Stories from Ancient China: Benefiting from Chanting Buddha's Name

Since ancient times, there have been countless cases both in China and abroad in which people have benefited from chanting Buddha's name and believing in Buddha. The following is an event that took place in the Eastern Wei Period (534 AD - 550 AD) in the Southern and Northern Dynasties (420 AD - 589 AD). A gentleman named Sun Jingde lived in Dingzhou (a city currently in Hebei Province). He believed in Buddha and built a statue of Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara, which he set out at home and paid respect to. Later on, he was framed and imprisoned. He could not stand the torture and had to admit to things he did not do. He was sentenced to death. One night, he dreamt of a monk, who told him to chant, "Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara, the Savior," one thousand times. When he woke up, he started chanting immediately.

When he was taken to the execution ground, Sun Jingde had chanted her name a thousand times. Still, he continued to chant silently in his heart. When he was to be executed and the knife hit his neck, he did not feel much pain. There was no blood, and his skin was not cut at all. However, the knife broke into three pieces. The executioner changed the knife twice, and the same thing happened. The executioner was scared and sat on the ground; he was having difficulty getting up. The supervising official had to suspend the execution. The official then reported this incident to the central government. Gao Huan, the prime minister, immediately filed a request to absolve Sun Jingde's death sentence. Sun received amnesty and was released home.

When he returned home, he respectfully worshipped the statue of Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara. He found that there were three cuts from a knife on the neck of the statue. He was so moved that tears poured from his eyes. He knelt down and did not stop kowtowing.

The central government issued an order to transcribe the Scripture of Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara, which is called the High King Scripture of Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara. According to the documentary Mingxiangji, countless people had been saved from life-threatening incidents by chanting the names of Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara, Ksitigabhra, Maitreya, and Buddha Amitabha since the Jin Dynasty (265 AD - 420 AD) and the Southern and Northern Dynasties.

From this historical event, I thought about today's Falun Dafa practitioners, who persuade people to recite "Falun Dafa is good," which brings unexpected benefits. For example, some people suffering from severe illnesses have been cured completely, some have gotten out of disasters in cars or other accidents unscathed, or some have enjoyed peace and harmony in their families ever since. There have been many examples. As long as one is sincere, chanting "Falun Dafa is good" is beneficial and causes no harm. The principle remains the same from ancient to modern times, which manifests in the compassion and boundless divine power of Buddha.