The Plague God's Confession: A Virus Demon's Testimony

This is a record of an interview with the spirit known as the Plague Demon, who sought Chao Du at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Australia. He now resides in the Western Land of Dharma Nature. This account reflects upon his origins approximately one thousand years ago. Recorded by the chief writer, Venerable HaiZe, on June 21, 2021.

The Plague Demon speaks:

"Namo Amituofo. I am known as the Plague Demon. Just now, in the brief moments while Practitioner Su spoke, he restored me and the demon children and grandchildren I brought with me to the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre to our original forms. Before any of us could even react, a powerful force of suction sent us to the Western Land of Dharma Nature. Everything happened so quickly. My demonic form, which I had held for a thousand years, was dissolved, and I was restored to the state I was in before I became a demon king. At this moment, I am filled with deep emotion, for this place is bright, and everywhere I look, there is the fragrance of lotuses and lotus seats. I am currently sitting on a lotus seat, my body bound—this is not a place for a demon king like me, yet now, I cannot go anywhere. This is the power of Practitioner Su’s demon-subduing technique; it is a high-level skill that we simply cannot resist."

The Nature of the Virus and the Demon Realm

"To be a demon king participating in this global pandemic, beyond possessing demon nature and power, one must possess the condition of being 'unmoved'—unaffected by the external environment or human emotions. We only look at whether a person has been targeted by the pandemic. Once the demon crowds responsible for locking onto targets mark a person, it does not matter if they are young or old, male or female, kind or ordinary, evil, virtuous, or powerful. They are all targets for our virus demon crowds to invade. This is because this pandemic does not just look at how a person acts in this lifetime; it looks at three lifetimes: past, present, and future. Someone who appears kind now does not mean they were kind in the past. Every lifetime can have a completely different personality and set of actions. Therefore, to be a virus demon, one cannot have emotions. Emotion is the most lethal poison. Once infected by emotion, it can dissolve even the hardest heart, leaving it incapable of action. This is the most basic understanding required to be part of the demon crowds and to accomplish great things.

It is truly unexpected that I can now speak these words so calmly and leisurely! I received a temporary notification to leave my post and come to the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Australia to find Practitioner Su. I did not even have time to investigate his current situation; I only knew to treat him as a target and invade first. We virus demons attach ourselves to air molecules. We can shrink our bodies to be extremely small—as small as air molecules, or even smaller—so we entered Practitioner Su’s body along with the air as he breathed. Once inside, we could unleash our power, releasing as much or as little toxin as we wished, whether strong or weak.

The Purity of the Buddha-Heart

Today, our target was Practitioner Su. We act according to what we see, but upon entering, we found his body to be completely pure—a situation we had never encountered before. When I became alert to this, I realised my toxicity had already been reduced by half. What kind of situation is this? Usually, I have full freedom to act; how could there be a time when my toxicity is weakened? Nevertheless, I tried my best to pour my toxins into the cells of his throat. From the cells, the toxins could spread to the muscles and skin, causing them to swell and the cells to become engorged. Sometimes, this would block the respiratory tract. As long as our toxins exist and are not diluted, or the virus is not killed, these toxins continue to take effect. This means the condition of respiratory obstruction persists, requiring medical tracheotomy to maintain life, or even resulting in death before a tracheotomy can be performed! Yet, even with my toxicity reduced by half, causing his throat muscles to swell and ache was already the limit of our power.

This time, entering Practitioner Su’s body caused his throat to swell and ache, increased his phlegm, and caused his cells to send out distress signals, which his white blood cells received and rushed to assist. When white blood cells fight against us, the body experiences fever. When ordinary people encounter such rapid physical changes, they panic. The most direct method is to go to the hospital. Given the current pandemic situation, once one enters a hospital, in a climate where people would rather kill a hundred innocent ones than let one guilty one escape, leaving the hospital is not an easy task.

However, inside Practitioner Su’s body, when he awoke and realised that the changes in his throat and face were related to the demon crowds, he did not retreat. Instead, he more actively performed Chao Du. This truly startled us, so we all withdrew, and the swelling in his throat and the redness on his face quickly subsided. While I remained in the area to observe, I was discovered by Practitioner Su and written about. My physical appearance was immediately changed. Once returned to my former state, our demon power could not be restored. Now, if you ask me why I became a virus demon, that is a process too painful to look back upon, yet it naturally surfaces in my mind."

A Tragic Origin: The Village of the Dead

"I was born a thousand years ago in China, in a rural town where everyone lived a simple, law-abiding life. Although many were illiterate, it did not affect their naturally optimistic nature. Generation after generation lived by farming. During a good harvest, if there was surplus grain, they would help the elderly in the town, and the elderly would happily accept the help, for everyone was like one family.

