Feng Shui: An Ancient Chinese Science
Helping to Elevate the Planet is Helping Master | Lead a Life of Fulfilling
Worldly Duties While Practicing Spirituality | All Things Come through
Patient, Relaxed Meditation | Being Detached is Showing True Love for the
Departed | Just be Natural and Enjoy Your Meditation | Transcend the Duality
of Positive and Negative | Enlightenment and Logic Can Co-Exist
uInsights on Nature
Feng Shui: An Ancient Chinese Science
I have to tell you: True love begins with yourself. That's the only truth
I can tell you. And don't say you always have to try to please other people.
If you please others with an ulcer in your stomach, is that good? Or if
you swallow the anger within you, is that good? You're the Buddha as well!
Why do you have to pay such a price when it's not necessary? If it's truly,
truly necessary and the other person will die without your doing it, then
perhaps you can consider whether he's more important than you are. But
you don't need to be running around, taking care of people's karma! You
have enough of your own.
So, whether it's a marriage, an arrangement, a relationship or a business,
make sure you get the best out of it. That's really the way to serve humankind.
Because if you aren't happy in your marriage and you always let your partner
get the better of you, one day you'll break down or explode, and you'll
end up in divorce anyway. Even at that time, it's too late, but better
late than never. If it really becomes too unbearable and un-reconcilable,
just go. Take care of yourself first. Then you can think about whether
you should continue or you should start a new life.
Anything is changeable; anything can possibly be rearranged. That's how
we learn. If you make a mistake, it's all right; admit it and change it.
Don't continue with that mistake and sacrifice for this and that and the
other. For example, suppose your marriage isn't happy and your partner
always takes advantage of you, and yet you're the only one who's always
feeling bitter and abused or beaten up - if you continue like that, what
for? Maybe you think you might get a worse partner later, but you never
know. You can try it, and if it's worse, you can say, "Oh, it's worse."
And then you'll know.
In any situation, you must try to take care of yourself so that you get
the best. But without taking advantage of other people or trying to walk
over people's dead bodies in order to arrive at your desired destination.
It's just that you have to be true to yourself in any circumstances. And
the other people must also be true to themselves. If they're not, if they
try to pretend or if they act hypocritically, that's their problem. At
least you'll know where you stand: "This person can't mix with me
so I'd better find another arrangement or wait until he or she changes
or becomes true to himself. Then we might talk again."
It's the same with a partner, a business or anything. You always have to
be true to yourself because we're practicing the Truth. If you aren't true
to yourself right now, then when will you be? Will you be true to yourself
when you go to Heaven? There, we don't need to do anything anymore. We're
finished with our job then, and there's nothing else to do. So, whatever
you want to do, just do it if you have the correct intention. You just
have to be true to yourself and your feelings.
Q: Dear Master, since my initiation more than two years ago, I've noticed
that both my parents' health has been progressing well, for which I'm very
grateful to You. I know You've been quietly blessing both of them. Also
You've been helping me all this time so for once please let me know how
I can be of help to You.
M: Thank you for your concern. Meditation is all you need to do. And you can
help your brothers and sisters if they need it, or spread the news wherever
you can, just to help elevate the atmosphere of our planet so that we'll
have more peace, more happiness, more prosperity and more progress in all
respects, so that our lives and the lives of others and our children will
be more and more comfortable every day, and we grow nearer and nearer to
God every day. That's how you can help. And I thank you in advance, and
thank all of you who help in this way as well.
Q: Dear Master, why are creative people such as artists and writers often
mentally or emotionally disturbed? Is it because most of them are trying
to create something without doing spiritual practice, meaning without having
God's blessing and love? Or is this just a part of their karma?
M: Not all of them are disturbed. Disturbed people are disturbed anyway, be
they artists or not. The reason you notice that artists are disturbed is
because artistic people are more famous and are more in the public's gaze.
