Alright then, let’s take turns (to go to a retreat), draw lots. (Yes.) Whoever attains Buddhahood first will go first. (Yes.) When it comes to drawing lots, everyone prays that the Master inside will help them. (Yes.) Everyone is praying; who should I help? Alright then. Take it slowly and be patient, everything will work out in time. (Yes.) Like in China, only now they are able to meet Master. In the past, they couldn’t meet at all. (Yes.) They could only see me after coming here. (Yes.) Otherwise, they have to go to Hong Kong to see me, but applying for a permit is difficult. (Yes.) It’s alright. That’s just how this world is. Who asked you to be born here? Just endure it, endure it. Water, too. If you’re born into the wrong “water,” then of course you get wet. Water is wet. That’s all there is to say.
It’s because we wanted it that way. We made vows to come down to practice in challenging places so that it looks tough and brave. “Oh, places that are too easy aren’t worth practicing cultivation in.” “I only learn well when I cultivate in challenging places.” And now that we’ve come down here, we cry and complain, “It’s too hard! Let’s change places.” But it can’t be changed now. You can change later, next time you come down you will want to change again. But don’t come down again. It’s too much trouble for me. If you leave, then go for good, alright? (Yes.) Remember that, OK? (Yes.) If I go back up there this time, I’ll rest for a very long while. Don’t make a mess and force me to come back down again. I’m tired already. I’m old now. (Yes.) Thousands of years old. My “children” are already 52 years old. Some are even a few hundred years old. Making me go down (reincarnate) repeatedly is exhausting. Let me go up to (to Heaven) play for a few days. Hanging up there for just a few days means thousands of years down here. (Yes.) Let me go up there and relax for a few days. We’ll think about it later, alright? (Yes.) Coming down here and working all the time is just too exhausting.
Going to Cambodia to clear and reclaim wasteland. In Âu Lạc (Vietnam), this kind of thing would be called a “new economic approach,” you know? Yeah, that’s how it is. Over there, they complain a lot, while over here, we volunteer to walk right into it ourselves. To get to this place isn’t easy at all. Landmines, spike traps… all over the place. (Yes.) The war only just ended. Just the other day, they dug up two or three landmines again. Going to a new economic zone is boring. There’s nothing to do. Once in a while, some of those guys, because they missed our practitioners so much, would come out here and “kidnap” a few people into the forest for fun. But there was nothing to play, so our practitioners just sat there gloomy all day long. Too boring, they released our practitioners. There’s really nothing you can do with these Quan Yin people at all. Why kidnap them at all? It’s just extra trouble having to feed them for several days. Food in the forest is already scarce, and now they still have to feed these troublesome fellows. What kind of practice is that? They just sit cross-legged all day long. They don’t know how to talk. They don’t know how to do any work at all. Why bother dragging them in? So they released all.
Coming to this new economic zone is actually quite lively. There’s something happening every day. (Yes.) If it’s not kidnapping, then it’s digging up landmines just to pass the time. There are those fellows who come here voluntarily to do labor – to go to the new economic zone. (Yes.) Every single day, their hearts are pounding non-stop. Coming to this new economic zone, no one ever dares to forget me. Chanting my name every single day. All the Buddhas and Heavens get called on all the time. They’re all so scared. I already said, whoever is afraid shouldn’t come here. I already said, it’s not something easy to handle when you come here. Their country has just stabilized. The war just ended. This country has the most landmines in the world, you know? (Yes.) So don’t be tempted. Only those who aren’t afraid, those who are tough and resilient, would dare to come here. I’ve said it already. I didn’t trick anyone.
I go wherever I want to go. If something comes up, then I’ll go back when I need to. I’m not here day in and day out so that you would think, “There She goes again, coming to coax us.” No one is luring anyone at all. I already said, there are a lot of landmines here. You have to take care of yourself. If you don’t take care of yourself, the landmines will take care of you. The landmines here are very dangerous. You must be careful. God and Buddhas protect the practitioners. (Yes.) Even without protection, it’s the same anyway – sooner or later, it all turns out the same. Whether you go (die) early or go late, you will go anyway. Right? (Yes.) Lingering for a few more days or a few more years makes no difference. It’s just more work, that’s all. So anyone who has proper conditions and wants to come here to start a new economic life can come, but don’t blame me. (Yes.)
I came here to help their country, didn’t come here for fun. So, it’s not about looking for a nice place, like big houses and fancy cars just to enjoy yourself, right? (Yes.) We only go where needed. We help with whatever we can, as much as we can. People suffer worse than us, so we help them. Everyone is a Buddha, after all. (Yes.) Helping the poor Buddhas in Cambodia. But it’s not so easy. People misunderstand all sorts of things. At the beginning, there were tons of misunderstandings and the press was all over it, criticizing nonstop. Only recently has it eased up. Even after helping, it’s still full of hardships. Like you pleading with me for Blessings, (Yes) to transmit the (inner Heavenly) Light and Sound Method, and then your family members criticize me.
