Good evening my good and wise friends. May we welcome you to this friendly and holy congregation. It is very soon that we see each other again and I'm very happy that your faces look shiny. Maybe you have fewer problems than last time.
Is your life going well. All right? Sometimes yes, sometimes no. Well, I may tell you my life also. But I have maybe fewer problems than you, or maybe more. All the problems of the world come to me, and you have only your own problems. So every time I see you, any audience, or anyone, I just want to shed tears because of two reasons. One is happiness, and two is sadness. The happiness is due to the light of God within you, or the Buddha Nature within you, that I happen to see the Buddhas now, or to see God around me through you. But I am sad also because I am thinking you do not know this. Maybe you do. Maybe a few of you do, but most people do not know this and this makes me sad. Why is it so? Because if we know this light of God within us, or if we happen to know the Buddha Nature within ourselves, then our lives will be much happier, our body and mind will be stronger and healthier.
This morning when I was meditating, there was a lot of wisdom revealed to me, and I was overjoyed. I was thinking maybe I could share it with you this evening, or whenever I might happen to see you. But then, you know what? When I sit here, I feel helpless, because these things are so intangible. Yes, so subtle, sometimes abstract. And it's not easy for me to convey them into the human language. And so, I think this is the problem with all the good practitioners, or all the prophets of old, of all times. And that's why we have so many religions, so many sects, so many different scriptures. People believe in one scripture, and do not believe in the others; have faith in one religion, and do not have faith in the other religions. They even go to the extreme as to destroy other faiths, or try to make difficulties for other people in different faiths. Therefore sometimes, we have religious wars. But tonight, I will try to say something a little bit more concrete, more kind of logical and intellectual, so that you might be able to understand what I mean. And this experience is difficult to convey, so I might just leave it.
You see, everyone asks me the question about God or Buddha Nature -- "What is God?" or, "What is Buddha Nature?" So people find it's very difficult to understand. "Is there a personal God?" or, "Is there not a personal God?" and, "How come we can not find the Buddha Nature?", "Is Buddha a being or a non-being?" Now, we see in the universe, there are many different beings.
Some beings are visible like humans, animals. Some beings are invisible like what we call angels, ghosts, or Buddhas. On our physical plane, we have already experienced some invisible beings. We do not talk about ghosts even. You know the virus - too small for our eyes to see and we must use the microscope to look at. So these we called "invisible beings". Even to our naked eyes, we can not see.
When the Buddha was alive, He said to His disciples that inside a cup of water there are 84,000 invisible beings. So when we drink the water we must use something to filter it in order not to harm these sentient beings. He didn't use the microscope and He could see this. He used His wisdom eye. Only one. In the Bible it is said:
If your eye be single, your whole body shall be full of light. That is the single eye, the wisdom eye, the Buddha eye, or the heavenly eye. And if we open this eye, we can see much more than we see now with the two eyes. So we know that there are many things in our world which are invisible. And the more invisible, the more powerful even.For example, we human beings are very powerful. Or the elephant is very powerful, but the elephant can be conquered by human beings which are even much smaller than it. But human beings can be conquered even by viruses. Just one or two bad ones in our body and we are 'kaput', we are finished. This is very logical and we can understand it through today's scientific proof and research. Now there are many more invisible beings, even more invisible than this. Even if we use a microscope, we could not see. They are just finer, more subtle. They are just a kind of energy, and then because they are too fine, too subtle, we would not believe that they are beings with intelligence, with feeling. So nowadays, we have proved that even plants have feelings and intelligence. And ants and any kind of animal also have intelligence.
Now, we'll talk about conception. I'll go a little bit further to something very modern and interesting, so that you will not go to sleep with my speech. If I speak about Buddha all the time, everyone will leave and go home. I will talk about something more mundane and concrete like conception. Mostly we think that conception happens accidentally and out of the control of the egg, or we think that the woman's egg is being penetrated and the egg is helpless. And now recently a scientist has proved by his own understanding, wisdom and research, that it isn't accidental, and that the egg does choose what it wants to absorb - maybe one, two, three or five. So even these very, very invisible beings, which we don't see with our naked eyes, have feelings, decisions even, and choice.
Furthermore, we go to the Buddha's-land and the Kingdom of God, we think God or Buddha maybe doesn't exist. Some people say, "God is nothing, is only the void. Buddha is a void. Buddha Nature is a void and when we meditate, we will encounter the void." Well, to my experience, it is not the void. It's a being, full of love, wisdom and everything else you need and can ever imagine, or can even not imagine. This being is powerful, is unimaginably powerful out of anything that our worldly brain can understand. But this being is not a being like our being. This being just has a different being, but we just have to accept that this is also a being. We may call that energy also. But if we only call that energy, then we may have a misconception; misunderstanding that it is just a very - no feeling, no compassion, no wisdom, nothing, like electric energy, like magnetic energy. No, no, no, it isn't like that. It contains within, everything in the universe. It contains all the germs that later can germinate. These germs are, what we call the seeds of the universe, are dormant in this being. So from that, everything comes out and later goes back in.
But behind that being there is another power which we call Godhead or the Anuttara Samyak Sambodhi. It's the Buddha of all Buddhas, the Father of all beings. But that power doesn't germinate anything, doesn't contain anything but it contains everything, it doesn't produce anything. Producing things is another being, you know, behind that. For example, when I eat this banana - maybe I'll just eat to let you know. So, when I take this banana, it looks like my hand takes it, or my mouth consumes it? But for what? The one who wants to eat bananas is not my mouth. It is something in the brain and in the cells; the feeling of the body cell, the stomach and the brain. It makes me eat, makes the mouth eat the banana. Therefore, it's the same with God, Godhead, and God power. Similar thing.
It is of course difficult to speak about God, but there is definitely that being, so powerful, we could not ever imagine what it is. But we could experience that, some of it, some fraction of it. And even if you just experience a fraction of it, it makes you different altogether, makes you become very grandeur, very wise, very friendly, very unaffected by any ups and downs of the world; makes you able to solve every problem that comes your way. Even when you're lying unconsciously from a car accident, you are still able to solve that to help yourself. And that happens when we are in contact with this so-called being. Unimaginable is that being, that almighty, all powerful being. Because we originally come from that being, we are a part of that. And if we are separated from that being, or that power, or that energy, then we are very small indeed, very weak indeed. But if we are reconnected again, then we become powerful and wise and that's the only mystery about God realization, or self-realization. That is, we realize, we come to know this very, very invisible, but very, very, very powerful being.
Now, that being doesn't look like a human being, it doesn't look like an angel, or it doesn't have a beard so long like that. You just happen to be inside that being and you just enjoy the love, protection, power, and compassion, and you have no words to express this when you come back to Earth. I mean when we come back to the Earth consciousness, not that we go anywhere, or come anywhere. It all happens within ourselves. And when I had such experiences before, it didn't make me grow two horns (Master and audience laugh), or it didn't make me so excited that I couldn't sleep, or anything like that. It was so peaceful. It was so ordinary, very, very smooth and harmonious. It's like you eating the banana, so very easy. But this kind of experience doesn't happen often to the average person. It needs a lot of self-discipline, sincerity, and longing to become reunited with God, or with that Buddha Nature within ourselves in order to achieve it.
God or Buddha, no doubt can give us, very quickly. But everything we earn by ourselves is more valuable. Also, it isn't fitting to become God or Buddha if we still have our anger, lust, desire, attachment altogether. Then when people look at us, they think, "Oh, what kind of Buddha is that?" And then they have no respect for the Godhead or the Buddha. Therefore, for anyone who is fit to have this experience, that means to become one with God again, or to know this Buddha Nature, or to become Buddha, one must go through a lot of discipline. The experience of God and Buddha Nature we can have very easily through the proper guidance of a master who already knows this Buddha Nature who already has become one with God.