If a normal person is disturbed somewhere, like if your neighbor is disturbed,
you probably don't notice because you don't even know they're there. It's
not that they're artists and so are more disturbed. It's not like that.
That's one thing.
Another thing is probably that artistic people are more "in the clouds."
They live in their own worlds, are more into creative things, and are much
more oblivious to mundane problems and practical ways of living. So when
they have to deal with these things, they kind of get confused. The pressure
is too much for them. The pressure is too much for many of us, but because
we work in the world every day, we're more used to or more immune to it.
But artists or creative people are more in their own world, more into the
beautiful things they create. Or they try to create beautiful things, and
they're just more into the beauty and the music and so on. And when they
have to crash into the harsh reality of mundane living - like making money,
paying the rent and paying the bills - they become almost alarmed and probably
don't know very well how to deal with it. So it seems as if they're out
of the ordinary. But if it were us, we'd be the same way.
It's just that the reality and the dream are much different sometimes,
and some people can't balance the practical, mundane life of dealing with
money and bills with the beauty of their inner creativity. So there's a
little balancing that they need to learn, and some people don't know how
- not just artists - anyone. Some people are more emotional and others
are less emotional. Some people are more on the inside of dreaming; others
are more practical and down to earth. And if we don't balance these two,
we'll be in trouble, any of us.
That's why it's better for you to meditate and go into the inner world
of beauty, but continue with your worldly obligations. In that way, you're
more balanced. Even all the resident practitioners in the Centers, I make
them work, too.
There's a time to meditate, to go into God's kingdom, and there's a time
to bring that blessing out and to operate in the world. Otherwise you lose
touch with the physical world, and whenever you have to go back to get
in touch with it again, you become confused, and that's how people think
you're disturbed.
Q: Dear Master, I have difficulty concentrating when I meditate. To help my
meditation, I play Your chanting tape, read Your books and even put some
of Your pictures around me. But I still struggle. Please tell me how to
improve my meditation.
M: We improve with practice. Most babies are born helpless, and you're new.
Don't be in such a hurry and give yourself such pressure because if you
don't relax it's more difficult to concentrate. So it's better to just
let it be. Just sit there, relax and recite the Holy Names whenever you
can remember. And concentrate on the wisdom center. Then things will come
by themselves. The Light doesn't always come to the new practitioner or
even to the old practitioner because we don't always have the quality of
physical soundness in order to concentrate. It happens to everyone so don't
worry.
Just continue, go to group meditation, relax and do what you can in meditation
at home. Just do what you can; that's it; no anxiety, no expectations,
no pressuring yourself because it comes in time. God is all relaxation,
all love and all naturalness. If we're too busy thinking of many other
things, our mind can't rest. And that's the reason we have to practice
every day to achieve the perfect state of tranquility or samadhi. If we
could do it overnight, we would just get initiated and there'd be no need
to do anything else. I love you and wish you all success very soon.
Q: I want to know whether You're still looking after my baby. I just lost
her.
M: It's OK; she's not lost. I told you, they go to a better place than the
one we're in. Don't worry.
Q: Are You still looking after her?
M: Yes, sure. She's gone, but to a better, better, place. Be happy.
Q: I just wanted to make sure.
M: Whoever goes away from this world, you should celebrate for. Of course,
as mother, sister, brother or father, we have human emotions, and we want
to have that person near us physically. But we forget that we're not physical.
OK, I understand; I sympathize with you, but please, be happy for the soul.
Besides, you should know the karma. Some people have karmic connections
with us for one second. Some people have them for only two minutes, some
people for one month, some people for two weeks and some people for a year,
two years, ten years or fifty years. So the time has come, his karma is
finished with us, his affinity with us is dissolved, and he's gone. No
one belongs to us.
