After riding a dilapidated motorcycle and calling out in each village, he sometimes passed through Xianghe Valley. Although A Mang was poor, he was very kind-hearted. He knew that there were tofu makers in Xianghe Valley, and he was afraid of taking away their livelihood, so he just passed by without shouting for business. It was destined that he and Xiang翁 had a connection. One day, he saw some poems written on the walls of several small houses. As he read them, he felt greatly inspired and inquired about the person who wrote these poems. Thus, he became friends with Xiang翁. From then on, whenever he passed through Xianghe Valley, he always forgot to give Xiang翁 a piece of tofu and seize the opportunity to chat with him for a few sentences.
One day, A Mang brought his two neighbors from the same village, A Cao and A Zhi. A Mang persuaded them to chant Buddha's name, but they asked why chanting could lead to Buddhahood. Unable to answer, A Mang brought them to ask Xiang翁 for guidance.
Xiang翁 said to the three people: "I am just an ordinary layman who studies Buddhism, not a Dharma teacher. I cannot really provide guidance or give lectures well. But since you have come here, I will explain as simply as possible."
"The principle is actually very simple," Xiang翁 explained, "What you chant becomes what you achieve."
A Zhi asked, "How can chanting something make you become it?"
Xiang翁 replied, "Chanting isn't just verbal repetition; it's more important to chant in your heart, which means yearning and longing for it constantly. This is called recollection. As long as you truly yearn and long for it, you will develop in this direction."
A Cao asked, "Isn't Buddhism about letting go? Why do you say we should not let go?"
Xiang翁 answered, "Buddhism encourages us to let go of worldly thoughts, discriminatory thoughts, greedy desires, and attachments. Only by letting go of these thoughts that mislead us can we focus on the right path and concentrate on the Buddha. In this life, whatever you cannot let go of will determine where you are reborn after death."
"But how can we verify this? Shouldn't there be some signs that we commoners can understand?" A Cao still had doubts.
Xiang翁 explained, "In fact, where a person will be reborn after death can be seen through their behavior during life and their condition at the moment of death. It's just that most people are not good at observing."
"How do people say that when alive, one is human, and when dead, one becomes a ghost?" A Zhi asked.
Xiang翁 responded, "Most people become ghosts after death because most believe in ghosts, think about ghosts, and want to be ghosts. There's no way around it. Look at the people in this world; most love to tell lies, speak nonsense, have evil intentions, deceive others, plot against each other, hide ulterior motives, and scheme secretly. Even in broad daylight, they engage in ghostly activities. These people already have a ghost-like aura while they are still alive. They often care deeply about their post-death residence, considering feng shui, orientation, and geographical location. They plan where they will reside after death and hope that relatives and friends will burn paper money, offer cigarettes and alcohol, child sacrifices, cattle and horses, cars, and other cherished items for them after they die. Clearly, they are always thinking about becoming ghosts and don't believe in any other place besides the ghost realm after death. This is called believing in ghosts, thinking about ghosts, and being firmly convinced of it, inevitably becoming ghosts. Their dreams are usually dark and gloomy, frequently dreaming of ghosts or deceased loved ones. These are signs of the ghost realm. Such people are particularly superstitious, worshiping mysterious and supernatural things. They are interested in special abilities, prefer fortune-telling, divination, and seeking omens. Even if they believe in Buddhism, they don't understand its true meaning, mixing Buddhas and Bodhisattvas with strange forces. They bow before every temple and pray to every god. To them, mountain spirits, earth deities, tree spirits, fox immortals, are all supreme deities. If they talk about practice, they prefer minor methods, love to follow the crowd and enjoy various magical techniques. Any folk 'master' can easily influence them, making them spin around. They think they are studying Buddhism and practicing Daoism, but unknowingly, they have become followers of demons. At the time of death, their minds are confused, unstable, and unclear, often seeing deceased relatives or demons coming to welcome them. These are signs of becoming ghosts."
"What kind of people can return as humans?" A Cao asked.
