(Yes. Once, some followers of Jehovah’s Witnesses came to my house. They love to share scriptures. One time I let them in – they seemed sincere.) I understand. (Also, I thought maybe I could share Your teachings. But after a bit, the conversation just didn’t go anywhere. I felt like I wasted my time.) Yeah, better not talk, or you may get into an argument. (Yes.) We’re not trying to argue, but they’ll start arguing. (Yes.) If it doesn’t work, just leave it. (Yes.) No need to offend people. Their understanding and knowledge are different from ours. (Even my wife is like that, Master. She also goes to the temple, but she’s bound by literal interpretations of the scriptures. Out of love, I wanted to share Your path with her. Even though I know You’ll bless her no matter what, I still wish she could join this path. How great that would be.) That would be very good. (I’ve tried many times but every time I bring it up, it just led to arguments.) Then you’d better stop talking about it. (So now I just wait for the right time.)
But she’s your dharma guard. (Yes.) The more difficult she is with you, the more diligent you will practice and the more you will improve. (Yes.) The more she tries to block you, the more enlightened you’ll become because you’ll want to go within more. (Yes.) If the outside circumstances are too favorable, sometimes we don’t get the opportunity to go within. When the outside world disappoints you, the sadder you are and the more you can’t move forward, you will turn more inward. That’s why you’ve understood so much and have become enlightened so deeply. Our wisdom will come naturally. If you sit there and try to figure out what Your levels of (inner Heavenly) Light and Sound are, you may misjudge. Sometimes your hearing isn’t that great – deaf ears. You’ve been deaf for ages, so can’t even tell what you’re hearing. From the way you speak, I can tell you’re very enlightened. (Thanks to Your explanations, Master, today I understand that all the hardships in life are actually blessings.) Blessings – it’s blessings, you don’t know. (Yes.) The tougher she is, the more you wish to meditate. If you had a wife that pampered you, you’d probably be even more relaxed in your spiritual practice. (Yes.) It’s true. That’s usually how it goes. So it’s OK. Go home and thank her. Just let her be – she’s doing her part, right? (Yes.) She’s sacrificing so that you can reach enlightenment first.
(When people aren’t ready, the more we push them, the more they resist. As Master said yesterday, if we put You above all, people push back harder.) Exactly. Better to leave it alone. (Yes.) Let it be. Live happily together – no need to force anything. Everyone does their own part. (Yes.) Just love her unconditionally. That’s what she likes, so let her be – it’s fine. As long as she’s happy. (Yes.) When you marry someone, if they’re happy, you’re happy too, right? For example, you’d let your dog(-person) eat whatever he wants; as long as he’s happy, you are happy. If he wants to bark, let him bark. You can’t expect him to speak English. (Yes, Master.) The dog(-person) doesn’t force you to speak English, why should you force him to speak English? He doesn’t force you to bark with him. Is there any dog(-person) that says, “You have to bark with me to show your love”? No need. (Yes.) He goes his way; you go yours. (Yes.) That’s great.
(Sometimes I feel that I really need to have determination in order to do it.) Keep practicing forgiveness – she’s training you to do that. (Yes.) She’s helping you to become more resilient. Opposing forces will strengthen us. Right? (Yes.) In this universe, everything has yin and yang. (Yes.) The tougher the circumstances, the more determined one is in their spiritual practice. That’s why initiates in Âu Lạc (Vietnam) have so many [spiritual] experiences. But the ones in the US, they’re “lazy,” oh, very relaxed. Their practice isn’t half as good compared to the Aulacese (Vietnamese) over there. Even those in Taiwan (Formosa) don’t practice as diligently as those in mainland China. In mainland China, many never see me, but they talk to me every day in their hearts, in their homes. Meanwhile, the ones in Taiwan (Formosa) have to fly here to see me. Costs money. But it’s OK. (Yes.) If we don’t have spiritual power, we use money, right? You lose one, you gain another. Some people use sincerity and devotion to see Master, while others use money to buy a plane ticket. They fly here to visit. So it’s all about the same. Inner Master, outer Master – same thing.