No one is really our son or our daughter. No one is. They're all the children
of God. They come to us for some special reason. Some come and go quickly
to remind us that the world is ephemeral and to "Go ahead, practice
quickly." And some come to take some of our possessions and so on
because we owe them something. They want to come and clear up their debt
with us so that we'll be free to go afterwards. Some come to give us prosperity,
luck or happiness because they owed us from last time, when they didn't
do it well. And after they've done their job, they go back to where they
should go.
I hope you feel happy and consoled now. You'll feel very light if you let
it go. If you really understand that, and you let the soul go, you'll feel
much happier, you'll just feel joy. That's the joy of detachment and true
love because when you love someone, you want them to be in a happier place
than where we are, and in a much better situation than what we can have
right here. That's true, unconditional love.
Q: Dear Master, how can I maintain the feeling of being one with all beings
all the time?
M: That's rather difficult, but not impossible. With practice and with time,
things will come naturally, and we don't even have to feel that all the
time. Because we still have to take care of all the mundane matters in
this world. So just be natural; be yourself. Enjoy your meditation on the
side, and just do your job in the world.
Q: Many times we experience so-called good and bad in our reality. Is this
actually an illusion, and relative to a certain level of awareness? If
so, is it true that so-called good and evil do not actually exist? Do we
create them? And if we do, how do we go beyond them?
M: Yes, don't create anymore, and try to look on the world as transient, as
a movie, as a videotape. Also, try to concentrate on the Holy Names and
on your wisdom eye whenever you can, and remember the teachings of all
the Masters instead of looking at the bad or the good of the world.
It's difficult, but with practice you can do it. It's just a habit, and
every habit needs a few weeks to change. So if you try to do that for a
duration of three weeks you'll be able to break the habit of always noticing
the negative or the positive, the duality of human existence. It still
exists, but it doesn't matter. Next time try to ignore the good or the
bad. That will already be very good. Do it whenever you can, it's not like
you can do it a hundred percent of the time.
Q: Our mental training is basically rational but achieving enlightenment isn't
necessarily a rational process. So to maintain a high level of enlightenment,
do we somehow have to suppress the logical aspect of our thinking?
M: No, it depends on whether your logical thinking is really logical, and
your rational thinking is really rational. Sometimes it's not. Sometimes,
if a whole group of people agrees on one thing, it doesn't mean that it's
really necessarily logical or rational. So enlightened people see rational
things as truly rational. It's not that you have to suppress your logical
or rational thinking. It's just that you re-think more rationally, more
logically, and are truly logical, truly rational.
A couple of hunters chartered a small plane to fly them to a forest, and
made an appointment with the pilot to come back and fetch them in about
two weeks. At the end of the two weeks, they had shot a lot of animals
that they wanted to load onto the plane. But the pilot said, "This
plane won't be able to take more than one wild buffalo. You'll have to
leave the others behind." Then the hunters protested, saying, "But
last year, another pilot with the same airplane let us take two buffalos
and some other animals in the plane as well."
So the new pilot thought about it. He was a little bit skeptical, but finally
he said, "OK, since you did it last year, I guess this year we can
do it again." Then he loaded the two buffalos and a few other animals
in, and the plane took off. Five minutes later, it crashed in a neighboring
area.
The three men climbed out and looked around, and one hunter said to the
other, "Where do you think we are now?" The second one surveyed
the area and said, "I think we're about one mile to the left of the
place we crashed last year."
They did the same thing and got the same result. So don't ever try that!
Don't try to do the same thing, thinking that the result will be different
because you're in a different year. The same action yields the same result.
There's no problem understanding that. What's happened before will happen
again.
The problem isn't that the Master won't tolerate you or won't let you do
what you want; it's that the results will be the same. The same is true
for the Five Precepts, vegetarianism or meditation. You can do what you
want with your life: You can eat what you prefer, and you can meditate
or not meditate. But the result will be exactly what we would expect: What
comes back is the same as what we put in. There's no escape from that.
