The Prison Guard's Struggle: A Life Consumed by Fire

This is a record of an interview with Lin Wenbei, who sought deliverance at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Australia. He now resides in the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss. This account reflects upon his life and his subsequent journey through the realms of reincarnation. Recorded by the chief writer, Shi Fa, on November 2, 2024.

Lin Wenbei speaks:

"Namo Amituofo. I, Lin Wenbei, along with fifty-nine other prison guards, have finally arrived in the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss. We bow in gratitude to Namo Amituofo and to Practitioner Su. We are deeply thankful for the rare and magnificent Causal Conditions that allowed us sixty prison guards to be liberated from the cycle of reincarnation and return to the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss.

The Agony of the Spirit

Living in the human world is not easy, but facing the karmic retribution after death is even harder. If those who are still alive feel that they cannot go on, I must tell them: the life you are living now is far better than the suffering of existing without a physical body. When the body is gone and only a spirit remains, you do not know where you will be in the next moment. You are left to the mercy of the mechanisms of reincarnation. That kind of suffering is beyond words—it is a state of absolute anxiety and utter helplessness.

From a young age, I possessed a sharp mind. While others needed time to think through a method before starting a task, I would often see the solution at a single glance. My speed was far beyond that of others. Not only that, but I had an excellent eye for value. Things that others overlooked, I would already have firmly in my grasp. By the time they had gone in circles and realised that the true treasure was the very thing they had dismissed, it was too late—the prize was already mine.

The Double-Edged Sword of Success

I was truly clever. This was one of the greatest advantages of my life, and it brought me many benefits from childhood onwards. It allowed me to enter prestigious schools, achieve excellent grades, and acquire vast amounts of knowledge. These same traits also allowed me to earn a great deal of wealth. Because my vision was far-reaching, I understood how to invest, and I earned the wealth I desired with ease, never having to worry about food or clothing for my entire life.

I had another virtue: I was never stingy when it came to helping others. Whenever I saw someone in need, I would do my utmost to assist them. If their problem exceeded my own capabilities, I would still exhaust my efforts to help them find the best solution, accompanying them until the issue was resolved. I possessed such a kind heart and patience for helping others; even if it cost me a great deal of time, I was always willing to do it.

The Fatal Flaw

However, I also had one massive shortcoming: I was prone to anger. This was the greatest failure of my life, and the key factor that destroyed me. My temper was poor from a very young age. Strangely, neither of my parents had such a temperament, yet it seemed as if I were born carrying a bomb, causing them endless distress.

Many times, I did not want to be this way, but I would fly into a rage so easily. Sometimes, a casual word from someone else, a glance, or a simple gesture was enough to infuriate me completely. Every time after I lost my temper, I would feel profound regret. I would even go to the person I had wronged to apologise, telling them that I did not mean it. I would constantly tell myself that I must change this temper; I did not want to hurt others. But no matter how much I told myself this, whenever the situation arose, I would be provoked just the same.

A Cycle of Ineffective Apologies

What did this lead to? My apologies became ineffective. No one believed them anymore, because after every apology, I would continue to lose my temper. The apology did not change my nature. My bad temper was my greatest weakness. No matter how clever I was, I could not help myself overcome this personality trait. However, I did not stop helping others because of my temper; I still loved to assist people, even though I would often get angry during the process.

This resulted in a sad reality: the people I helped were terrified of me. Yet, they hoped I would continue to help them because I was both intelligent and wealthy. I could provide them with the greatest support—I could give them fish, and I could teach them how to fish. Therefore, those I helped saw clear changes and results in their lives. But my personality would frighten them. If they accidentally did something that did not meet my expectations, they might provoke me, causing me to fly into a thunderous rage. Consequently, they were always walking on eggshells, terrified of triggering my anger.

The Loneliness of the Angry

How tragic it is for a person to be so feared! I often asked myself: 'What is the point of being this angry? There is not a single person around me who is sincere. Everyone is just afraid of my temper and tries to please me, or they swallow their grievances because I can help them. But I know clearly in my heart that no one is truly sincere toward me.' Even so, I knew that while others were not entirely sincere, I was still sincere toward them. That, perhaps, was one of my virtues. In my view, just because others were not sincere to me did not mean I had to be insincere to them. In fact, the less sincere they were to me, the more sincere I became to them. But the more sincere I was, the more I revealed my true self, and the easier it was for me to get angry. Therefore, those who were often the targets of my rage were actually the people I treated with the most sincerity.