(Master, I have a question.) Yes. (Usually my questions would get answered, but this question came up just yesterday, when You said that in order to make progress in spiritual practice, besides being diligent, we should also pray for blessings from the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas.) Yes. (But my mind always thought that if we sincerely practice, the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas will automatically bless us. So I don’t know the benefits of prayer. So I haven’t sincerely prayed. I might be lacking that, Master.) No, no. (Please explain.) No, it’s not that you lack anything. Everyone’s spiritual structure is different. What you said is also valid. I’m sorry. Can I have a drink first? Earlier they cooked something and put in too much onion and fat, so I ate it and it’s still stuck right here. What you said is also true and fine. So no need to pray. Heaven and Buddhas already know. (Yes.) But some people have to pray. (If I understand its benefit, I’ll do it.) The benefit is for you. (Yes.) And you don’t want to pray, because you believe Heaven knows, that’s also correct. (Yes.) But that guy can’t afford not to pray. (Yes.) But if you pray, it doesn’t work.
(Maybe because I lack sincerity? Because if I don’t believe, I can’t pray sincerely, right Master?) No, it’s not like that. Your spiritual level is different. (Yes.) Your mental structure is different. (Yes.) But sometimes, when you feel the need to pray, then you pray. (Yes.) It’s not like everyone has to pray all the time – the Saints would get a headache! Some people must pray. (Yes.) Praying makes them feel sincere. Some cry while praying; at that time, they can’t help but pray. (Yes.) They must pray. As for other people, they don’t see the need for it. But you don’t see that necessity. (Yes.) However, sometimes in urgent situations, if at some point you suddenly feel it is necessary, then just do it, just pray. (Yes.) Sometimes we feel like praying, but other times we don’t. We trust that Heaven and the Buddhas understand our hearts, so we don’t need to pray and that, too, is a form of prayer. (Yes.) “Yeah, You know what I want.” It’s the same.
(The second thing, Master, is that I’m afraid that, for example, if I know too much theoretical knowledge, I might lose my sensitivity to love and have compassion. For example, if I think everything is an illusion, then when I see other people’s suffering, I might not feel anything anymore.) Oh, no, no, no. (That’s what I’m afraid of.) That’s not theoretical at all. When you have that realization, it’s not because you read it from books but because you’re enlightened. But even with that realization, your compassion will not vanish. Sometimes, it’s because we don’t witness the suffering, but if we see it with our own eyes, we will also have compassion, we still feel moved. Even though we know everything is an illusion. As I’ve said many times, I know everything is an illusion, but when I see a dog(-person) suffering, I still can’t bear it. (Yes.) I still feel pain. Don’t think I don’t. There was a black dog(-person), there was a guy who kept pulling his collar, jerking it around. That night I lay there in pain, I almost couldn’t bear it. I told him not to pull, but he kept doing it. And then that night, the dog(-person) came to complain. He complained to me. He said, “Look, it hurts here, see?” Then he showed me where it hurts. It was like something strapped around my neck, and then every two to three minutes it jerked once – jerked a few times like that; it hurt like choking. (Yes.) But there wasn’t any mark at all.
(Thank You, Master, for giving me a few minutes to speak, to have this chance to speak directly to You. I hope Master won’t feel disappointed for all the things You do [for us]. There are so many people who have benefited greatly from Master’s work. I hope and pray that everything Master wishes for will be arranged smoothly so You can continue to spread the Teachings.) OK, thank you! You’ve made a lot of progress, I can tell just from listening to you, I know you’re enlightened. That’s how it is. There’s a big difference between practicing and not practicing. (Yes.) Now that you’re practicing, when you go outside and hear people talk, you get tired right away. It’s better to just stay quiet, you don’t even know where to begin arguing anymore. Before you practiced, if someone said something wrong, you’d jump right in to argue. Now you don’t want to argue anymore, it’s too exhausting, don’t even know where to begin to argue. They’re all wrong. Just forget it then. But when someone who truly practices speaks, you can tell right away they’ve practiced. Anyone who practices and has results, you can hear it in the way they talk. They’ve practiced, they’ve realized something.