There was once a very poor person who was also very stingy. But his manner
of praying to God must be one of the most famous, even more so than the
Bible's "Give us this day our daily bread." (Matthew 6:11)
So the old miser was heard saying his prayers like this: "Oh, my God,
my Lord! My Almighty! If the Almighty - may Your holy name be blessed forever
- if You gave me a hundred thousand dollars, I would immediately give ten
thousand to the poor. I promise I would! You know that, don't You? And
if the Almighty - may Hes be blessed - does not trust me about my promise,
then please deduct the ten thousand in advance and only give me ninety
thousand."
Please visit the following websites to enjoy the original video versions
of these jokes, and you may share the joy of Master's humor with those
around you:
http://www.godsdirectcontact.org.tw/eng/news/153/jk1.htm (Formosa)
http://www.godsdirectcontact.net/eng/news/153/jk1.htm (USA)
What you have to do is just keep the place tidy. Tidy up everything. Move
all the trailers to the other side, to a lower place. Just move them there.
Do you know why? Because our meditation hall is lower than all this garbage,
and it makes you feel pressure. Just today I told someone that if you move
all this away, you'll have more luck. Because then you'll feel more like,
"Ah! It's spacious." And when you go out, you won't feel like
there's pressure; this isn't good Feng Shui because if you put the garbage on top of your roof, it blocks all the
views and makes you feel narrow, or as though you're being pressed between
two blocks and that's not necessary. But when you walk out of the meditation
hall and the first thing you see is a toilet above your head, you just
don't feel good about it.
If you have this psychological feeling, you don't feel good; you feel heavy,
and then you attract heavy kinds of atmospheres that come to you and become
bad luck. If you feel good, if you feel happy and relaxed, you'll attract
that; like attracts like. You'll attract or create that kind of lively
atmosphere and luck, or a feeling of being very happy. Then you'll attract
more happiness, more light, more liveliness, a more bright-hearted feeling;
and then luck will come. That's what we call "good luck." So
good luck or bad luck we make ourselves.
There's nothing superstitious about saying that when you move those things,
you'll have more good luck. It's the same principle as in your house with
Feng Shui. This isn't superstition: Feng Shui is something like an old science. For example, if you built a house, especially
in the old times, it was even more important then. In the old times, sometimes
you could build a house on top of an undercurrent of water and you wouldn't
even know it. Then, after a while, the outside of your house would collapse,
and that would be no good.
So some people would have to go and measure with whatever they possibly
could, to see if there was something dangerous under the ground. Sometimes
underneath there could be an iron mine or something like that, which would
affect your magnetic field. For example, if some magnetic iron was underneath
and if you first slept on the left side then five minutes later, you'd
become just like a needle attracted by magnetic iron and sleep on the other
side. (Laughter) Then later on, you'd sleep like this (Master assumes an
upside-down position), and that's not good Feng Shui.
Feng Shui is a science; it's not superstition, if you know about it. It's not like
saying that if you put the house that way, God will protect you, but if
you put the house this way, God won't protect you. God isn't that way or
this way; God is everywhere. For example, if the door of your house faces
south, this is good. Everyone knows that. Why is it good? Because the south
represents more light so most people, when they sleep, if they face the
south, it's good for their health. That's one example of Feng Shui. It probably just coincides with the movements of the universe. When they
move together in harmony, it brings more health, and when you're healthier,
you're happier. When you're happier, you attract more luck.
So in the old times, people emphasized Feng Shui more because they didn't have equipment to solidify their basements or
other things that we have in modern times. They had no equipment so they
had to rely on people who either had their third eye or psychic power open
and could see water underneath, or who had some kind of psychic ability
within them where they could sense that something under a house wouldn't
be good for the owner if it was built on top without a protective layer
before the basement. So they just did something. This was nothing like
voodoo; there was no need for that. Sometimes they did something just to
neutralize a force of nature, and then they blessed the house.
