is Namo Amituofo, there is the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss, there is Practitioner Su who is saving the world in the human realm, and that Namo Amituofo resides at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Australia!

Every word, every sentence, and every scene of Practitioner Su's lectures was like the large chime striking me at that time. I realized that although I was a Buddha, I was a Buddha of the Four Sacred Realms, not a Buddha of Namo Amituofo! The Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss appeared before my eyes. In the Dharma assembly, I saw it clearly. I wanted to go to the West, so I joined the crowd in chanting 'Namo Amituofo.' I used my mental note; I did not need to speak out loud like humans. I chanted 'Namo Amituofo' with great sincerity and reverence. I felt my light become even purer, yet I remained unmoved in that place. I could not enter the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss simply by chanting the holy name of 'Namo Amituofo' while in the Buddha-land of the Four Sacred Realms. Then I understood! My space, my energy, and my power could only reach this realm; I could not break through further. Although I could see the situations of the six realms and the Four Sacred Realms clearly at a glance, the state of my spirit could only go so far. Then I understood again: the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss is the highest holy land for spirits in the vastness of the Dharma Realm; even the Buddhas of the ten realms cannot reach it!

The Difference in Vows

Why could I not reach it? All dharmas are mind-only. Because of the difference in the heart, yes! It is because of the difference in the causal heart and the causal ground! Oh! The causal ground and heart of Namo Amituofo contain the Forty-eight Great Vows to save all beings, and every vow is realized, thus manifesting the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. And Yuan Sheng? Although Yuan Sheng entered the Buddha realm because of a 'no-mind' state, afterwards I sought only my own liberation in concentration. I had no actual heart-action of saving beings, no Forty-eight Great Vows, and no opportunity for every vow to be realized. Moreover, Yuan Sheng had no Buddha-Dharma at that time, did not know of the Pure Land chanting method, did not know of Namo Amituofo or the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss, and could not chant the name, so I could not reach the West.

Within the natural laws, people naturally resonate and enter the Buddha realm of the Four Sacred Realms because of their heart-state and actions at that time. This is the power of nature, which human power cannot reach. Even with the high technology of today and humans who call themselves the 'spirit of all things,' we are all just a part of nature. The six realms and the Four Sacred Realms are also part of nature. Currently, the only ability that can break through the limitations of nature and change nature is to 'realise one's true nature.' The ability within one's true nature to be omnipotent and omniscient can naturally break through the limitations of nature. Because nature is one of the sentient beings, and those who have realised their true nature exist for the sake of saving sentient beings, only then can they see their true nature. Therefore, only those who have realised their true nature, for the sake of saving sentient beings, can utilize the power of nature, break through the limitations of nature, and save the beings within nature. This is the natural law; it is the truth. In the past, present, and future, this principle remains unchanged.

The Value of the Dharma Body

The Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss is the Dharma-Nature Land; it is complete purification, selflessly saving and receiving beings. This is what Yuan Sheng lacked, and it is the reason I could not break through to enter the West by chanting the Buddha's name. Yuan Sheng wished for the further elevation of my spirit, so I resolutely decided, along with the celestial beings of the twenty-eight heavens, to go to the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Australia to seek Chao Du and rebirth in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. As soon as this thought arose, I simultaneously learned that in the Buddha realm, I was not the only one awakened by Practitioner Su's chime who wished to transfer to the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. Within the boundless golden light before me, there were immeasurable and boundless Buddhas of the Four Sacred Realms. When I wanted to know roughly how many Buddhas of the Four Sacred Realms wished to go to the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre to seek Chao Du and rebirth in the West, the number naturally appeared: 20,523. Thus, we, along with the celestial beings of the twenty-eight heavens, entered the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Australia yesterday.

We are not unfamiliar with this place, because whenever the chime sounded in the Buddha realm, we would initially look in the direction of the sound, which came from the large chime struck by Practitioner Su at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in the human world. Later, when we heard the chime, we knew without looking that it was Practitioner Su's chime, because in the human world, apart from Practitioner Su, no one else has such virtue and skill that the sound of their chime can penetrate into the space of the Buddhas of the Four Sacred Realms.

Practitioner Su's Dharma Body is even more astonishing to us, and this is something we in the Buddha realm have not attained. Although the Buddha realm is the head of the ten realms, it has not attained the Buddha-body and Dharma Body of the 'True Buddha' within one's true nature. One of the capabilities of the Dharma Body is to have countless manifestations. As Practitioner Su humbly says, his fifty trillion cells are his manifestations; in fact, it is not just fifty trillion, but he can manifest as many Dharma Bodies as needed, depending on the person, the place, and the time. This is the preciousness of realising one's true nature. The Buddhas of the Buddha realm have practiced until they are very much like Buddhas, but because their heart of saving beings has not reached the state of realising one's true nature—that is, the intensity of their vow to save beings cannot overcome their vow for self-liberation—they cannot break through to the state of realising one's true nature. To put it plainly, the Buddhas of the Four Sacred Realms save beings according to conditions, but their primary hope is for self-liberation, so they do not have the Dharma Body of the 'True Buddha.' Because the Dharma Body exists for the sake of saving sentient beings. Since there is no vow to widely save beings, there is no Dharma Body. This is also the law of karma and cause and effect; everything is according to principle and Dharma.

Gratitude for the Pure Land

The natural law is the heart-method of those who have realised their true nature. Therefore, those who have realised their true nature can, for the sake of saving sentient beings, and in accordance with natural laws and truth, utilize the power of natural truth to resonate with the Forty-eight Great Vows of Namo Amituofo, thereby attaining the ability to save beings, lead them to rebirth in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss, and help them leave suffering behind. This is the reason why Practitioner Su, who has realised his true nature, can save beings of the spirit realm in the human world and lead them to rebirth in the West. It is also because of his earnest and active heart to save beings that so many inconceivable things have happened, including the previous opening of the spaces of the twenty-eight heavens and the Four Sacred Realms and the interview records, the opening of the space of the hells and the interview record with the King of Hell, and the interviews with family members sent to the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss, and so on. After the spaces are opened, one can interview sentient and insentient beings and any being on the earth at any time and any place.

Today, Yuan Sheng is grateful to Practitioner Su for being able to practice in the difficult human world of the Five Turbidities and Evil World, and for the existence of this human Western Pure Land—the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre. If this place did not exist, we would not be in the West now. I thank Namo Amituofo and Practitioner Su for the grace of sending us to the West. I pray that the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in the human world will be built soon, so that it may save more suffering spirits, helping them leave suffering behind and be reborn in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss.

Namo Amituofo."

The interview message was recorded by the Buddha disciple Venerable HaiZe.