I think you could’ve answered that lady’s question earlier. You know a lot of sutras and teachings. Sister, what’s your name again? You wanted to ask about scriptures? This guy here knows a ton. Oh, my goodness! If it weren’t for the disciples, I wouldn’t even know how to respond. Take your time to ask questions, sister. Practice four more years, then come back and ask. I thought she was going to ask about her spiritual practice – instead she asked about scriptures. OK, but when you go home, don’t go telling people at the temple that Master said this stuff, OK? Because they don’t understand. They’ll think I’m slandering the scriptures and cause trouble for me. Really, it’s hard. You all understand immediately when I speak. But if I say something like that to [Buddhist] monks, they’ll say, “Oh, She’s slandering the scriptures, She’s a heretic.” It’s not a bad thing if someone can step “outside the path.” No one can step outside of the Truth, not possible. Eighty-four thousand Dharma methods, recited all day long, yet none of them work at all, only going to the temple and bowing to the Buddha actually works.
Well, talking to the Aulacese (Vietnamese) is fun, huh? Wow, Aulacese (Vietnamese) people really practice well too? Not bad at all. The lady over there, honey. Over there. Yes. Wait a minute, auntie, we have some magical tool for you to use. (Thank You, Master. Dear Master, I am very blessed. I’ve been initiated by You for nine years now, and this year I finally had the chance to come here. I came here just to express my gratitude to You. I feel so lucky. Since the day I received initiation from You, I’ve felt so at peace inside. I told my children the same back home. I have two daughters, one son, a daughter-in-law, and a son-in-law – they’ve all been initiated too. They ask me to thank You for them.) OK. (I also would like to express my gratitude to Master. You’ve supported my family so much. Anything I’ve wished for, I’ve received. That day I said I wanted to come here as a tourist, but I was worried I wouldn’t be approved. So I asked Master for help, and after that, my visa got approved. Right after that, a fellow practitioner came to pick me up. I’ve been here for six months now. I thank You, Master. My daughter-in-law also wants to thank You. She tried to get initiated a few times and couldn’t. Then I prayed to You, and she finally succeeded just last month. My youngest daughter-in-law. So I want to thank You on her behalf as well.) OK. (Yes. I don’t know what else to say, that’s all I wanted to express.) Alright then.
(Please bless me a lot, Master.) Alright then. (I just hope Master will bless me so that during my meditation sessions, I can become more enlightened. Ever since I got initiation from You, every night I meditate and I feel very clear-minded. I keep seeing You.) Wow. (You take me around to play all the time. But I go to those realms, I don’t even know if they’re real, Master. I wanted to ask You.) You had fun and you’re still asking? (One time You led me to this house, may I ask about it?) OK. (You went first and I followed behind. We reached this really big house. I saw that it was full of marble chairs. And I thought, “Is this real?” Then after walking around with You, we got to the exit door. But I missed it too much, so I went back to take another look. It was so bright I didn’t want to leave, Master. That house with all the marble chairs. I thought, “Oh my God, Âu Lạc [Viet Nam] is so poor, how come this place is so rich?” There was so much Light. Wherever I walked, I saw Light shining on me. So I want to thank You, Master.)
You don’t need to thank me. It’s because you practice well. (Thank You, Master. Please bless my family so each member can meditate and reach a higher level, OK, Master? And me too. I want to stay here just to meditate.) Meditating and getting to travel all over the place, huh? (That’s thanks to Master guiding me.) It’s because you practice well, that’s good. (Thank You, Master.) It’s great to be able to practice in a difficult environment. It’s OK, you can practice anywhere. (Yes.) It’s OK. One day they’ll understand. (Yes. I still thank You, Master.) Sentient beings are ignorant, you know. (Yes.) One person says something bad and it poisons ten others. (That’s right, yes.) That’s normal, it’s OK.
Photo Caption: Among Nature, the Heart Feels More Well and Less Stress. In the Higher Realm, There Is Only Joy.
