News Magazine NO.37

International Report

Report From Paris, France

The Divine Love Of An Enlightened
Master Subtly Nourishes Everything

It was a rainy spring when Master came to Europe last year on Her preaching tour. The refreshing showers cleansed the sky over Paris, while Master purified people's hearts silently with Her loving nectar.

A year has gone by. To their delightful surprise, fellow practitioners noticed that they have all progressed a big step towards the level of truth, virtue and beauty, both within and without. Besides, Master's almighty power has also made unexpected changes to the atmosphere around them.

A French lady received some of Master's books and News magazines and was very excited after reading them, feeling as if she has found a bosom friend. She told our fellow initiate, "Master Ching Hai's elaborations on religions, life and the cosmos are very logical, profound yet easy to understand. Really incredible!" She introduced the books and magazines to her son, and together they discussed Master's teachings.

Recently, she listened to the live interviews of Master and fellow initiates by a reporter from the French "Here and Now" radio program, during the International Human Rights Conference in Taipei, Formosa. The next day, she told this fellow initiate, "I listened to the radio broadcast, and now know that Master Ching Hai is toiling and appealing to save the Au Lac refugees.

The Au Lac refugee issue has existed for many years, but has gradually been forgotten because it is seldom mentioned. Fortunately, Master Ching Hai reminded us not to forget the endless suffering and misery of the refugees. I admire Master Ching Hai very much."

The mother of another fellow initiate is now living in Mainland China. She has been a communist for decades, yet within one year after acquiring Master's teachings, she renounced communism which has been her life long ideal and believes in the Quan Yin Method instead. Everybody found this incredible.

Recently, this mother sent a letter to our initiate, saying, "Through the frequent reading of Master's magazines, I have benefited a great deal. I am more healthy and energetic both in body and mind.... I may be alone here, but I do not feel lonely.... I believe in the same Quan Yin Method that you believe in, and I am switching to a vegetarian diet...".

Our fellow practitioner was extremely delighted after reading this letter, because her wish of extending filialness to her mother finally came true. She also perceived another proof of Master's transcendental love, and the almighty power of the Quan Yin Method.

She is now more optimistic about the future of her home country, and has further affirmed her faith in following Master and practicing the Quan Yin Method. She thinks this is the righteous way for a human being to repay the grace bestowed upon them by their parents, their country and the world.

A non-initiate used to be very frustrated with his livelihood. After reading some of Master's books, his mind and appearance became entirely refreshed. Now, he always looks blissful, and has enrolled for the initiation.

There are so many similar incidents. Only the initiates understand that all these visible transformations are the results of Master's invisible efforts.

The Chinese poet Du Fu of Tang Dynasty wrote this celebrated verse:

The blessed rain comes in the right season, In spring to help everything grow.
With the wind,
It falls unnoticed in the night,
In silence, it nourishes everything.

Like the timely spring rain praised by Du Fu, Master's compassionate nectar is silently nourishing everything on Earth!

Report From France

Radio Saigon In France Broadcasted
The News About The Refugees

On May 2, 1994, Radio Saigon in France, on a program called "Free News", broadcasted an article written by a human rights organization, Boat People S.O.S., entitled "The Truth About The Brutal Suppression Of Au Lac Refugees In Section 7 Of The Whitehead Detention Center". The article revealed the brutal actions of the Hong Kong Government on April 7th. Trampling International Law, they violently suppressed the Au Lac refugees. The program also conveyed the refugees' appeal for help, to the whole world, and their determination of "Freedom or Death".

The article specifically mentioned that the International Supreme Master Ching Hai Meditation Associations strongly protested against the cruel forcible repatriation of the Au Lac refugees in Hong Kong. The petition letter, written by the Meditation Associations, was also cited. The article concluded by calling on all Au Lac people in France and Europe to take actions to save their compatriots.

Report from Belgium

New Brothers and Sisters

Recently, under the care of Master's love, a new batch of initiates of different nationalities and age groups, was born in Belgium. The day after the initiation, the new and old initiates joyfully organized a one-day retreat. In the days that followed, they held group meditation every evening at various initiates' homes. They treasured this precious opportunity very much. During the intermission between the meditation sessions, they also joined together to discuss Master's teachings and the problems they faced in spiritual practice. They have benefited tremendously from this mutual discussion and encouragement.

Report From Poland

Attending A Spiritual Festival

Every year the Polish magazine called "Not From This Earth" organizes a festival where they invite all kinds of spiritual groups, publishers, spiritual masters, practitioners and healers. During the festival they give lectures and held workshops.

Fellow initiates from Poland and Berlin joined the festival. They distributed Master's sample booklets to the people visiting the festival, and displayed Master's books, in many languages, photos, tapes and necklaces. There was also a TV set installed for everyone to watch Master's lectures.

The venue was full of Master's blessing power. Many people, after they had learned some of Master's teachings, decided to become vegetarian that day. The video tapes recording the daily life between Master and disciples were the most enjoyed. Everybody is very interested in Zen wisdom as revealed naturally in the life of an enlightened Master.

The very strong loving magnetic field of Master's vibration didn't leave along with the festival. It stayed there for many weeks. All the disciples could feel that Master wholeheartedly blessed Poland.

Report From New York, USA

A Day Full Of Energy And Love

The New York Center had a booth at a street fair on Second Avenue to exhibit Master's books, tapes, pictures, etc. Many sample booklets and magazines were given away to people with affinity.

At the end of the day we had run out of every booklet and magazine. Many people were interested in Master's teachings and had further discussions with the fellow practitioners. It was a beautiful day full of energy and love!

Report From Arizona, USA

Gospel From Prison

Arizona State Prison inmates in Tucson are now able to watch Master's video tapes and to read Master books in the prison library. The fellow practitioners are now also allowed to send our News magazine to the prison library every month for interested inmates.

One inmate in Echo unit, after he saw the name "The International Supreme Master Ching Hai Meditation Associations in Arizona" in the New Age Newspaper, he requested information about Master's teachings. Later while meeting with the fellow initiates, he asked the fellow initiates some spiritual questions and treasuringly showed the initiates his own photos of Master.

Fellow practitioners also gave Master's life sketch and introductory information about Master's teachings and our meditation associations to a group of chaplains working for the Arizona State Prison. The head chaplain was very impressed with the Quan Yin group. Before they left the chaplain stated that after knowing more about our Quan Yin practicing group, he was very glad that he and his fellow chaplains had had this opportunity of meeting us.

To him Master's teachings are very universal and he was hoping that our short meeting would help broaden some of the chaplains' conceptions about spirituality. He was also very pleased to accept our invitation to the Arizona center and hoped to meet Master one day if She comes to the State.

Report From Illinois, USA

Spreading Master's Teachings At A Bazaar

Fellow initiates in Illinois participated in the Annual Haihwa Cultural Season Bazaar promoted by the Formosan Coordination Council of North American Affairs and the Chinese in Chicago. Master's presence here earlier this year created an effect, similar to a series of cyclones, in the Chinese community. Most people already had some impression of Master through the mass media. Fellow initiates, besides spreading Master's teachings at the bazaar, also promoted the vegetarian diet.

Due to Master's miraculous arrangement, the location of our exhibition booth was perfectly situated where the visitors passed frequently. Many Americans, as well as Chinese, paused to watch video tapes of Master's lectures. Promoting the vegetarian food diet was a great success. Because of the freshness, cleanliness, attractive appearance and good taste of our vegetarian food, it aroused much public interest and was sold out in no time. The activities of the day were completed smoothly due to Master's blessings.

Report From Canada

Hunger Strike In Support Of the Refugees

In June of this year, fellow practitioners from different centers in Canada went on a hunger strike for several days in front of the offices of the United Nation High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada in Toronto. Earlier, a similar activity also came from Mr. Mike Milne, a Brampton, Ontario man. In February, he learned from the newspapers that the Au Lac refugees in Hong Kong, fighting for their freedom, were protesting against forced repatriation with hunger strikes. He was so touched that he also held a hunger strike trying to show his spiritual support on the grounds of humanitarianism.

The purpose of this hunger strike was also to enhance the awareness of the news media, the public and the Canadian government of the plight of Au Lac refugees, as well as to protest the forced repatriation policy and the inhumane actions of Hong Kong Government. This movement was jointly supported by fellow practitioners from the Canadian cities of London, Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa. Simultaneously some fellow practitioners were holding hunger sit-ins at home, to show their support. The local news media paid a great deal of attention to the whole activity. Most important of all, it roused the concern of many people from different fields for the Au Lac refugees, and gained a lot of feedback.

The day before the hunger strike started, CFPL TV station, based in London, Ontario, reported the event. The Evening News broadcasted some rare shots of life in the refugee camps. Ruth Dunley, a reporter from The London Free Press, interviewed some of these hunger strikers and published the report the following day.

On the first day of the hunger strike, Mr. Jim Chapman, the mid-day host of CKSL Radio station, based in London, Ontario, broadcasted live a half-hour telephone interview with the hunger strikers in Toronto. A member of parliament, Mr. Pat O'Brien, was invited to join this interview. He promised to take action to accelerate the process of finding a solution to this problem. This was the second time Mr. Chapman had discussed the issue of the plight of Au Lac refugees on his radio program within the last few weeks. He has already arranged another radio talk to review the reactions of the public on this issue.

On the following days, CFMT-TV, CFPL-TV and AM 680 Radio Station also covered the story of this hunger strike for the Au Lac refugees. At the same time, strikers distributed thousands of flyers to the people passing by and circulated a petition seeking support for Au Lac refugees. On the last day of this hunger strike, strikers requested an interview with the officers of UNHCR and the refugee board. Petitions from many people were submitted to the UNHCR officer.

Report From Sydney, AUSTRALIA

An Evening To Kindle Hope

To support and help the Au Lac boat people facing oppression and forcible repatriation, the Sydney fellow practitioners have recently been working hard, spreading the news about the refugees. They hope to rouse the concern of the Australian people.

The fellow practitioners mailed video tapes and related news about the Au Lac boat people to the Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister of Immigration, charity groups, TV and radio stations and the news media in Australia.

They also requested some groups and religious bodies to send protest letters to the Australian government, opposing the Hong Kong Government's brutal suppression the Au Lac boat people. Due to the earnest efforts of the fellow initiates, and because the CPA is going to close all refugee camps in Southeast Asia, the Free Au Lac Overseas Committee, together with many religious groups, various organizations and community associations, are organizing a conference to appeal to the Australian Government to show concern for and to help the refugees. An evening prayer gathering was held in Sydney on June 19. Attending were Australian Government civil servants, reporters from TV and radio stations, Australian and Au Lac newspapers, and many religious groups and community associations. The Australian TV channel SBS broadcasted the video recording provided by Vien Thao TV, covering the Hong Kong Government suppression of the Au Lac refugees on April 7.

An event called "An Evening To Kindle Hope", dedicated to the refugees, was held on June 25. Participants included representatives from religious groups and civil servants. Videotapes were shown depicting the agonizing situation in the Hong Kong refugee camps, and how Master, leading disciples from all over the world, conducted a peaceful sit-in in Hong Kong, protesting the inhumane suppression by the Hong Kong Government, and the irresponsible, apathetic attitude of the United Nations officers. Appeals were made to the people of the world to fight for the human rights of the Au Lac refugees. At the same time the boat people were encouraged to treasure their lives, instead of sacrificing their precious bodies in futility. "An Evening To Kindle Hope" provided an opportunity for many communities, religious groups and the general public to understand the desperate situation of the Au Lac refugees, and show Master's efforts in helping these desperate people.

Report From Melbourne, Australia

Greening The World And
Cleaning Human Hearts

In response to Master's instruction regarding cleaning the environment, Melbourne initiates perform this task on the last Sunday of each month, after group meditation.

Fellow initiates working with some enthusiastic non-initiates made an appointment with the park landscaper in northwestern Melbourne Park to plant trees and restore the park. They followed Master's example and worked diligently until the job was completed before resting. After completion, the park landscaper commented that the fellow initiates were extraordinary good workers and pleaded with them to return to help the following month.

Thanks to the inner Master's power, the work was accomplished smoothly. The organizer had commented that the Au Lac people were especially good at gardening and park maintenance, not knowing all was due to Master's blessings!

Fasting And Raising

Money To Help The Poor

Master once instructed us to help the homeless. The Melbourne initiates decided to raise some money for the poor and hungry by doing a 40 hour fast for World Vision Australia.

This involved going without food for 40 hours, in sympathy of all the people in this world who do not have enough food to eat. The fellow initiates asked friends, work mates and family members to sponsor them, during this short fast. The money collected by fellow practitioners from this activity was turned in to World Vision Australia to be distributed to the needy.

Report From Brisbane, Australia

Serving Others Is

Really Serving Ourselves

On the "Clean Up Australia Day", fellow practitioners from Brisbane, following Master's instruction to help clean the environment, went to the "Toohey Forest" to clean up the litter.

While cleaning up the forest, we all learned important lessons that by cleaning up rubbish left by other people, we were in fact cleaning up the litter we ourselves had dropped over the course of our lives.

The Clean-Up Day ended with the forest much cleaner, then many initiates stayed in a picnic area in the park to share a meal and enjoy the fellowship. The organizer from the Toohey Forest Preservation Society was interested in Master's teachings, and took with him a sample booklet. Later our meditation center received a letter of appreciation, for the fellow practitioners' efforts, from the President of the Society.

Report from Jakarta, Indonesia

Feedback from

the Meditation in the Park

During the holidays, initiates of the Jakarta center meditated in the park. In front of a sitting area, they displayed Master's photographs and sample booklets as well as played Her cassette tapes. Some visitors in the park approached requesting copies of the booklet; some students from the Islam University also came by to ask questions relating to spiritual practice. Besides the meditation activity in the park, the initiates also cleaned up litter in the surrounding areas of the park - this motivated the visitors to join in helping to clean the environment.

The initiates had donated Master's books to a local library. The librarian was very happy, and requested the initiates to provide more information about the Master so that she could distribute it to the public libraries in Jakarta.

Report From I-Lan, Formosa

New Trees Growing To Cool The Summer

Since this spring, I-Lan center has planted a few hundred camphor trees in the vicinity of the meditation hall - hoping to create a more comfortable and peaceful environment for meditation. Now, these trees have grown many new leaves, and the greenery has added its beauty to this land which was originally quite barren.

Periodically - following Master's instructions - fellow practitioners would organize cleanups of litter in public areas. The parks were the targets of our previous excursions; recently, on a Sunday, the initiates turned to the nearby beach. We enjoyed the scenery of the beach, and at the same time cleaned it by picking up the litter. Just before we were about to return, we stopped to observe the clean beach, along with the harmonious and peaceful sounds of sea waves; our minds became very clear and comfortable. We wish that the beauty of Formosa could be restored and also that the people of the world would clean up the litter of their minds thus turning the world into a pure land.

The center has just modified a mini-bus into a 'Dharma Propagation Vehicle'. The first round of the propagation activities was in the big square at the Cultural Center; videos of Master's discourses were shown. Besides the fixed location of the 'Dharma Propagation Vehicle', channel 4 television in I-Lan also broadcasts videos of Master's lectures at a scheduled time helping to develop an affinity with the community. Through the cleansing that comes from Master's wonderful teachings we believe that this will purify everyone's mind.

Report From Taipei, Formosa

Sunday Clean-Up Campaign

The Taipei branch center has decided to conduct a cleanup program in Sanchung City.

Through the cleaning process of the fellow initiates, the garbage soon disappeared. The tree shaded streets retrieved their cool and refreshing looks. Our fellow initiates are like a flowing river, immaculately cleaning every street they passed through.

Picking up garbage is just a simple job, yet through their earnest work, our fellow practitioners experienced the truth that spiritual practice is whatever we do in our daily lives. They have learned how to accomplish perfectly each task at hand.

Report From Penghu, Formosa

Cultivating A Barren Land
To Make It Flourish

The Penghu branch center has been responsible for taking care of and has cleaned regularly a piece of barren grassland around the Penghu County Cultural Center. Day and night, our fellow initiates have been working hard to weed-out the grass, plant flowers, and irrigate. The place has now put on a new look which attracts the passers-by. Some of them have even joined in the work of planting and cleaning. At the moment, Penghu is lacking water, and the weather is hot. It is particularly difficult to nurse the young plants. However, under Master's loving blessing, the garden is a rare and flourishing sight.