It's OK; if you believe in that, it's good for you. But you'd better find
a good Feng Shui master! Otherwise, I could also become one and just say, "Hula, hula,
hoop," "Holy Names," or "Meditate." (Laughter)
If the north wind, which is cold and bad, always blows this way, and you
face your house this way, then of course you're bound to catch a bad cold
a lot of the time. Whenever you open your door, or the wind comes through
the door crack, it sometimes gives you a piercing, pulling kind of headache.
If you face that way to sleep or face that way to drink tea all the time,
and then if you close the door, you'll feel a piercing draft, like a sharp
wind, coming to you. And if you open the door, the bad wind will come in
and bring with it all kinds of disasters. It's bad for you, bad for your
health, and that's bad Feng Shui.
"Feng" means wind and "Shui" means water. In the old
times, wind and water were very important to people. Before we had tap
water or anything like that, if you had a house, you'd have to have water
nearby. So you'd have to ask a person who knew Feng Shui. He could sense where the water was because he had a crude instrument.
Or, his psychic ability would say, "OK, here you can build the house
this way, and then dig a well that way and you'll have water." And
so you'd face the house that way because the "Feng" that would
come this way wouldn't be good for you and so on.
So Feng Shui is like that. It's just the positioning of a house in accord with the
harmony of nature. This became Feng Shui. Similarly, it's bad Feng Shui that you've practiced all these years. I suppose that among all of you
here there are a lot of voodoo masters, and you know Feng Shui. Many of the Chinese here studied the I Ching and so on for years before I was even born. And you study Feng Shui and all the wigwag kinds of signs, but you still don't do anything about
it. Even though I haven't studied any Feng Shui, I know this is no good. You just don't feel good, that's all; a good
feeling isn't there. Don't you feel a little pressure when you come in
and go out with that crack over there? No, you don't. You always close
your eyes and meditate, and leave everything else to Master.
That's why I have to do it all the time. I have to clean the kitchen for
you and get mad, and now I have to clear these things off. You should plant
some crawling kind of plant, maybe beans or something that you can harvest.
And also cover the fence or cut the fence into levels, or change it into
a kind of see-through fence. If you don't want people to see, that's fine
also, but paint it green or something that goes together, not a different
or very contrasting color that's disturbing to the eyes. We're not talking
about artistic taste. Whatever is disturbing to your harmonious sense of
beauty isn't good Feng Shui.
Dogs say hi to everyone; it's so beautiful. They know what you need and
are very therapeutic because they know who needs love. For example, there
are programs in hospitals and homes for the elderly and for sick children
where they bring dogs in to just love the people. Whoever the dog puts
its paws on or licks feels much better afterwards, because they feel loved.
Animals love unconditionally! Even though they might never see you again,
they'll give you everything, the whole thing. A dog licks whomever he loves.
Dogs and cats especially know exactly what's going on. So they come and
touch the people who need it. The dogs who visit homes and hospitals are
already trained, so they're not too unruly. They just come to visit the
old people or the children or the terminally ill and make the people feel
great. The patients love it so much that they keep asking for more. Because
dogs have this gift: They can communicate love without having to say or
do anything. We can keep saying "I love you" the whole day long
and still no one believes us. Maybe it's because we don't mean what we
say!
Most people can't know the inside of a dog because dogs don't talk. We
can't even understand each other as humans so it's very difficult for a
human to understand the inside of a dog. That's why, after a while a person
might say, "This dog is no good," and throw the dog out. The
animal shelters are full of dogs ready to die. If people don't adopt them,
after only one day to a week, they can be killed.
People don't take time; they just want to kill things. They don't understand
that it's a living being, and after a while, the dog messes up. If you
don't train them well, they misbehave. Then the person gets fed up because
the dog might chew the furniture and other things. Most people don't even
know that dogs need toys. They also need company and time to play with
their owners, and not just eat food and guard the house. Even guard dogs
need affection just like anyone else.