It's easy. Just like the one who can speak English can teach you on the first day already some phrases in English. After you go home from English school, you can speak something already. You may say, "How are you? My name is so and so. What is your name?" etc. A few phrases, yes. Similarly when you go to a master who knows God, or knows the Buddha Nature within him or herself, then that master can share with you a little bit of that God experience. But then you have to practice more and more everyday in order to gain the whole, the complete God wisdom for yourself. Just like after you can speak a few sentences in English, you have to come back again, and you have to be diligent at home studying until you can completely understand, read, and write English. So the experience of God sometimes, even though it's easy to find, it's hard for most of people because we do not find the right guide.
So we think God is something very mysterious that we could never reach hirm; or Buddha is something for Shakyamuni Buddha and not for me, not for us. No, it's not true, Jesus said:
We are all children of God. He said that whatever great things, great miracles He did, then we could do even greater. In the Bible it says: Whatever I do today, you can do even better tomorrow. And John the Baptist baptized people with water, but He said: The one who comes after me, even mightier than I am, can baptize with the Holy Ghost. So as our human race advances towards civilization and intelligence, the techniques and the wisdom within ourselves also advance faster, and the things we do can be even advanced also. So if Jesus said that we can do greater miracles, then why don't we try? Buddha also said: I have become the Buddha, but you will become Buddha also. He did not say: "I'm the one and only and never anyone else before or after me."No doubt to become a Buddha or Christ like, it is not a matter of a joke. It's not easy, but we may try. It's not mysterious, it's not out of reach at all. I have tried it and I have succeeded. So if you try, you might succeed too. If I'm so small and so weak and I could try, then you may try as well. Why did I try these things? I wanted to experience the God inside me, or the Buddha Nature within me. It was because of the suffering of our world that brought me to this decision. So I owe it to you all to share this, the result of my practice. Otherwise, my life was so smooth and happy. I did not think I needed anything.
When you are so satisfied in material comfort, it is very difficult to think of spiritual fulfillment. We do not think about that. We're happy enough. Therefore, the Buddha said, "When one is in heaven, it's hard to practice, to meditate, to become a Buddha." In heavenly worlds, people live a very happy life and therefore they do not desire further progress. It happens in our daily lives also. Sometimes we are too happy and comfortable in our own lives. We do not want to advance in our position, or do any more business adventures. We think we're happy enough.
Now there are many ways to practice and to become self-realized. But for the average person, the most important thing is we pray. We pray to God Almighty within us, pray to the Buddha within to help us. And also make a self-effort, "I will keep the discipline". We train our compassion and love to all beings, and begin with cutting down on the killing of animals, etc.
Yesterday I was in a radio program called, "See Beyond", and the lady announcer asked me, "What is the solution for the world's hunger today?" People think, if there is God, why should people have to suffer hunger so much in the world. I said, "In the Bible it prescribes charity. Buddhism also emphasizes charity." Means give to others what they need. But I said, "Nowadays, we don't even need to do that." If you have your money, you can keep it. If you have your property, enjoy it. If everyone in this world did not eat meat at all and we didn't raise cattle, pigs and chickens, then these protein products and all kinds of corn could be distributed freely to all the hungry people. That would be enough because we over use these proteins, soy beans, corn and all these kinds of stuff - staple foods which are necessary for human beings - in order to feed animals. And we gain only one kilo of beef steak and waste at least hundreds of kilos of staple food, besides all the medical care.
Yesterday some friends gave me a statistic about a research: half of the national (U.S.A.) antibiotic medicines go to animals; half of the national. Understand that? And it costs a lot of money too. So before we have to give away our property, we can give away the meat. If we do not eat meat, no one will kill, no one will raise cattle. And all the food will stay where it is and they can eat it and become healthy and strong. It's good for every nation, and it's good for our nation as well. We waste a lot of money on arms and on raising animals. All the arable land is wasted nowadays on raising cattle, pigs, and the like, most of it. So if we use these to cultivate wholesome, healthy food, I think the nation will benefit more and our nation will have more peace and no need for arms defense.
If every nation lives according to the Bible, according to the Buddhist teachings, Thou shall not kill, thou shall not steal, etc., then the world needs no more peace conferences, wasting so much coffee, champagne and cakes on a round table, and go no where with it. The more we talk about peace, the more war we have. It is because we go about it in a different manner. If everyone practiced meditation and ate a wholesome diet without any killing involved, the world would have long already been in a peaceful state and long already we'd have no hunger phenomena. No need to give away your property, just give away the meat diet. That's enough to save the world and to save your own health and the national health.
As we all know, most of the sickness comes from meat, because of the antibiotics fed to the animals, because of the anxiety which produces toxins in the animal meat, because, because, because, and because. Because we eat all these antibiotics, our body loses its self-resistance to the disease. Our body normally can fight the disease, but because we are fed so much antibiotic meat, our body becomes weakened, and the resistance system becomes out of order.
Therefore, any kind of disease affects us and kills our lives. It is a pity. We should rely on ourselves to help us, to help the nation, not rely on peace conferences. I haven't seen any peace conferences which have done much good to any nation. They sign many papers, but then they transgress them tomorrow. Maybe the people who sign are very sincere at that time, but there are others behind, in the front, left, and right. And after these people who sign die, or the presidential position changes or the king changes, the policy changes. We can never rely on these things. We must rely on ourselves to save our lives.
Now, most people think if we pray to Jesus or Buddha, that is enough. But I think we should add to it meditation and a virtuous, wholesome way of life. Then, we speed up our wisdom and liberation. For example, if we practice together in our method, we call the Quan Yin Method, we just listen to the instructions of God within, see the wisdom of God with a heavenly eye, and keep a vegetarian diet and a virtuous way of life, then we fear no sickness. Many of our initiates overcome sickness over night. I mean dangerous ones, mostly needing operations, or dying. Some people just come back from the death bed, out of the power of their virtuous life and the power of the Godhead that protects them. If we open this power within through a correct technique, then that power which we call Buddha Nature or Buddha within us or God within us, will protect us twenty-four hours, and will protect us even after we leave this body.
Someone asked me, "Why don't we use some kind of breath control or breathing technique or something like that to reach God? Can we realize God through this?"
I said, "I have my doubts, because the breathing is going on only when we are conscious; and when we faint, we have a heart-attack or something, the breathing stops. Or when we die, the breathing is no more. So what do we practice then, what do we rely on then, to become conscious, to become awakened. And when we sleep we're not even aware of our breathing. So how do we rely on that to keep us twenty-four hours."
Therefore, I have found that the technique that we practice now, it is all powerful twenty-four hours protecting us, and we are awakened within. Even when we sleep, the God power looks after us. Even when we die, that power doesn't die. That is more secure. It is safer to rely on the eternal power, not to rely on the ephemeral breath. Don't you agree? Yes or No? (Audience: Yes.) Yes.
So, what I want to share with you is that very simple technique to keep ourselves in tune with this protective power, almighty power, in order to save our lives, the lives of our nations, and the harmony of the universe. And it is so simple that no one could make any excuse that it's too hard to do it. It's easy. It's much easier than chewing bread. But to do the meditation which I may share with you if you are interested, which is also free of charge, is even easier than to take a bath. To take a bath is difficult sometimes. When the electricity is gone out we have no hot water, or have no gas and no hot water. Or sometimes the tap goes wrong and rusty, you have no good water, or the water doesn't come out. But to practice meditation on God, to open your wisdom and God power to use in your daily lives is much easier than that. Even me, I am so surprised that it is so easy.
Before I encountered this easy technique, I tried many other techniques, like the technique of the secret doctrine, of the Tibetan Buddhism, and all the Thai, and Burmese, and all these. It was so complicated and so tiring for me. Maybe I am too small. Maybe for you it would not be so tiring. But it was very time consuming and very tiring. And you need a lot of equipment, and instruments in order to carry on this kind of practice, but not with the Quan Yin Method. I've found this is easier than anything else. You can sit on the train, on the bus, or in the park, anywhere, and you can be in tune with that God power, you can feel the protection, and you can see God face to face. You may be in contact with Jesus, with Buddha, with whomever you love most in your heart. They will appear to you. They might teach you something. They might protect you, guide you, hold your hand, so that your lives will never again be lonely.