Letters Between Master And Disciples

Seeing You, Satisfied My Life Long Yearning

By Fellow Initiate Vinh In Palawan, Philippines

An unaccompanied minor to be repatriated soon (Original in Au Lac Language)

Reverend Master,

I never thought Your visit with the refugees would be so brief. You came and went in an instant. I felt as if it was a dream.

When I learned that You were coming, my whole body was filled with an endless sea of love. I had been longing and waiting for so long and it had finally come true. In my eagerness to see You, I immediately flew out to extend my greetings. As I didn't yet see Your caring face, I was so longing for it. I could not help yelling out, Where is my Master? Where is my Master? And how surprised I was when I saw You! Totally astonished! Even though I had seen many of Your posters and photographs before, none of the pictures could fully depict Your real beauty and friendliness.

Your coming was just like a loving mother visiting Her lost and suffering children in prison. I quickly ran next to You, mustered up all my courage assuming the position of a guard. You looked directly into my eyes. Oh! It was so sweet and warm! I was totally absorbed in Your love! Since I had been yearning for so long, I was unwilling to blink for fear of losing even a second of seeing You. At that moment, all my worldly desires had disappeared, had become meaningless. All that was left was Your powerful love filling my heart. That was the most satisfying moment of my life. Even though it was as brief as a flash, I felt as if all that was left in this vast universe was none other than You and me. I felt like I had melted in Your boundless ocean of love! Nothing in this world could ever come between the harmony and togetherness of You and me.

Because of the situation, it was not possible for me to stay indefinitely close to Master. Oh! How I wished that time would stop, that this moment would last forever! However, even though the time was short, You had satisfied the eternal longing deep in my heart. It was just like a person on the verge of death in the depth of the desert, being suddenly blessed with a drop of life. Thank You Master, for being able to sense my longing heart. Oh Master! I could no longer contain my tears of happiness; the happiness of being blessed by You. All I wish for now is to spend the rest of my life next to You, following Your foot steps to return to our long forgotten homeland. I could find no other words to say, except to wish You health and well being, so that You could continue bringing love to other sentient beings longing for liberation.

Devoted to the Respectable Master

A Baby Given By The Manifestation Body Of Master

By Fellow Initiate Vu in Ohio, USA

(Originally in Au Lac Language)

Dear Master,

Our son and daughter-in-law have just brought forth a new life under Your guiding light. Our daughter-in-law delivered a healthy baby girl in July of this year.

Our daughter-in-law saw Your manifestation body enter the labor room wearing a doctor's uniform to bless the baby. Also while receiving initiation last year, our daughter-in-law saw Your manifestation body handing a baby to Her.

Dearest Master, if it is Your will, would You please bless the baby girl with a name? We are tremendously grateful of Your love and blessing for our family.

Sincerely,

Vu & Hoang

P.S. Master named this baby Linh Thuy (holy water).

Letter to Master

By Fellow Initiate Chen in Changhua, Formosa

Dear Master,

I was initiated recently at Ta Zee Primary School in Taipei. I had no inner experience of the light and sound while meditating at home. Recently I came to know about group meditations in Taipei from a sister initiate. That fellow initiate encouraged me to join the group meditations to improve. So I made up my mind no matter what, to always attend the group meditations. Moreover, thanks to God's and Master's compassionate love, I managed to attend the International Seven-day Retreat.

During the Seven-day Retreat, I saw star light, Buddha, Jesus many unknown Bodhisattvas and You, Master. There was also a very big colourful lotus flower and a very bright and beautiful shining ray of golden light, as well as a very high massive wall made of gold with some unknown characters carved on it.

On the last morning of the retreat, we meditated at the plaza of the National Palace Museum at Yan Ming Mountain. During the meditation, I did not feel the time pass! At that moment, I could see more star light than usual, this silver light was the size of grain and twinkling, nonstop. I felt that my eyelids were too tight so I opened my eyes a little. Oh! My God! It was too marvelous and beautiful!! Above the heads of all the initiates was a sea of silver waves, twinkling and leaping restlessly.

I looked to the other end of the sky and I could see the clouds moving to form the shape of an ancient general . They kept on receding as if in slow motion. The scene was very clear. I turned my head and looked at the silver rays of light, which were still twinkling. After some time I closed my eyes and meditated. After a few minutes, I opened my eyes again but the silver sea of star light had disappeared.

These were my experiences during the Seven-day Retreat. But during the sound contemplation, I still don't hear anything. Master! Please enlighten me! Finally I would like to thank You for Your delicate love and care. Thank You Master.

Wishing Master good health!

Your Disciple Chen

Master's Reply

Dear sister Chen

Even though you did not have any inner experiences right after initiation, during the International Seven-day Retreat you had many truly marvelous experiences. This proves that the power of group meditations and retreats is incredible - all the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas come to give us their blessing - and the Quan Yin Method is the supreme method.

Every initiate should have experience of the inner sound. Maybe the sound was not what you expected, so you thought you did not experience anything. Supersonic sound cannot be described in worldly terms, and during initiation only a few examples can be given and even then only very roughly described. While doing the Quan Yin, focus on the wisdom eye. There should be some kind of sound. Perhaps you are doing something wrong. You should ask those initiates at the information desk during mass group meditations to help you.

Wishing you spiritual progress.

Media Report (1)

Korean Religious News, Issue No.1062, Wednesday April 27, 1994

(Originally in Korean)

Religion is to remind us of our inner wisdom

Enlightenment illuminates our misunderstandings and ignorance All paradises on Earth are only copies of the Kingdom of God.

The international spiritual leader comes to Korea -- the Supreme Master Ching Hai.

The karma of this world is very difficult to shoulder. The most precious discovery is the Kingdom of God .

Members of the International Supreme Master Ching Hai Meditation Associations amount up to many hundred thousand. They have branch centers in a hundred and thirty countries, while the headquarters is in Formosa. This is an international spiritual practice group.

The leader of the Meditation Association, the Supreme Master Ching Hai is an international spiritual practitioner and world peace leader. Honoured with the World Spiritual Leadership Award in February, the Supreme Master Ching Hai visited Korea on the 16th for the third time. The purpose of Her trip to Korea was to render assistance to Her disciples, who number over a thousand in Korea, concerning spiritual practice. Our press has gathered some information about how She attained the Truth, Her method of meditation, activities in the world and about the wisdom in daily life, etc. (By the Editor.)

Reporter: In Korean Buddhism, there is a big debate: after complete enlightenment, there is no need to practice, but some other people insist that after enlightenment, you must gradually practice. So what is Your opinion?

Master: My experience is after enlightenment, we still continue to practice because the enlightenment must be kept and practiced, in order to realize that we have it.

Reporter: Normally, how long do you have to meditate everyday? Master: It depends on individual's situation. However, fellow initiates should meditate at least two and a half hours each day.

Reporter: What's the purpose of religion? Master: Religion as it is today, is only the left over teachings from the deceased, past masters. Just like after Christ died, they founded Christianity; after Buddha died, they called it Buddhism; after Lao Tze died, they called it Taoism, after Muhammad died, they founded Muhammadanism. And when the master was alive, he was advertising for the Kingdom of God, advertising for the Buddha's land. And after the advertisement, if somebody believes in the master then the master will give them the real thing, not only the advertisement.

Reporter: What's the real teaching?
Master: The real teaching is not in any religious scripture. The real teaching is inside ourselves. So the master only reminds us that we have the Kingdom of God inside, have Buddha inside us. The Buddha said the Buddha is inside yourself, you are the Buddha. Jesus said God is inside you, that means you are God. Who can teach the Buddha? Who can teach God anything? Therefore the master only tries to awaken the great wisdom within yourself.

Reporter: The Internatioal Supreme Master Ching Hai Meditation Associations have so many centers through out the world. Why did You put these centers all over the world? Master: It just happened naturally. I didn't plan this. Just as people gather more and more, we need a place for people to sit and meditate together. Because it is good for them and good for the world, so I have to help to establish. If more people meditate, the world will be more like heaven - many bad things will become less, and many good things will become more - because of the peaceful, noble and holy atmosphere from the meditation practice.

Reporter: What is the most valuable thing in the human being's life?
Master: It's the Buddha Nature and to find the Kingdom of God. The most valuable thing is not in the material world, but we can find it while we are in the material world; but it's not material, none of the treasure in this world can compare to that.

Reporter: Personally, what do You think of the Korean people? Master: I love Korean people very much. That's why I come here to see them even if I'm very busy and have urgent work with the Au Lac refugees.

Reporter: Now that communism is finished, what kind of idealism is there in the future of this world?

Master: People change all the time. They like to experience new ideals. So it depends on the development of the world, people will have new ideals.

Communism was born because the majority of people were poor. If the majority or half of the people rise their standard of living, maybe no more communism.

And if the new idealism comes, it depends on the awareness, intelligence of the majority of the people. So the people as the whole, as a mass have to rise their standard of understanding and have to rise their standard of responsible feeling for their country, for their future. Then good idealism suitable for all the people will rise.

The most important is that people should be enlightened. Then they will have direct inspiration from heaven and know what to do, and we'll do everything according to the will of God. Then we will be in harmony, then whatever idealism, it will be heavenly idealism.

Reporter: How do we become the Buddha, achieve the Buddhahood? Master: Practicing the Quan Yin Method. Quickly or a little slowly, you will realize your Buddha nature.

Reporter: How do You explain the Quan Yin Method to non-initiates? Master: It depends on the level of the listeners, also depends on their religious backgrounds, depends on their openness and eagerness. But general, we can tell them that in most of the scriptures of the great religions of the world it is stated that all beings come from the sound and the light. So the Quan Yin Method is the way to bring us back to this original creative power, back to where we came from, back to where we originated. And because of Quan Yin Method, we can hear the original sound and see the original light. That is our origin.

And this original power contains everything that we desire, because it can create everything. Therefore after contacting this original creating power, we can own and create everything. We have no more desire and attachments, and the desireless state means "Nirvana". But that doesn't mean we throw away the world, we still contribute to the world, but we have no desire.

Reporter: Did the Quan Yin Method exist also in ancient times? Master: The Sixth Patriarch Hui Neng passed down the Quan Yin Method to ten disciples. However, the lineage of the method was discontinued later. It was because the most enlightened disciple had gone to another country and developed there, and this country heard no more about this lineage.

Sometimes because of political reasons, economic reasons or the collective karma of the people of that country does not allow Master's teachings to be continued there. So it will go develop in another place.

This time is urgent, besides so many disasters, so many wars, so many suffering in this world, you can't wait to select one or two disciples. It is the order from heaven that we spread it quickly and openly. It is the mercy of heaven, of Buddhas also.

We have accumulated too much negative karma, through the killing of animals en masse, and through many destructive weapons.

Reporter: Where were human beings be created? Where do human beings go?
Master: From the light and the sound, from the creative energy, and to that we return. This is what we call God or Buddha Nature, it is the origin of all things. It is stated in the Bible like, - In the beginning was the word... In the Buddhist Surangama Sutra stated also that all the Budhisattvas come from the sound and rely on the sound to take sentient beings back. All the sentient beings will come back with the sound. It is the inner vibration. It is what the Taoists say you can hear but no need the ears, you can see but no need the eyes. In the Vedas it also stated that all the beings come from the sound.

Reporter: Do you have any words for the Korean religious leaders?
Master: I don't know if I am worthy to give them advice, because I am sure there must be enlightened people in Korea also. But in general, in order to lead others to enlightenment, we first must be fully enlightened ourselves. Because enlightenment means light, we have seen the light from heaven before we can teach human beings.

The teaching without language, the light without any electric or current will illuminate every darkness and make you understand, make you see clearly. It'll erase all ignorance. So without this enlightenment symbolized in light and sound, we are not yet ready to be a spiritual leader. In our Quan Yin system, a teacher must reach at least the fifth level of enlightenment, the level of Buddhahood, before he or she can be a teacher of man and heaven.

Reporter: Which is more valuable, love or life? Master: The master because of love, sacrificing his or her life. So it doesn't matter what kind of sacrifice whether bodily or mentally or physically, it is all from love.

Media Report (2)

The Formosa Daily News - July 16 1994

The Great Transmigration Cycle

Article Three - Opinions Of The Experts

Life and death, past and future lives, transmigration and eternal life, how true are these concepts?

Transmigration and eternal life is a concept of religious belief, past and future lives is rather romantic and imaginative. Although life and death is a major issue that everybody must face and consider, not every person can analyze and explore it thoroughly, and sublimate themselves.

There are too many doubts to be answered, and also many ideas have been offered to people. On behalf of the readers, we seek answers from great masters who normally do not give interviews, deep in the mountains, amid the city jungle or in a humble charity house on a secluded side lane. We requested the famous masters to spare us some precious time, so we could ask them some of the questions in everybody's heart. We have noted down these answers of wisdom for you.

As we are presenting the opinions of the experts respectively, you are also welcome to explore the mystery of transmigration.

Chapter One - I Also Exist In Other Worlds. [Part I]

Foreword to the interview: The Supreme Master Ching Hai is esteemed as a great international Buddhist Master. She has Her unique views. Although not generally accepted by the traditional Buddhists, more and more disciples follow Her, and respect Her teachings as the holy canon.

In the presence of the reporter, Master Ching Hai was not wearing traditional Buddhist robes. She does not care about the taboo, and puts on a little makeup. She made no attempt to conceal Her emotional upheavals, nor would She restraint from cracking a mischievous joke.

Many disciples are sure that She is the greatest divine Buddhist Master. However, in the eyes of the interviewer, She looks more like a philosopher above religious concepts, or an excelled master of thought. Today, we introduce to the readers this interview with Her-- I also exist in other worlds.

The reporter asks: Where is the origin of transmigration? Is there any difference between Master's and the general Buddhists' concept of transmigration?

The Supreme Master Ching Hai answers: My concept of transmigration is identical to that of the general Buddhists. Transmigration refers to the matters not resolved or accomplished in our lifetime. To satisfy our human desires, we must return to accomplish them. This is transmigration.

Q:How do we prove that transmigration really exists? M:There is no need to prove it, and there is no need for us to believe it either. Transmigration is a level of consciousness, a truth, that only the ones who are enlightened can perceive. They do not tell us about transmigration to make us believe entirely in its existence. Sometimes, people will ask about this. For instance, you are asking me, I must say that this is true. It is very difficult to prove its existence.

Suppose you are a university professor. It is also difficult for you to introduce university knowledge to children. Anyway, the professor is not obliged to make everybody believe in the content of his teaching. He only tries his best to explain when he is asked.

Transmigration is very logical. Otherwise, how do we explain this world? Where did the human beings come from? Why is the number of human beings increasing? Why didn't the human race become extinct? Though the size of the human population varies at times, why has there been no extinction?

If you want a more relevant example, then take your job at the press office. Unable to finish your work today, you have to come back tomorrow to accomplish it. If your work is not finished, you feel uneasy at heart. This is what transmigration is all about.

The physical body is not the whole human . For instance, when a person is dead, the body is still there, the brain is still there. However, the person is motionless, unable to do anything. Therefore, it is not our physical body that transmigrates, but the part in our body that controls all our behaviour. This part needs a tool to execute what we want to do, or learn.

We may wish to believe in transmigration or not, human beings will continue to transmigrate. Similarly, the water in the sea, it doesn't need to believe that it will soon evaporate and be transformed into clouds, then pour down as rain back into the sea. It doesn't have to believe that all these things will happen or not. Everything will naturally happen.

Q:People often combine causation and transmigration in one topic. When there is causation, there is destiny. Can we change our destiny of this lifetime?

M:It is possible, but only a part of it. There are two ways to change your destiny. The first way is change it with an opposing action. For instance, if you have the bad habit of stealing or peeping, rectify your habit now. You may eliminate part of it through frequently donating to charities or giving. Even if you cannot completely cancel the retribution from your past actions, at least there will be a different outcome. The other way is through spiritual practice, getting in touch with our Almighty power within. This power can overrule your originally destined retribution, with absolutely no suffering.