However, during a change of seasons, as autumn turned to winter, the people in the town contracted a strange illness. They developed fevers, coughed, could not urinate, felt chest pain, and soon after, had difficulty breathing, gasped for air, and died. Whether adult or child, no one could escape the threat of death. This was a terrifying thing for everyone. This plague killed more than half the town. Doctors could not cure it, and finally, when the best doctor in town died from the plague, the people’s confidence in surviving was shattered. Eventually, the entire village died from this plague.

The village became a dead zone. Outsiders dared not approach. No one collected the bodies of our villagers, and we all became lonely wandering spirits. Everyone was filled with resentment, hatred, and anger, having died without knowing why. Finally, a black, murky energy shrouded the entire dead zone, and we lonely wandering spirits were all subdued by this energy. Our original nature was kind, but it changed during this tragedy of death. This black energy was demon energy; it was our evil thoughts, resentment, and hatred that summoned the demon energy. We became demon crowds one by one, until now, a thousand years later. In these days, we have followed instructions to enter and exit many people’s bodies. The evil energy and resentment we carry have never faded in a thousand years; they have only grown as human hearts have become more evil.

Many demon crowds are in the same situation as us. They were originally kind, but because they could not resolve the things they encountered, their character changed, and they were absorbed by the Demon Realm to become demon crowds. We never had the opportunity to receive the good education of the Buddha’s teachings to transform our character. There is only increasingly evil human nature and environment, coupled with modern technology that allows us to exert our influence and grow our demon nature. The reason this pandemic is more severe than plagues or epidemics that have occurred around the world in the past is because of the mutual growth and decline between demon nature, human nature, and Buddha-nature. The weaker the Buddha-nature in the world, the stronger the demon nature. Only Buddha-nature can resist demon nature. When the kind and purified side of human nature is covered up, what is revealed is inevitably selfishness. For the sake of greed, people harm the lives or character of others. This situation causes many injured people and creatures to change their character, turning evil and wicked, and thus being absorbed by the Demon Realm to become demon crowds."

The Law of Survival and the Path to Salvation

"In this current pandemic, I exist in the air in the form of a virus demon. The reason this pandemic is so severe and difficult to guard against is because of the virus’s counterattack. Because of the ruthless treatment of the virus by humans—trying to exterminate it—the virus, in order to survive and resist the environment, has mutated, becoming stronger each time and not easily killed by humans. Meanwhile, humans, thinking they are clever, have also developed increasingly toxic methods to suppress the virus’s survival in order to survive themselves. Thus, in this vicious cycle, the winner is the king, and the loser is the bandit; the king survives, and the bandit perishes. This is the law of survival competition in the universe. We did not create it; I am merely following this law to increase the suffering of those who are meant to receive it.

If people knew that this pandemic is related to demon crowds, they might disdainfully shake their heads. They cannot accept that they are under the control of demon crowds and cannot resolve the threat of the virus. This is human arrogance. This great cooperation between the virus and the demon crowds, which has lasted until today, allows people to personally experience the limitations of humanity through the death statistics. If they could learn to respect all life and be humble and modest, perhaps they could reduce or offset the mark of the pandemic on their bodies—that is, prevent themselves from being targeted by the virus and becoming objects of illness or death. Thoroughly changing one’s heart to be kind and pure is the best way to save oneself. There is also a track to follow for demon crowds to become the demon path, because their own mental notes and thoughts align with the demon crowds, which is where the demon crowds find their leverage. The tragedy of humanity is that because they have done too many evil things, had too many evil thoughts, and acted with too much evil, they have become accustomed to it. They do not know what is Good and what is evil. Even if they know, it is difficult to do Good, and they still have to receive the retribution of evil. This is not a matter of whether humans are convinced or willing, but that they must receive the retribution for what they have done themselves.

So-called virus demons are those whose toxicity can kill people after the virus invades the human body. We are participating in this pandemic as spirits of the demon crowds, which is just adding another layer of evil. If you want us to turn to Good, that is not our original intention. For a thousand years, we have not encountered an opportunity to become Good; otherwise, we would not be here now. If you want us to turn to Good, this Good must have a powerful force that can subdue our demon nature, making us unable to act and unable to resist. Only then is it possible to subdue us.

Practitioner Su is famous in the Demon Realm. We all know that the several great demons who initially led the pandemic were all subdued here by Practitioner Su. Now, they are members of the salvation team, chanting Namo Amituofo around the Earth, wanting to use the right mindfulness of chanting to transform and resolve this pandemic. If they were not doing this, the death toll in various countries would not be just this much, because the demon crowds on Earth can all feel the kind thoughts emitted by the salvation team’s chanting, which permeate the air of the Earth, thereby offsetting many of the evil thoughts permeating the air. However, because human hearts have not turned to Good as a result, but rather, as the death toll from the pandemic rises, it increases the fear, anxiety, and unease in people’s hearts. This is the blind spot of people, because fear, anxiety, and unease are exactly the reasons why demon crowds can continue to survive. The more fear, anxiety, and unease there is, the more we can exert our influence when they are fearful, anxious, and uneasy, and we will not retreat.