But that is not even the highest. Even if you see Jesus or Buddha it's not the highest state. The highest state is you become like Jesus, you become like Buddha yourself, and then have all the power to save the world, and to be saved from the misery and rounds of births and deaths. You become all wise, all knowing, and omnipresent. That's the highest stage we can reach. What is it about this highest omnipresent state? Well, I can not tell you exactly. I can just tell you that it's very nice, very wonderful! But, I can not tell more. It's difficult to tell. It's easy to experience.
I can only invite you to come and share with us the wealth that is forever lasting, that never goes out of stock, never rises up and down with the market price, never gets inflation, never gets any tax, no one can steal it away from us, no one can force us to leave it, and no one even knows what we have. That's the secret treasure which Jesus said:
Lay you not your treasure upon Earth, where moths can corrupt; but lay your treasure upon heaven. He means we find the treasure in heaven. He also said that His kingdom was not on Earth, but His kingdom was with His Father. So, He meant that He had found this endless treasure.So, this treasure we may also find, because He promised that we can also do what He did, and even maybe greater. It may not be that we are greater than Jesus. No, no. He means that, maybe in the future, like in our modern time, techniques, civilization we'll become much greater. So, we have to use more power from the Godhead in order to satisfy the desire, the need of the modern man. Whereby Jesus did not need all this, it was enough for Him to do a few miracles and people ran after Him. Nowadays, it's not enough just to do a few miracles, you need more. You need international appearances like me. (Master and all laugh as Master was wearing a Chinese typical Buddhist monk outfit.) You need the knowledge of different countries' languages or cultures.
Jesus did not need all this. He didn't have to learn that much. Even though He had to learn, but He only went around in Jerusalem. So He did not need to use anything that much, just a few miracles. Nowadays, we need to use all kinds of transportation, telephones, televisions, video tapes, all these kinds of miracles, you know, long ear, long eye miracles, (Master and all laugh), in order to serve the people in the modern time.
Q: Some people go overboard in understanding reincarnation which sounds like myths. Please explain what does reincarnate after death? Knowing the personal "I", the personality, body, environmental and cultural mind doesn't reincarnate. So again, what does?
M: Oh! It is the personality that reincarnates. Reincarnation doesn't mean we come back again in the same body, but our thinking, our desire, our attachment to something which could not be solved in the present life will come back again, packed together in another body, and that is what is called reincarnation. And so that body continues to enjoy, to suffer whatever was left behind, left over from this present life. Maybe in a different body, different shape of body even. Maybe this life we are black and next life we will be white, or yellow, or red. Or this life we are in this human body and next life we are in a different clothing of body like the animal clothing-body.
Because everything we think, speak, desire, and attach to, has energy, it formulates itself into a very concrete type of atmosphere and then that atmosphere evolves again in a different environment and different circumstance in order to fulfil, to dilute all these concrete forms which already exist. Everything existing must be destroyed, must be changed, must be fulfilled in one way or another. This is what reincarnation means.
For example, we see, we grow the flower, the plant, and the plant produces the flower, then somehow nature one day will destroy the flower because it has been in existence and then after sometime, it has to be dissolved. So if our thinking, our attachments and desires are not able to be fulfilled in this life, they have to be in the next. It's very logical. It's nothing mysterious. There's no myth about reincarnation.
Q: Is reincarnation a choice of the soul or spirit, or is it something that will occur automatically without choice by the control and decision of the higher power?
M: We have choice and we do not have choice. For the average people, they have no choice. For the Buddhas, saints, Christ, they have choice. They consciously choose their parents, date of birth, the place of birth, and the date of death, date of leaving the world; they have choice. They are conscious in the womb of the mother already. They are conscious before they came to the world. They came by choice, they came to save the world, to help some of their friends, to help those who pray to them for help. They have choice. But other people, they are compelled to reincarnate by their own deeds, actions through the past life.
As I have just explained before, our thinking and habits form themselves into an energy and that will force us to come into a different environment, to fulfil and to eradicate if necessary. This already formed concrete energy has to be diluted.
Q: What is karma and what is the association between karma and enlightenment? Is there such a thing as immediate enlightenment within the concept of karma?
M: Karma is what we call cause and effect. Whatever you sow, so shall you reap in the Bible, that is karma. Now, we can sow and we can reap, but then we can wipe off also. Therefore, Jesus, Buddha had to come to earth in order to help us to pay this terrible debt that we could not pay ourselves, which is called karma, which we sowed so many, now we reap so much. So some people like the Father, Son or the Buddha come down with unlimited merits, understand, and they can give anything you need, they can pay the debts for you. Because God is all merciful, limitless of grace and blessing, whatever you ask, you will get. If you knock, it will be opened.
Now mostly, we don't ask, we don't knock and we just knock our heads against the wall, (audience laughs), so we get not much grace and blessing. And we think God is not merciful. God is. Hes always sends some of Hiers messengers to the world like Jesus, Buddha, Krishna, etc. to save us, to lead us back home. Despite our karma, in spite of our heavy debt, they can take us home and we can get immediate enlightenment through such persons' grace.
For example, now we are born in a very poor family. Our family, generation to generation, has been poor like that and we can never have any hope to get any richer or to get any better situation in the society. But then along comes a prince or a very big officer, and he has so limitless wealth and he happens to chance on our family and he happens to like us or like our daughter, wants to marry her. Then, we become different people, we become a different family, our position will change. However much debt we owe to the neighbors, or to the landlord in our region, he will pay with his own money and take us to the palace.
Now God is similar to a very rich, wealthy, billion, billion, billionaire. Whoever calls on Hirm, Hes will cleanse all the sins and make us angels, make us God-like. Why is it possible? Because there's nothing impossible with God, anyhow. If Hes can create the whole universe, Hes can just take us home if Hes so desires. But then because we do not know where God is, and between God and us, there exists a very thick curtain of so-called karma, so Hes needs to send someone looking like us in order to go through and shake hands with us and say, "Hey, come."
God is so intangible, so abstract. Even though Hes appeared to us, we would not see. We are used to seeing illusion, we are used to seeing concrete forms. If God appeared, we could not know, we could not recognize. So we need someone who is expert to tell us, "Oh! Yeah, what you saw yesterday, that is God, or let me make you see God in a moment, or in five minutes you will see Hirm. When you see such and such and such, that is God who appeared to you in such a form, or in such energy, in such wisdom." Then we understand.
So, you can get immediate enlightenment for sure. No doubt about that. We can see God immediately because God is within us. In the Bible it is said:
Know you not, that you are the temple of God and the Holy Spirit dwells within you. If Hes is within us, then we could immediately see Hirm, no doubt. It's just a question of know-how. In American we say, "know-how", hah?Q: What is the first step one must take toward reaching God?
M: We must pray that if God exists, please guide me, please help me. And stick to your religion and pray to that religious head that you believe in to help you. If you're Christian, pray to God, pray to Jesus, Santa Maria. If you're Buddhist, pray to Buddha, to Bodhisattvas, Quan Yin Bodhisattva, Amitabha Buddha, etc., to help you. That's the first step.
The second step is, we must lead a virtuous life as prescribed in the Bible and in the Buddhist scriptures or in any other religious scriptures. I haven't seen any major religion which teaches people to do bad things. So follow your own religious ethic, as the second step.
The third step is, we must find someone, and very importantly, who has known God, who has realized God, to show us something, to share with us the wealth that he or she has got. Just like if we want to speak English, what is the first step? Prepare the money for it, so that the teacher will accept you and then go and find a teacher -- one who can speak English. If you find one who speaks Spanish, then no good. (Master and audience laugh.) It's very easy.
Q: According to what You said, is meditation the only way to see Buddha or to reach enlightenment?
M: Yes. Did you see Buddha meditate? Did you see Jesus meditate? Yes? He meditated and the last time lasted forty days in the desert. Now if someone never meditated before, could he just go suddenly into the desert and meditate for forty days? No, no, no. This is a very experienced practitioner who could do such a thing. So from this, even with so little information, we know Jesus had been meditating all along and that was the last, final time, before He went out and taught the world.