Xiang翁 said, "Despite the hardships and dissatisfaction of being human, obtaining a human body is still worth celebrating. Once losing the human form and falling into the three lower realms—hell, hungry ghosts, and animals—it may take countless lifetimes to regain a human body. However, for those who already possess a human body, preserving it isn't too difficult. Comparatively speaking, the number of people who can remain human is still pitifully small compared to those who become ghosts. To obtain a human body again, certain conditions must be met, and most people do not possess these conditions. The best method is to rely on the Three Jewels—Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha—and strictly adhere to the Five Precepts: no killing, no stealing, no sexual misconduct, no lying, and no intoxication. Truly relying on the Three Jewels prevents one from falling into the three lower realms and plants seeds for liberation in the next life. Not killing leads to longevity and fewer illnesses in the next life; not stealing leads to wealth and secure finances; not engaging in sexual misconduct leads to harmonious and stable family relationships, avoiding karmic entanglements, and having virtuous offspring; not lying leads to trust and respect from others; not drinking leads to proper conduct, preventing madness and mental illness. If one does not rely on the Three Jewels but can still follow these five precepts, one can still obtain a human body, but it is uncertain whether one will encounter the Dharma and gain liberation in the next life."
"Regardless of whether one believes in Buddhism or has faith or not," Xiang翁 continued, "those who can return as humans share some common characteristics: they are loyal, upright, practical in their work, speak human language, do human deeds, value humanity, uphold personal integrity, maintain ethical relationships, and have upright character. Although they are not free from the various mistakes and flaws of ordinary people, their overall tendency is towards goodness, with noble aspirations, a love for life, confidence, self-respect, not blindly following superstitions, grounded in reality, disliking empty talk and metaphysical discussions, disapproving of the bizarre and supernatural, enthusiastic about earthly pursuits, respecting science, and valuing tangible objective realities visible and touchable in the present. In short, they are mainly interested in the space and matters of this 'real' world. They only seek peace of mind and have no strong attachment to their post-death destination. At the time of death, they remain mentally clear and can make arrangements for unfinished matters, but they cannot let go of their beloved careers. These characteristics indicate that they believe in and yearn for humanity, thus being reborn as humans. Regarding the art of being human, Confucian classics are indeed perfect. If one follows the teachings of Confucius and Mencius, one will surely live a complete life. Building upon this foundation to study Buddhism and cultivate the Dao will not lead to significant deviations, ensuring ultimate success. If one does not know how to be a human yet talks extravagantly about studying Buddhism and cultivating the Dao, it undoubtedly leads to the demonic path. Therefore, in Buddhist teachings, it is said that before achieving Buddhahood, one must first learn to be human."
A Zhi asked, "It's understandable to yearn for ghosts or humans, but animals? Who would willingly yearn to be an animal?"
Xiang翁 replied, "Many yearn to be animals. Among the six realms, ghosts and animals are the most numerous. Animals refer to creatures, haven't you heard people say they'll repay debts by being cows or horses in their next life? This is just one kind of yearning. Animals lack wisdom, and those who are foolish among humans have the deepest connection with the animal realm. These people are dull-witted, lacking wisdom, ambition, ideals, and faith, living like walking corpses. They have theories, and their theory is 'Life is about eating and drinking,' 'Seize the day,' 'Death is like extinguishing a lamp,' 'People die for wealth, birds die for food,' 'If today there is wine, drink today drunk, who cares about tomorrow?' They don't even care about tomorrow, let alone future generations turning into oxen, horses, birds, or insects. They live laboriously, boringly, and emptily, working, eating, earning money through labor, playing mahjong, watching TV, raising fighting cocks or walking dogs, engaging in promiscuous relationships to pass the time. Emotionally, they may be very devoted, but overly attached, clinging desperately, like Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai, who turned into butterflies due to their obsession, and in the next life, they might turn into caterpillars, praised by people. Clearly, many yearn to be animals. Their interests and professions are mostly related to animals—raising cattle, sheep, chickens, ducks, cats, foxes, pigs, dogs, slaughtering, hunting, fishing, training eagles, bullfighting, cricket fighting, snake charming, monkey shows, keeping various pets, loving them endlessly, thinking about them day and night. The more ignorant and deluded ones are dazed during the day and dreamless at night, their consciousness aimless at the time of death, vaguely reincarnating as animals. They will prioritize rebirth as the animals they are most attached to—buyers being bought, killers being killed, anglers being caught, hunters being hunted, eaters being eaten, performers being performed, favored ones being favored, each according to their karma, repaying debts sequentially."
Upon hearing this, A Mang became puzzled: "Xiang翁, your explanation is crystal clear, but I have a question. Would those who do good, protect animals, rescue abandoned animals also fall into the animal realm?"