It is not totally impossible to resolve it with human force. For instance, an alcoholic is suffering from liver symptoms. The way to improve his condition is to quit drinking, and then consult a doctor. Medical treatment can prevent him from deteriorating further. In addition, he may exercise frequently, take vitamins and tonics, to improve his health. Treated in several ways simultaneously, his liver symptoms are not only cured, but his condition even becomes better.

It is similar with karma, causation in particular. If we come across a good master who teaches us how to behave in the world, plus the merits we have earned from our own good deeds, living a mentally healthy life style, surely we have surpassed our predestined karma of causation, right?

Chapter One - I Also Exist In Other Worlds. [Part I]

Foreword to the interview: The Supreme Master Ching Hai is esteemed as a great international Buddhist Master. She has Her unique views. Although not generally accepted by the traditional Buddhists, more and more disciples follow Her, and respect Her teachings as the holy canon.

In the presence of the reporter, Master Ching Hai was not wearing traditional Buddhist robes. She does not care about the taboo, and puts on a little makeup. She made no attempt to conceal Her emotional upheavals, nor would She restraint from cracking a mischievous joke.

Many disciples are sure that She is the greatest divine Buddhist Master. However, in the eyes of the interviewer, She looks more like a philosopher above religious concepts, or an excelled master of thought. Today, we introduce to the readers this interview with Her-- I also exist in other worlds.

The reporter asks: Where is the origin of transmigration? Is there any difference between Master's and the general Buddhists' concept of transmigration?

The Supreme Master Ching Hai answers: My concept of transmigration is identical to that of the general Buddhists. Transmigration refers to the matters not resolved or accomplished in our lifetime. To satisfy our human desires, we must return to accomplish them. This is transmigration.

Q:How do we prove that transmigration really exists? M:There is no need to prove it, and there is no need for us to believe it either. Transmigration is a level of consciousness, a truth, that only the ones who are enlightened can perceive. They do not tell us about transmigration to make us believe entirely in its existence. Sometimes, people will ask about this. For instance, you are asking me, I must say that this is true. It is very difficult to prove its existence.

Suppose you are a university professor. It is also difficult for you to introduce university knowledge to children. Anyway, the professor is not obliged to make everybody believe in the content of his teaching. He only tries his best to explain when he is asked.

Transmigration is very logical. Otherwise, how do we explain this world? Where did the human beings come from? Why is the number of human beings increasing? Why didn't the human race become extinct? Though the size of the human population varies at times, why has there been no extinction?

If you want a more relevant example, then take your job at the press office. Unable to finish your work today, you have to come back tomorrow to accomplish it. If your work is not finished, you feel uneasy at heart. This is what transmigration is all about.

The physical body is not the whole human . For instance, when a person is dead, the body is still there, the brain is still there. However, the person is motionless, unable to do anything. Therefore, it is not our physical body that transmigrates, but the part in our body that controls all our behaviour. This part needs a tool to execute what we want to do, or learn.

We may wish to believe in transmigration or not, human beings will continue to transmigrate. Similarly, the water in the sea, it doesn't need to believe that it will soon evaporate and be transformed into clouds, then pour down as rain back into the sea. It doesn't have to believe that all these things will happen or not. Everything will naturally happen.

Q:People often combine causation and transmigration in one topic. When there is causation, there is destiny. Can we change our destiny of this lifetime?

M:It is possible, but only a part of it. There are two ways to change your destiny. The first way is change it with an opposing action. For instance, if you have the bad habit of stealing or peeping, rectify your habit now. You may eliminate part of it through frequently donating to charities or giving. Even if you cannot completely cancel the retribution from your past actions, at least there will be a different outcome. The other way is through spiritual practice, getting in touch with our Almighty power within. This power can overrule your originally destined retribution, with absolutely no suffering.

It is not totally impossible to resolve it with human force. For instance, an alcoholic is suffering from liver symptoms. The way to improve his condition is to quit drinking, and then consult a doctor. Medical treatment can prevent him from deteriorating further. In addition, he may exercise frequently, take vitamins and tonics, to improve his health. Treated in several ways simultaneously, his liver symptoms are not only cured, but his condition even becomes better.

It is similar with karma, causation in particular. If we come across a good master who teaches us how to behave in the world, plus the merits we have earned from our own good deeds, living a mentally healthy life style, surely we have surpassed our predestined karma of causation, right?

Can We Decide Our Own Reincarnation?

Q:Who decides where each person will reincarnate, and as what type of human being?
M:We choose for ourselves just before our birth, during the incarnation.

Q:Before birth and during the incarnation, how do we choose a favourable destiny to incarnate into? M:We say choose , but actually there is no choice. It is just hearsay that we can choose.

Actually, whether we are qualified to make the choice to choose the destiny of our incarnation depends on our previous actions. Naturally, the invisible power of causation will influence us to choose this instead of that. Therefore, though we say we have the choice , actually we are propelled by the power of previous actions.

Q:You mean there is a karmic force impelling us. Is it possible to resist this karmic force with will power ? M:Yes, it is possible. This is why some people pursue spiritual practice, through which they can borrow some power from Buddha and God. Nevertheless, even when the Buddhas descend on Earth, they have to choose to be born in a certain place depending on the affinity and needs of the sentient beings. Although the Buddhas are absolutely free and would not be impelled by the karmic force, still they willingly go, complying with the karmic force of the sentient beings. This situation is not the wish of the Buddhas, but it is their vow . The ordinary person has no choice. They may have made their choice to incarnate during the transmigration, but are actually impelled by the karmic force behind them.

The Formosa Daily News
Sunday July 17, 1994

Chapter One -

"I" Also Exist In Other Worlds. [Part II]

Master's Previous And Coming Lives

Q:What was Your previous life? Why have You chosen this work and position in this lifetime?
M:I have forgotten! I have forgotten it all!

Q.Master, have You taken a vow as to what you will do in the coming life?
M:No! Just be natural is all right. Each of us will have different views at different stages. I have taken some foolish vows before, but it is not necessary anymore. Just let it be!

Q:At present the population of the world is five billion but two thousand years ago it might only have been three hundred million or five hundred million. During the process of reincarnation, where does this increment of souls come from? Can the number of souls be increased?

M:Human beings are not of the physical body only. There is also the element of consciousness. When the consciousness level reaches that of man, then it becomes man; when at the level of a cow then it becomes a cow. Sometimes after animals die, they may reincarnate as man. Man may also downgrade to be reincarnated as animals. As a result this becomes the phenomenon of the cycle of reincarnation. All the behaviour during our lifetime determines our next reincarnation whether as man, heavenly-being, Buddha or animal.

Q:Do You mean that the consciousness responsible for the increase in human population is being transferred from the animals? M:Yes, but there are some coming from other levels of existence. For example, many other planets like ours also have the existence of living things and human lives. Sometimes it is due to the arrival of those from these places that increase our human population.

Q:You always mention the universe and outer-space planets. Have you ever personally travelled there before? What do these planets look like?
M:For us, the practitioners, it is not necessary to stay in this physical body so we can freely visit other planets. The physical body is just like a house. When we are at home, we stay in here. If we don't want stay here, we can go out freely. As to other planets, not only I have been there before, even some of my disciples have also been there.

On the other planets, some of the people are similar to us and others not so similar. The level of some of these beings is higher than ours. Some are not visible by our physical eyes. Compared to the other beings , to be human beings on this earth are not the worst. Some sentient beings created by consciousness are not as good as we are, but there are others who are many times better, reaching incredible levels of consciousness. No doubt not everyone can see this, but the number of people who can is not small either.

Q:You have seen beings in outer-space. Is their level higher than Yours?
M:This you should ask them.

Q:Although You are a Master, do You ever have any questions that need to be clarified or difficulties that need a higher level Master to help You solve?
M:No need. Although I cannot solve every question, I know how to solve it. Of course it depends on the cause and effect of the sentient beings. After all I have to comply with the law of cause and effect, otherwise, after the problem is solved the consequences may be even worse. All this needs to be considered.

Living Buddhas Are Never Mistakenly Reincarnated

Q:Previously Chinese people thought that China was the whole of the world. Therefore no matter how reincarnation is, Chinese monks will always reincarnate in China again. Tibetan living Buddhas also had this same belief. But nowadays some living Buddhas are Westerners. Is this an error in reincarnation? Some mistake?

M:No..., no mistake. Maybe we made the mistake! Recognized the wrong person! Ha! Ha! Ha! No, Chinese, Tibetans are all people. Formerly there weren't any airplanes and someone may not be able to be found after his reincarnation, or it's very difficult to find him. Nowadays we can travel everywhere, and wherever he goes we can find him!

Q:Weren't all previously reincarnated living Buddhas found? M:Previously they were only able to be found in Tibet. Anyhow if you can't find one grab another one... Ha... Let me tell you, since they are living Buddhas then why should they dislike other countries and want to be reborn there? A living Buddha can be reborn anywhere he likes, it's not necessary that he be born in China every lifetime. Long ago China was so vast, one could not even to talk about its boundaries.

Q:Does the fate of happy mates, grudging mates and separated mates relate to their previous lives?
M:It's related. But I suggest married couples need to endure each other; divorce as a last resort only.

Q:Does divorce cause karma ? Will it affect the next life? M:It may be like that. If we practice spiritually in this lifetime and go to a higher spiritual level with our spouse, then perhaps there will be no need to get married next life. But if we are not a practitioner, then we might have to come back into this vicious cycle.

Q:Chinese believe in their Ancestors' blessing . Isn't it one's own fate? Is it totally due to one's own cause and effect or can it be given or inherited by others?

M:All is cause and effect. For those receiving blessings from their ancestors it must be because of their own merit and benevolence. If the ancestors are good and are higher level deities, then that will be helpful. If the ancestors are in hell, they are not only unable to help but will cause us more trouble instead. But people after all must live optimistically, so believing in ancestors is also good.

Hypnotism Can Tap Into The Past

Q:Some practitioners can predict previous and future lives. It is called Su Ming Tong . Then how is it that fortune tellers, who do not practice, also have magical power? M:No doubt some people do not practice but because they did practice in their previous lives some impressions are left in this lifetime. Therefore they have these abilities. But fortune telling is not the same as Su Min Tong . The former is a technique, a kind of science; after learning, things can be calculated like learning mathematics. With the real Su Min Tong , the cause and effect of the previous lives can be seen without calculating. That's the real magical power .

Q: Ji Tong is a kind of person in Formosa who acts as medium. How does it work?
M:After the death of a person he goes to an intermediate state called Chong Yin Sen . When one is in this state he is moving very fast, and can access information very quickly by observation, but not to heaven or hell. Sometimes he will attach to the body of the Ji Tong occupying it for purposes of talking. Of course this type of spirit can be kind or wicked. Therefore after attachment some forcibly occupy others and refuse to leave. This is being possessed by negative force.

Q:Does one feel happy or depressed in this intermediate state - Chong Yin Sen ?
M:I don't know because I haven't died yet!

Q:Can You remember?
M:No need. The present work is already too much to handle.

Q:When one is in this intermediate state - Chong Yin Sen , why can he not reincarnate or go through the life cycle to other worlds?
M:Because their time is not yet up. Most have to reincarnate within forty-nine days.

Q:Some people have a special talent such as musical skills, artistic skills... Are their talents related to what they did in previous lives?

M:Yes. They must have learnt and had interest in certain artistic fields before. Not only that, they also put their full devotion and dedication in those fields. After dying, when they come back they will continue in that particular field that they were in. Those with magical power can know which people have a certain type of talent.

Q:Can hypnotism recall past memories?
M:Yes, it can. Every lifetime has it's differences. Going back one by one is no problem.

Q:Today and yesterday, now and two thousand years ago, is it all happening here at the same time in overlapping dimensions? Is every part of existence in every lifetime like turning the pages of a book that can be read from back to front, or not necessarily in order?

M:That's right. Everything is coincidental. Most have preconceived ideas about the concept of time. Therefore this time we will only choose this corner to look at. A practitioner however can observe a lot of things at the same time. In fact, all are occurring simultaneously - an uncountable number of different occurrences happening in overlapping dimensions. There is no past, present or future. In people's dreams, sometimes they can go beyond these dimensions and time, so they can see previous and future lives, as well as many aspect simultaneously.

Revelation Of Killing
In A Dream

Q:Are the past actions and future effects all fixed. Can they be changed? If the future happenings are already fixed, how can they be altered?

M:No doubt all future happenings are already fixed but there can be many different types of situations, all happening at the same time. While we are choosing a way, other situations still exist too.

For instance, if a person is supposed to kill another person then be put in jail, if it cannot be avoided, a practitioner can instead have the killing occur in his dream. This no doubt is a dream but the killer and the victim both dream about this event. Therefore, when both of them awake from the dream, one will feel uneasy, the other pain. This incident does not happen in this world, it takes place in another world. The same I may do several things at the same time. All are reality. However, in general people can only see one of the realities.

Master says

Appreciate Life,

Start With Enlightenment

Spoken By The Supreme Master Ching Hai In Colorado, USA April 10, 1993
(Originally in English)

The Real Homeland
Of The Soul

How is everyone? Still recognize me from last time? Is there anyone from last time? Please raise your hand. (Some of the audience rise their hands.) Oh! Fine! So, I don't have to start from scratch. No?! Is this still very early for you? (Audience: No!) No, ha? You don't work today? (Audience: No.) Oh, fine. And I have to work.
I had a lot of inspiration about what God is, and how to better our world, and how to better ourselves, and how to be in samadhi, etc,.. but I lost them all when I came to Colorado. I guess because Colorado people are very spiritual, and the environment here, it looks like Himalayas. So, I thought all of you are yogis, (laughter) yes. So, you don't need to prove that to me by any funny gestures, okay, or mudras or anything. (Master laughed.)
This is one of the places that I might consider to stay, and make myself at home. Consider only! Ha, Consider (Master and everyone laughed.), because I have many other people who consider that I should stay at their hometown. And I can never win because I am alone, and there are so many people. But today maybe I would like to take some of your time to introduce you to our real hometown , or maybe invite you to have a look at it.
Many people believe that God creates only goodness. And then other people believe that God creates also evil, because they say everything comes from God. Ah, what do you agree? The first one or the second? (The first one) Ah? The first one. Right? Then where does evil come from? Ah? (Audience: Image.) Image? (Humans) Ah, humans. Oh, so you're very enlightened indeed. (Master laughs.)
You see this place which is called our world, it's not the original plan of the universe. And it has become this and that and others, with all kinds of suffering and all kinds of undesirable situations, because of the by-products of humans and other beings' inter-relationships. If evil has truly existed, then it couldn't have changed from one place after another, or from one country to the other, or from one period of time to the other.

Humans Can Stop Evil

As you see, in the old time, we did not have guns, and we did not have atom bombs and all kinds of these things which could destroy mankind in no time. So, actually the evils that exist in this world are not God-made. It was not already there. Therefore, it changes from time to time, and from different countries, yes. Why were we talking about this? Because we must realize that if evil is man-made, then man can also stop it or avoid it, instead of blaming God all the time, or waiting in a corner of the church for God to descend and do something about it. For example, between I and Mr. Smith, whoever that might be, we never met each other and nothing happened between us. And suddenly someday Mr. Smith came to see me, or I came to see him. Suppose we are both very ignorant and then, we both wanted to do something. We both wanted to arrive at a position which is very lucrative and profitable and famous and all that for ourselves. Then both of us are in competition about that object. And then if one of us wins, of course the other will feel very frustrated. And if he is a bad tempered man, he might try to revenge in some kind, or make trouble for me. And therefore, in this process we breed another kind of atmosphere between us and apart from us. Originally both of us had no hatred and then, now we have hatred. And that hatred is the third energy which is born from both of our energies. So, you see, this is not necessary. It wasn't there in the first place. If we come to think about it like that, we couldn't blame God for anything that is unfortunate in this world. Most of the people think God has made everything including evil. I used to think that way. But I think, as I am getting older, and you know I have more sympathy for the Old Man. You get more understanding, you know, for old people as you grow older. (Master laughs.)
Yes, it's just like you and your wife or husband. Normally both of you have no children. But then, you got together, and then the third kind was born. Those are your children. And your children may be exactly like you in character, in intelligence and in ambition or virtues. But, they might not be. And they might cause you a lot of trouble and headaches. So, these are not your making, not entirely. Maybe some of it is your making. But, if you are very virtuous parents, and very exemplary, and your children are the opposite, then it is not your making. Similarly, our world has become, sometimes, intolerable. It is our own making. So now, in order to improve this or repair the world, or the house, the big house that we live in, with so many rooms which are the nations, then we should know that evil is avoidable. Evil is avoided by doing good, by keeping the commandments, by loving thy neighbors. But because our mind is so used to an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, it is difficult to do what we think we ought to do, or to treat others in a very loving, kind way. Therefore, we need a stronger force to help us, to pull us out of our habitual thinking and actions. That is why enlightenment is necessary. It is just like a woman who is already very beautiful, and if she dresses herself up, and wears a little bit more jewelry, and learns to walk in a graceful way, then her beauty is more enhanced.