Especially if you take in a lone dog or a cat, they in turn take you as
a partner or family member. Sometimes they even fall in love with you or
at least become very, very attached to you. So if you're the one who's
the partner and you don't care for his or her emotional needs, of course
he'll become destructive or depressed and grow to be very undisciplined.
And then we blame the dog for being bad.
How can a dog be good if it's tied at the neck all day long sitting in
the sun, unable to go anywhere or do anything? The dog doesn't have company
and doesn't have love, only food. Even we humans don't live just for food.
Also, we know of many things we can do; we can do anything we want. We
have a lot of choices to help diffuse our depression or loneliness, and
even then we complain that we're lonely, isolated and so on.
We have so many choices. We can pursue as many activities as we want, but
dogs can't! If you tie a dog to a tree, what's he going to do? Or, what
if you cage him all day long until you come home at night or just lock
him up inside the house eighteen hours a day? Then you come home, give
him a little food, pat him on the head and say, "Good boy" and
then "Good night!" So, a lot of people just take dogs or cats
in, thinking they're like toys. They call them pets or toys, but they're
not. They're wonderful beings. They have so many gifts that we don't have.
People don't realize that, and they treat animals really badly.
In the Bible, God said, "I will make the animal as your helper,"
meaning our friend. That's why we should never eat them or mistreat them
because God's intention in creating animals was to help us. They help in
different ways, similar to a shepherd. But you have to train them in their
profession. Even with a shepherd, you have to train him in how to herd
your sheep.
Most people train dogs for hunting, killing and so on, which is no good.
If people leave their dogs outside and don't really take care of them,
they can become flea or tick infested and they suffer a lot. But since
they can't talk and can't take care of themselves, they rely only on their
owners. And they're so loyal and faithful that they won't go anywhere,
even to seek help. So if we're the solely responsible person and we neglect
him or her, it's very cruel. It's not human.
If you don't want them, you'd better not have them, and if you have them
you'd better treat them nicely. It's a lot of work, but the reward is that
they love you eternally. They'd lay down their lives for you if it came
to that.
When I read stories about animals, I can't help but love them. Apart from
having love for all beings, these kinds of stories touch your heart and
make you love them more. So the people who neglect animals or who don't
know how to treat them properly are just ignorant. They don't know about
dogs, about the inside nature of these wonderful beings. They think they're
just animals. Maybe because they're smaller than we are, we look down on
them. But that's not right.
Animals are our brothers and sisters, and it's very important that we know
how to live with them harmoniously and respectfully because they're there
for a reason. You can see that certain birds and animals carry out special
jobs in the world. Some, like vultures, even clean up garbage. Of course,
they make a mess of it, too! But their job has something to do with the
whole environment, the balance of our planetary ecosystem. They help balance
nature to keep the atmosphere good and clean.
Everything has something to do. For example, trees are here to give oxygen
to the planet. Without trees, we'd die. Really, we would. We'd die without
trees because we'd have no more oxygen, and there would be less water because
there'd be no trees to attract the water and retain the moisture when it's
there. So all things on this planet, including us, are inter-related and
are helping each other to make our life here comfortable and livable.
If we don't know that, then we're killing ourselves. Every time we kill
a tree or kill an animal, we're killing a little part of ourselves. If
we have to cut trees, we should replant more. For example, plant three
more. But even that takes time; the tree has to grow up. So, if you intend
to cut trees, you should plant others beforehand. Because it takes a long
time for a tree to be able to produce good air and absorb the bad air for
us. Bigger, older trees have a greater ability to do this than younger
trees, even though they may appear to be the same size. Just like when
we're older, we have more abilities and more knowledge about things, including
spiritual wisdom. Our growth is similar.
There once was a princess who lived in a palace and had all kinds of pearls,
agates and other gems. Being an only daughter, she was pampered by the
king and queen, and was never in need of anything.
One day, as she was watching the rain from her balcony, the raindrops hit
the surface of the nearby lake, creating myriads of bubbles that glittered
in beautiful colors when illuminated by the sunbeams. Enchanted by this
spectacle, the princess said to the king, "I want a necklace made
of these bubbles!"
