The Rain God's Return to the Western Pure Land

This interview features Chen Zhonglong, a former resident of Northern Taiwan who, after a life of hardship and eventual transformation through the Buddha’s teachings, served as a Rain God. Seeking Spiritual Deliverance, he shares his testimony of how he was saved by Practitioner Su and guided to the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss. This account was recorded by the chief writer, Shi Fajing, on April 26, 2021.

Chen Zhonglong speaks:

"Namo Amituofo. We Rain Gods have been waiting in line, batch after batch. As long as the resentment of the spirits over Taiwan gradually eases and they are saved by the Dharma Body of Practitioner Su, we have the opportunity to bring down more rain into Taiwan's major reservoirs, as well as onto the roads and rivers beyond them, allowing all creatures the chance to be nourished by the water.

Before the Dharma Body of Practitioner Su began the deliverance, the entire island of Taiwan was filled with ghosts. They coexisted with humans on the island, merely occupying a different space. These spirits could move in and out of people's bodies, constantly searching for a human host. As a result, every Taiwanese person was like a puppet to these spirits, often controlled by them without even realising it, continuing their lives as if nothing were wrong. The more attachments a person had within their body, the heavier their burden became, and the more easily they fell ill. This is why there are more and more sick people, and why hospitals are always full—there is never a day when they are not.

The Golden Light of Deliverance

Now that the Dharma Body of Practitioner Su is performing deliverance across the entire island of Taiwan, many ghosts have become restless. Usually, besides staying in their own space or attaching to human bodies, they have nowhere else to go. Now that Practitioner Su has arrived with the golden light, they are all filled with joy and are rushing toward it. The Dharma Body of Practitioner Su stands tall, distributed across various parts of Taiwan, continuously sending these sentient beings toward the Western Three Saints. Taiwanese people are most familiar with Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva. Even in households that do not specifically practise the Avalokiteshvara Dharma-door, everyone knows her. Because the image of Avalokiteshvara in the hearts of worldly people is usually that of a woman in white, with auspicious characteristics, dignity, and a kind, gentle appearance, it adds a sense of affinity and warmth. This makes more Taiwanese people willing to believe in her, and whenever they encounter urgent danger, terror, or various calamities and illnesses, they respectfully pray for the protection of Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva.

Now that Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva has manifested to save beings, they are moved to kneel and worship. These beings have been ghosts for a long time, and their minds are simple and honest. When they see the familiar Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva, they do not hesitate to follow her, praying for her to take them away. This is the Wisdom of Practitioner Su, who knows that Taiwanese people believe in Avalokiteshvara. Even after they die and become ghosts, their simple minds remain familiar only with her. Practitioner Su uses such wise methods to save beings, and by following the hearts of the beings, he can naturally save immeasurable numbers of them.

A Troubled Youth and a Search for Love

I am Chen Zhonglong, born in Taiwan and raised in the northern mountainous region. Everyone used to call me 'Ah Long' from childhood, so I feel more familiar with that name. I lived in the Keelung area, leading a very simple and rustic life. My neighbours, young and old, were all very honest people, so we were very close, like one big family. Whenever I stepped out of my house, everyone knew me as Ah Long. That is how it is in the countryside; the place is small, and whatever happens in any household seems to be broadcast to the whole village as if by a loudspeaker. Everyone knows everything, so no family has secrets, and we are all very familiar with one another.

Although our area was very simple, learning to be bad was not difficult. Once you left the countryside, there were many places where you could meet gangsters. I was raised by my grandparents. After my parents gave birth to me, they handed me over to my grandparents and I rarely had the chance to see them. By the time I was old enough to visit them, I heard they had already gone to mainland China to work. As a teenager at that time, I liked to compare myself to others. Seeing that others had parents while I did not, it was easy to think negatively, feeling that my parents did not want me. Because I was not good-looking, I often thought perhaps they had given birth to younger siblings and bought a house elsewhere to live with them, leaving only me in the countryside with my grandparents. I often let my imagination run wild and would brood in silence. This was my typical state as a teenager; deep down, I was insecure and yearned for someone to love me.