Buddha meditated all the time for six years. But then, the last, final time, it was forty-nine days. Then, He went out to teach the world. So no one reaches nirvana or the Kingdom of God without meditation. Why meditation? To still our mind in order to receive the teachings from heaven or from the Kingdom of God, or from the Buddhas in the higher world. If we always keep praying and asking, "Please give me wisdom. Please give me that. Please give me ...," and whenever Buddha wants to speak, He has no chance any more, because we are busy all the time (audience laughs): we talk, we ask, and we talk and we don't listen. So meditation is a listening time.
Just like when you ask me a question and then you have to be still for a while, quiet, then I have a chance to tell you what I want to say or what you need to know. So meditation is like that - sit still and receive the message. Otherwise, God wants to tell you hundreds of dozens things and you have no time to hear it. You're too busy talking, praying, singing, prostrating, bowing, and counting the rosary. (Audience laughs.) It's all right to do these. I don't mean this is no good. This is very good. But then, we must be still for some time so that God has a chance to communicate. That is called meditation. Too easy, very easy to understand.
Q: Please explain the differences among the enlightenment -- master, Buddha, Bodhisattva. Which of the above fit You the most closely?
M: Fit me? I do not care what you call me. Call me what you want. You see, I'm a 'garbage collector'. (Master and audience laugh.) Yeah, I collect the humans' 'garbage' and clean them, so that the world will be in a better, harmonious atmosphere and people will be in less suffering and more wise. I take their 'garbage' and give them 'jewels', give them wisdom. I take their karma and suffering and give them joy and happiness. So you may call me 'garbage collector'. No need such a big title like Buddha and Bodhisattva - scares me to death. It denotes the glorious position. In fact, I only collect 'garbage'. Collect all the bad, negative atmosphere and you know, all the things scattered here and there which make our world miserable and unbearable. I collect all these and burn them up, clean the world. May I help you? May I ask you also to help me in this 'garbage collecting' program by joining us to meditate on the positive power, on the God power which is almighty? We can clean all the sin, can bestow all the grace. This is my job. You may join also and become the same. No need for Buddha and Bodhisattva, these sound too glorious and honorable. (Master laughs.)
In fact, we work very hard. Whoever reaches this level and are commissioned by God are volunteers to help sentient beings. We work very hard and we suffer. Not much glory here in this world. You might get glorified when you go back to heaven, go back to the Buddha's-land, but here in this world, there is not much for Buddhas.
Q: Will You tell us who will be the right master to learn religions from?
M: It's like this. We do not follow a teacher, we only follow the teaching, so we can never go wrong. In case the teacher goes wrong when the teaching is okay, then we follow the teaching. We have to see if the teaching is correct. For example, you see if my ethics are correct or not correct, if whatever I teach you I follow or not. For example, I teach you not to eat meat. I also eat vegetarian. I also teach you not to steal. I also don't steal. I teach you to give away in charity. I give away myself in charity. I teach you to love people. I do love people and help people unconditionally. I take no money for the teaching I give. I earn my own money. So you have nothing to lose at all, except to gain.
Now also every moral standard which is described in the Buddhist scriptures and described in the Christian Bible, I convey to you again, so I teach nothing new, nothing immoral, nothing unethical, so you may feel safe to know that your teacher won't teach you anything wrong, outside of the scriptures. I teach you everything from the scriptures. From ancient times, the ethical conduct doesn't change. The commandments from God, from Buddha will not change. I teach you the same, and I do the same. So you know at least I'm not the bad type. And now the teaching is correct, right?
And the meditation will provide you with wisdom, peace of mind. Doesn't matter which technique, it will also help you somewhat. So there is no exception about our technique. I only tell you that it's the fastest, that's all. But you may not - you don't have to believe me. I only inform you and now you have your own choice. I only tell the truth. If it is fast, I say it is very fast. I'm also a monk, I'm not allowed to tell a lie anyhow. Even average people will not tell a lie, so what would a monk tell lies for. And I have no reason to do that, because I don't need your money, I don't need anything, and I don't even live here. I profit nothing from you. I may even leave tomorrow or you may leave me and never see again - goodbye. So, I profit nothing.
Ah! So from this stand-point you're safe. You follow the teaching only, don't follow me. The teaching will always be with you, and you don't need to follow me in person. In case you want some personal advise during your meditation progress, you may write to me. Nowadays no need to stick with the master all the time. Or you could go to Formosa or wherever I am staying. This body is only an appearance, a house, an office, so that you may see me. If I used the spiritual body only, you could not see me at all. And when I talked, you couldn't hear. So how could I convey the message to you. I have to use the body. That's the use of the body. This body is not much use in other senses.
So no need to fear that when I go away, you'll have no one. You'll always have someone. You may even see me appearing in your house just like this. If you are sincere and high level enough, you will see the Master come to you and you will see the Master all the time whenever you need. No need to cling to a physical body.
Q: She asks You if You have a dream?
M: Yes, I have dream. I dream that all the world will become peaceful. I dream that everyone becomes Buddha. I dream that all killing will stop. I dream that all the children will walk in peace and harmony. I dream that all the nations shake hands with each other, protect each other, and help each other. I dream that our beautiful planet will not be destroyed by some crazy atom bomb. It took billion, trillions of years to produce this planet and it's so beautiful, so wonderful. I dream that it will continue, but in peace, beauty and love. Yes, that is my dream. (Audience applaud.)
Q: What is the fastest way to reach true enlightenment?
M: Meditate with our method and a virtuous life.
Q: Christ did a few miracles, did not know other languages other than Jewish, but these miracles convinced us. How about nowadays' masters? How do we know that they are holy?
M: You see, the miracles don't secure a holy personality. Many people have miracle power without being holy. This you know: the black magician, the white magician, they all have miracles, but that doesn't mean they are holy. Jesus had to use these miracles because it was in different circumstances. Nowadays we are more intelligent, we are not as barbaric, we are more technological, more advanced, more civilized, and more scientifically minded.
So, there's no need clinging to these miracles. As I have already told you,
Seek you first the Kingdom of God. I do not want to use miracles to bait you because I respect your wisdom, I respect your intelligence. I do not think of you as children that I have to use some colorful toys in order to attract you; I think this is not very respectful. Because I respect you very much, therefore I use wisdom, I use logic to appeal to your wisdom, to your logic so that you might get higher in your understanding and not just cling to these physical phenomena such as miracles.You will know that I have a lot of miracles, limitless miracles. When you reach my level, when you are sincerely practicing, then I'll show you, but not now. Not by force, not on demand, understand? If you respect me at all, then do not demand such, because I respect you. I do not use this "hula-hula-hop" to play with you. I do not think you are such a level. And I do not want to attract this kind of level either. If you are not yet grown up in wisdom, then I'll let you wait. If you already have some wisdom and ideas of how a practitioner should be, why we should practice meditation and virtues, then you come to us, join with us to cleanse the planet, to bless all beings, not to play with miracles.
Miracles don't make a person holy, that is for sure. You will know my miracles in time if you are sincere, if you have a higher ideal. You will know everything about your Master in time. I'm not selling cheap in the supermarket.
Q: How do we understand or in better terms reconcile our dark sides: evil, lust, etc., with the holiness and good tidings of the Supreme Entity?
M: Yes, by leading a virtuous life, changing from dark to light. Use the light to dispel darkness. For example, when the sun comes out, darkness is gone. By practicing the present from God, listening to the instructions of God everyday, seeing God's light everyday, we will cleanse out the evil tendencies, and clean out the worst evil tendency even. The more people in the world who practice, the more peaceful the world becomes, the cleaner the atmosphere, not only for us but for all people. That's how we do it with meditation, with enlightenment.
Good afternoon. Happy that you have come. It's Saturday afternoon, and your time is very valuable. I am glad that you have saved some of your busy time and come here. It's sometimes difficult to speak. It's difficult to go back to the normal thinking of the human level and to communicate through language, but I'll try. After half an hour, it will go on automatically. (Master laughs.) Now, please help and join me in prayer so that our seminar, our meeting, will be fruitful, will be of some benefit to all of you and those that you love. Just take a few minutes. Let's pray that the Almighty God will speak through me, and that the Almighty God within you will be awakened and listen. Thank you.