"That cannot be! If you want pearls, I can get you bigger ones. All
right?" said the king.
"No! No!" exclaimed the princess.
"If you will settle for diamonds, I can also give you plenty,"
said the king. But the princess refused to be compromised.
You know there's no way you can coax such spoiled children, and being at
a complete loss, the king summoned his officials, but no one could offer
a solution. No one knew how to satisfy the princess's adamant demand for
the bubbles. She then cried loudly and made a big fuss, refusing to eat
or drink. Very soon, she became emaciated and fell ill. Everyone was at
their wits' end. Not even the best doctor in the country could cure her.
As a last resort, the king issued a public decree, stating, "Whoever
can cure the princess will receive half of His Majesty's kingdom."
Then one day, an old man came forward with a solution and the king let
him in to see the princess. When the old man told the princess that he
could realize her wish by making her a bubble necklace, she jumped up in
delight and her illness vanished immediately. Then the old man said, "I
am old and my eyes are failing me. I cannot see which bubble is more beautiful.
Would Your Highness please go down and bring me the beautiful bubbles so
that I can string them into a necklace for you?"
The two of them - the old man and the child thus beguiled - went together
to the lakeside. The princess tried in vain to hold the bubbles in her
hands, while, afraid to laugh out loud (laughter), the palace maids by
their side snickered stealthily. Embarrassed, the princess said to the
king, "Father, I don't want these bubbles anymore. I'm content with
pearls and diamonds. I cannot hold these bubbles." Looking at his
lovely daughter, the king replied, "You're right! They are merely
bubbles." They then returned to the palace, with the princess fully
cured.
By this same theory, we think that life and death exist only because we
don't understand what they are. They're merely illusions, just as a mirage
in the desert is an illusion. Sometimes, when you're driving on the highway,
there may seem to be a pool of water somewhere in front of you. However,
it's not really water, but rather a result of light refraction. Sometimes
you may also see many people, horses or palaces in the desert. Or on the
ocean, you may hear sounds or see palaces or mermaids. You may think that
they're real, but they're actually illusions. People's vision is blurred
by the enormous space.
Sometimes, when the sun shines, vapor rises from the roads and appears
to be water. I was once deceived by this phenomenon when I was little.
I was going to school on foot, and thought I saw water on the road ahead.
I ran forward quickly, but there was no water when I reached that spot.
When I looked ahead, again I saw water, but again the water disappeared
when I ran up to that spot. Later I discovered that it was just a mirage.
Similarly, in this world, we transmigrate life after life, trying to seize
all kinds of things and clinging to everything because we are not awakened; we don't know that all these things are just illusions. However,
one day we'll know. We'll encounter situations that will awaken us. We
only need to let our soul become focused and practice, and it will be awakened.
Table 2:Relief Funds Provided to Needy Households in Formosa from May to
June 2004 (in NT$)
Just do things naturally, with no expectations, nothing! Not just by doing
them but by acting intelligently and unconditionally, casually and naturally.
God Takes Care of Everything - An Illustrated Book of Wisdom <In Korean>
The volume God Takes Care of Everything is a heartfelt gift for both children and adults from Supreme Master Ching
Hai. Having just come from Heaven, young children may absorb the essence
of this lovely comic book even before they can read. A condensation of
Master's love, the text makes good spiritual reading for people of all
ages.
CD-E730 <Spoken in English>
To Communicate through Love
Group meditation at the Florida Center, U.S.A.,
December 25~26, 2001
Summary: Master and disciples engage in an enlightening dialogue on the experience
of communicating with animals, plants and even extraterrestrials, as well
as the best way to communicate with these beings, and address the following
questions. Why might gluttonous people evoke complaints even from plants?