The Path of a Wanderer

My grandparents were old. The things they said to me most often were, 'Have you eaten?' or 'The weather has changed, did you put on more clothes?' After saying these things, they would continue with their own business. My grandfather would stay immersed in the world of his radio, turning the volume to the maximum, often falling asleep while listening. My grandmother would often sit under the eaves outside, picking vegetables. Many elderly women of her age from the neighbourhood would come to chat with her. They would pick vegetables together, and after finishing, each would take a bunch home. These vegetables were grown by my grandmother herself. Her health was better than my grandfather's; his legs had degenerated quite severely, so he could not go to the fields to farm, leaving all the work to her.

I was obedient when I was young, but as a teenager, I learned to be bad and often ran around with a group of gangsters. When I was fifteen, I didn't come home for the first time at night. That time, my grandparents were very worried and looked for me everywhere. After a few more times, they got used to it. Whether I came home or not seemed not to matter to them anymore. I often heard my grandmother say to the neighbours, 'The grandson is grown up; we two old people can't control where he goes. His parents gave him to us to raise, and we have raised him this big; we have already fulfilled our duty to his parents.' In fact, I didn't want to be a bad child. I just didn't know why my parents didn't want me. I often felt very sad inside, so I went outside to seek excitement to help me forget the painful feelings in my heart.

A Turning Point in the Market

I never thought that once I started down this path, it would be so hard to turn back. I was always the one running errands. Whatever the 'big brother' needed, he would tell me to do it because my reactions and movements were fast, and they felt most at ease when they assigned tasks to me. I was smart and knew where the police were, so I would quickly take small paths to avoid them and return to our gathering place at the fastest speed. After I truly left home, I would sometimes think of my grandparents at night. I wondered how they were doing? Did they still remember me? If I suddenly appeared in front of them, would they still acknowledge me as their grandson?

I spent ten years wandering outside. For these ten years, I did similar things every day, either running errands for others or working at a gravel yard. Later, I stopped working at the gravel yard and went to the market to sell pork. In the market, everyone called me 'Pork Long,' just like my sign. I didn't know many characters, but I could still write those three words. I worked in the market during the day and hung out with that group of people at night. However, I had one merit: I did not touch women. This was influenced by my grandmother. I knew she had given birth to many children—fourteen, I think—but not one was by her side. Sometimes when I saw her missing her children, she would secretly cry in the kitchen. At that time, I felt my grandmother was very pitiful, that being a woman was very pitiful, so I didn't touch women; I didn't want to add another sad woman to the world.

The Path to Redemption

I was fortunate enough to meet a 'noble person.' My noble person was a woman who often came to the market to buy vegetables. She didn't come to buy my pork because she was a vegetarian, but she would pass by my stall and greet me enthusiastically. After a few times, she started chatting with me, and I learned she was a retired teacher who stayed home to chant Buddha's name and eat vegetarian food. When she introduced the Buddha’s teachings to me, I couldn't help but laugh. I asked her, 'Do you know who you are introducing the Buddha’s teachings to?' She asked in confusion, 'You are Pork Long, aren't you? Why ask such a question?' I said, 'I am a gangster! You are introducing the Buddha’s teachings to a gangster?' She smiled and said, 'Anyone can chant the Buddha's name, and anyone can know the Buddha. Of course, a gangster can also chant and learn the Buddha’s teachings! What is so strange about that?' Her words completely touched my heart, because I had always felt that after becoming a gangster, no one would accept me except those who were like me. I never expected that not only could she accept me, but she would also introduce the Buddha’s teachings to me.

I called her 'Big Sister' because she looked older than me, and it was polite to address her that way. Big Sister was very patient with me. She knew I was not an easy person to save; after all, I was a gangster in the underworld. But she had long seen that deep down, I was not a bad person, just temporarily confused, young, and frivolous, which led me down that dark path. My original nature was not bad. So she was very patient with me, always waiting for the most suitable time to speak to me, allowing me to take her words to heart. Big Sister asked me, 'Do you want to change?' I didn't dare answer this question because I didn't know if I was qualified to change, nor was I sure if I had the ability to change. As the Taiwanese saying goes, 'The head is already washed, can you not shave it?' I asked Big Sister, 'I have already walked halfway down this path; is it okay not to continue?' Big Sister answered me firmly, 'So what if the head is already washed? Just take a towel and wipe it off. As long as this life is still here, it is not too late to do anything. But if this life is gone, then it is not as simple as just having washed your head.' I took her words to heart. I knew she wanted to tell me that I could still be saved.

