The Prison of One's Own Making

This is a record of an interview with Fu Wenguang, 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 and his subsequent time as a spirit in the lower realms. Recorded by the chief writer, Shi Fa, on February 3, 2024.

Fu Wenguang speaks:

"Namo Amituofo. At this very moment, all sixty of us prison guards have arrived in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. We are kneeling before the Buddha, and many of us are shedding tears of deep emotion and gratitude. After cycling through the cycle of reincarnated life for countless lifetimes, this spirit has been in constant suffering. Only now, finally, can I stop and truly rest. I do not know how to describe this feeling; my heart is truly filled with gratitude and joy. I am so grateful to Namo Amituofo, and I am so grateful to Practitioner Su."

The Trap of Stubbornness

"It is only now that I realise that almost every person living in the human world is deeply attached to something; it is just that the object of their attachment differs from person to person. I have been thinking: why must we be so attached? Perhaps it is because we value our own concepts and ideas too heavily, or we hold onto our habitual behaviours too tightly. We are unwilling to let go, insisting on the same thoughts, the same methods, and the same routines. We insist that things must be done a certain way, and over time, this hardens into a state of stubbornness.

This does not only happen to those living in the human world. Even spirits who no longer possess a physical body are often still deeply attached. They cling to the states and habitual behaviours they were accustomed to during their lives. Even though they no longer have a body, they live as if they were still in the human world.

Regardless of the nature of this 'attachment,' it truly ruins everyone. The most tragic outcome is that one locks their own spirit into a specific space, remaining trapped within it indefinitely, with no opportunity to escape."

A Life Defined by Rigid Views

"When I was alive in the human world, I was also a stubborn person. But at the time, I did not think I was stubborn at all. Whenever others told me I was stubborn, a voice of resistance would rise within me. I wanted to tell them, 'I am not stubborn; I am simply doing what I believe is right.'

The most terrifying form of stubbornness is the rigidity of the concepts and ideas within one's own mind. This kind of stubbornness causes a person to view people and handle tasks entirely through their own narrow set of thoughts. In such a state, one becomes unable to adapt or respond to changes in the environment. It also makes one quite unpleasant to be around, because those nearby do not necessarily agree with such concepts and views. If this person also holds a certain level of status or position, it becomes even more insufferable. Everyone is forced to listen to them, to comply with their stubborn ideas, and to follow them in doing the same things.

Was I such a person? I certainly was."

The Obsession with Preservation

"I opened a second-hand bookstore. The books in my shop came from all over—many were books people no longer wanted, or books discarded by libraries, or withdrawn from schools. These books were often damaged, ruined, or simply too old to be read clearly. For various reasons, the original owners decided to recycle these books and purchase new ones.

I could not bear to see these books thrown away. To me, every single book was incredibly precious. Even if it was broken or old, in my eyes, the essence and treasures within the book were eternal; they would not be affected by the deterioration of the book's outer shell.

This concept had been with me since I was three years old. My father was a teacher who loved reading and had read every kind of book. After I was born, he would often take books suitable for my age and read them to me every day.

What was most remarkable was that every book my father brought out looked as if it had just been bought, even though they had been kept for many years. Furthermore, my father would often read the same book over and over again. He would read it one day, and then again two days later, so those books were flipped through time and time again. Yet, no matter how many times they were taken out or flipped through, the books always remained clean, as if they had barely been touched.

When I was about eight or nine years old, I asked my father, 'Why do the books in our house never wear out?' My father answered my question with great interest. He told me, 'Every book contains a book-soul, and every book holds treasures within it. We should cherish every book. When we use it, we must know how to love, treasure, and protect it, so that the treasures inside will not disappear as the book deteriorates.'"

The Distortion of a Good Intention

"I absorbed this concept from a young age, but I never expected that I would do more than just absorb it. As I grew older, I became increasingly stubborn. I even distorted the concept my father taught me; it became somewhat twisted, or perhaps I should say, it went too far.

Just like all the books I held in my hands—at that time, plastic bags were not yet widely used, so I would wrap the books in layers of paper to protect them from being easily damaged. I would even write the title of the book on the outer layer of paper so I could identify what it was.

Every time I wanted to take a book out to read, I had to carefully open and remove the paper layer by layer, and only then could I see the true appearance of the book. Not only that, but when I was reading, I always kept a small brush by my side. Whenever I reached a page, I would brush it clean, terrified that even a speck of dust would contaminate it.

Many people advised me that this was unnecessary, and even my father told me so. But my personality was just like that—stubborn about everything. No matter who spoke to me, I seemed unable to listen.

Later, I decided to run a second-hand bookstore myself, re-organising all the books I had collected. I went everywhere to learn the skills, and finally, I learned all the methods for restoring books. If an old book was placed in front of me, I had the ability to restore it to eighty percent of its original condition.

To protect these books, I went everywhere to collect them, and I spent every day organising them. I was willing to spend a week or two on a single book because I felt it was worth it. Many people could not stand my behaviour and felt I was wasting my life, but I remained attached to my own ideas. No matter what those around me said, I had no desire to listen."

The Final Entrapment

"However, what I did not expect was that my spirit would slowly walk into that space. The more I walked into that space, the more I became immersed in the space of organising books—so immersed that I would not even feel hungry, even when I had not eaten.

I spent my entire life doing this. At the age of sixty, I began to fall ill. The illness I contracted forced me to lie in bed, and my consciousness was sometimes clear and sometimes not. When my family saw me, my hands would still be moving as if I were flipping through pages. My spirit was, in fact, still doing that very thing within that space.

At sixty-five, my life came to an end, and my spirit remained inside an old book. It was my favourite book because I had restored it from a very old state to one that looked almost brand new, and I was extremely satisfied with it. I never expected that my spirit would enter the space within that book.

My stubbornness killed me. However, I should be thankful that the book I entered was a good book. It taught people to do good deeds and to think positively and correctly; it was a very wholesome book. Because it was a good book, many people read it after I had restored it. These people were positively influenced by the book, and this influence meant that I had also done some good deeds.

After accumulating a little merit, I was finally able to escape from the book's space under a fortunate set of Causal Conditions."

A Witness to the World's Decline

"After entering the hells, King Yama assigned me to be a low-ranking prison guard, specifically tasked with handling files. These files recorded many things from the human world—how many people did good, how many did evil, and even how the human heart was changing; it was all recorded there.

In modern times, I found organising these materials easier and easier, because technology is not only advanced in the human world; it has also begun to be used in the hells. Therefore, these statistical data can be displayed immediately just by inputting them into a computer. I could see very clearly that the evil thoughts in the human heart are increasing more and more, far exceeding the good thoughts. The greatest of these evil thoughts is the selfishness within the human heart.

Too much competition, too much conflict, and too many self-centred ideas—like the selfishness I once possessed—have caused the human world to descend into chaos. Consequently, more and more people are being dragged into the hells to receive their retribution.

I lament the changes in the world, but when I saw the Dharma Body of Practitioner Su enter the hells to perform Chao Du, and when I heard Practitioner Su giving Dharma talks within the hells, my heart finally found peace. I am so grateful that Practitioner Su is still saving people in the human world, as well as the spirits in the intangible spaces, so that everyone has a chance to be saved.

Today, I am very honoured to be on the list of those Practitioner Su is guiding to the Western Pure Land. The moment I found out, my heart was so joyful and so grateful, and it remains so now. I am grateful to Practitioner Su for his compassion in saving us and endless other beings.

Namo Amituofo.

Fu Wenguang bows in reverence."