Shakyamuni Buddha, when He was alive, what I mean is that when He was still on the physical plane, in the physical body, He introduced to us so many wonderful lands that we call Buddha-lands. And Jesus Christ, when He was on earth, He also told us and introduced to us many so-called heavens, different levels of consciousness. Also He had told us:
In the house of my Father, there are many mansions. Do you remember? What does it mean by many Buddha-lands? What does it mean by In the house of my Father, there are many mansions?I would like to introduce to you one of the Buddha-lands, and you could also say that it's one of the mansions of God. According to Buddhism, there is one Buddha-land which is very beautiful. Well, there are many different Buddha-lands, but today we'll speak about one of them. This Buddha-land is called the Land of the King of Medicine Buddha.
When this Buddha was in a physical body and roamed around the world liberating sentient beings, he had twelve kinds of vows for the benefit of the people. What does it mean making vows? When you are practicing for Bodhisattvahood, meaning when you are practicing to become a saint, you'd like to help people in such and such a way, and so you wish inside your heart that people would benefit from you in certain ways. These are so-called "vows". And through the power of your practice, your virtues, your will power and good will, these vows will become true.
So one of the vows of the King of Medicine Buddha, which we call "Yiao Shi Pho" in Chinese, was that if anyone came to him afflicted with any kind of disease, body and mind, he would first give them relief -- give them food to eat, medicine to take care of their health, and then slowly he would make them realize the highest potential power within themselves, what we call the Buddha nature, or the Kingdom of God.
When the disciples of the Buddha went to this Buddha of the Medicine Land, they saw that the land was endowed with so many precious stones, and the earth was made with crystal. Most of the Buddha-lands are similar in character. The Land of the Medicine Buddha and the Land of Amitabha Buddha are similar in character. The earth is made of a kind of crystal or of luxurious stones. Houses are made from seven precious jewels -- rubies, diamonds, gold, etc.... The people who live in this kind of land are ever, ever joyful, never have any difficulties, never heard of any miseries. Even the word misery doesn't exist in that land, how much less they have to experience this kind of suffering.
Whereby in our world, which we call the Earth, there is a kind of mixture between suffering and happiness. Sometimes we suffer, sometimes we enjoy. Some people are sorrowful, some people are happy. It's different in the Land of the Buddha. Only happiness, only joy, only bliss, only love. No suffering, no misunderstanding, no violence, no blaming, no quarreling, no war.
What is the purpose of the Buddha telling people about all these beautiful lands? So that they realize that there are other universes, there are other beautiful planets to which we can go, live, and stay permanently. No need to cling to this miserable world. If we think this world is too miserable for us, then we must not stay here. We have a choice. That was the purpose of the Buddha coming into this world, that was the purpose of Jesus when He came into the world, to introduce to the people of our world many other different planets where life is more enjoyable, more suitable to our mentality, or our desire.
Now, we think Buddha died and we think Jesus has left the world, has died. But it is not true. Jesus as well as Buddha are still living. They are just living in a different place, and they have also evolved with time, with their job, and with their ever-learning. We can never learn enough. Do not think that after we become Buddha or Christ-like, we stop learning. No, then it becomes like a dead end. The road to wisdom is endless.
So you remember in the Bible, Jesus said something very strange. He said:
Whatever miracles, whatever great things I do today, you can do them even better tomorrow. Now isn't that strange? How can we do better than Jesus? Who knows? Please raise your hand. Anyone have any idea why Jesus said such a strange thing? Why did He say we can do greater things than He did? Why did He humble Himself in this way? Why greater than Jesus? Isn't He the only son of God? (Audience: We are the same as He.) Then why should we be greater than Him? He should say that you can do the same. Why would He say: You can do better than I even?What you have said is all correct, everyone is correct in part. Now, I may add something. Just for example, at the time you met your teacher, or what we call the initiation process, you just had a little taste of a heaven, of the power within yourself. So you may praise Jesus or your teacher very much. You say: "Oh! That was a wonderful experience. What did you do to me? That was incredible!" So Jesus would humbly say: "No! No! That is nothing. You will do even greater." What he meant maybe was as you develop more, you will know even more than just what you know today. That's one of the possibilities at that time. I think there is another possibility, another meaning in what He said. It's that He, at that time, was not that much developed, not as much as He could have been developed. Maybe if Jesus came back now, He would be greater than He was then. That was also one of the suggestions.
Also maybe, His power, even though still very great, was difficult to give, difficult to offer to the people, because at that time, our human minds were also underdeveloped as well. We were not as civilized, not as intelligent, as we are now. Even the great Jesus couldn't do much. It's just like when you are a very excellent M.D. or engineer, and you go to Africa with all your Ph.D. and knowledge, what can you do in a jungle? You can only apply some herbal medicine, wash patients with soap, (Master and all laugh) and that's all you can do. If the patients get relief, they praise you. And you, say, "No! No! That was nothing." It's true that it was nothing for what the doctor can do in normal conditions, in a good hospital, where he is surrounded by all kinds of equipment and colleagues who help him in his job.
Also when Jesus came to us, it was 2,000 years ago, and as 2,000 years have gone by, He must have learned much more. So now, if those who are in the future, those who came after Jesus are in a better environment, in a more modernized civilization, of course, they could do greater wonders.
So if we look in the Bible, Jesus didn't have the chance to say much at all. What He said, I am sorry, even though was so great, but He wasn't that great. I don't mean Jesus was not great. It was that He did not have the chance to say much. Also the people at that time, their understanding, was not that great, not great enough to match Jesus' wisdom. So He had to tell them in parables, kind of stories, had to use some kind of healing power, all these kinds of things, to awaken people. He also told them in very simple straightforward terms -- to keep the commandments, believe in God, pray to God, etc. Only some of His chosen few disciples were selected to be the messengers of His message; the rest He just cured them of their sicknesses, uplifted them a little bit in a mental way, invisible way, comforted them, and reminded them of the commandments or of God.
Therefore, those who came after Jesus having the same capacity as He, reaching the same level of enlightenment, could do much more than He did, could speak more in a more logical way, more intelligent way, more scientific way in order to suit the modern society. So it's not very advantageous for us to cling to the image of our old-time Jesus or Buddha. We have to advance, and what we learn today, it must not always be what the people learned in the past.
Now why did the Buddha take so much time and talk about so many Buddha-lands? It wasn't "He" who talked even. It was His disciples who were taken to the Land of the Buddha, came back, and wrote the so-called diaries. Of course, the Buddha was in that Buddha-land, and the Buddha was the one who took these disciples around and introduced them. But it was not necessary that he spoke to the earthly people in the human language. Some of my so-called followers, disciples, students or fellow practitioners, whatever you call them, they also have had similar kinds of experiences. They were taken to those beautiful lands of love, peace and glory, those with crystal-paved grounds and golden palaces. When they came back to earth consciousness, they also wrote down their experiences, and their joy in the heavenly kingdom or in these Buddha-lands. So these Buddha-lands do exist, and they are much more beautiful, much more gracious than our earth.
In the universe, we can see with our physical eyes that there are many kinds of planets. Our scientists are now trying hard to discover what kinds of planets these are, and if they are peopled or not peopled? Are the people over there similar to ours or not similar? Some of the scientific discoveries have proved that some planets are peopled with beings similar to ours, sometimes they are not similar. Those planets in the universal system are indeed peopled with many different beings. Some are so different vibration, that our physical eyes could not detect them. Even if we send a spaceship to that planet, and the astronauts with all their equipment, we could not see them. Therefore, when our astronauts went to the moon, they saw nothing, and they took some rocks home; they are very expensive rocks. I think we should buy them and wear them around our neck (Master and all laugh) -- moon stone, because they are more expensive than diamond comparing the cost of the spaceship.
Why is it that our eyes fail to see the invisible beings in other galaxies, other planets? It is because we are made of different densities of matter. Actually, matter is not matter at all. I think science has proved that -- that matter is actually empty of nature, it's only different in density. I think that it's very logical. That's why Buddhism has the theory of emptiness. Emptiness means all things are empty in their own nature, it's only a difference in density.
