After eight years of studying the Shurangama Sutra, his enemies and relatives were liberated and ascended to heaven
Excerpted from "Recollections of Shadows and Dust" by Master Tanxu
Liu Wenhua read the Shurangama Sutra like a possessed person, often praying to the Buddha for whole nights, and sure enough, he got a miraculous effect!
One day he was reading the Shurangama Sutra in a pharmacy. Opposite him sat a man named Huang Pinzhi, who was the accountant of the pharmacy. The two of them were very close to each other. Huang was writing accounts with his head down, while Liu Wenhua was reading the Sutra as if he was in meditation, and his mind suddenly became clear!
In the bright light, a realm appeared: there were mountains, rivers, earth, pavilions and palaces, surrounding railings, all clear and transparent, just like a world of glaze; there were also some heavenly dragons, ghosts and gods, and the Eight Dharma protectors, each holding a precious pestle in their hands, waiting in the void. The filthy world he usually lived in was completely out of sight! Liu Wenhua felt very puzzled and strange! Just when he was watching intently, two ghosts suddenly appeared, and these two ghosts knew Liu Wenhua.
"Please have mercy!" the two ghosts said, "We've come to beg you to liberate us."
Liu Wenhua thought: Since they want me to liberate them, they certainly won't want me to pay for my life.
But then, hesitantly, he said to the two ghosts, "I haven't liberated myself yet, how can I liberate you?" Alas! The two ghosts pleaded, "If you can just say yes, we can step on your shoulders and ascend to heaven."
Liu Wenhua thought: Since they don't want me to pay with my life, I can just promise them a word and they can still ascend to heaven, so why not do it? He agreed casually, "Okay!" The two ghosts walked over, stepped on his shoulders, and ascended to heaven together.
Soon after, his dead wife also arrived, holding a little girl in her arms. This time, unlike the two ghosts before, she was very happy when she came to him! She threw the little girl to the ground and kowtowed, begging for salvation. Liu Wenhua agreed, and his woman and the child ascended to heaven by stepping on his shoulders.
Liu Wenhua was very surprised at this time, not knowing what was happening. Suddenly, his deceased parents also came. They were very happy to see him. Without kneeling, they exchanged a few words and then stepped on his shoulders and ascended to heaven.
Liu Wenhua saw all these states clearly; he also remembered very clearly what they said to each other, but he had no idea what was going on. While pondering this, the visions suddenly vanished.
Liu Wenhua thought that Mr. Huang could also see the scene just now, but on the contrary, he did not see it. Liu knew that it was his own secret, so he kept silent.
Later, he told me all these things clearly and privately. At that time, I told him: This is the work of breaking the consciousness Skandha! After the consciousness Skandha is broken, you can often see this state. Doesn't the "Shurangama Sutra" say: "The light does not fade, and what was hidden before is now revealed. This is the region of the consciousness skandha. If he has become identical with the beckoning masses, he may obliterate the individuality of the six gates and succeed in uniting and opening them. Seeing and hearing become linked so that they function interchangeably and purely. The worlds of the ten directions and his own body and mind are as bright and transparent as Vaidurya. This is the end of the consciousness skandha. This person can then transcend the turbidity of life spans. " The Heart Sutra also says: "Seeing that the five Skandha are empty." If you have put in a lot of effort in reading the sutra and do not become attached to the five Skandha, then encountering this kind of state will not be a big deal. However, while you must concentrate on studying the sutra, don't be obsessed with it. If you are obsessed, you will become possessed.