Everything In This World Is Beneficial To Us

Everything in this world is actually also good for us, even evil. Evil is our mistakes, fine. But, then we don't have to stay in the mistakes forever. At least the mistakes are a kind of shock. When we receive the effect of our mistakes, we will be shocked into realizing that this is not a proper thing to do. And they cause us misery and unhappiness, therefore, we turn around. And even all things in this world which are beautiful, enjoyable, are reminding us of our true happiness within, or in our true home. Therefore, it's not a sin to enjoy the things that God created for us. But if we always feel very attached to these things, and God will remind us that this is not proper. And therefore, we will sometimes experience unhappiness, or misery from the things that we cherish most.
It is wrong to deny the world. But it is not right to sink deep into the world all the time. Because we miss the better half of life which is spirit, which is more enjoyable than anything in this world could afford. Everything in this world is just a reminder of the true happiness, the true glory and the true life that we should have, and that we should know, because we have forgotten.
Many people ask me about a kind of woman and man relationship and sexual pleasure and that. Whether it is sinful. I say: It is not. But you should know there are many more pleasures than that. And for example, sexual pleasure is only a copy of the true pleasure when you are in union with yourself, when both forces within you, the feminine and the masculine aspects within yourself are united. And the union between man and woman is just a duplicate of that one.
So, actually God sends us into this world not without any instruments to remind us of the Kingdom of God. It is just that we have forgotten that these are the reminders only, and we just love the copy and forget the original. And that's what makes our life miserable. And even then, we could not enjoy the copy completely.

Therefore, many of the man and woman relationships even, are rocky, and the sexual relationship between you is not that holy, not that mutually respecting. But it's a kind of sometimes abusing, and just a frustration release; a kind of instrument. Therefore, if we truly want to enjoy this life even, we should enjoy the true life which is a hundred thousand times better than the life that we know on earth. And by knowing that life, we can also enjoy this life.

More Intense Feelings Toward
Things After Enlightenment

Just like one of our friends just expressed her opinion-that after initiation or enlightenment she enjoyed life also. She would feel whatever is there, in very intense awareness. And when you are happy, you are truly happy. And you have no reservations for your laughter. You are not constrained and not feeling ashamed for laughing very loud, very heartedly with your friends, or even alone. And when you feel sorrow, you truly can weep. You weep all of your emotions out, and then you get relief. Not that after enlightenment we become like wood or stone, and have no feelings whatsoever.
Some people keep asking me whether I fall in love sometimes. Are you interested, by the way? No, ha! If not, I don't talk about that. It is private. Are you interested? (Audience: Yes.) Okay, okay. I thought it was too personal. You come here to talk about Buddhahood and God and all that. And here I bring things which sound very mundane, yeah. Never mind. You see, and I say yes, yeah, off and on, now and again. Or maybe I don't know if that is falling in love or not. Well, when I see a person probably I like him, and then after he is gone, good-bye. Is that in love or not? Steve, you have more experience. (Laughter.) Is that falling in love, Steve? (Yes.) Yes? Really! Okay! But not in Colorado though. I haven't... okay.
But before that, before enlightenment, I didn't know this kind of feeling. You understand? I never missed anyone. I didn't love anyone. I didn't care about anyone. I did not enjoy the friendship with the people. I was a very lonely child, very quiet. I did not feel lonely though. I was just a very alone person, until now, until I was forced into this job. (Laughter.) I was a very quiet person. I could not talk. I mean I didn't speak. I didn't make friends. I enjoyed myself. I felt I needed nothing. And you know what it's like in our society. You work and then one month a year, you have a vacation, right?! Even if you don't want to, you have to. It's the law.
So, when I was alone there, I wasn't married then. And then, this forced one-month vacation was the time I had trouble. I didn't know what to do, because I had no friends and there was no where I wished to go. But you had to go because if you didn't come back with a tan, people would not respect you that much. So, you come, you spend all your money and go to Costa Bravo or whatever. And laying there, bake yourself to death, spend all your time in the sun, and get burnt, get peeled, get scorched, and do whatever you can with the cream and all that to comfort yourself. And then go home, to show people, Here I am . Yeah, from Costa Bravo, cost a bomb , cost a lot of money . [Laughter] Yes, so that was the kind of life that I had. Probably some of you experienced the same up to now.
And then, after I became, you know, the "Main Bro" in this 'office', I became more talkative. I changed, I became an entirely different person than if you knew me before. Might have been five, six, seven years ago, you wouldn't recognize me now. When I was married, and my husband had a lot of friends from his medical doctors' circle. And they talked a lot to him about many things, yes. And also they talked on phone a lot. But I hardly could speak anything to him. And sometimes I stood around and felt very envious with these friends. I said, Jeez, if I could just talk half of the time like them, I would feel already very good. I felt a little bit inadequate because I couldn't speak. I mean, I am not a talkative person. I'm always quiet, do my job, and have feelings, but nothing more. And even the love for my husband, I don't know it was a love or not. Well, I missed him when he was away. And I was happy when he was around. But that was it, that was just about it. It was not very kind of passionate thing that you read about in a novel romance or watch movies, things like that. I thought, oh, looks like I am not the person of this world, don't belong here. The Fabulous Network Leading To God

But after enlightenment, you feel that your feelings and your emotions and your affections, and your... everything are very sharp. You know, you realize more that you are truly living beings. Many people fear that maybe after enlightenment they would shave their head, and yeah, cast off their beautiful clothes, and go into the Himalayas, or find a cave in Colorado somewhere. But it is not true, it is not true. Maybe you do that in the beginning because you are too fanatic, too eager, too eager to know God, and forgetting all the while that He is always here. Because you are God, you are the representatives of this God power, and we are all connected together in this marvelous network. And should we forget that, we will be very lonely. Deep in our heart we will never be satisfied. Doesn't matter how many friends we have, and how much money we earn, or how busy we are. Many of the moments of our lives will be in loneliness, dissatisfaction. We just don't know what is it that is lacking in our lives. So we do feel something missing. That is because we have forgotten to tune in with this network which connects us as the whole, with the whole universe. And therefore, whatever we do, we do alone. We work alone and we feel great burden on our shoulders. That's why Emerson says: A great burden falls from our shoulders when we let God run the universe. To let God run the universe doesn't mean we sit there and wait for bread to fall from the sky. It means that we work together with the whole universe. And whatever we do, it will be blessed, watched over, and helped by the whole power. Therefore, we will be the great beings. And everything within us including so-called human emotions will be very alert. We feel for the first time in our lives that we are truly alive, that we truly enjoy everything that God gives us in this life. Not the denial of the world. Not truly. Not like that. I don't think an enlightened person is so negative in his attitude. Because I feel, and I see, and I know that my fellow initiates, people - you can call them disciple, that's your word, yeah - they are very alive, they are very alert, and they are happy. They know that life is alright. Eh, not that all of them are. Very seldom that they want to run away from life. Maybe in the beginning because before I used to wear nun's clothes, and looked very serious. So people thought to be serious and become a monk is the end to all means of Buddhahood.

Enlightenment Solves All Problems

After I realized that, I changed because that was a wrong conception. It's okay I wear the clothes if I want to. But that is not the leading motive of enlightenment. That is not the condition for enlightenment.
Enlightened people are very happy. And they accept the situation whatever it is. And I have a very positive knowledge that if all people are enlightened, then we don't need to change the world at all. We don't need to make India become rich, we don't need to change communism into capitalism, because everyone will be contented under whichever circumstances they are in. And we don't have to change anything. We don't need to even vote for a new president every four years. And Mr. Clinton can stay there forever, (laughter) whether he is good or not, because we are good. That is important. You see, one president however good can not do much. But the whole nation is strong when people in that nation are altogether, at oneness, because of the connecting network. And the whole world is altogether in unison because they're all connected with that network. And then, the president cannot help himself but to be good. He has to behave, right. I don't mean Mr. Clinton, please don't tell him. He might not give me visa next time. (Master and everyone laughed.) So the problems in this world are not to be blamed on politicians, not to be blamed on the economic system of any country or any ism of any nation, but to be blamed on the ignorance of our self-nature. That we do not know how great we are, that we do not know that we are the contentment incarnate, that we do not know that we are love personified. Therefore, enlightenment is a cure for all illnesses, for all worldly problems, for all wars, and is once and for all finished! And as long as all of us are enlightened, the world will never come to an end. Everybody predicts about the end of the world. I mean not everybody, everybody worries about it, just some people predict, and make many people worry. But even if the world comes to an end, the enlightened people will never feel bothered, because they know this world comes and then it will go one day. But the life eternal always goes on, and that nothing can affect it. Life eternal is what we are. Wisdom is what we possess. Love is what our nature is. And that cannot be destroyed with any bomb at all. It cannot be limited by space and time. Therefore, the masters initiate disciples without the limitation of the space and time. The master doesn't have to always be where the disciples are, but can help the disciples and bless them. And the disciples will grow into mastership, and also can do the same, yeah. So whatever I do you can do also. That was what Jesus said to us.

The World Is The Shadow
Of The Kingdom Of God

But can we do it? Can we do what Jesus did? No, not yet, because we did not learn what He learned. We have not tuned into the Kingdom of God. We have forgotten our Father who is perfect. Therefore we live in imperfection.
Now to correct this is very easy. Yes, if we want to go northward, then we have to face north, and continue, begin and continue to walk or to go northward. But if we want to go south, then, of course we have to turn back and face south and begin to go there. It's very simple.
Therefore, everyday we face the world. We walk toward the world, we think toward the world, we merge ourselves in the world. All our attention, energy, emotions, best talents face the world. We don't face God. Now, it's very simple. Turn around. I will show you how at the initiation and there you are. Very simple. But you will ask me the question is that, If you face God, then you have to turn your back to the world? It is not so in the Kingdom of God. Because actually if there is no Kingdom of God then there is not this world. This world is only a copy of the real thing, of the real life. Therefore, you do not have to forsake the world in order to know the real. But you have to know that the world came from the real by realizing the real. Just like you get to know a beautiful lady instead of chasing after her shadow. Then you have both. If you want the shadow that much, you can include, because the shadow comes from this beautiful lady. It's no good always clinging to the shadow and not knowing the real. But soon as we know the real, the shadow also belongs to us.
Since ancient times we have always heard many stories about how fantastic a master is. Just like Jesus, yeah, Jesus, He is great, fantastic. He can do many things, and we admire Him. But He should not be the only one in this position, because it is said in the Bible that Know you not that you are the temple of God, and the Holy Spirit dwells within you.
We house God. You understand that? We house the almighty within ourselves. And here we are having nothing of this almighty glory. It is because we face the other way. We face the shadow, we chase after the shadow, and try to correct the shadow to suit our taste-that the legs were too long, the head is too flat, or the ear is too pointed. It was because of the light which projected the real and made it become the shadow. And if we chase that all the time, and trying to make it different, of course we make trouble for ourselves. We exhaust all our energy and we achieve nothing. We might be able to adjust a little bit here, a little bit there, but this is only a shadow. Right? Tomorrow it will become ah, ear, the ear will be pointed again. Therefore in order to truly enjoy we have to correct the real... we have to know the real one and adjust accordingly.
If you know the beautiful girl, where she stands, then you can even make the shadow become more beautiful if you wish. See, you can make the light behind her go a little bit above or under, and then her shadow will become very much like the real person; or do some technique to adjust the shadow. But if we do not know the real and try to adjust the shadow from the shadow itself, then we always have problems. That is the problem with the world. That's why our world is always in trouble, because we try to correct the shadow and not the real object.

A Peaceful World Comes
If Everybody Is Enlightened

And so many heros have come and gone. So many great kings have reigned the world, but the world is still the way it is. If you have fixed some problems here, other problems will breed themselves elsewhere. If you have enough medical care for the people, now you have incurable diseases like AIDS for example, troublesome. And so we never come to an end without problems, if we always try to fix the world.
I have known one person, he is very much interested in our teaching and wants initiation and that. But he told me that he would like to stay in the world, to remain in the world as worldly people, in order to understand their problems and in order to help them. Many of the heros of our history have thought the same thing, and the world has not become a paradise. Even though we have a lot of better equipment, more civilized society, but then we have other more troublesome problems. So you see, our brothers and sisters, what the conclusion should be. It's not that after enlightenment we forsake our political career. Or leave the President alone in white house and all the aids will go out, because they're all enlightened. But we stay there, and we do better job because we know how to adjust the shadow now. Or we don't bother at all to adjust the shadow anymore. Whatever the shadow may be, fine, because we know it's not important. We may feel amazed at the shadow, of its changing shape and size and color, of different time of the day. We might watch it with amazement, but we no longer chase after that, and we no longer put great importance upon this shadow. That's why everyone should be enlightened. And the world will be at peace. No other thing needs to be done. I don't know if you agree, yes or no? (Applause.) I tell you from example, not sheer talk. See, for example. Now you look at me, I'm wearing beautiful clothes. Actually we designed ourselves, I designed myself and I have seamstresses who are monks and nuns, together yeah. I mean we are those who live together and do not have family ties and that. So we work everything together without wanting any wages or any position anyhow. So, now it's very inexpensive anyhow. But it looks beautiful, right?! So now I am happy because I am beautiful, fine.
But when I am alone and I have not to see you in such a great event and important greeting like this, then I just wear whatever it is, right - very old clothes but very comfortable and old shoes flat. And I don't even care to wash them very carefully because I would just pitch my tent next to the river and put my clothes in the bucket and some soap in it, river water and I use my feet to stamp on them and while I clean my teeth at the same time, yeah. I use my feet to just, you know, walking on the bucket, walking on the clothes after a while and then let it be in the sun for a while. And then after I clean my teeth or I bathe, and I swim, and then I just shake them loose, yeah and get the river water to clean them. Then I throw them on the rocks and after some time they are dry. And that's a life of beautiful enjoyment that I most cherish.

But nevertheless when I go out I stay in, sometimes, hotels, sometimes stay in a very beautiful mansion which some of the disciple lend us for few days, and I also enjoy that. You see, I also enjoy the freshly cut lawn and the beauty of the flowers that you plant around in your gardens and every so-called luxurious thing that you have. I enjoy. Yes.

An Enlightened Person Conforms
To Circumstances Whatever They Might Be

Therefore enlightenment affords us the enjoyment, not the situation. So I enjoy in both cases. I do not deny luxury, and I do not cling to asceticism, because both have its beauty. Whatever it is there, you accept it and that is the simple life. Some people ask me, Simple life means going to the forests and living in caves and eating weeds, and all that? I say no no no. Simple life means you stay where you are enjoy whatever you have. If you are rich, you enjoy your rich life and share whatever leftover, too much, with other people. If you are poor, enjoy your simple life and be happy that you don't have to worry about thieves. [Laughter] And that is simple living. You see, simple living, yeah - stay where you are, enjoy what you have, that is in my thinking a simple living. Do you think that's alright? (Applause.)
Because if we try to change our life it makes us not simple. Right? You are so used to with clean bath rooms and all that. And now you have to punish yourself and adjust yourself to kind of outside open toilet and it freezes in the winter and maybe you are not used to with the cold. You'd get cold and you'd get sick. And then is that simple? No, then you have to be administered to in a hospital and get all the needles in your tongue, in your knees and wherever necessary. (Master laughs.) And that looks very complicated indeed. At least from the outside. Therefore simple living means you are comfortable where you are. But of course there are somethings we adjust to life. For example if we meditate a lot, then we cannot afford to eat meat too much because that excites our energy, stimulates the passion, and we would like to sit still in order to know our own treasure and wisdom. Therefore if we do not follow a simple diet then it will have some side-effects. Therefore, some people meditate at random and do not adhere to the vegetarian diet they come into a kind of disturbance, you see? Many people have mental derangements. It is because of violating the law of nature. The law of nature teaches us to be vegetarian.
You know all of this. And I think in the sample booklet that you were given it has already been proven scientifically that we humans are vegetarian species. Because our teeth and our intestines... is that right? yeah? okay - are made for vegetarian beings, yes. And the meat-eaters beings are different in the body construction and the inner organs and the digestive system are all different. Anyhow I'll be long about enlightenment and short about diet, okay? Because in case you are allergic to vegetarian diet I won't mention anymore.