The Encounter at the Mountain Foot

When I was forty-six, I met someone who truly understood me. When I met her, I was overjoyed and cherished the connection, because I had lived to forty-six and had never met anyone who truly understood me. This person was an elderly woman who lived at the foot of a mountain. She often sat at her doorway. Hers was the only house at the foot of the mountain, so people often came to borrow the restroom or ask for a drink of water, and she was always very happy to help everyone.

That day, I had climbed the mountain. On my way down, I suddenly needed to use the restroom and went to the old woman's house. I saw her sitting at the door as usual. As soon as she saw me, she smiled and said, 'Please, use the restroom as you like; walk to the very end, and you will see it.' After I finished, I came out to thank her. The old woman said to me, 'Young man, you are a good person and an honest one. You are very sincere toward others, but you must change your temper. Your temper is often beyond your own control; you get angry the moment you are provoked. It is indeed very difficult to change, but you must change. If you do not, it will be too late.'

A Futile Attempt at Change

I had never known this old woman before. It was our first meeting and our first conversation, yet she knew my personality perfectly and understood my heart. After she finished speaking, she said nothing more. Along the way home, I kept thinking about her words. She said that no matter what, I had to change, or it would be too late. I did not know what she had seen, but she had given me a message: I must change my temper. I did not want to wait until something happened and then regret not listening to her. So, after I got home that day, I tried hard to admonish myself: 'I must change, I must change, no matter how painful it is, I must change.'

To change, I often hit my head until it bled and my body was covered in bruises. The painful part was that even after doing all this, I still could not change. When I got angry, even if my head was bleeding, I would still lose my temper, as if this 'heart' and this 'head' belonged to two different people. The blood was still flowing from my head, but my heart continued to rage. So, I often asked in anger: 'Is there any hope for me at all?'

The Passing of a Mentor

About a year and a half later, I went back to the foot of the mountain to find the old woman, but I could not see her house; it had been converted into a public restroom. I asked a hiker who was using the facility, and he said, 'The old woman passed away half a year ago. She donated her house to the government for renovation.' Hearing this news, my heart was filled with sorrow. In this life, it was rare to meet someone who understood me, and she had left the human world so quickly. I had originally planned to change my personality before coming to see her again. I never expected that my personality would be so difficult to change; after a year and a half, I still had not succeeded. I felt ashamed and wanted to ask her for a better method, but she was already gone.

I returned home heartbroken, feeling that life was hopeless. I felt I would never meet a second person like her in this life. After that day, I lost all motivation to change my personality. Although I continued to do good deeds, I still lost my temper often and returned to my old ways.

The Final Reckoning

At the age of fifty-two, in a moment of extreme anger, I suddenly suffered a ruptured cerebral blood vessel and collapsed to the ground. I remained in a coma for about seven days before finally losing my life. My true self quickly left my body. Do you know what I became? I became flammable petroleum. The flammability and explosiveness of petroleum were just like my explosive temper—easily ignited, leading to a thunderous rage and a heart consumed by fire.

I stayed in the petroleum for nearly thirty years, which is considered a very short time. I was able to leave the petroleum in such a short time because I was truly kind and sincere toward others. Two hellish officials brought me before King Yama of the underworld. I thought I was going to be punished, but to my surprise, King Yama gave me the position of a prison guard, telling me to work hard to execute my duties and repay my debts.

The Truth of the Hells

I had never imagined that the underworld was such a terrifying place. Many criminals were there because they had committed sins out of ignorance while alive; even losing one's temper could lead to the hells. Everything I saw made my skin crawl, but I still had to continue performing my duties. Later, while in the hells, I heard Practitioner Su giving Dharma talks. Only then did I understand that the laws of karma and cause and effect had always existed, and the Buddha’s teachings had always existed—I simply had not had the Causal Conditions to hear them.

I listened very earnestly to Practitioner Su’s Dharma talks in the hells, and only then did I understand that I needed to thoroughly change my personality. The suffering I endured in the petroleum, the terrifying scenes I witnessed in the hells, and the truths of the universe I learned from Practitioner Su’s teachings truly changed me. I shared the teachings I heard and my own experiences with many beings in the hells, hoping to help them repent and change. After changing for a period of time, I made a vow to be reborn in the West, and I was successfully placed on the list of those to be guided by Practitioner Su to the Western Land. Today, I and the other fifty-nine prison guards were brought to the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss by Practitioner Su. We are all so grateful, bowing repeatedly to express our endless gratitude.

Namo Amituofo.

Lin Wenbei bows in reverence.

The old woman was named Lin Qiuzi. She is now in the underworld and has already been guided by Practitioner Su to the Western Land of Dharma Nature for purification and to listen to the Dharma."