Every Family Devoted to Spiritual Practice, Everyone a Saintly Person

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Spoken by Supreme Master Ching Hai, Narita Airport, Japan, October 18, 1993 (Originally in Chinese)

Actually, most bad children are not really that bad; most of those who commit homicide or robbery are also not that bad. They become bad only because no one teaches them good things, and they are exposed to people who teach them only bad things. Ethical and moral codes are barely taught at school. Children are merely taught to memorize facts in mathematics, history, and other classes, and to graduate quickly from school, find a job, and earn money. The only motivation they receive from the family is: "Should you fail to study well, you won't be able to earn money when you grow up, and without money, you cannot marry a good wife" and things like that. All schools stress this; therefore, future generations will be in a very miserable situation!

Next time, before you condemn a robber or reproach a child for being bad, think again, and reflect on yourselves: "As parents and elders, have we really fulfilled our responsibilities?" Perhaps we ought to be ashamed of ourselves! However, we are not to blame, because the older generation didn't teach us any good things either. Therefore, we must begin from our generation and not delay any longer; we must quickly teach our children and ourselves good things. We must find another way, or else our children will degenerate. Bad children are not born bad; no child is bad from birth.

In the United States, there is a special prison reserved for younger inmates who have committed homicide or robbery. Of course, there are many such prisons in the U.S., but this one is unique in that it places greater emphasis on edification. Research shows that, although those who have committed violent crimes have served time behind bars, they often repeat their mistakes after they are released. However, in that particular prison, different systems are employed to educate the young convicts, give them a sense of responsibility and feeling of shame, and let them understand why they must stop acting the way they did. Statistics show that of the 160 young men convicted for homicide who have been released from that prison, only one has walked the same disastrous path again!

The inmates are educated and their masks of superficial coolness and denial of their mistakes are removed to let them face their own conscience. Eventually, they realize that it is bad to do such things. The inmates realize that they must be responsible for the life of another person in the same way they are responsible for their own life. The inmates also play the role of the victim, to feel his pain and the subsequent agony of his relatives, children, and friends. The inmates receive such education until they burst out in tears and truly repent, then they will not commit the crime again after they are released.

If the prisoners do not admit their mistakes and face their conscience, but continue to wear a mask of coolness and ignore their inner feelings, they will commit crimes again after they are released, and killing will grow into a habit. They will treat a human just like an object, not realizing that human life is very precious. They do not consider the feelings of the victims or those of the victims' relatives and friends. Therefore, this method of edifying prisoners is very effective.

Those children or prisoners are not really that bad. Their behavior is mostly due to their wretched family backgrounds. For instance, their mother might have been a drug addict, or their step-father might have been addicted to gambling or alcohol and often beat them up. Such family backgrounds account for the misdeeds of the children, who vent their wrath on other people. Therefore, the educational system in this prison also has the inmates face this kind of background. The inmates are advised not to vent their animosity on innocent people, who could be as miserable as they are, and come from the same kind of family background.

Different methods are employed to educate prisoners from different family backgrounds, and the results have proven the education to be highly effective. A total of 160 prisoners have been released from this prison and only one has committed another crime. However, the prison can only accept 24 such prisoners into this program each year, because this is a task that takes time and patience.

Therefore, it is better to take good care of our children when they are young; and we only have a few children to take care of. Do not wait until they are grown up and become a heavy burden on society.

The foundation of ethics and morality should be established at a young age, so that when children grow up, they can do everything resolutely, correctly, and free from errors. Therefore, in addition to practicing spiritually yourselves, you should also take care of your children, educate them, and let them know the benefits of spiritual practice. This is not merely the obligation of parents. It is also the obligation of every citizen of the nation, and of every brother and sister in this world. We hope that the twenty-first century will be a glorious era, with every family devoted to spiritual practice and each person a saintly person. It will require the effort of all of you to accomplish this goal. (Applause)

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