Now I'll try to make it more concrete. You see, air, we cannot see it, we can use it only. We can breathe and we feel the air is there when the wind blows, otherwise we cannot detect the air. The air is composed of oxygen and hydrogen. Everyone knows that. Water also is composed of hydrogen and oxygen, the same kind of composition -- H2O. But when water vaporizes and becomes air, air is entirely different from water. If we are thirsty, we cannot drink air, (Master and all laugh) we have to drink water, even though they are both composed of the same thing, and have the same percentage of composition. Ice is even more different. Ice is different in density. Water condenses and makes itself become solid, so we have ice. So that helps us to explain the different beings in the universe -- why some are solid, are visible, and others are very intangible, invisible. I think it is the same theory.
We have heard people say: "All beings in the universe are one, are of the same essence." Today I am enlightened in this matter, (Master laughs) thanks to you. If I hadn't spoken about this, I would have forgotten this wisdom, I wouldn't have remembered. Because today you needed to know this, I had the opportunity to dig this information out, and give it to you. If it hadn't been for you, I probably wouldn't have needed this information. It was put safely in the store, and maybe just forgotten.
To become enlightened is also like that. We have to unlock our memory. We have to use it each day, in our daily practice, our daily living. We'll unlock more mysteries, more capacities in our dormant storage of the brain. That's what we call "enlightenment", that's what we call "getting more wisdom"; nothing mysterious about that. Everything we already have in our brain, in our store. It's just that when we don't use it, we forget it. It's just like it's non-existent.
As much as I have told you about the story about the water, the air, and the ice, which are made from the same elements, we are also made of the same essence, the same elements -- that is the light, the vibration, which we call the Word in the Bible. The Word means the vibration. In ancient times, they didn't call it the vibration, they called it the Word. Something with sound, something that makes sound -- that is the Word. Whether it is invisible or visible sound, they had no expression for this; so they call it the Word. Lao Tzu had no expression for this. He called it:
If you press me too much, I will say it is the Tao, I have no word for it. In Buddhist terminology, they call it the sound-stream, the inner sound. They all amount to the same thing. We hear in the Bible: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, the Word was God.This vibration or this light will become more dense, as it descends to different levels of the universal hierarchy. It becomes the most dense here, so we have this kind of visible body to move around in. But when some practice at a very high level, and develop themselves to the highest wisdom and the highest power, they merge themselves back to the original source. Then sometimes you see their body disappear. It's not that they disappear, they just melt into their original form. Just like when ice is put in contact with sun light or fire, it melts into water and then disappears into the air again.
When we meditate, practice, and we become Buddha, a great master, we will not just disappear so quickly. We also have a control over our body, over our destiny, and we want to stay for the benefit of others. But our body is not always real any more. Therefore, sometimes if such a master gives discourses in some way -- in samadhi, or in some way teaching others, some people just don't see the body of the master at all. Just see an ocean of light, and that light will even swallow all the audience in the lecture. That you may experience sometimes. Maybe even to the extent of half an hour, one, two, three hours, you are just lost in the sea of light and blissfulness. It's because the master has merged into the ocean of light. Sometimes the master chooses to manifest this to some of the disciples, maybe just to convince him or her, or maybe just because that disciple had great affinity with that master in the past. But not everyone can see this phenomenon, and not every master is so high to manifest such kind.
Now, it is difficult to find these masters, because they are too ordinary. They might not even have any robe at all. They just wear ordinary clothes. The more ordinary, maybe the more great. Sometimes we happen to walk on the street, and we might see many Bodhisattvas, saints, but we might not recognize them. They work in silence. In a Buddhist sutra, we call the Lotus Sutra, Shakyamuni Buddha said:
In every cycle of our existence, the Bodhisattvas -- meaning the great enlightened saints -- will always appear on this Earth to protect the great teaching, protect the dharma.It's not possible for us to always recognize this, because they are so great in number, and they work in different fields and different ways. You may see an engineer, maybe a doctor, or maybe a taxi driver, but they are great saints. So take care (Master laughs) to respect other people when you happen to bump into them. The best attitude is to look at all beings as Buddhas, as saints, then you may experience great wonders, great changes will be taking place in your life.
I have mentioned already that it is not necessary to go into the Himalayas or to shave your head to become enlightened. I did so because it was my path, my destiny. Also I wasn't enlightened. Now suppose I am already enlightened and I am already a monk, what would happen if I let my hair grow very long, I wear jeans, and run around? Do you think I'd lose my enlightenment then? (Audience answer: No.) Exactly!
Doesn't matter what you do in the world, doesn't matter how many duties you have to discharge, once you are enlightened, you are enlightened forever. It's just that you need the key to enlightenment, and the faster the better. Of course, we have no time. We are in the modern world. We can't just sit there for years and wait for the sudden awakening. If we do not have any taste beforehand, it is difficult for our scientific age peoples' minds to believe in anything that we cannot prove. Therefore, the so-called masters nowadays openly give people some evidence of the greater level of consciousness, of the Kingdom of God, or of the Buddha's light, in order for people to believe, to get some proof to hang on to, and to develop.
There are only the different levels of enlightenment. Once you are enlightened, you are enlightened. It's just that you choose to go further to be greater, or you choose to stay there. Once you are initiated, you are different beings, you are a different level. Just like once you have graduated from high school and once you have registered at college, you become a college student. There's no going back any more. You cannot be called a kindergarten student any more, or high school student. You choose to learn more, to become a Ph.D., or you choose to stay in that and then you drop out. Nevertheless, you were a college student. You are not a high school graduate.
So once you are enlightened through the grace of a master, through your own effort, you are forever enlightened. You are no longer like you were before. But it's a matter of diligent practice afterward that counts. It's not just one-moment of enlightenment that makes you become a Buddha. It's not that you register once in a college, never learn anything, and then you become an M.D. No, it's not so simple.
As with every other science, we need constant effort and diligent practice. But also we need assurance from a teacher, and a helping hand. Sometimes we slip, sometimes we are ignorant of our progress, and sometimes we do not know the pitfalls in the practicing road, which is a very long and difficult one. So we need a friend, a faithful, unselfish, and wise friend to guide us, to help us on the road. Walking, we must do alone, but helping, the friend may do -- making the journey more pleasurable, faster, more enlightened. So the teacher is a good friend who walks beside you, helps you when you fall down, cooks for you when you are sick, (Master and all laugh) helps you when you are tired, and encourages you when you lose your enthusiasm. But the teacher cannot enlighten for you. The teacher can put you on the path only, then we can walk.
Q: How can we tell whether a method is the correct method? How do you know the method is the highest, is the right one for you to learn?
M: Any method that brings you close to Buddha, your Buddha-nature, brings you back to God, shows you that you have God's power, shows you that you have God's light, Buddha's light, that is a correct method.
Q: I have been a Buddhist for three years, but have had no progress at all. What's the problem?
M: The problem is that you have only read other peoples' experiences and hasn't had experience yourself. For example, in Buddhism, we have a scripture that describes the Land of Amitabha Buddha with all sorts of beauty. The ground is paved with gold, even the birds can sing the great teachings, there are beautiful palaces, and the people there use lotuses to fly in the air, etc. They have a beautiful pool with nectar. When you drink it, you have so much strength, power, and intelligence, etc. But a person who has never been there before, heard about it.
Then, everyday he just recites this kind of Buddha-land, and he doesn't even have any appetite for it. He might have the appetite, but he has not had the food. My method is to offer you a little bit of the taste of the Buddha-land, so that you know you are on the right path and encouraged to walk further. Then you know you have success. Otherwise, of course, you study for thirty years and you have no success, never mind three years. Three years is too short already. Some people have waited thirty years, have never seen any Buddha-land, have never had a glimpse of the Buddha's light, have never had a little bit of sound of the Buddha's musical voice. It's very difficult if you don't have a correct teacher, you don't have a correct path. It's never a success at all.