Therefore, what I want to tell everyone is that finding a way to calmly accept what is currently happening is far better than crying, complaining, or feeling unfair. If you are truly targeted by the pandemic demon crowds, your state of mind before death will not only affect your destination in the next life but will directly affect whether you die well or whether you will die at all.

The place where I am now is one of peace—the Western Land of Dharma Nature at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre. This place is also very famous in our Demon Realm, because all the demon crowds subdued by Practitioner Su come here. The transmission of information in the Demon Realm is also very fast. Most of us hold an attitude of awe toward Practitioner Su and this place; it is better to avoid trouble than to invite it.

The reason we appeared again this time is because Practitioner Su, while giving Dharma talks, repeatedly appealed to all countries that only Namo Amituofo can save this pandemic. This is a fact that we in the Demon Realm are very clear about. Although people’s arrogance and ignorance make them not believe that Namo Amituofo, Practitioner Su, and the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre have this ability—even if they hear it, they let it go in one ear and out the other—from the perspective of our Demon Realm, this is not a small matter. Because we still have many people marked for death by the demon crowds who have not yet died, and the things we want to do have not yet been completed. If Namo Amituofo were to truly appear, then we would have nothing to do. If we were to stop now, this is not the way the pandemic ends. Those who have done evil in the past and present do not know that they should receive the retribution of death or serious illness, and it is even more impossible for them to emit a heart of repentance. Even as demon crowds, we would show three parts of mercy to those who truly repent. We have long known that people are like this, but this is also a fact.

Once we enter the human body, there is not just one virus, because we exist in groups. After entering, we attach to the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract. From the nostrils, mouth, mucous membranes, stomach, trachea, to the lungs, these are all places where we emit toxins. After swelling and difficulty breathing, even if medical treatment provides respiratory therapy, our toxins still exist and will not decrease due to respiratory therapy. They will still cause swelling in other places, causing cells to be injured rapidly and then fail and die. This is the ability to cause death that we have obtained after the virus has mutated many times. Even if people use the most expensive and advanced medical measures or drugs, they cannot weaken the toxins emitted by the virus.

People use vaccines to increase their own resistance to fight against our virus. This is a preventive measure done from the body; however, people always ignore that starting from changing the heart and changing thoughts is the true solution. And the Buddha’s teachings are about putting in the work on the heart, letting everyone change their heart and thoughts, so it is possible to fight the pandemic. This is also what Namo Amituofo and the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre are doing. Plus, Practitioner Su can subdue the demon crowds, so if one says that Namo Amituofo, Practitioner Su, and the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre can save this pandemic, no demon crowd would deny it.

The Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre is truly a pure land, and only a pure and kind heart can subdue the defiled and evil demon crowds. This morning, I was stripped of my demon clothes and appearance by Practitioner Su, restored to the simple appearance I had in the village before I became a demon crowd, which caused a great change in my state of mind, and I am currently adapting to it.

The Buddha gave the Plague Demon the Dharma name Shi Yongjing.

Reflections of Shi Yongjing (Plague Demon) on Participating in the Dharma Assembly

Recorded by the chief writer, Venerable HaiZe, on June 29, 2021.

"I am Shi Yongjing. Although this Dharma name is so unfamiliar to me, it was only obtained after experiencing so many and such great changes here. To me, this represents a new life. When I was a demon crowd, I thought monastics were vulnerable. As long as I exerted some temptation or desire, they would change their original appearance and persistence. These temptations and desires are not what monastics should have, so to put it plainly, it means they did not keep the Precepts. This was my perception of monastics.

It was not until I saw many monastics at the Thrice Yearning Ceremony at the temple that I completely changed my view. They were all ancestral masters who had practiced in ancient times, and each one looked very dignified and majestic, which involuntarily aroused a sense of respect in my heart, completely different from the monastics we see in modern times. Therefore, between ancient and modern times, not only are the social environment and human nature different, but even the monastics look different. Looking at my shaved head and the monastic robes I am wearing now, which are the same as what they are wearing, I feel much better.