Homecoming and Reconciliation

Big Sister accompanied me for three full years. She spent three years saving me, and she truly saved me. I 'washed my hands of the past' and turned over a new leaf. After ten years of wandering, for the first time, I prepared to return to my hometown to see my grandparents. I was very nervous because I didn't know how the people in my hometown would view me, and I didn't know if my grandparents would still recognise me as their grandson. Before seeing them, I painfully had all my tattoos removed. I knew this was a very dangerous thing to do, as it could cause my skin to fester, but I was determined to change, so I had to do it. I didn't want people to see a practitioner of the Buddha’s teachings with dragons and tigers tattooed on his body; that would be slandering the Buddha’s teachings. I wouldn't do such a thing. Since I wanted to change, I had to change thoroughly. So I risked the danger and had all my tattoos removed, including shaving off my messily dyed hair. I changed into ordinary clothes and returned to my original, pure appearance.

As soon as I arrived home, I knelt at the door and shouted into the house, 'Grandpa! Grandma! Your unfilial grandson Ah Long is back!' There was no response from inside. I continued to shout, 'Grandpa! Grandma! Your unfilial grandson Ah Long is back!' At this moment, a voice came from the house: 'Who is calling so loudly outside?' It was my grandmother's voice. Upon hearing her voice, I almost cried. When Grandma saw me, she paused, then walked up to me and asked, 'Are you Ah Long?' I looked up at her and said, 'I am Ah Long.' Grandma immediately burst into tears, hugged me, and said, 'It is good that you are back! It is good that you are back! Don't kneel, get up quickly! Grandma will go cook some pig trotter noodles for you.' I quickly stopped her and said, 'Grandma, I have become a vegetarian now; I don't eat pig trotters.' Grandma looked at me in shock and asked, 'You are a vegetarian?' I told her, 'I am learning the Buddha’s teachings now. I chant the Buddha's name and sutras every day, and I have made a vow to be a vegetarian and no longer eat meat.' Although Grandma didn't chant, she knew I was on the right path. She reached out and touched my face, saying, 'Ah Long, you have really come back. Grandma is so happy!' I asked her, 'Where is Grandpa? Why don't I see him?' Grandma told me, 'Your grandfather is not well and is in the hospital. I have to take food to him later. Your eldest uncle is taking care of him now.' I told her, 'I will go with you later; I want to see Grandpa.'

When we arrived at the hospital, it was full of the smell of medicine. Grandpa was lying on the hospital bed with his eyes wide open, and my uncle next to him was fast asleep from exhaustion. I called out, 'Grandpa!' He looked at me and asked, 'Who are you?' Grandma walked in from behind and quickly said to him, 'He is our grandson Ah Long! Can't you recognise him?' Grandpa thought for a moment before he remembered and said to me, 'Ah Long! You are Ah Long! How have you changed so much that Grandpa couldn't even recognise you!' I took Grandpa's hand and apologised to him. He said to me, 'Silly grandson, Grandpa knows. It is good that you are back.' My uncle was woken up by us, and I said to him, 'I will take care of Grandpa from now on.' Upon hearing this, my uncle's eyes suddenly became very bright. He smiled, patted my shoulder, and said, 'Your grandfather didn't love you in vain after all!'

A New Life of Service

Under my careful care, Grandpa was soon discharged. Back home, there was the familiar sound of the radio and the familiar broadcast station. Grandma was still picking vegetables under the eaves. At this time, I no longer ran around like before. Instead, I chanted the Buddha's name, quietly chanting every day. I also introduced the Buddha’s teachings to my grandparents and taught them to often chant 'Namo Amituofo.'

