Blog » Dharma Friends » Responses from Buddha recitations » Remembrance of My Father’s Rebirth
Remembrance of My Father’s Rebirth2013-01-10
By Kai Wen Lo
Translation By Laura Lin
June of this year, my father experienced sudden pain around his waist, and he couldn’t eat. Within one month, he lost around ten kilograms. He was admitted to Taipei’s General Veteran’s Hospital many times. Finally, in September, he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. According to his doctor, this type of cancer worsens very quickly. Usually, a patient with this illness only lives for another six months. Although my entire family didn’t lose hope, we were finally defeated by the disease. My father peacefully passed away at the end of October. From when he first got ill to when he passed away, many inconceivable events as described in the Sutras occurred. Therefore, I put these events together to share with everyone.
1. The Six Principles formed the foundation of my father’s faith:
My father was an introvert, he considered carefully before he acted, and he was a very responsible person. Ever since we were children, my father taught my brother, my sister, and me never take advantage of others and never flatter others to further our own benefits. Also, he taught us not to add to another person’s burden. Because my father sincerely respected the Venerable Master Hua’s merit and virtue, he took refuge with the Venerable Master in 1994. From then on, my father recited the Earth Store Sutra, the Heart Sutra and the Buddha’s name daily.
2. I constantly reminded my father to maintain his faith:
During my father’s stay in the hospital, the suffering that he went through was beyond description. When he realized that his illness was incurable, he was determined to be reborn in the Pure Land. I put a recording of the Buddha’s name next to my father’s bedside, and it played continuously. I frequently described the scene of the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss to my father. I also told him that the relationships in the Saha world are temporary, only his Dharma companions in the Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss are permanent. One day when my father woke up, he felt a lot of pain. However, he saw a circle of yellow light about one foot in diameter on the ceiling. All of the sudden, he experienced comfort all over his body. Since then, his faith was even firmer.
3. Manifestation of negative karma could not be ignored:
Eight days before my father passed away, he dreamed that many people were chasing him to kill him. When he woke up, he was very disturbed. When my friend told me over the phone that the Three Thousand Buddhas Repentance was taking place at Taipei’s Dharma Realm Buddhist Books Distribution Society, my family rushed over and set up a “Plaque to Repay Those We Owe”on behalf of my father. The next day, my father dreamed that there was an individual who blocked those who were trying to kill him. On the third day, in his dreams, my father saw that his intended killers had smiles on their faces and appeared to be joyful, and they stopped seeking retribution from him. My father’s experience was similar to the teachings in the Earth Store Sutra where it describes what a person experiences before he passes away. Everyone should be mindful of this.
4. Letting go of everything and passing away amid recitation of the Buddha’s name:
On October 25, my father’s illness worsened very quickly. Following my mother’s reminder, my father even used his very hoarse voice to call out Amitabha Buddha’s name two hours before his passing. It was incredibly touching! I told my father not to worry about the family, to let go of everything, and to concentrate on reciting the Buddha’s name in his mind. At that time, my entire family started to recite the Buddha’s name. When I saw my father’s last breath, it was as if a knife cut my heart while it broke into thousands of pieces, and I felt as if there were explosions all around me. However, I remembered the words of Great Master Yin Kuang , so I continued to recite the Buddha’s name with tears in my eyes. Under the compassionate assistance of Dharma Masters Heng Yun , Heng Tsai and others, the Dharma brothers of Dharma Realms Buddhist Books Distribution Society were contacted right away. They were very organized and took turns to recite the Buddha’s name on my father’s behalf. Due to their efforts, my father reached the Western Pure Land smoothly, and my family is deeply grateful.
5. Amitabha Buddha appeared and radiated thousands of rays of golden light:
When my family started to recite the Buddha’s name, my younger brother smelled the scent of fragrant flowers in the hospital room, and my younger sister saw Amitabha Buddha manifesting an incredibly large body from afar while emitting golden light. Even more surprisingly, she saw our father walking slowly towards Amitabha. At that time, my sister thought there was something wrong with her, so she left the room to get a drink of water and to take deep breaths. When she went back to the room and closed her eyes to resume her recitation, the scene she saw earlier returned. Our father was closer to Amitabha, and he appeared to be getting smaller. My sister left the room again to get a drink of water and to take deep breaths. When she returned to the room, she saw my father’s hair fell off, and he was wearing a black robe as he got on a lotus to leave. What is also worth mentioning is my sister’s description of Amitabha. She said the Buddha’s head is the color of loyal blue and he had many flesh mounds on the crown of his head. She also said that our father appeared to be very small next to Amitahba. Two days after my father’s passing, my sister continued to smell wondrous fragrance. My brother and sister are not true Buddhist disciples. They know very little about Amitabha and the Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. Without the kindness and compassion of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, my brother and sister would not have experienced such auspicious states.