The Quan Yin Method Is
The Ultimate Method

But be enlightened anyhow, by all means and by whatever you can afford in your environment and in your mental state of preparation. There are many ways to enlightenment. But there is best way, quickest way, or longest way, yeah, safer way or a little bit risky way. Just like you climb the mountain there are many roads, but some roads are even and some roads are more rocky and some roads are dangerous.
So I have found that the Quan Yin Method, the method of observing the inner Word, the inner sound and the inner heavenly light is the best, and is the ultimate because ultimately we have to arrive to the light of God and to the Word of God in order to get the wisdom. All other roads are leading you to that state - that you could hear the sound of God and could see the light. Or other methods are having this same goal, but we are right here, - the teaching directly and you immediately experience the enlightenment taste, you see immediately. So you get this light and sound right away at the time of initiation. Whereby other methods, you have to take a long time or many years or many ascetic kinds of sacrifice in order to arrive there. Therefore, actually this is not a method. It's just a fruit and the meal is already prepared for you hungry guests. The others, maybe they are not hungry so they try to mess around with their food or cook all the time and not eat it. Many of our people who stay permanently in many of our centers around the world, their life is very simple, but they are very happy. Our life is so simple that when compared to the most simple life styles in other countries, theirs seems pale! The other day we were speaking with some of the people who work with the government in Au Lac. They are not the governmental officials, they are just working in a businesswise and so we had a chance to talk about this. And then, I said, Actually the Au Lac people in Au Lac if they were enlightened they wouldn't feel so troubled about communism even.
I say because, actually I am a true communist. Because whatever I earn I share it all with people. Communist means you have everything not for yourself, but for the community, you see. You live in a community. Therefore, actually I don't talk communism, but the communists should give me the best medal for it, yeah, because I live what they preach. (Laughter.) I live in tent. I live simple life. I don't earn money for myself. All the money runs around the world for the sake of my disciples, for the enlightenment of others, and for the poor and needy. And even my clothes I design for myself so it's cheaper. [Applause.]

Changing Ourselves Is Changing The World

Therefore, it's not what we should have in life but to what degree we are contented with life. To tell you honestly I have no better life than any of the people who live in the communist system. For example, from thirty-six or forty hours up till now I have only had one meal and that wasn't much. There was only maybe half a bowl or one bowl of rice, just a few tofu and a few vegetables. That's all there was. And I am working so, very... you can not say it's not hard. It's hard work because we run from one place after another and we are always packing and unpacking and talking to hundreds of, thousands of people all the time. I seldom rest with my voice, very seldom. I'll tell you my schedule. For example yesterday, the night before, I was in Seattle, yeah, talking to thousands and after that talking to the disciples and non-disciples, etc. And then, I did not go to bed until about five o'clock in the morning. And before that, I meditated for a while and then slept a little bit. And got up again at nine or something, got ready to go for the airplane. And then, at the airport I had to speak to hundreds of people and make them happy, right. And then, went to the air... (Laughter.) What, you're laughing at? It's not true? It's true, yes. Because, if not, then they are not happy. And then, in the airplane, I have to talk again to the neighbors because they will ask me where I come from and what I do and all that. Fine, I enjoy also. And then I had a little rest, maybe ten minutes. And then, again, came down to the airport. And hundreds of people were already there awaiting for me to talk again. Okay, I talked, until nine or something, huh? And then we went home. And then I had a little rest. And then came the telephone, and I talked again for about one or two hours, one hour at least. And then came out, and then all my disciples, their immediate friends, the Americans, they wanted to be exclusively treated. So only Americans were around, and I talked only in American language. Ah, that was about, yeah, just for a while, yeah? And then, I came and took that meal that I told you. Yes, and that was it. Up till... I had nothing from that meal until now. And before that I didn't have meal. Before that meal I nibbled two mouthfuls of bread and two mouthfuls of milk. That was before I left Seattle. And I came to last night and had that meal. The only meal up till now. So, therefore, I had in forty hours or fifty hours, actually only one meal. Nothing more. And if the communists are proud of their teaching, they should be more proud of the action, and they should give me a best medal. (Laughter & applause.) Actually I am too proud of myself. It's my ego at work, you see. (Master laughs.) Don't worry, I'll put it aside later. (Laughter.)
So, the problem is not to change anything of this world but to change ourselves you see. I would have complained before. Without enlightenment I would have complained. I would have loved to have my beautiful house, my lovely husband and my, whatever is mine. You understand? And I can't just sacrifice like that. But by the way doing this, I do not even feel sacrifice. You understand what I mean? Just very natural, very happy to do it. Of course I am tired and I complain sometimes. Because of some of the unnecessary tiresome questions or demands from people and disciples. And sometimes it agonizes you. You understand what I mean? Having to accompany kindergarten children while you are teaching in college, yes. It is very difficult also, but I get through, I get through. That's a reasonable complaint, no? Is it not? (Laughter & applause.)

Enjoy The World Within And Without

Thus, if the people in any poor country or in whatever situation if they get enlightenment, they would not feel suffering. Some of our disciples are relieved from even the most dangerous sicknesses after initiation or after they practice for a while. Yes, it depends on also their sincerity and karma. And some of them have to undergo sometimes this retribution, but they go with smiles on their faces.
Yesterday while I was in Seattle, even one of the women told me she had to undergo operation, but then she had prepared herself already to go to play in heaven while the body was undergoing operation. She told me: Ah, fine. I know already. I will go and let the doctor inject me and then meanwhile I will go to Buddha's land and have a look around. (Laughter.) Yes, that's what she did. And she had no fear of whatsoever. Yeah, yesterday some of you had heard it. Any of you from Seattle yesterday? Yes, you heard this, yeah. That was an Au Lac lady. She is about my age, maybe younger. But don't make me feel very old. (Master laughs.) Yes, that's what they do. And sometimes some of our fellow practitioners, their lives are not rich like you perhaps in Formosa. They drive taxi. Okay, they are taxi driver but while driving the taxi they can see Buddha's land or heaven, Kingdom of God at the same time. Therefore their lives pass very quickly. And whatever they do, they do it in joy. They enjoy the real life and the shadow of the real life, because both will blend together-there is no separation, no rejection of any kind.

The Beauty Of Enlightenment

When I was in Indonesia or some other country, some people said, Oh, you look beautiful. Would you consider to re-marry? Yeah. What do you think? Do I have time for that? (Master and everyone laugh.) Yes, but I said to him, Why do you ask this question? He said, because he thinks that enlightened people would not care so much about these things and no love and very dry and all that. I said, No, if you consider you should propose first. Yeah, you propose and I will put you on the marry list. (Laughter.)
But then, that's the last I heard of him. (Laughter & applause.) Probably after a close examination of my face and figure and whatever, and my life style and he thought he had better not take adventure. (Master and everyone laugh.) So, my disciples everywhere are enough to scare the biggest hero on earth. (Master laughs.) They would run away you know. When you are at home, and you have only one husband and wife and if the third person comes, you already feel very scared, right, very frightened that your love would be shared. How much more if they see my disciples! They hang around twenty four hours, they eat everything with me, and they interfere with all kinds of privacy, except when I am in the bathroom. (Laughter.) My door is never be able to lock. Always coming up and down and my room is just like a restaurant. So whoever dare to be my husband should prepare for war. (Master and everyone laugh.) So, that's the life it is. You see whether you have or you don't have it's fine. It's very fine with you because you are contented within yourself. You do not reject life. But you do not sink into life deeply so that you know nothing else except the material existence of life. And that's the beauty of enlightenment. (Applause.)
Alright, I am ready for your questions, because there will be more talk by the way. You can ask anything, yeah. And I am free to answer or not, so don't worry.
It is a very good atmosphere today, huh! Right? Yes, for the first time and then you can laugh so much. I think we don't charge the lecture with money but we charge the laughter because this is very rare. (Laughter.)

Question And Answer Session

Q: In the Bible Jesus Christ said: I and my father are one . (M: Yeah.) But, how can I reach this state? M:Get enlightenment, yeah. Get initiation. That's what we are here for, to help you.

Q:Dear Master, I have never eaten vegetarian. However, after I listened to your videos and read your magazines, I started to eat vegetarian once or twice a month (M: Wa, big deal, big deal!) Can I meditate? If yes, is there any danger? M:Fine, it's already a big improvement, yeah. From thirty days to twenty-eight days.

Q:Dear Master, how to live a happy life? M:Didn't I tell you? (Master and everyone laugh.) To get enlightenment is a sure way of a happy life. Okay, I am very patient.

Is Abortion An Offense To The Precepts?

Q:Could you please explain your precepts against killing. Specifically against abortion.
M:Wa! You get me into trouble. Ah, Thou shalt not kill is the precept of all religious scriptures, not only Christians. It's even in Jainism, Hinduism and other religions also. If they truly take this thou shalt not kill in a true sense of the precept, abortion, of course, should be avoided. And the doctor should be very precise in determining what is the special situation that people should undertake this. Because maybe sometimes it's dangerous for the mother, yeah, or dangerous for both. So, the doctor should be fair in determining that situation. Otherwise I think we should save life in any way we can. Whatever special circumstance with you, that you have to answer, your selfconscience, and the doctor has to determine that. Okay? I am not here to condemn anyone, because I know life is very hard, and very difficult to say which is right and which is wrong. Because we are also all under the sway of karma, of the law of cause and retribution, and sometimes it is very difficult for a person to go above that, to be saintly, and to be decisive about anything in life. But, bear in mind that if you have faith in God, and in all our wisdom and if we are enlightened, no circumstance is difficult, no situation is hard to handle. So, I just propose enlightenment, and no condemnation for anything. (Applause.)

Q: Is it okay to receive initiation from more than one master? M:Yeah, it's okay. But why is it necessary? For example, if your master has already taught you the light and sound within you, and you are satisfied and you're making progress with that path, then you don't have to be initiated by another master who will teach the same method. But nevertheless, if you are not completely satisfied and you would like to have more, I mean you are more convinced in some other master, of course you may do so.

Respect The Talent And

Qualities Of Other People

Q:Jesus ate fish, why do you not?
M:You always put fish in Jesus' mouth. (Laughter.) Alright, suppose he ate fish, he is Christ, he can do many other things that you cannot do. Why you look at the piece of fish only and not at his qualities and his holiness? As soon as you become holy as he is, and powerful as he is, you can eat human beings, okay?! (Laughter & applause.) If you are that desperate for meat... Oh God! We always compare the things that other people do to suit our taste. But we do not respect their qualities and their talents, yeah. We have to know what we have and other people have, hm, and then we can say what we can do or not. The president he can stay in the white house, he has a lot of bodyguards, he has power over the whole nation. So, somethings he can do, we can not. Okay, right?!

Q: Are pain and illness always the result of present karma? If so, how do we clean them out?
M:We clean it out by enduring it. Alright? Because it's already too late now to reverse the wheel of karma. But we could minimize it, we could lubricate it by being enlightened, by meditation on the perfection of the Father every day through the guidance of a teacher, through initiation. Then, we minimize a lot of things. Yeah, um.

Q:Do you feel this initiation is important? Why can it not be done on our own?
M:The question answers itself, um. If you have done it yourself, then it's not necessary to get an initiation. But if you couldn't do it, if you haven't seen the light of God and the sound of heaven, then, initiation is necessary. Besides there are many steps to heaven that you must know, verbally, the instruction, and so many pitfalls that you should avoid. And if you do not know that, you'd waste a lot of time, and sometimes it's dangerous, um.

Q:Who was your Himalaya master and what lineage? M:I think I talked about that already in some of the tapes. You go and have a look, okay? Now I'm here and you keep asking about my master all the time. I am jealous. (Laugher.) I am so beautiful, and you don't care about me. (Master and everyone laugh.) You care about an old man with wrinkled eyes and cranky mood and doesn't talk to any one, doesn't accept disciples. (Laughter.)

Q:Master, specifically what is the difference between enlightenment and the power to initiate, and which one does the patriarch of the Bible have?
M:The power to initiate came first. You will have the power of initiation also if you are pointed by the master, because a master will initiate through you. And also you have the power, the true power, the perfect power, not the borrowed one, when you become a master. When you reach the fifth plane of consciousness, then you become Christ or Buddha, yeah. At that time you can initiate. But enlightenment is a part of it, part of the power. And you will expand this, and get to know more of your greatness, more and more until you realize your complete self. And that is the time you'll know God. That's the time you'll be able to initiate people.

In The State Of Samadhi

Q:Dear Master, is it right that we have to be at or beyond the second level of spiritual practice to have a samadhi experience? M:No, no. It's not true. It's just that deeper or shallower samadhi. If you see the light or hear the sound, that means you're already in samadhi. It's just a little bit not very deep. And sometimes you're in very deep samadhi, and you sit there and only aware of the inside, and sometimes aware of both, inside and outside.

Q: If initiated, can one practice meditation an hour in the morning, half hour in the middle of the day and an hour at night? Does one have to meditate two and a half hours continuously a day? M:No, no. You can separate it. You can do it on the bus, in the park, on airplane and the train, etc. to make up for the hours that you need.

Q:Please explain the reason for not eating or using eggs, and how do eggs represent life and death?
M:Because egg is a symbol of life and death. In it contains life, yeah. And many of the black magicians or white magicians they use eggs to withdraw some of the negative possessive spirit within some people, yeah. Therefore, if we eat eggs too much we tend to attract this negative force toward ourselves. Yeah, that's one of the reasons why we should not eat eggs, hm.

Q:Do you have homosexual disciples?
M:Yes. Do I have to report to you their private business? You see, homosexuality is just a misconception about their awareness. They misunderstand their body's function. And when they become enlightened, this will be less and less, because they will identify themselves less with the body, but more with the spirit. Therefore there's nothing wrong with that. Yeah, when the children are very young, they play with plastic models and they cling to their teddy bears, but when they grow up, they will leave them. So do not worry about your misidentification with your body or with your birth appearance. It's alright, just get enlightenment, and everything will fix itself in due course.

Q: Master, I often see that in meditation it is my mind watching my mind, I lose faith that I can't go beyond this technique. Any advice? Thank you!
M:Oh, of course, it's not the very suitable technique for you perhaps. Because if we use the mind to watch the mind, we are still inside the mind and inside the creation's destroying and nourishing process. We should go beyond the mind. Therefore in our meditation, we don't use the mind at all. Yeah, and that is the most advanced technique. So, maybe try ours, Okay?! Um.

Q:What happened to your husband?
M:Oh, thanks for your concern. We've lost contact for, I think, several years now. Well he waited for me six years, alright? And then, he remarried after six years. And during the time we wrote off and on, half a year a letter, or one year a letter. And after six years, he got married again, with a vegetarian doctor wife. And then he got a son and he reported that to me. That was the last I heard of him. If you are interested to know, maybe I'll go into the second level and have a look at his future. (Master and everyone laugh.)

Q:Master, how important is it to see the light eighteen inches in front of me. I only see it close to my forehead. Thank you. M:It's fine, It's a good beginning. Don't worry. It will grow further.