The Thrice Yearning Ceremony was the first time I participated. I had never participated before, and now I know how the Dharma assembly is conducted. From the moment Practitioner Su started beating the drum at the beginning of the assembly, the sound of the drum vibrated, spreading into the air and the Western Land of Dharma Nature. I saw that Namo Amituofo and many Buddhas and Bodhisattvas had already arrived. The temple site and the surrounding area were full of sentient beings who were already standing, sitting, or kneeling properly, waiting for the fourfold assembly of disciples to enter and stand in place before the assembly began. When Practitioner Su explained the teachings of Namo Amituofo and Teacher Practitioner Xia Lianju, many sentient beings would kneel down to listen respectfully. Afterward, they paid prostrations to one ancestral master after another, and the ancestral masters also returned the gesture one by one. When the memorial tablets were read, the sentient beings whose names were called entered the chime bowl after Practitioner Su struck it and were sucked toward the Western Land of Dharma Nature. At this moment, I had a deep feeling. When I was a human, the plague that took the lives of all the villagers in our village was also the reason why we villagers who died unjustly were sucked into the Demon Realm. If we could have met a great and capable person like Practitioner Su who is so good at Chao Du at that time, then the lives of our entire village might have been saved, or even after death, we could have been saved, and not ended up as lonely wandering spirits. This is the difference in life’s encounters. However, if there was no 'then,' there would be no 'after'—my entry into the Demon Realm, and now, a thousand years later, being able to meet Practitioner Su and be saved. So now, no matter when, sentient beings who can be saved by Practitioner Su and be reborn in the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss are so blessed!

I was surprised at how many sentient beings participated in the Dharma assembly, but when I saw the tall and bright appearance of the many Buddhas before my eyes, I completely understood in my heart. This is the reason why the Buddha can subdue demonic enemies. As long as the demon crowds who can see today’s scene believe that the demon nature in them has also been reduced by more than half, it is just like the meaning that the plague toxins in our bodies were reduced by more than half after we entered Practitioner Su’s body. Buddha-light itself is a very powerful energy. This energy is naturally emitted from the Buddha-heart, and the Buddha-heart is for the sake of saving sentient beings, so naturally, the sentient beings illuminated by the Buddha-light can all be saved. I could not help but feel deep praise and emotion in my heart!

From entering Practitioner Su’s body to being invited out and entering the Western Land of Dharma Nature, in this nearly one week, I have truly encountered too many things I had never encountered before. Meeting Practitioner Su is a very big turning point in my life in the Demon Realm. Only Practitioner Su has the ability to let me break away from the pandemic that I was still wholeheartedly and seriously devoted to.

I also witnessed the power of the Buddha-name during the Dharma assembly. Especially when everyone was chanting the Buddha’s name desperately during the Praise of the Buddha, the more the fourfold assembly of disciples chanted with desperation and sincerity, the more the sentient beings on their bodies really flew out from their bodies and moved forward into the golden light emitted by Namo Amituofo. At that time, in addition to the sentient beings of the fourfold assembly of disciples at the scene, even the various sentient beings at the scene and the celestial beings in the sky all entered the Buddha’s golden light together amidst the sound of chanting.

And when chanting and circumambulating the Buddha, Practitioner Su’s countless manifestations were even more surprising to us. In an instant, I saw many Practitioner Sus coming out from the top of his head and spreading to different places. I thought I was seeing things, and many sentient beings at the scene let out a cheer of 'Wow!' together! I heard some sentient beings ask: 'Where are those Practitioner Sus going?' Some sentient beings replied: 'Going out to perform Chao Du!' And then, before the Buddha-name ended, I saw Practitioner Su leading everyone back to the temple together, completing one journey of Chao Du after another.

The grandeur of the entire scene was unprecedented, which truly broadened our horizons! When the fourfold assembly of disciples sat down to recite the Sutras during the Dharma assembly, everyone recited together; when the master of ceremonies shouted 'Bow, rise,' many sentient beings at the scene also bowed and rose together. Everyone followed what the fourfold assembly of disciples at the scene did. After the whole Dharma assembly, I felt that the energy in my body was filled to the brim!

At the site of the Thrice Yearning Ceremony at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre, in the air that people cannot see, there are many sentient beings being sent to or entering the Buddha’s golden light on their own, moving forward to enter the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss! This is truly another world in the world. If you haven't entered this place, just listening to rumors, you will absolutely not be able to understand the many unbelievable things that happen here!

Now I have accepted the change in my role. Listening to Practitioner Su’s Dharma talks has become a very important thing for me now. I am like a sponge, absorbing the positive energy of the Buddha’s teachings, making myself full, and shedding the filth that I was covered in before. I participate in the daily morning service, doing whatever everyone else does, and I am seriously prostrating, chanting the Buddha’s name, and reciting the Sutras. I know that I am changing. I emit sincere gratitude from my heart and say: 'Thank you, Namo Amituofo, thank you, Practitioner Su, thank you everyone.'"