What state of mind and attitude should we assume while eating food? Master
also offers a detailed discussion on the influence of diet on spiritual
cultivation, and discourages attachment to Her physical form in hopes that
people will remember that the Master Power can arise in any place and at
any time without being subject to the rules of the earthly game. The brilliant
contents of this CD are not to be missed.
CD-EC751 <Spoken in Chinese and English>
Non-Regressing Bodhisattvas
Master in a videoconference with resident disciples in Hsihu, Formosa
February 23, 2003
Summary: In this discourse, Master repeatedly emphasizes the importance of humility,
which helps us in many situations and is for spiritual practitioners a
ticket to the higher dimensions. She also discusses the level practitioners
must reach before they are truly safe and will not regress in terms of
spiritual attainment. In addition, Master addresses the fact that a tidy
environment can affect spiritual progress and reminds disciples that immediately
after their demise, they will fully experience various situations according
to their level of spiritual evolution. So She urges us to make good use
of our time to practice diligently. Finally, through this CD you will witness
the impressive spiritual harvest achieved by Quan Yin practitioners, as
Master "proclaims the saints" at this extraordinary congregation,
and anticipates the touching emotions and joyful bliss that the Golden
Age will bring to the world.
691 <Spoken in English, with subtitles in twenty-six languages>
Illusion is a Reflection of Reality
Lecture in Manila, the Philippines,
May 3, 2000
Summary: Master treats the following questions in this talk. Why are all sentient
beings equal before God? Why is it improper for us to randomly judge and
criticize people? What is the meaning of the statement "I die every
day" in the Bible? What is the sole purpose of coming to this world?
What is the meaning of the existence of the physical world, in contrast
to the Truth, goodness and beauty of Heaven? What are true freedom and
liberation while living in the body? Master's explicit and incisive explanations
help us to more clearly realize the subtle relationship between the illusory
world and the real world.
Each time I light my Longevity Lamp, heartwarming beams of radiance illuminate
the surroundings, pervade the universe, dissolve everything in their midst
and permeate my heart. The instant its power is turned on, all impure,
chaotic thoughts vanish from my mind without a trace, having been cleansed
by the Lamp's pure, soft, dulcet light.
Our almighty Master's unique lamp designs thus reflect the infinite love
of the Supreme Mother, deeply touching people's hearts! Even when one is
alone in the company of a Longevity Lamp, its incomparable energy adds
a warm ambiance to the environment. The Longevity Lamps - designed to express
the refined beauty of classical and imperial art work - boast a unique
style that defies description. Take the wooden table lamp Moon Light for example. In this work, Master simply rests the moon on a cloud so
that it keeps us constant company, and its light gently caresses us at
any time we wish. Likewise, with The Mountain and River - grand and solemn in conception - one can feel the pulsating life of
the wilderness in daylight under a few clouds. Further awesome experiences
can be had by appreciating the lamp from different angles. By contrast,
the radiating stars in Enlightenment are an intuitive design taking the
viewer to the nighttime sky. Endearing, natural and rich in innocent fun,
its galaxy-like form evokes boundless imagery.
Akin to the table lamps described above, Master's floor lamps are highly
varied, clearly showing that Her insightful imagination is more lively
and refreshing than those of ordinary designers. For example, in the Nectar Grail, She uses inverted lampshades that generously hold the light from below,
giving the impression of a cup filled to the brim with luminous milk. Likewise
Heavenly Lotus features soft, beautiful curves, yet is a picture of vitality. Ripples
of light flowing from the center of the lamp through undulating petals
fill a room with divine light to create an enchanting fairyland.
A new addition to Master's bamboo lamp collection is God's Hand, featuring five fingers emanating light toward the sky - a reminder of
how Shakyamuni Buddha pointed to the moon in the Buddhist sutras. This
work also serves as Master's reminder to follow the direction of the finger
(the guidance of the Quan Yin Method) so that we will remember our God
Nature and inner radiance, which are as pristine as the moonlight, and
thus follow our Master to return Home to eternal bliss in Heaven.