Why Budhi Dharma Sat Facing
The Wall For Nine Years

Q: I don't know if it's my business to understand, but I would like to find out about Buddha's message when he came from India and sat facing the wall for nine years.
M: Oh! The patriarch, the Budhi Dharma? Facing the wall for nine years? Because He had nothing else to do. (Laughter.) If it weren't for you, I would probably sit and face the ceiling for nineteen years. (Laughter.)
You see. If they have things to do, they would do them whole-heartedly. If they have nothing to do, they just do what they want to do. Yeah, that's it. And if He loved the wall so much, why not? (Laughter & applause.) You see actually, of course I make a joke about it. But you see, to elaborate it further, you should understand that an enlightened person is very contented within him or herself, and does not desire to do anything when it's not necessary. For example, if I don't come to you or if I don't lecture or if nobody requires me to come out to see them or talk to them, I am always in my room. Yeah. Of course sometimes I like to take a walk in the garden or in the forest whenever it's there. If not, I stay in my room. I do nothing, I am just happy. Yeah, I may read books, or not read books. I might meditate, or not meditate. I may sleep, or I may feel awake. I may eat something or not eat something. I'm fine within the walls. You see! That's the problem with the prisoners. Because they are not enlightened, therefore they feel walls separate them. If they were enlightened they would sit pretty well in there and they'd never probably want to leave prison at all. Yes, it is because we are very contented within ourselves. You see. That's why the patriarch, He sat there and felt good. At that time, probably there was no lecture hall for Him, and not many people understood Him. So, He just sat there and enjoyed Himself. He could have done other things, but it wasn't necessary at that time.
There was a story about a Zen master and his disciple. I am afraid to lose your time. Is it okay to tell? (Audience: Yes.) Okay. One Zen disciple, yeah, very enlightened perhaps, came to see his master after some time, and then his master asked him, Ah, well, well, what did you do all these months? Yeah, you had a summer vacation, now what did you do? He said, Oh, in my backyard, there is a big piece of land. I cultivated it and planted some vegetables, and they tasted so good, they looked good. Yeah, and I feel very good about it. So, the master praised him and said, Oh, well, well, you did not waste your time, huh! You know how to use your time, it's very good, yes. And so the disciple asked the master: Then what did you do during this time that I was not here? What did you do? And the master said, Oh, in the daytime I ate and read books, in the nighttime I slept, hm. So, the disciple also nodded his head and said, Oh, well, well, master, you also know how to use your time, you didn't waste your time, you are very useful! You understand? Yes, it's very comfortable, huh! It takes an enlightened mind to understand an enlightened mind. So, that's what it is, with the enlightened people. If they have work to do, they do it. If they don't they don't miss anything. So, whenever we are on tour, we are sometimes in a kind of very famous place. You know? Like when we were in Mexico, we were next to the pyramid, yeah and of course people would like to go there. It was about one hour from our place actually, and my room was in the middle of the city, with all the noises and all the narrowness, everything. But still I didn't long to go to the pyramid. So, we never did go.
Even though I stayed there six days, and lectured only one day. But I saw people every day of course. But I had no longing to go to see pyramid, or anything else. I stayed always every day, every minute of the day in my room.
And so, I told you again and again, enlightenment is the only way for the cure of everything in this world. Otherwise, if anyone else, you put them in the room like that, yeah, and don't let them go to see pyramid, something, they will be unhappy. But we are not. I and my disciples, the immediate crew, you know, nobody wanted to go to the pyramid. I asked them, If you want to go, you are free to go. Don't have to wait for me or ask my permission. But nobody wanted to go. They are just happy to serve. They sleep when they have time. And when they wake up, they go and prepare for the lecture-equipment and all that. No one longs to go sightseeing, nothing. It's because we are very contented within ourselves.
Therefore, the first patriarch, Bodhi Dharma, the Budhist who came to China and faced the wall nine years, it was the same situation, um.

Why Ego Exists?

Q: During meditation do we need to keep ourselves awake so that we know that we are meditating? If I fall into a state of not fully being awake or I fall asleep, is there any good in my meditation at all?
M:Yes, it's a good sleep. (Laughter.)

Q: I have been on a vegetarian diet for three months, but I can't cross my legs because there is a problem with my legs. So, am I qualified for initiation? And can you comment on posture in meditating?
M:Then don't cross your leg for God's sake. Do what you want with your legs. I don't want your legs. I just want your enlightenment, okay.

Q: After initiation and if Master is not with us, if I have any problems with my meditation, what should I do? M: The Master is always with you, hm. Master is not the body. We are wisdom. We are connected with the whole universe. And the master who is worth his name is omnipresent. So, whenever you are in trouble, the Master knows. And the Master is always helping you to progress. Whether you see the Master or not, it depends on your power of samadhi. Otherwise, Master is twenty-four hours awake and taking care of you. So don't worry, okay?

Q: Master, You are very beautiful and have much to offer. I am glad to be here. My question has to do with the ego. What are we to do with it, if anything, and why does it exist? M: I see. The ego doesn't exist actually. The ego comes from the information that we collect during our time, and during our inter-relationships with others or with all things around us, yes.

For example, when you were born, you had no ego. But when you grow up and then you know yourself to be beautiful or handsome, yes, then, the ego begins to grow yeah. And everybody praises you. Wa! you're beautiful! And then, You have a Ph.D.! You grow more in pride, and that is the ego, yeah. But, don't worry about it. It's just a good accessory sometimes. And you can throw it away anytime you don't need. But, you have to have enlightenment first in order to know when to wear it, and when to put it down. Okay?

Initiation Is The Only Way
To Reach The Fifth World

Q:What kind of light and sound can I hear when I reach the fifth level? I mean what symbol will let me know if I come to the fifth level of meditation?
M: That I tell you at the time of initiation. Because I cannot just tell you like that at random. I don't know what kind of meditation you do. If you want to elaborate further, maybe it's better, um. The fifth level is meant for the initiated people only, not for other disciples. They couldn't even reach the first.

Q:Dear Master, I'm married, but I sometimes have dreams of being with other beautiful girls. How do I prevent these dreams? Am I creating heavy karma? Please tell me. M:It's alright! Just enjoy your dreams okay?! (Laughter.) Just don't do it in the reality. Otherwise, your wife will not let you enjoy it. And keep it a secret. What can we do with dreams? Right? Forgive yourself. It's okay!

Q:When does the soul enter the body? Is it before our birth or after our birth? How can it happen if we are born as a twin? M: No, because you like to stick together, I guess, huh! You have affinity with each other, um. And you want to go out at the same time to have companion. No problem about twins, yeah. We are twins ourselves. We have both feminine and masculine aspects inside. And we, if we reunite that, we're happy, um. Forget about the physical aspect.

Experience Is Better Than Empty Talk

Q:Dear Master, please let us know more about energy, the relationship between energy, peace and love. The only thing we know from science is that energy can not be destroyed or created. Energy can be transformed from one kind to another kind. Some say God is energy, God is love. What do you think? M:I think these are only sayings. Before you experience that, all sayings are empty. I do not like to be a living dictionary but an example of the true knowledge. When you are enlightened, you understand this energy and all the metaphysical questions. Energy is many kinds, negative and positive. When we are enlightened, we balance both and make use of them for the purposes in life and in the right time, the right situation. I told you already. If we are enlightened, the world will be at peace. No need to change anything. Of course, that is peaceful energy that we radiate after enlightenment.

Q:How to affect our beloved, such as husband or wife, to be a more moral person. Is there a special method to help them? M:Yes, enlightenment. Enlightenment helps you to be sharper in all feelings, yeah. And you'll be a better wife, be better husband even. Many of our initiates claim that their married life became much better after both of them practiced God's presence, yeah, the light and sound. Before that they just had a kind of very lukewarm relationship, or cold to ice cube. And after enlightenment they know how to care for each other and then feel more toward each other, um.

Q:Dear Master, I had a lot of nightmares in childhood. Now the nightmares are gone, but, I still dream frequently every night. Please tell me are these dreams involved with my karma? M: Maybe you had a very rough life before, um. You lived in truly nightmarish life . Therefore, the influence still lingers up till now. Well I sounds like advertising manager, but enlightenment is also for everything. If you want to live a fearless life, and dreamless life, then, of course enlightenment is the answer.

Q:Master, were Hermes, Zoroaster, the Essences, the Gnostics masters? And who were the first masters? And who is the great white brotherhood?
M:All masters, all true masters are one. They come from one source. And the highest master is the supreme master, the almighty which is in all of you. When we first came here we were masters before. And we came here, we blessed the world. And, we forgot all about our power and our glory. And our energies were also exhausted, because we paid attention to outer phenomenas. So, all the masters who came here are the ones who are awakened in this awareness and know their true glory, and they can travel the road home frequently. And they can lead us back home. So, no need to discriminate between any master. All the religions are founded after the master has gone. Therefore we have Christian after Christ, Buddhist after Buddha, etc., okay?!

Q:Enlightenment always seems so lofty. In what ways will I be different after enlightenment ? How will I know? Is it in black and white?
M:Oh, you'll know it, you'll know it definitely. You'll know it, just like you walk inside the door and when you walk outside the door. It's very definite and very beneficial to your daily life. You will know it, very definitely. Just like an educated person and an uneducated person, there is a great difference.

Q: Is it true that to become fully realized one must practice the highest yoga-tantra and the secret mantra? And if Buddha performed these before full realization?
M:I didn't see anything like that in the scriptures. I only saw that He sat under the Bodhi tree for forty days or more. And He saw the stars at the time of realization. So, if you want to have this same realization as Buddha, you can have it, right now, um. And about tantra and tantrum, I do not know. I did not see anything in the Buddhist scripture referring to the Buddha's practice before He was enlightened. I only know that He saw the stars and He saw the light. So, if you want that kind, we have it. Okay?!

Q:There is a vow to refrain from intoxicants. What about chemicals on fruits and vegetables?
M:Oh, my God! You are fanatic. Wash them with the salty water, yeah, and eat them. Otherwise, you die, hmm? (Laughter & applause.)

Q: Since I started the vegetarian diet, my son who's seven years old asks, Is it another no-meat day? I realize my son was born with the great nature of not eating meat. But due to my ill-concept I started his meat eating habit. How can I restore his greatness and reduce my guilt?
M:Um, then take time. You have taken much time and efforts to force your son into meat, and now you have to take the same amount of effort and time to reverse.

How Dictators Emerge?

Q:Dear Maser, please explain what kind of karma it is when there were dictators like Hitler, Lenin, Ho Chi Minh, who caused the wars that killed millions of people, and made millions of others suffer. M:That is a collective karma of mankind which, as I told you, are by-products of the inter-relationships between humans and other beings in this world or other worlds. And those kinds of by-products became a kind of very forceful strong energy hanging around our earth's atmosphere. And when it is too condensed, then it has to manifest into some kind of visible, such as a very great dictator who kills millions, etc.
As you have asked, so therefore, these people are not to be blamed also, in a sense. But, ourselves are to be blamed. If each one of us leads a life of virtues, keeps the commandments, and refrain from killing of any kind - including the indirect killing, so keeping the vegetarian diet - and the world would never have bred these kinds of dictators in the first place. These are there to remind us of the virtuous way, and if we are not awakened yet, then these things will continue to remind us until the whole mankind is awakened.

How To Eradicate Anger?

Q:What is anger? Why does it boil inside us? And how do we release this anger?
M: Sometimes it helps to release it outwardly. Sometimes between husband and wife or men or parents and children there exists some kind of tension. And after you have cleared it together, you clear the air, it's also helpful.
Whatever comes naturally, just let it be. If you cannot control it or you cannot control it completely, just try not to bear hatred in it. Just express what you feel, express it in as best manner as you can okay?! Because sometimes anger, when swallowed too much of the time will breed disease within the body.

So the best is that, first we have the virtues of God, and then other passions like anger, greed, attachment, will subside by and by.

Q:You say only human beings can become a Buddha. I want to know if when a disciple passes away and he is on the 4th level, does he need to come back to this world to be a human being and after that to study until he becomes a Buddha?
M:Oh, no, he doesn't have to. He studies from there. The Master will continue to teach the disciple and never leave the disciple until the disciple completely realize himself, hm! (Applause.)

Q:You said You denounce immorality. What is meant by sexual misconduct? Is that wrong?
M: I do not denounce anything. I just propagate correct way of life. And you are free to follow it, okay?! I do not denounce anything. If you feel that is a denouncement, it's not true. Just that you go into the wrong direction. Now you should go back to the right one, if you want to arrive at your destination which is the Kingdom of God.
Too much sexual abuse and indulgence tires your body, exhausts your mental power which should be conserved for the greatest enlightenment, and to help yourself and to help mankind. It's more noble that way. That's all, yeah.
Sexual misconduct means you have too many girl friends, too many boy friends, too many husbands and wives. It exhausts your storehouse of energy, okay?!

Q: How do You suggest that a person go about attaining enlightenment when that person lives in extreme and almost constant pain.
M:There are many drugs that help you with pain these days. You do not have to endure that. Medicine, you can take in order to prevent the pain. And then when you are calm and peaceful, then you can meditate.

Q:Please let us know if God, the comforter that God sent, the spirit of truth, is only one comforter or a few comforters? If there are a few, please let us know how many? M:You want to shop, uh, shopping for enlightenment! (Laughter.) One is enough for you, right now, okay?! (Applause.) Because even if there are a few, who knows if they will come to you and when, and whether you are still alive when the other comforters come, understand? Okay?

Q:Oh, Master, I have a hard time meditating because my head hurts when I start to meditate. Please tell me how to stop the headaches?
M:Maybe you try too much. You should not have any effort, yeah. But I don't know what kind of method you study, so it's difficult to tell you. But whatever you do, relax, yeah. Just do it just like you are mowing a lawn or eating the breakfast. No need to put strain on your brain for concentration. In our method we do it without effort. We just sit there and the light comes. Therefore, it is better.

Q:What does it mean when some people are absent-minded when someone talks to them, and they just don't react, or they instantly forget what you've just said. Is it because they're too mental or they use their mind too much?
M:How do I know? You ask them?!

Q:Dear Master, when You die where does your soul go and what happens to your energy and karma?
M:Me or anyone? (Q: It says when You die.) I'll tell you after I die, okay?! (Laughter & applause.) It's too early. I mean I am still very young.

Heavy Karma Incurred In Meat Eating

Q: If after being initiated and I still make a mistake like eating meat or having an evil thought, does it mean that I'll be disconnected from God or suffer some bad punishment? M:Evil thought, you might not be able to control it immediately after enlightenment, because it's just like the car brake, you see. When the car runs sixty miles an hour, and if you want to brake it, do it slowly, yeah. So, it'll probably take some time to be able to purify completely yourself.
But the meat you can avoid it, yeah, except when you don't know it and you eat it by mistake, then that's fine. But you have to meditate more on that day to clean that, because that is a very heavy karma. That's what makes people ill, what makes our body suffer, and what makes us go to hell afterward to repay for the suffering of other beings. (Applause.)

Q:Dear Master, I sincerely thank You for the lecture today. I wish that You take care of Your health, so that You can continue to give lectures for the rest of the world, and save people who have the sincerity to find the way back to God's home. Thank You again. Please take care of Yourself.
M:Thank you, thank you. God takes care of me. You take care of me. Because you have love for me, you have good thoughts for me, you have loving wishes for me, therefore you take care of me. I can't take care of myself. I just flow with the water. Wherever there is demand, I just have to fulfill it. I have no time or actually no very fixed schedule to say that I can take care of myself. Never mind, I am okay. I work hard and I am alright.

Q:This question is about discipline. I find that I am very devoted to trying new techniques for a period of time. When I do not see results or when I get too busy or too tired, I just give up, I don't stay with the discipline. How can I push through my weakness and continue with daily routine and mastery? M: Ah, of course if you have a method and it doesn't work very well, and also maybe you do not follow the practice regularly and diligently and sincerely, then, you lose your faith, yeah. So, try to do what is instructed, and then your faith will grow more with the results. Of course if you don't have results, you don't have faith, and the less faith you have, the less results. So, you'll be in the circle.

Awaken The Primitive Force Of The Universe

Q:Master, sometimes during meditation with the Convenient Method, I feel a chill from my spine going up to my head, and then there seems to be a feeling of energy encircling in my head. What does this mean? Is this a bad or good sign? M:It's okay. It's your kundalini at work. Afterward you'll be used to it. It's only a Convenient Method, and still it works all so much, because of the master power blessing you. Other people they practice many years to try to awaken the kundalini, and they can't do it.

Q:Did Jacob receive bad karma for tricking Isaac into giving him the blessing? Did Benjamin receive bad karma for tricking his brothers into bringing his father to Egypt? M:Oh, he talks about Bible? (Q: Ah, the Old Testament.) Oh, what do we know about these people? Why do we care? They are all gone, yes. (Laughter & applause.) I think we have enough work to do with our own.
Okay. That's it? I am relieved? Ah, fine. Thank you for your attention. (Applause.)

