The Prison Guard's Journey to Liberation

This is a record of an interview with Lin Qingyuan, 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 life approximately 1,000 years ago. Recorded by the chief writer, Shi Fajing, on September 7, 2024.

Lin Qingyuan speaks:

"Namo Amituofo. Before we arrived in the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss, while we were still waiting for the time for Practitioner Su to lead us there, everyone was already weeping uncontrollably. The moment we finally arrived in the Western Land, the tears flowed even more freely. What were we crying for? We were witnessing the immense suffering our souls had endured throughout our many lives, and now, we had finally attained the opportunity for liberation. This feeling of being moved and the sheer intensity of the moment cannot be described in words; it all simply erupted in a flood of tears.

I am Lin Qingyuan. I was born in an era filled with the chaos of war, approximately one thousand years ago. On the very day I was born, my father lost his life. He was beheaded by enemy soldiers right on the roadside, and from that moment on, he and my mother were separated by the divide between the living and the dead."

A Birth Amidst the Chaos of War

"My mother was heavily pregnant and ready to give birth when the enemy arrived. The midwife fled in terror, leaving my mother to face the ordeal alone. She had to summon every ounce of her strength, running into the forest to deliver me by herself. When I was first born, my face was blue, and I did not make a single sound. My mother was terrified, fearing that I would not survive. She prayed incessantly to the heavens, begging for me to be safe and to overcome this crisis. Fortunately, after the enemy soldiers had moved on, I began to wail loudly. When my mother heard my cry, she smiled, and her heart was finally at peace. She could not help but wonder, 'Does my son also know that we are in danger, and that is why he dared not cry out for fear of attracting those soldiers?'

My mother asked me about this when I was four years old. She asked, 'A-Yuan, did you know the enemy was surrounding us back then, so you didn't dare to cry?' I could not answer her because I had no memory of the moment of my birth. However, at four years old, I seemed to be able to feel my own soul. I felt that my soul had always wanted to protect my mother, and I could not bear to see her suffer any harm."

The Soul's Instinct to Protect

"My intuition about my own soul was likely correct. From childhood, I always used my own methods to protect my mother. My body was quite unique; I could always sense when my mother was in danger. Sometimes, I could warn her in advance, allowing her to avoid impending disasters. Other times, when I could not warn her in time, I would choose to suffer in her place.

For instance, when I was ten years old, I had a premonition that my mother would soon be struck by a carriage. I wanted to tell her not to go out, but for some reason, I could not speak. It felt as if someone were gripping my throat, preventing me from uttering a word. Unable to help her avoid the disaster, I chose to stay close to her. Indeed, a carriage came rushing toward her, and I immediately pushed her aside, letting myself be hit by the carriage instead.

That collision left me with a broken leg. For about three years, I could only walk with the aid of a crutch. Later, my mother happened to help an elderly man on the road and invited him to stay the night at our home. When the old man saw that I could not walk properly, he asked to examine my leg. Miraculously, he instantly rotated the bones in my leg and then snapped them back into place. The entire process happened in a split second, and my leg was completely healed, returning to normal. My mother immediately knelt and kowtowed, expressing her gratitude for the old man's help. He later whispered to me that it was my filial piety that had moved the heavens. He had been wandering nearby when he suddenly heard a voice from the heavens telling him to visit our home. The event was so ingenious and truly inconceivable."

A Life of Selfless Service

"Having experienced such an incredible event, I became even more determined to be a good person and to help others. After my leg healed, my mother told me, 'Take the care and concern you have for me and use it to look after more people. Treat everyone as if they were your own father and mother, and then you will know what to do.' My mother’s mind-capacity was always vast. Whenever we had rice, she would give it away to others. She knew that everyone was living in hardship, with many struggling to find even one meal a day. She did her best to help, and she hoped I would do the same.

Although I had no money to offer, I could contribute my labour. In that era of war, one could see corpses everywhere on the roads—some killed, some trampled, and others who had starved to death. Sometimes, natural disasters would claim many lives, making life incredibly unstable. For every corpse I encountered, I would drag them to a place where they could be buried and lay them to rest, one by one. To me, I never saw them as just corpses; I knew they were once living people who had died so miserably, and I hoped they could depart in peace. Regardless of whose family they belonged to, or whether they were from my side or the enemy's, I buried them all and counselled them to let go of their attachments and depart properly.