Xiang翁 said, "These are different cases. What I described earlier refers to treating animals with greed, whereas the situations you mentioned stem from compassion and sympathy. Different motivations lead to different results. The former is a fault, the latter merits merit. This is akin to how Buddhas and Bodhisattvas save sentient beings out of compassion—they do not fall into the suffering realms but elevate their own practice. Loving, protecting, rescuing, and adopting animals is a great endeavor, enhancing one's personality and making it more noble and complete. This is the behavior of kind-hearted individuals and also of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas."
A Zhi asked, "Xiang翁, you say that what you yearn for is what you become. Is there such a thing as yearning for hell?"
Xiang翁 replied, "Yearning doesn't just mean longing; fear is also a form of yearning. When you photograph something, the image of that thing keeps appearing before your eyes, impossible to dispel. Yearning for hell works similarly. Those who fall into hell aren't the dull-witted ones; they only have a connection with animals. Those who fall into hell are clever, shrewd, and even those who consider themselves knowledgeable. They commit evil acts and escape deserved punishment in this world; some evils others may not even know about. Yet, the terrifying part is that they are fully aware of their actions. Despite pretending to be indifferent in front of others, once alone, the horrifying scenes immediately surface, disturbing their peace and causing restlessness. Thus, they become fearful of silence, restless, and try every possible way to comfort and numb themselves, all of which prove ineffective. They live in constant terror, panic, conflict, guilt, and anxiety. Even with immense wealth and high status, burying themselves in debauchery brings no relief. Everywhere becomes their mental hell. At night, it's worse; dreams are filled with being pursued, arrested, tortured, often waking up startled. Escaping to distant lands or foreign countries offers no help; dreams always bring them back to the scene of their crimes, which is the projection of hell. Upon death, these projections become real, undeniable. In front of others, they act arrogantly, denying cause and effect, refusing to believe in the existence of hell. Ironically, this denial and disbelief are forms of fear, another way of acknowledging and yearning. The power of this negative yearning is often stronger than positive yearning. As the saying goes, what you fear comes to you, the more you fear, the more it comes. Before death, these people display various ominous signs—screaming, convulsions, bulging eyes, open mouths, bleeding from seven orifices, emitting foul odors, infested with countless lice, flies, maggots, etc., impossible to remove. Some suffer from various chronic diseases or die violently and unexpectedly, which the common people call 'not dying peacefully.'"
"As for Asuras," Xiang翁 continued without waiting for their questions, "Asuras are one of the six realms. Asuras are also known as non-gods, possessing divine blessings but lacking divine virtues, having ugly appearances, fond of fighting, and strong jealousy."
A Zhi asked, "Can those without virtue enjoy divine blessings? What kind of people can be reborn as Asuras?"
Xiang翁 said, "Indeed, such people exist. They have great energy and intelligence but a large temper, fond of fighting and killing, feeling uncomfortable without struggle. They like to stand up for justice, being generous and righteous, willing to rob the rich to help the poor, support the weak, but due to their combative nature, they are arrogant and always strive to outdo others. They also do great good deeds, but not out of altruism, rather due to their love for fame, enjoying people's praise and having strong jealousy. Good deeds must be done by them, and recognition must belong to them. Once they find someone more capable and admired than themselves, they will stop at nothing to destroy that person. They are suspicious, able to endure hardship but not prosperity; they have a strong desire for power and a heavy sense of responsibility, liking to control the world. They consider themselves correct, claiming heroism or even saviorship when victorious, and meeting death with dignity when defeated. They vow to continue striving in the next life without regrets. These people, due to their good karma, become gods after death, enjoying divine blessings but having ugly appearances due to their arrogance and suspicion, and causing unrest in heaven due to their jealousy and combativeness."
Xiang翁 paused briefly and continued, "Actually, Asuras span multiple realms. Besides heavenly Asuras, human Asuras are warlike individuals and terrorists, animal Asuras include tigers, wolves, pythons, crocodiles, and ghostly Asuras include powerful ghost kings and flying yakshas."
"Asura-natured people often fight in dreams, especially when defeated, uttering grandiose words like 'Twenty years later, I'll be a hero again.' This is yearning for the Asura realm, but they cannot ascend to heaven. The successful ones might return to the human realm to avenge grievances, while the unsuccessful ones end up as fierce beasts or evil ghosts."
Upon hearing this, A Mang and the others laughed.