Pearls Of Wisdom

The Secret Of Happiness

930306.EC
*What I try to teach you is to become a master. Yes, to realize your supreme power. Maybe you don't have to be a master going around and having headaches like me, but you'll be a master of your own self, and you'll understand your power. You'll understand your position, then you will have no need to go to anyone, to seek any material blessing - because you know all the blessing comes from your own self. Okay, that's what I try to teach you.
(Master's lecture in Singapore Mar. 6, 1993 in English.)

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*Some people praise me that I work very hard, I can do it because I am a Buddha. I say maybe I am a Buddha but my body is still human. So if I succeed, it's only because I am always trying, trying and nonstop trying. I never give up to my body tiredness, or the mood of my mind. So it's a nonstop trying. Every woman can do what I do. (Master's lecture in Pusan, Korea May 14, 1993 in English.)

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*So we have to look the bright side of the sun, the bright side of the corner. Okay, now, that's one of my secret teachings imparted to you. You know, that's how we keep happy and contented, and develop our creative talent and our positive happy nature. We can't always look for expecting things to come out the way we want. But we accept the things as God arranged it. That's always fun and surprising and tasty, you know? Makes life more interesting.
(Master's lecture in Los Angeles, California Nov. 3, 1993 in English.)

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*Actually most of people do not know the valuable lesson of possessionlessness, because possessionlessness means fearlessness. Yes, I know. When we don't have fame and we don't have possession, we fear nothing, because we have nothing to lose. If we gain something, it's okay, we might think about it. But if we lose, that's it. When you have nothing, how can you lose?
(Master's lecture in Los Angeles, California Nov. 3, 1993 in English.)

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*So some of the new initiates, please be patient, everything will come. The more you practice, the more you go to group meditation, the more you get involved in your spiritual search, you will find the incredible bliss within you, that no amount of money, no higher position can be traded for that. (Master's lecture in Los Angeles, California Nov. 3, 1993 in English.)

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*So even mundane life became better after we make use of our real power and wisdom. Otherwise, we just keep using what we know, what we learned from the society and it's a second hand, third hand, fifth hand, hundredth hand. It's passed down all the time, and we sometimes don't prove whether it is really efficient for ourselves. So it's better that we use the original intelligence. Everything will come, every of our latent abilities will surface, every of our loving, hidden nature will emerge, every of our talents will just come out like from nowhere. That's why in the Bible it is said that, Seek you first the Kingdom of God and all the things shall be added onto you.
(Master's lecture in Portland Dec. 4, 1993 in English.)

931204.EC
*Whatever we can share, begin with sharing. And then we will feel a subtle change in ourselves, more love will be pouring into our consciousness, and we will be aware of something and that is the beginning.
(Master's lecture in Portland Dec. 4, 1993 in English.)

Master's Wonders

When The Soul "Ascends To Heaven" It's Extremely Beautiful!

By Fellow Initiate Wang in Valencia, Spain

One morning shortly after initiation, I was meditating and was about to enter samadhi. (Although my physical body was losing sensation gradually, my soul was still in absolute awareness.) I could feel a warm current moving slowly throughout my body and limbs. Feeling hot and agitated all over, I was anxiously trying to be free of all restraints and soar high. Suddenly, "whiz!" My soul burst out of my wisdom eye, and soared into the boundless night sky at an incredible supra-worldly speed. There was a motionless pause, followed by another speedy climb. Then, there was another pause, a third ascent, ending up in perfect stillness.

Leisurely, I looked up at the twinkling starry sky. I could hear the whistling wind and the roaring thunder. These breathtaking heavenly sounds rolled over me like collapsing mountains and violent ocean waves, as if thousands of cavalries were charging by. One thing was very strange. Alone in this spectacular, infinite cosmos, my insignificant spiritual body did not feel lonely or scared. On the contrary, I felt spirited, refreshed, relaxed and free. I was in absolute bliss. All the while, I did not forget to recite the five names. In perfect awareness, I could feel that dear Master was always by my side. I was engulfed by the boundless love Master bestowed on me.

From the next day, I naturally increased my meditation hours from two and a half to four or five hours. This "ascent to Heaven" was a vital breakthrough for me. I had a brand new experience, which was the spur impelling me to practice more diligently.

Several days later, I had another incredible experience in my meditation, spectacular, golden, brilliant fireworks bursting forth continuously. In the center of the extreme brightness, I clearly perceived the magnificent manifestation form of the Julai (Tathagata) Buddha. I could also hear the fabulous supra-worldly music. After the meditation, the familiar sound of Master singing the Buddhist hymns echoed in my room. So amazed and delighted, I immediately continued to meditate and listened with my wisdom eye. After several minutes, stealthily I opened my eyes and listened with my human ears. Master's wonderful voice was still singing so distinct and fascinating. I opened and closed my eyes several times. More than ten minutes elapsed before Master's voice finally faded away. I am grateful for Master's extra blessing to me!

Shortly afterwards, the merciful Master let me have another "ascent to Heaven". I was up in the sky in the brilliant and colorful Buddha's land that I saw last time. In a glorious, strikingly colorful and extremely beautiful mansion surrounded by auras, I saw the most merciful, great savior - the Quan Yin Bodhisattva (Avalokitesvara), wearing a white dress and white hat, whom I have worshipped and longed to see for decades. During the most precarious and miserable past years, our whole family, old and young, have managed to drag themselves through all the hardships, thanks to the constant protection and blessings of the Quan Yin Bodhisattva.

Now, I realize that the Quan Yin Bodhisattva is my dear Master Ching Hai. Writing this, a flood of tears blurs my eyes. Blissful tears of thankfulness keep rolling down my cheeks. I simply cannot express my infinite love and gratitude to You, my adorable dear Master!

The Miracle That Saved
My Mother's Life

By Fellow initiate Gschwilm in Munich, Germany (Originally in English)

My mother was initiated about a month ago, in Mal. She had been practicing the Convenient Method for several months as well as listening to lots of Master's tapes, and her experiences were very good. Even after initiation, when her experiences got even better, a little doubt kept living on in her heart. Maybe it is too good to be true.

But then something dramatic happened. One day mother was driving in her little red Volkswagen when at a traffic intersection, she overlooked a huge van coming towards her from the right. The van hit the side of her car. It completely caved in, with parts falling off and gas spilling everywhere. Miraculously enough, my mother just bumped against the steering wheel, then opened the door and walked out, as if nothing had happened. Except for a few bruises she was perfectly fine. She was not even shocked about the incident, although she was very well aware of the fact that she could easily have been killed or very seriously injured.

Everybody who looked at the car afterwards, which had to be scrapped, said that it was really a miracle that my mother had survived.

Since then she feels as if she has been born again. She realizes that it is only due to Master's grace and blessing power the problems created by the accident were minimal and that she was able to get off so lightly. Actually she has had several nightmares about car accidents during the last few months. In one of her dreams she was even injured, and she felt the pain all over her body. The karma of the disaster in reality had been reduced in the dreams which is an easier way to pay it off.

Now she is finally able to completely trust Master and break through the illusion of the mind and accept what she has been given. She feels very happy inside.

The Precious Photograph

Narrated by Ms. Kong in Spain
Recorded by Initiate Wang in Spain

A lady who came to Spain a few years ago told an initiate recently about her wondrous personal experience. Her girl friend, a disciple of the Supreme Master Ching Hai, gave her a photograph of Master just before she left the country, bidding her farewell. One day, a short while after her arrival in Spain, while she was walking along Columbia Street in Madrid, some robbers grabbed her handbag. She was practically in shock. She gave chase with all her might trying to get back her handbag. In the bag was her passport showing on it particular data and the customs' entry seal which were of critical importance in her application for permanent residence in Spain.

Because the criminals fled so quickly, she was helpless and couldn't do anything. Just as she was feeling desperate, a miracle happened! All of a sudden, police cars appeared from all directions and surrounded the criminals. They had nowhere to run. The police gave back her handbag and asked her to check it out. She immediately opened it. She was pleased her passport was still there, and was also surprised to find Master's photograph, the one her girl friend gave her. At that very moment she realized that Master had rescued her!

Afterward when she talked about this incident, everyone felt it was really incredible. In particular, everyone was surprised that so many police cars suddenly appeared at the scene just in time to retrieve her bag. This lady was highly impressed. And she was convinced that Master was truly a living Buddha; her savior who had protected her secretly.

Master Giving A Sign

By Initiate Ghe In Japan

A few days before my initiation, I woke up especially early in the morning. I looked at my watch and thought it peculiar since I normally didn't wake up so early. I went back to sleep, but just before I fell asleep I smelled an extraordinary fragrance. I was astonished and became wide awake. The fragrance lasted a few seconds. I got up and looked all over the house but couldn't find anything that could have given off the smell. As I was puzzling over it, the phone rang. It was the Quan Yin messenger informing me about the initiation. I realized at that moment that the fragrance was a sign from Master. Maybe it was to keep me from falling asleep and possibly missing the phone call. Thank You, Master, for giving me this special experience and reminding me to follow the Path.

Master Turns A Major Catastrophe Into A Small Accident

By Initiate Lai, Taichung, Formosa

The first day back at work after returning from the 4-day retreat in Hong Kong, I was ordered to climb up a multi-sectional ladder to inspect an alarm system. As I reached the highest point and started to work on it, the ladder suddenly broke. I was so scared that my mind went blank. Meanwhile, I felt a pair of invisible arms holding my body, and like a kite with a broken string, slowly I descended to the ground. After falling from a height of several stories, I hit the hard ground and became unconscious!

Later I found out that the accident was caused by a loose screw in the end portion of the ladder. When I fell, my co-workers all screamed, "He is a goner!" I fell down head first and suffered severe injuries to my skull. After having the x-rays and brain scans diagnosed, the doctor said, "There is no concussion or internal bleeding... only external injuries. You are very fortunate!" A few days after the doctors treated my injuries, I was out of the hospital.

Deep down I knew that our omnipresent, omniscient and omnipotent Master had saved me. Even though I had to go through this catastrophe, Master had turned it into a small accident.

Master's Story

By The Supreme Master Ching Hai At Tien Shan Center in Shatin, Hong Kong, On April 19, 1994
(Originally in Chinese)

(Master reading a story) "A man bought a plot of land from his neighbour on the last day of the Golden Age. What was the Golden Age?" It was a time when most people were kind and valued righteousness above material gain. They were gentle, clean, courageous and noble... In other words, they were very virtuous at that time.

Nowadays we are also in the 'Golden Age' - everyone likes gold so much that it is even more important than the life of a human being. That was the reason why Au Lac people were able to use gold to escape Au Lac in order to save themselves. Some very rich used gold in exchange for water to bathe when they were in Thailand. The outcome was that they were labeled economic refugees ; meaning they were living 'in poverty' so they escaped from Au Lac.

Some of our disciples who came to know about this said that they bought water for a bath with gold, because water was scarce and there was not enough to quench their thirst let alone to have a bath! Nevertheless, there were some people who were able to use gold to buy water for a bath, not just once a while but everyday. No doubt, some were rich but not everybody. Others probably had lost their possessions at sea or did not have time to bring them along. Some refugees were poor but not all of them.

The story I am going to tell you was from the real Golden Age, not this 'Gold-Grabbing Age' (Master laughed) in which everybody's eyes sparkle when they see gold. They hold it tightly and will not give away.

This reminds me about a man who went to a goldsmith shop to steal a piece of gold in broad daylight. Of course he was caught on the spot and put into jail. The judge asked him, Why did you try to steal the gold in broad daylight when the shop is so crowded? Didn't you realize? Why did you try at that time making it so easy for you to get caught? The man sighed, Oh, I could only see the gold, not the people! (Laughter) This is so called 'Gold-Grabbing Age'.

Going back to our story in which a man bought a plot of land from his neighbour. This happened on the last day of the real Golden Age. The next day it turned into the Age of Darkness in which people were immoral and had no conscience; they killed each other, they, for the sake of money, cheated and squeezed one another without showing any sense of courtesy or humility. Whereas, in the Golden Age, people did not regard gold as important. They placed greater value on morality and supreme wisdom derived from practice... etc.

So that was the last day of the Golden Age and the next day would be the beginning of the Age of Darkness. That man, after buying the land, started to dig the soil so as to placed the pillars in the building of his house. He did not realize the change from the Gold to the Dark Age. He just happened to be in that situation, but of course God Almighty knew that. While digging, the man discovered a vase full of gold and immediately he took it to his neighbour who sold him the land. (It was still the Golden Age and not yet tomorrow .) The man told his neighbour, Oh! When I was digging today, I found this vase of gold. I want to return it to you as I bought the land but not the gold, so it doesn't belong to me. I paid for the land but not this vase of gold. It's something extra and I should return it to you. The real Golden Age was truly like that.

His neighbour, the previous landlord, replied, Oh, congratulations, it's yours! You need not return it to me. By the very fact that you bought this land, whatever's underneath it, also belongs to you; I have no right to keep it! So both of them were trying very hard to give way and neither of them was willing to keep that vase of gold because both thought that it was not right and would feel embarrassed to do so. One thought that the land and whatever underneath once sold, should belong to the buyer. The other thought that he only paid for the land not the vase of gold underneath and hence it was not his. Both of them were right and rational, they both tried to give way to the other and neither wanted to keep the vase of gold.

At last both were too tired to discuss and they said Alright, we'd better go and rest and meditate for a while and we should ask our inner Masters for help! (Master laughed.) Ah.. oh, no! They said, It's getting dark, we are tired, let's go back and rest. We'll leave this gold aside and discuss this tomorrow after we think it through clearly! Then they went back home.

However, after midnight, God Almighty turned the world into the Age of Darkness. Suddenly, a strong gust of wind blew across the earth and all the earth's morality was instantly influenced and turned into immorality. As this was done naturally, nobody was aware of it.

So the next day, as previously agreed, both came back to the same place where the gold was left. Upon their arrival, the buyer, the new landlord promptly said, Oh, I have considered very thoroughly. Whatever you said yesterday was true and right (laughter), I agree 100 percent. Since I bought that piece of land, whatever is underneath should be mine. You are absolutely correct! So I am coming to take that vase of gold back. Thank you, thank you very much!

His neighbour immediately replied. Oh, no! No! No! It's wrong, completely wrong! Today I have also considered it thoroughly. I feel that whatever you said yesterday was correct. I agree with you absolutely, because it's impossible for you to buy something unexpected. Moreover, you only paid for the land but not the vase of gold and therefore, this vase of gold is mine. I am going to take it home! Thank you! Hence, both of them wanted to take the vase of gold away. They argued and quarrelled over it, neither of them was willing to give in. So they, originally good friends, suddenly became enemies, mortal enemies.

They went to court to sue each other and to accuse the opposite party of wrong doing. For a vase of gold, their relationship had change from one of good neighbours, gentlemen, good friends to be enemies.

If it were not for this vase of gold, they probably would not have become enemies, although not friendly, they would lead their own lives separately; one building his house, the other carrying on with his own business despite the fact that God had changed the world into the Age of Darkness. Therefore, it is bad if we do not use money appropriately. It is equally bad if we are attached to it. As I mentioned earlier, we should not sacrifice our soul and elegant demeanor for money, it's truly not worthwhile! Do you think that either of them was worthy? In the beginning, they were gentlemen, noble friends and suddenly for the sake of gold, both became like that. They were affected by the world, the influence of the Age of Darkness. But, that was also partly due to the fact that their consciences and morality were not strong.

If we understand moral values and have deeply realized the spiritual teachings, we will not change under any circumstances. This is because we know what is right and what is wrong. We will not see wrong things as right. Hence, we always do the right thing in whatever place or situation, because we know what is right. This is the most important thing. Or else we keep on blaming by saying this Golden Age, Platinum Age... In fact, any time is golden and platinum. If we know how to seek our inner noble quality, find our own supreme wisdom, then it does not matter which age we are in. Otherwise, it will be tough and difficult on us to live in any age. This story was from India, even the ancient Indians were like that. Perhaps an enlightened master was telling this story to educate his disciples. It may not be a true story but good times should be like this.