Sometimes, I could feel their spirits still lingering around their bodies. When I buried them, they would bow to me in gratitude. To me, this was simply what I had to do, so I would bow back and offer them my blessings. Growing up in such a chaotic generation, I understood clearly that life is impermanent. Someone you met yesterday might be gone by the next day, lost forever, because impermanence arrives at any moment. Because life is so impermanent, I cherished it deeply. Whatever I had, if someone needed it, I would give it away immediately, for I did not know if there would be a tomorrow. Whatever help anyone needed, if I could do it, I would help them immediately, because I did not know if I would ever have the chance to meet them again."

The Final Sacrifice

"My life was like flowing water—always in motion, never holding anything back for myself, allowing the water to remain in a state of constant flow. When I lived this way, I found that life became very light, without any burdens or pressure. I was always prepared to depart, and I did not fear the arrival of any impermanence. I also told my mother that as long as I had life, I would do my utmost to protect and be filial to her. She understood, and like me, she was always ready to welcome and face impermanence. We both did what we could to benefit society, ensuring that our impermanent lives left a small contribution behind.

I cherished being my mother's son. I learned so much from her, especially the principles of how to conduct oneself in the world, and most importantly, the value of a kind heart. The more difficult the environment, the less we thought selfishly of ourselves, and the more we contributed selflessly. We understood the suffering of others and the difficulties of living in such times. When someone asked us how we could do this—how we could go hungry ourselves and give our food to others—I told him, 'My body might stop breathing tomorrow; this little bit of hunger is something I can endure. But the joy of being able to help someone in that moment far surpasses the feeling of physical hunger.'

When I was forty-eight years old, a massive fire broke out in our village, and many houses were engulfed in flames. Without hesitation, I rushed into house after house to save people. Some tried to stop me, warning me of the danger, but I was determined to continue. In my mind, my life could vanish at any moment, so if I could save even one more person, it was worth it, even if I had to sacrifice my own life. By the time I had rescued the fourteenth villager, my body was covered in wounds. I prepared to rush back in to save one more person, but because my legs were severely injured, the fire inside the house had become too intense. I could not run, nor could I escape the raging flames, and I lost my life in that house."

From Hell to the Western Pure Land

"I had long been prepared to leave the human world, so I departed without any attachments. My spirit once entered the heavenly realms, but later, I voluntarily requested to return to the human world to continue helping people. Eventually, I became a 'Mother Earth' spirit, entering the space of the earth to continue protecting the land and everyone upon it. I remained within the earth for nearly seven hundred years; it was my attachment that kept me from leaving. Then, one day, I was suddenly pulled out by a force. Two officials from the hells brought me before King Yama, and I was subsequently assigned the role of a prison guard.

Serving in the hells, my heart was truly heavy, for every spirit that enters hell comes to suffer. Because they created karma, they must face such retribution and endure punishment. No matter which hell they enter, it is incredibly painful. I felt the deep agony of being unable to help them. It was not until the Dharma sounds of Practitioner Su’s Dharma talks reached the hells that I found hope and saw the light. I shared the Dharma taught by Practitioner Su with countless beings, hoping that every one of them would have the opportunity to chant Namo Amituofo and sincerely repent for their mistakes. Seeing them have a chance to be saved made me happier than they were themselves. Especially when I saw them being delivered by the Dharma Body of Practitioner Su as it entered the hells, and watching them being led away in group after group, I felt immense joy.

Later, I was placed on the list of those to be led to the Western Land by Practitioner Su. At that moment, I was filled with gratitude, and my heart was both shocked and overjoyed. Today, I and fifty-nine other prison guards have successfully returned to the Western Land. We are all deeply moved and cannot stop crying. We kneel and kowtow in gratitude. Gratitude to Namo Amituofo. Gratitude to Practitioner Su. Namo Amituofo. Lin Qingyuan kowtows. My father, the prison guard Lin Daocheng, is in the space where he guards his wife and children; my mother, the prison guard Huang Jing, is in the second level of the heavenly realms. Both have been led by Practitioner Su to the Western Land of Dharma Nature."