Just like someone takes you to the restaurant. You're so hungry and you want to find a restaurant. At least the person takes you to the right road. If you haven't reached the restaurant yet, you know you are on the right road, and carry on walking further, because you can smell a little bit of the food from its kitchen from far away, and you know that's it, you are on the right path. Otherwise, you walk for many days and many roads, you can never have anything.
Q: I don't believe in any religion at all, and I don't belong to any particular religious group. I only meditate myself. Can I get enlightenment?
M: That shows that you haven't got enlightenment. If you had, you would have known. At least you would feel more secure. Now, we don't need to belong to any religious order or group in order to get enlightenment. We do not even need to believe before we see, but seeing, we must. When we are face to face with God or Buddha, or we have been to the Buddha-land, then we will know. Yes! There is Buddha, now I believe.
It's all right to be an atheist, (Master laughs) but it's not all right to remain like that all our life. We must get some proof as long as we can, as far as we can. If no one else offers us the proof, then no one can blame us for being atheists forever. But if someone stands out and offers us the proof, then we should at least give ourselves a chance to prove the world beyond our existence. Then we can believe there's a Buddha, there's God or there are other saints.
Q: Please explain more about mass suffering, Are they all guilty from before, that's why they are suffering?
M: No one is innocent, I have told you yesterday. I am not condemning anyone at all. It's all learning lessons. Learning is very painful. Once you are awakened, you see things in a different light, and you know it's all lessons.
Look at the mass killing that we do everyday in order to keep this body for one hundred years. How many lives have to be sacrificed -- all the fish, all the shrimps, all the chickens, all the pigs, all the buffaloes? Do you think all this energy will be dissolved without war, without suffering, without physical ailments?
Everything we do is recorded in the air. Nothing will be lost, it will be diluted only with a different energy. It will be equalized only by different actions, not lost. For example, vapor air already became ice through water, and now if you want it to disappear, we have to put sun rays, a lamp, light, or heat on it, in order to get it back into the air again.
So if we have been killing, mass massacres, all the time, all these animals suffering, and they also have consciousness, thinking, and hatred energy, all this hatred, fear condenses itself into a powerful energy, and hangs around the air. Too much of that will result in mass suffering.
We have to pay for everything we use in this physical universe. Therefore, all the masters emphasize a vegetarian diet. The least cost to the existence. Animals have life, plants also have life, but they are the least cost. Just like you earn only a hundred dollars and you want to spend two hundred, then of course you are in debt, you are in trouble. If you try to buy cheap things and satisfy yourself with the minimum cost to live, then you have no worry about debt. That's why we choose the vegetarian diet -- fruit, nuts, milk, or cheese. All these things have less crime, less consciousness within themselves.
Now if you take the milk from the cow, will the cow die? If you take a few nuts from the trees, the trees still have plenty of nuts to grow thousands of nut trees more. They will not be lost. If you cut a flower, or a branch of a vegetable, that will grow even more from that cut stem, even more vegetables will come out of it. So in this way, we know that the vegetarian diet is less harmful, less cost.
Q: Did you mean spirit, God is the substance of our body?
M: Yes, yes, the holy spirit is the substance of our body. We come from that. And when you go very high in wisdom, you will realize that this body is also spirit, from the higher vibration. It has condensed into this kind of form only.
Therefore, if you practice very high or there is a high practicing Master, you don't see the Master. But you have to also develop higher or through the grace of the Master. You don't see the Master at all, only see light here. And the light is so great that it envelopes the whole audience, the whole hall. You see no one. You see that there is no matter at all. It's really empty.
That's what we call emptiness. But in the emptiness, you are fulfilled, you are satisfied. It's not the emptiness that leaves you empty and lonely like the ordinary emptiness of this world. The more you empty in the spiritual sense, the more you are fulfilled, the wiser you become. It's all different.
The worldly language is terrible, that's why everyone mistakens Buddhism for nihilism, nothingness, emptiness. (Master laughs.) It's not so. If everything goes back into nihilism, goes back into nothing, then the Buddha would never have emphasized that you keep the precepts, be a good person, be virtuous. What would be the use? You'd become nothing anyhow. You'd become empty. (Master laughs.) No, it's not so.
Q: How can you prove that after the end, another life exists?
M: Well, if you have not been enlightened about this matter already, then you should be enlightened, then you can see. Some people can see these things without having officially been enlightened, due to their sensitive clairvoyant ability. And some people have to have a master in order to be clairvoyant. After enlightenment to some degree, you will come to know all these things.
It's easy to prove, but we must practice. These things are intangible things -- belonging to the inner, invisible knowledge. There is knowledge of material nature. There is knowledge of immaterial nature. Now, if you want to prove the invisible knowledge, you have to go to the invisible school, and practice the invisible method. We cannot use the material to prove the immaterial things. But we can prove it in a different way.
Q: What was your method of obtaining enlightenment, and was there a specific moment that you felt it occurred?
M: No. My method is no method. At the time of transmission, you just sit there, and I also sit there. We don't do anything. We don't speak any words. We don't move one inch. But we get the light, and we get enlightenment. We can leave the body, we can visit heaven, or we can at least see the heavenly light or hear the heavenly Word, listen to the instructions of God and become wiser each day.
The method I impart is no method. Thus, I cannot write it down for you. I can only personally, invisibly, and inactively open it for you. I do without doing. If anything involves any doing, any excitement, any movement, it still belongs to the world of form and matter. So our method is a non-substance method, non-form method. But it can be transmitted, it can be had, it can be possessed.
Why is it so? It is because the enlightenment is within yourself, the light is within you, the Buddha-nature is within you, the Kingdom of God is within you. I only point it to you: "Here, look this way and you will see." Sometimes you have eyeglasses in your hand, and you keep looking all over for them. So I say: " It's here, (Master laughs) this way."
So it's no method. You already have it, believe me. No method can lead you to enlightenment, except you have to know your own nature and get in contact with it. That is the only method. Any method that lets you see the Buddha-nature at once, see the Heavenly Kingdom at once, that is the Quan Yin Method. That is the right method. That's the correct method. You call it any name you want, but there's no method.
It's only the power of God which descends into any chosen pure body, and opens your own God-power. It's God who saves God. It's the Buddha who saves the Buddha. It's the Buddha who enlightens the Buddha. It's the Buddha inside you who chooses to be awakened. The Buddha inside me and the Buddha inside you are one.
Because you do not know it yet, the Buddha inside you has to manifest into an outside body, and waken it up. But it is you who wakes up yourself. It's the Buddha-nature inside you who chooses the time. The alarm clock went off, so wake up. It's difficult.
I will not teach you anything. It's you who teaches yourself. It's the Buddha within you who wakes up and realizes who you are, and starts to work with your own capacity, with your own wisdom. Therefore afterward, you will realize that no one is the master. Everyone is equal. Everyone has the same potential. Just you forgot how to use it. The one who remembers, the one who knows will remind you. That's all there is.
If you already have money in your pocket, and I tell you the money is here, I don't give you anything. I only remind you what you have forgotten. Therefore, there's no need for me to use any method. The money is yours. (Master laughs.)
MC: But the Master does open the door, does open the wisdom-mind for us.
Q: Are heaven, Buddha-land, Buddha, only imaginary things in our mind? Everyone sees a different form of Buddha-land. No such physical existence in reality?
M: Oh, it isn't an imaginary product. Some lands are illusion due to hallucinations. When you are short of oxygen, when you are tired, when you are on drugs or alcohol, or undergoing suffering, you do have hallucinations. These are unreal and you cannot go back to those lands again.
But those Buddhas-lands and real heaven have real invisible substance, and you can go back anytime afterward. Not everyone sees a different land. Many of my disciples see the same land. But because there are so many lands, so of course someone goes there, someone goes here. Just like we have so many countries in this world, some go to America, some go to England. That's of course no doubt. But England does exist and two or more can go there at the same time.
Q: Are there spirits in this world or just psychological phenomenon unrelated to the level of spirits, made in our mind?