In China, the dynasties of 'Yeow' and 'Soon', were the real Golden Ages. At night people did not need to close their doors. Nobody would pick up things that did not belong to them, because if they picked them up, the owner might not be able to find them when he returned.

Nevertheless, in this modern age, you don't even have to drop it and somebody has already picked it. (Master and everybody laughed.) You have to move quickly when someone drops something, because if you do not pick it up, someone else will. What a pity! (Master laughed.)

So now you know which one is a Golden Age and which one is the Age of Fear. (Master was playing with two similar sounding Chinese words 'golden' and 'fear'.) This age has more fear. As you practice, have you noticed that your greed, the craving for money has reduced? (Audience answered, Yes ) How delightful! It means it will not matter to you how many vases of gold we have here. It also means that we are in the Golden Age.

While On the Path

Working And Spiritual Practice

By Fellow Initiate Wang From Hsinchu, Formosa

If I do not meditate well, I will lack creative ideas; I am void of inspiration, and I have no confidence! I always meditate in a diligent and precise manner. I also find every chance to do Master's work, because it makes me feel contented, joyful and at peace. When I go to work after meditation, it feels like going to the laboratory to do an experiment after having attended a lecture in theory. If what I am doing is related to Master's work, then it is as joyful as singing a beautiful song.
After practicing spirituality, working has become substantially more meaningful, because I use my work to measure my progress in spiritual practice. When I have a good meditation, I can easily do my work perfectly. For those who do not practice, they rack their brain and strain their mind on their work, but the results are nothing compared to the inspiration and wisdom gained from the deep concentration during daily meditation. What a pity that most of the people in the world do not know this mystery!

Poem

Broken Dream Of Freedom

By Fellow Initiate Nguyen in Ottawa, Canada (Originally in Au Lac Language)

Liquid pearls falling on cheeks.
Crying for refugees who are sentenced to life. Time buried adolescence in cages and tortures their present.
Grenades, tear gas and big armor
Blindly shoot on women, the young and the innocent.
What sins were committed? Only freedom
Which is easy to say but so difficult to find!!

From a distant dangerous place far away,
They landed in the so-called free world .
Only to find out: it was just an illusion.
Lives imprisoned with assaulting walls
Place where youthfulness and talents have been forgotten.

Generation after generation,
They have endured all, awaiting a brighter day.
Unexpected typhoons and thunderstorms attacking thousands,
They long to live , to speak freely,
And to laugh as naturally as the heart beats.
Freedom and peace,
So simple a dream.
But oh God, black power has oppressed thousands,
With no arms except bare hands,
Of those who only know how to sit in silence to plead.

Lives have passed away in a strange land
Where freedom has not been granted.
They would rather die than to go back to the place
Where they perilously fled.
Yet Hong Kong Government keeps falsely labeling them:
Refugee for Food , Economic and Not Political !

Master, I cried when I saw You cry,
Your endless love permeating the whole universe,
Tiring journeys from one country to the next,
Knocking door to door,
Pleading for the refugees.
Accepting any conditions of agreement to help,
Asking for nothing except open arms to receive the refugees,
The freedom seekers of the world .

Many nights without sleep, many meals untouched,
Your sad eyes thinking of the Boat People .
If only the Hong Kong Government had a bit of human compassion,
The world would be more beautiful.
Your sparkling eyes are so tender and bright,
Will forever brilliantly shine in the night.
Wishing that the world would have fewer suffering lives.

Everlasting and Unwavering Love

By Fellow Initiate Huang in Kaohsiung, Formosa

Loving You
not because of Your finery

Longing for You
not because of Your beauty

I salute You
because of Your courageous attitude

I admire You
because of Your supreme wisdom

My heart is attached to Yours
because of Your infinite loving kindness

Master
even if I've got to restart everything again

You
are still my unwavering love.

Selected Questions And Answers

How To End The Feelings Of Greed And Ambition

Q: What is the real practical purpose in our everyday life of following this meditation? Where will you lead us?

M:Yes, you see, because we don't use our complete wisdom, therefore we have a lot of anxiety, and we do things in sometimes not a sure way. And we are unhappy sometimes, and we feel many external pressures, and also frightened of situations. So, therefore we are not peaceful and stable sometimes, doesn't matter which position or how much money we have. So if we find this greatest wisdom inside. We can do things better, clearer and we are more happy, stable, peaceful. So that is good for daily life already. Also we love others more unconditionally. All hatred and envy falls away.
(Master's lecture in Mexico Mar. 30, 1993 in English)

Q. How do you understand the karma of a couple?

M. If the couple is in harmony, then they have a good karma. If the couple is in everyday strife, then you know what kind of karma that is. Easy to understand, no? If it's in harmony, then be happy. If it's not in harmony, then try to adjust and be tolerant, therefore to avoid next time coming back again as a very undesirable karmic couple.
Tolstoy had a very terrible wife. You know Leo Tolstoy - War and Peace? He had a terrible wife, so it is told. Everyday she nagged him and cursed him and scolded him and even beat him and threw him out sometimes. One day, his friend couldn't bear any longer, so he told Tolstoy, Why don't you kick that devil out of your house and then we'll have peace? Tolstoy said, Shhhhh. Don't talk so loud. Last life, I did that already. Therefore, it got worse this time. I don't dare to do it. Understand that? The more you struggle, the worse the situation becomes. So just accept anything as given by God and try to get through it and train yourself in patience, tolerance and love thy enemy. Even as wise a man as Tolstoy couldn't deal with his terrible wife. So we ordinary beings better keep silent. Silence! (Master's lecture in Brazil June 18, 1989 in English)

Q. How can I end the feeling of greed? How can I stop being ambitious?

M. It's not easy. Only when you see the beauty, the glory of the Kingdom of God can you forget the ambition for the success in this world. That's why I offer you the Quan Yin Method, so that you might see the glory of God, of Heaven, and then lose the desire for the material gain and fame. It is like the baby. If you give him milk then he will not suck the dummy. (Master's lecture in Brazil June 18, 1989 in English)

Q. We think we are important now, but we are not. So I suffer from this feeling of self-importance. Actually, I want to know how to overcome this feeling of self-importance.

M. Oh! It's good that you know that you have this self-important feeling. Your illness is already cured half. Okay, there is a very good way to overcome this proudness, this pride. You think of the greatness of the universe and all the things in the universe, that you have not been able to understand, that you know nothing about the universe, about the law of God, then you will feel very small. Whatever the worldly knowledge we gain is so small. Whatever important business we have, it is so ephemeral. And then when we die, we have nothing. So better get enlightened. The more you are enlightened, the more humble you become, because you see that you know so little, that the universe is so great. And then you are more humble, more humble, until you are the most humble person. Then you admit that you know nothing. And then you know everything. That's why Lao Tzu said, The wise are like the dumb. That's why Jesus said, I work, but not I. It's the father who works in me. He is so great but he knows he can't do nothing without the Father. He knows he can't do nothing. That is why he can do everything.
(Master's lecture in Brazil June 18, 1989 in English)

Boundless Love

Master's Concern For The Civil-War-Torn Rwanda Refugees

At the end of May, during the International Seven-day Retreat in Taipei, Formosa to pray for world peace, Master not only attended the International Human Rights Conference to appeal for the Au Lac refugees, but She also showed great concern for the African refugees in civil-war-torn Rwanda, hoping to give them substantial help.

We wrote to the United Nations asking for information about aid agencies which were providing relief for the refugees in Rwanda. After contacting with them, we donated a total of eighty thousand US dollars to the six aid agencies which replied to us. Three of them, CRS, Pharmaciens Sans Frontieres, and the OXFAM Emergency Units, also responded with the reports. (Receipts and reports, see Appendices 1-8) There were other agencies which did not response to our help.

<Breakdown of Donations>

Organization                  Amount (US Dollar)  Appendix
Catholic Relief Services-USCC         20,000.00        1, 2
Pharmaciens Sans Frontieres           20,000.00        3, 4
United Nations Development Programme  10,000.00        5
World Health Organization             10,000.00        6
CARE                                  10,000.00        7
OXFAM Emergency Units                 10,000.00        8
=========================================================
Total Amount                          80,000.00        

• Appendices 7 and 8 have not been received. They will be printed in the next issue.

Special Reports

Master's Love Lights Up The South

Thanks to the grace of God and the thoughtful consideration of Master, scenic Penang was graced with a surprise visit from Her at the beginning of June. Due to the longing and waiting of the initiates and to inspect the progress of the construction work on the Penang Centre, Master granted us this sweet surprise.

After arriving in Penang, Master accompanied the initiates to the vegetarian restaurant run by the local fellow initiates. Taken by surprise and unprepared, the sister-chef cooked dishes that were not of her usual standard and too sweet for Master. Being considerate as always, Master dissolved the disciple's embarrassment in a humorous way. In addition, She also personally explained to the sister-chef how to prepare a wonderful dish.

The next morning we accompanied Master to the meditation centre to inspect the progress of the construction work. This small mountain, which is to be a meditation centre, was purchased by Master several years ago. We stopped our car half way up the mountain and walked. On the road we passed by a plantation. Everyone was so surprised that, contrary to their normal behaviour, the dogs were all quiet; before, whenever we passed by, the owner's dogs never stopped barking. Observing this, the Quan Yin messenger immediately reported it to Master. She said, Say no more or those dogs will start barking again . Master omniscience is so unimaginable!

As we arrived at the meditation centre, we were greeted by a rambutan tree which was already full, as though welcoming Master's arrival. We were following Master as She looked around the area. On the left of the hill durians were flourishing, on the right there was a dense wood area. The top of the hill was a plain surrounded by rubber trees. From the mountaintop the scenery to the south was ever so pleasant, with bright mountains and beautiful rivers; at dusk, it was full of colorful clouds; at night, it was peaceful and quiet; to the east, there was the great bridge of Penang, grand and lofty, connecting the land of north sea, looking like a small dragon.

After inspecting for a while, Master went down the mountain. On the way She instructed the disciples and the Quan Yin messenger on how the construction work should proceed: "The most important thing is to get the roads properly built, allowing easy transportation for building materials and making it convenient for the other work in the centre. This will save a lot of man power. The practice of asceticism is no longer fit for the present time. Machinery should be used wherever possible. If all your strength is used in moving heavy loads, you will be exhausted when you arrive at the mountain top and unable to accomplish the work smoothly".

In the evening, Master gathered all the initiates in the Penang Centre, including those from Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. During the lecture that night fellow initiates were entertained and delighted by Master's humour. Master's blessing of mercy and love filled everyone with bliss. At the end of the evening Master personally distributed blessed food. It was well into the night, and yet everyone was still reluctant to leave. They kept watching Master as She walked away to retire for the day.

Master originally planned to leave Penang at noon the following day, but because of the longing of the disciples - knowing that a group of initiates were rushing from Singapore to Penang, of which some of the group had already arrived that morning - the merciful Master had especially granted another gathering just before She left. Before departing Master was still concerned about those who had not yet arrived. She said, If I can be scheduled on a later flight, I will definitely stay and wait for them, even if I have to wait until midnight .

During Her visit to Penang this time, Master showed a lot of concern for the Penang Centre. The site of the meditation centre was bought many years ago. However, the progress of the construction work has been very slow. As a result, Master especially instructed the Quan Yin messenger to supervise the project, in the hope that when the construction project is completed, it will be shared and enjoyed internationally by all fellow initiates.

Master's Surprise Visit

By Fellow Initiate Huneeus in New York, USA (Originally in English)

Not long ago, Master graced New York City with a surprise visit!

We knew that with Master's visit a lot more people than usual would show up, so from the start it was necessary for us to look for a much larger space. On the ground floor of the building where we have our center was an art gallery with a large comfortable room. Luckily for us the art gallery had just gone out of business that week, so we rented that space to accommodate all the disciples that wanted to see Master. Some New York disciples were having experiences about Master's visit to New York beforehand.

On the day of Master's visit, everybody started preparing very early so that everything would be ready for Her. The transformed art gallery looked absolutely lovely with tasteful decorations made by the disciples to honor Master.

Disciples came from as far as Indiana and Ohio, as well as the closer states of Massachusetts, New Jersey and Washington DC. Every disciple was so excited about this unexpected visit of our dearest and wonderful Master!

Dozens of new fellow practitioners received initiation that day, and how fortunate were the new initiates who had an opportunity to meet Master right away.

At the exact moment that Master entered Manhattan a thunder storm started. The world outside was filled with very loud thunder and lightning and intense wind, as well as torrential rain. We were all sitting in the meditation hall when we heard the thunder, and we were certain that Master was very close by! Indeed She was, because just a little while later She arrived. The rain was pouring when She got out of the car, nevertheless it ceased completely once She entered the meditation hall. What a grand entrance that was!

Master arrived dressed in a very simple manner and She looked quite tired. In spite of Her tiredness, She still mercifully sat with us for a very long time and gave us a beautiful lecture. As usual, She spoke eloquently and full of wisdom. After Her lecture She was open to questions, that came mostly from the new initiates. Again, She showed immense patience and responded with great love to each and every one of the questioners.

Master felt sad when it was time for Her to take leave of the disciples, and said to us that now that She had seen us, She did not want to leave, but She had to, so She promised us that She would be back the following week. Everyone was very excited at the prospect of seeing Her again!

Once more the disciples worked very hard to set up the art gallery for Master's next visit. Everything was impeccable and we were all meditating with great concentration waiting for Her arrival. In the evening an announcement came that the Quan Yin messenger who stayed with Master was coming to convey a message to us from Master. He conveyed to us Master's compassionate and beautiful words. Candies that had come from Master's room were also offered to us. We felt so much love with this simple action!

Master, we have been graced by Your short visit to New York. We need Your Divine Presence once in a while in New York. We thank You from the bottom of our hearts. We love You!

Master Came To The Grand Opening Of The Vegetarian House In San Jose

Around Master, nothing should be done with too much planning because the more the mind is involved, the more complicated we make it. So it was no surprise that after hearing about purchasing the new International Vegetarian House on Monday that we would have the opening on Thursday of the same week! My first reaction was Impossible! , but of course I was only using my mind - Master's power moves in mysterious ways!

All of the San Jose and San Francisco disciples worked together to get the restaurant ready in the few short days. Some people were doing carpentry, many scrubbing the kitchen, everyone lent a hand. The restaurant location, in downtown San Jose, had been a famous French restaurant before we took it over, and the former owner even helped us train the waiters and cooks. Within a few days, the location had been transformed into a beautiful place, with not only an elegant dining room for the restaurant, but also a museum for Master's artwork and clothing, and even a piano bar featuring non-alcoholic cocktails.

On the day for the initial opening of the restaurant, all the local disciples were invited and even some special guests such as a reporter from the local newspaper, the San Jose Mercury News, Bonnie Coleen, Jared Wilkinson from Seeing Beyond , the radio talk show that interviewed Master last fall, and Mr. Do Van Tron from the Saigon News television and radio program in San Jose. Needless to say, it was very crowded and the food was fantastic. We had created the menu to include food from all over the world, so each dish was presented and unveiled before the special guests. Everyone agreed the food was delicious, but since Master could not attend, it didn't feel like a true grand opening.

Well, they didn't have long to wait because several weeks later, Master came and we finally had the real grand opening. That day, many people came from different areas to see Master and to attend this joyful occasion. Master was dressed in a beautiful and simple white linen outfit, looking comfortable and rested. She told a story about Her arrival in San Francisco.

Master said that when Her driver was taking Her through the city, She noticed how clean and beautiful it was compared to other cities around the world. Her driver remarked that Americans spend too much time thinking about money and material pursuit and not enough time on spiritual matters. Master told him that America was truly a unique place because in only a little more than two hundred years, the people who settled here were able to build a large, powerful, modern and beautiful country out of a savage wilderness and now after only a couple hundred years it is one of the most highly respected, leading nations of the world.

Master also said that some countries have been around for more than 5,000 years and haven't progressed much at all, whereas America has built a whole new world in such a short period of time. She said that the pioneers who settled here came escaping religious persecution and most came here for spiritual purposes because they were being hurt and killed for their beliefs in their own countries. Because they were trying to carve a civilization out of a wilderness, they had no choice but to focus on material pursuits. But now they are turning back toward the spirit more and more.

Everyone was very touched by Master's inspiring speech. We laughed, talked, and had a nice time just being together as a big multinational family.