After returning to my hometown, I had to find a job to earn money so I could be filial to my grandparents and not let them support me. After looking for a few jobs, I finally decided to open an umbrella shop. It often rains in our mountainous area, so it is very suitable for selling umbrellas. I didn't open an ordinary umbrella shop; my umbrellas had various patterns. Whether it was children, young people, middle-aged people, or the elderly, they could definitely find a suitable umbrella in my shop. After learning the Buddha’s teachings, I also learned to be an honest person, so the umbrellas I sold were of a certain quality, and I wouldn't sell them at too high a price out of greed. I also played the Buddha-name in the shop, so the customers who patronised my shop knew I was an honest practitioner who chanted the Buddha's name and an honest businessman. Gradually, more and more people came to buy umbrellas from me, and my business grew better and better.

In our area, afternoon thunderstorms often occur suddenly. Many people often forget to bring umbrellas. When they walked past my shop, I would give them an umbrella so they wouldn't get wet. They would often say, 'I will bring it back later.' I would tell them, 'No need to return it! Just consider it a karmic connection between us. Remember to chant Namo Amituofo.' I really liked my job; I could sell umbrellas and save sentient beings by teaching them to chant the Buddha's name. I would also put some items for karmic connection in my shop, allowing people to take them freely to learn about the Buddha’s teachings. I learned to practise Generosity, using the money I earned each month to make offerings to the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha, and also to give to the vulnerable groups in society who needed help. Since I transformed, I told myself that I must do more good deeds to make up for the mistakes I had made in the past. When Grandpa and Grandma passed away, I was the one who performed the chanting for them. I don't know if they went to a good place, but I just earnestly chanted the Buddha's name to send them off and taught them that they must follow the chanting.

The Rain God's Mission

I lived to be sixty-three. After falling ill, I passed away in the hospital. Before I died, I was still chanting the Buddha's name, but my consciousness was already a bit unclear. After my spirit left my body, I saw light and thought it was the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss, but it was the Heaven Realm. The Jade Emperor appointed me as the Rain God to continue protecting my hometown area, making it rain when it should rain and not making it rain when it shouldn't, so as to maintain the appropriate amount of water.

Now, I have the opportunity to know the Buddha again. I am so happy and feel that I have great blessings. When I saw Practitioner Su, I kept chanting, 'Namo Amituofo, Namo Amituofo, Namo Amituofo...' I am very grateful to the Buddha and to Practitioner Su. If Practitioner Su had not come to save us, it would have been very difficult for us Taiwanese people to escape this calamity. Not only would countless insects, animals, and aquatic creatures have died, but we Taiwanese people would also have faced many problems, because water is truly too important for human beings!

When I saw the scene of Practitioner Su's deliverance, I was moved to tears. This was the first time I knew that one could learn such skills in the Buddha’s teachings to help sentient beings. The Dharma Body of Practitioner Su was continuously performing deliverance across the entire sky of Taiwan, saving all sentient beings on land, in the sea, and in the air. They were densely packed, without a single gap, which shows how many spirits there were who had never had the chance to be saved from space until the Dharma Body of Practitioner Su could help them. These beings had suffered for too long; upon seeing the golden light, they all followed it.

Before I was assigned the task by the Jade Emperor, I was also chanting and praying. When I received the order to make it rain in Taiwan, I immediately came along with other gods. I am in charge of rain, and the Jade Emperor put me in charge of the rainfall in the northern region. After bringing down enough rainfall, I completed this mission and was able to be led by Practitioner Su to the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss. This is truly my greatest blessing, and I feel a heart of gratitude. I am grateful for the compassion of the Buddha. I am grateful for the compassion of Practitioner Su. Namo Amituofo."

Chen Zhonglong

Memorial Tablet: Rain God for the drought in Taiwan and the deliverance of the northern region, the creatures brought by the Rain God, the spirits of large and small raindrops, the beings with karmic affinity in the space of Taiwan's rainfall, and the insects and creatures injured, immeasurable in number, represented by: Chen Zhonglong (seeking recovery, seeking purification, seeking deliverance)