M: There are spirits, yes. What are spirits? They are the encased souls who are not liberated. We are souls who are encased in these bodies at the moment. After we leave our world, we leave these bodies, but it doesn't mean we are completely liberated. There are other bodies encasing our souls still. Just like a house has many doors.
When I visited the prison (for lecture), there were about thirteen doors, small doors, iron doors. They had to be opened and locked immediately behind me. I went through thirteen doors to visit the prisoners, and I went through thirteen doors to go out again. Now, if the prison officer just opened one or two doors, I'd still be in prison. I would not be liberated. Have to open the last door and then the greater gate outside before I could go back to the free world again.
Similarly, when we leave these physical bodies, it doesn't mean that we are completely free of other bodies. We have other bodies. So the spirits which we see sometimes with different eyes, or other people see with the psychic eyes, these are those encased souls in astral bodies. Sometimes they fly around, sometimes they make trouble, sometimes they don't.
Q: How does initiation which cancels one's past karma differ from Christian baptism, which removes the guilt of original sin?
M: Is that right? Does it remove? Then how come you keep coming for confession every Sunday? You don't feel removed with baptism. The real baptism came from a Christ-like person, like John the Baptist, like Jesus Christ. The power of removal, not the action. Just like I sign a check, but I have no money in the bank. (Master laughs.) It's different from my signing a check with the money in my bank account.
Baptism is a beautiful tradition in Christianity, as well as in Buddhism. We call it taking refuge in the Buddha. And when you take refuge, they read out loud: After you take refuge in the Buddha, your karma is all cleansed, you will never be born in hell and as an animal, etc. I have seen many baptized people go to hell. You cannot just do it verbally or by ceremony. There must be invisible God-power behind it to cleanse you, because sins are invisible.
Does that makes sense to you? Yes, we have to be logical in practice. We can not just be blind, and follow anything people say. We are cheated, we are made fun of, made a fool of. But no doubt after you confess your sins to someone, maybe you'll feel a little relief. But then, you sin again. And also you have not felt any upliftment.
When Jesus baptized people, He really cleansed people's sins. When John baptized people, He really cleansed people's sins. Therefore, they can see light from heaven. When Jesus was baptized by John, He saw the light come from heaven like a dove.
At the initiation, you will also see such kind of light, at least such kind. So you know that you have been cleansed and you know you have been in contact with heaven. Otherwise, how do you know? And you'll feel a sudden relief, like a mountain has fallen from your shoulders, like a stone has been removed from your heart. That is the real sign of cleansing and purifying. Otherwise, only talk, and formality. Doesn't remove the original sins just by baptism. If the priest is very high, enlightened, powerful, yes; if not, no.
Q: Why are breathing exercises contrary to Master's method?
M: Because in our body, there are two kinds of currents. One is called the motor current which generates the heat in the body, takes care of the blood circulation and the digestive system. That is supported by the breathing. Now if we control the breath, we make a mess of our orderly system. God has already made our body in a perfect condition. Whatever has to be done is already taken care of. No need to mess around. All we want to do is to free our soul, not to mess around with the systems of our body. Sometimes it creates danger.
Also, the breath is ephemeral. When you sleep, you are unconscious of breathing. When you faint, when you have an accident, you collapse, you do not know about the breathing. How do you practice then? How do you elevate your soul then?
Our method is the one which makes your soul ever conscious. During sleep, during accident, during collapse time, during disaster, always conscious to take care of your problems, take care of your business, take care of your decisions. We waken our own soul up. We waken the master of the house up and let him do the job. Then twenty-four hours he does things, without us having to think, and to even to pray for, because the Master has woken up, the Buddha, the holy spirit within us has woken up. The real self, understand? Without having to listen to the brain -- the stupid computer. Therefore, we will do everything in the right spirit. Knowing or not knowing this, we'll always be right, because the master has taken control, not the servant.
If we mess about with our breathing or any so-called body chakra, we interfere with the physical system only and it might bring about some illusion or hallucination, but nothing real. And we will never become any wiser. I have tried, and I have seen many people who are on the top of the so-called breath control. They still have to come to me for wisdom. Someone who practiced breath control with a very famous Chinese master, I won't mention the name, reached the breathless state already. He could survive without breathing. That person was no wiser by any means. He had to come and get initiation. Now, he's different.
Like Hatha yoga, they put all the breath into the stomach, make it become very big and save it there for some time, maybe 2-3 minutes. Breathe it out again. Or they do pranayama. But it's no harm if you take a few deep breaths and do exercises. It's different.
Q: Master, you began your talk today with a discussion on Buddha-lands and the rooms in the mansion of the Father. Please elaborate on this. Why is there a need for a pure Buddha-land in existence? Is this not the pure land we live in this world, even though it does not manifest itself as pure in your eyes?
M: Yes, our land is very pure indeed. For me, (Master laughs), but not for some. So you have to find your own pure land. What it means in the Vimalakirti Sutra, about this land is a pure land, is that you can sit here and see the land is pure. You can sit here and see the Buddha-land right here, right in front of your eyes. That's what it means. That's what it means by "this land is a pure land."
It's true, but not true to all people. It's true to me, it's true to my disciples, true to some higher level, enlightened people, but not to everyone. Everyone still sees garbage, and sees the mountain and the river.
So what I say about pure land is that, it all exists here and now, but I have to make a distinction. I cannot always tell people: "You look, you live in the pure land now. You no need to move, you no need to exercise, you no need to do any virtues, you no need to meditate. Your land is a pure land." I cannot say that. It's not correct either.
Also, how do the pure lands of Amitabha, Avalokitesvara, etc. differ from this world, from ours? They differ a lot, too much difference. The lands over there, we know no sorrow, we know no hatred, we know no war. We only know love and mutual respect. This land is full of trouble, full of sorrow, misery. You are happy one minute, and then you are suffering ten minutes. So much difference.
Here you have to labor very long to build a house, and it might collapse with an earthquake, leaving you homeless, no electricity, no water for many days, a lot of inconvenience. We built the bridge in San Francisco. Took many years and a lot of money, billions of dollars and a lot of labor; and in just 50 seconds, it was gone.
In those lands, such thing never happen. We are always secure and live in love, light and grace. There are a lot of differences. You do not need to earn money. Everything we want comes immediately, in front of our eyes, without even having to move, go to the supermarket or change money. We go from one Buddha-land to another without any passport trouble, without any bureaucratic problem. Now you want to go to America, it's not easy, you want to get out, it's also not easy, because you need money, need passport, need relations in the other land in order to move. In Buddha-land, it's not so. You go anywhere you want. You're free.
Q: When I meditated one day I saw the light, but it nearly electrocuted me and I thought l would die. I don't understand this.
M: You saw the light was of a very high electronic nature. We might use our worldly terminology. Therefore when it touched the body, it became very powerful. That's why we have to be vegetarian and lead a virtuous life, so we don't have this kind of shock. If a very high frequency touches very gross matter, of course it will be in conflict. But if the matter is not that gross, not that coarse, then the two are blended, and you don't feel the shock.
It's dangerous to practice without the guidance of a real master and ethical discipline. All the meat and intoxicants we take will intensify the grossness of our body, the coarseness of our physical being. And the more we are condensed, the less we can blend with the higher frequency. Therefore it gives a shock. We have to develop the body, mind, and speech in order to match it.
You see the astronauts when they go into space, they have to eat different food, wear different clothes in order to suit the air pressure in higher space. They cannot wear like we wear here. Or when we go into the sea, we have to take an oxygen mask. We cannot be casual like in this land. Different atmosphere, we have to be equipped with different instruments. It's good that you have withstood this experience, and have become more enlightened. Congratulations!
Q: It is true that instant enlightenment can be attained, not only through Buddhas of enlightenment, but also through a city marshal, who knocks unexpectedly at your door.
M: It's true if that marshal is a Buddha, he can open the light for you. Then he is also an enlightened Buddha in the form of a marshal. Buddhas have many forms. If you are a marshal and you become completely enlightened, then you are a Buddha. There's no need to change the outer appearance. But any ordinary being cannot just give you instant enlightenment, be it the president or a marshal. It's not the form, the position, or the job that counts. It's the power within that person.