"Speaking of the heavenly realm," Xiang翁 continued, "it is already quite difficult to regain a human body, and even harder to ascend to heaven, with perhaps one in millions achieving it. To ascend to heaven, one must strictly adhere to the Five Precepts, diligently practice the Ten Wholesome Deeds, accumulate abundant merit and virtue, and have no attachment to the human realm. Carefully observing, such people are gentle and respectful; they are enthusiastic about public welfare, building roads, bridges, aiding the poor, constructing temples, helping the disabled, resolving disputes, releasing lives, widely giving alms, explaining the law of cause and effect, encouraging goodness, promoting the classics of sages, enlightening people, practicing frugality and cherishing blessings, and loving nature. They live with gratitude, finding joy in giving, finding peace in losing, giving alms without expecting returns, doing good without seeking recognition. They follow rules, abide by heavenly principles, believing that people can deceive, but heaven cannot. This is called yearning for heaven. In their dreams, they often see celestial phenomena, light, flowers, and various auspicious things. Before death, they foresee the time and arrange their posthumous affairs. If they have property or collections, they generally instruct to donate them to the state or charitable organizations, leaving only a small portion for family basic needs. They have no attachment to funeral arrangements, thinking that in this life, all responsibilities have been fulfilled, all experiences undergone, all lessons learned, all debts repaid, and all owed forgotten. They have not wasted this life, feel no regret, and have nothing to hold onto, thus maintaining a peaceful mindset. At the time of death, they often see heavenly palaces, hear pleasant celestial music, and experience superior realms, feeling joy, smiling, and sometimes emitting fragrance. These are signs of ascending to heaven as good deities. Being a heavenly being still remains within the cycle of the six realms; once divine blessings are exhausted, they will fall into suffering realms. Therefore, to permanently escape the cycle and attain eternal bliss, the best method for us ordinary people is to chant the Buddha's name and be reborn in the Pure Land."
Upon hearing this, A Cao lacked confidence, saying, "According to what you, Xiang翁, have said, becoming a heavenly being requires such high conditions, wouldn't it be even harder to reach the Western Pure Land?"
Xiang翁 said, "What I previously explained were the principles of rebirth in the six realms. From these situations, you can understand that a person's rebirth after death depends not only on their lifetime of good and evil karma but also significantly on their thoughts. My explanation is to make you realize the power of thought. Actually, yearning for heaven, humans, ghosts, Asuras, and hell are all conscious or unconscious yearnings, with karma's inertia and attraction playing the main role. Chanting the Buddha's name is different. The Western Pure Land is built by the great compassionate vows of Amitabha Buddha, who continuously emits light to guide us. We just need sincere and earnest devotion, focusing solely on chanting, never forgetting, and supported by the merits of the Five Precepts and Ten Wholesome Deeds, we will certainly be guided by the Buddha to be reborn in the Pure Land. Let me give you an analogy: ascending to heaven is like climbing a cliff by oneself, which the weak cannot do; chanting the Buddha's name is like a rope thrown down from the top of the cliff. We pull the rope, putting effort below while being pulled above, even the weak can easily ascend. Our efforts are our merits and virtues, and the rope is chanting the Buddha's name. As long as we hold tightly onto this rope without letting go, combining our own efforts with external assistance, we will surely ascend. Do you agree?"
All three nodded enthusiastically.
A Mang said, "So, it seems that heaven, hell, and the Pure Land are all created by thoughts."
Xiang翁 said, "Not just heaven, hell, and the Pure Land, even this seemingly solid human world, rivers, and mountains are all creations of lifelong thoughts and karma. If one day you awaken, you will find that everything is empty. Despite being empty, due to our creative thoughts, various realms and forms appear genuinely. If we can truly let go of all worldly attachments and wholeheartedly chant the Buddha's name, ultimately achieving rebirth, when the flowers bloom and we see the Buddha, we will discover that the Pure Land is as real as this world, though its superiority and beauty are hard for us mortals to imagine. For information about the Pure Land and issues regarding chanting the Buddha's name, you should read the 'Five Pure Land Sutras.' I have merely provided a convenient explanation based on your specific circumstances and understanding ability, which may not be entirely accurate. In summary, it has been challenging."
A Mang and the others, after listening to Xiang翁's words, deeply believed in the practice of chanting the Buddha's name, strengthened their faith, and returned home happily.
Later, it was heard that many people in A Mang's village followed them in studying Buddhism.
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