The Aulacese (Vietnamese) press insulted me, and said I took your money. Oh, my God! Where does the money come from to eat so much? Just me, how much could I possibly eat? Even if I ate for thousands of years, 16, 18, 19, 20 meals a day, how much could I really eat, right? (Yes.) With a body this small, I can’t eat much. Eating won’t make me any bigger, so why eat so much? What’s the point of money? People eat food, not money. What nonsense. It’s also because you came begging to learn this or that, running back and forth to see me, crowding around me, and your families got the wrong idea. Then the press misunderstood, and the governments on both sides misunderstood. They misunderstood; the comrades misunderstood me. Everywhere I went, things were difficult.
Well, that’s it then, it’s all your “fault.” What for spiritual practice? Didn’t want to stay up there (in Heaven), came down here to practice, what for? What I mean is, we go wherever we are needed. (Yes.) If I call myself a Master, people will insult me. Poor us! It’s because this country needs it. There’s so much suffering and death, they need our help. (Yes.) They welcome us. They request, and also (Welcome.) they invite, and they treat us nicely too. (Yes.) There are many countries we want to help, but they berate us. (Yes.) So, help the countries that can be helped, and forget those that we can’t. (Yes.) No one is forced; all are Buddhas. Let those who want to be a frivolous Buddha do as they please.
It’s because I feel pity for this country. (Yes.) Millions have died. (Yes.) Fortunately, the war is over; otherwise, genocide would have happened. Since we came here, we help them, and you were coming over anyway since we’re here. (Yes.) Everyone comes, so by the way, we built that straw house. (Yes.) The mansion becomes a straw house, see that? So that you all can sit there and meditate in warmth. (Yes.) In a warm climate country, a straw house can keep you cool. (Yes.) This one is a wooden house, with a bit of cement here to make it a little sturdy; otherwise, the wood would be soft. Sometimes, walking on one side makes the whole house shake. As for the hospitals and schools, they are built for the locals; for the native people, we use cement to make them sturdy. Our house is made of wood, while the building for the Buddhas to sit in is a thatched house. That’s a first-class building. That place is filled with radiant light. (Yes, it’s cool to sit in the thatched house.) The lotus flowers bloom continuously. (Yes.) Three, four, five hundred Buddhas are born daily.
That thatched house there is the best. Right? (Yes.) But then, covering all four sides with plastic, it looks just like a refugee camp in Hong Kong. And yet those refugees asked me to rescue them. Even if they were rescued, they would come here and still live in a thatched house just the same. If they couldn’t be rescued, then so be it – it was Heaven’s Will. Because rescuing them and bringing them here to stay in a thatched house again, they will be disappointed. They would say, “Oh, my God! I thought She rescued us and would let us live in some White House or something. Turns out Her place is also just a thatched house. Forget it, I’d rather stay in the camp in the Philippines. At least the leaves there are thicker than here. When it rains, it doesn’t leak. But living in that Buddha’s house here, when it rains, it’s like “floods everywhere.”
You all remember coming here before for the seven-day meditation retreat. (Yes.) We were sitting there, and suddenly – as if by miraculous power – a “river” appeared right in front of us. And behind us, there was a “lake”. On the left and right, there were “stream” banks, and also “waterfalls.” We just waded and splashed around together. Do you all remember? (Yes, we remember.) There are people who went last time. (Yes.) So, last time I said, next time you come here, you must bring boats. It’s not about crossing the ocean, but crossing “rivers” and “lakes.” Whenever it rains a lot here, (Yes.) the Buddha’s thatched pavilion becomes the so-called Eightfold Pool of Meritorious Virtues, you know? (The Eight-Treasure Lake.) The Eight-Treasure Lake. Yes, right, right. Or maybe the Milky Way River, something like that. Wow!
And that platform where the Buddha sits, She is the main Buddha there. The Lady who is the key figure, the Buddha. When the presiding Lady Buddha sits there, the streams babble and the waterfalls come crashing down. Then the children Buddhas, old Buddhas, young Buddhas, run all over. At that point, any meditation practice is set aside completely. At that time, whether walking, standing, sitting, or lying down, it’s all meditation. Walking, standing, running, jumping, it’s all meditation. Next time, everyone who comes here must bring a large plastic bag for their clothes. Otherwise, sometimes water collects in the suitcase, right? (Yes.) And when putting the clothes in, the opening must face upward. Then, maybe, our clothes will still have their life. If the opening is tilted or slightly open, it’s basically inviting the water to seep in, so don’t complain when your clothes end up soaked.
Here, the weather is usually very warm, but when the Heavens decide to bestow blessings, it’s like a whole waterfall pouring down from the sky. So you must remember this well. (Yes.) Because it hasn’t rained here for a long time, there’s a drought, so the people are praying for rain a lot. And we also followed along and asked for it too, asking on their behalf. (Yes.) And those little Buddhas who just started practicing the Quan Yin Method are very enthusiastic. (Yes.) They demanded 24 hours, every day. So Hes poured down for 24 hours straight. Poured too much, then, “Stop, stop, enough, enough.” But whenever Heaven wants to issue a decree to the Gods of rain, wind, and thunder, it’s only signed once. This time, the Cambodians demanded it strongly. Then some little Buddhas – young, old, small, from the Quan Yin family, also came out to request, and Hes said, “Alright, this time, make the decree last longer. Sign it for a few months.” Once it’s signed, it’s signed, “God does not speak lightly.” Heaven can’t just sign off and then take it back; that’s not possible. So Hes said, “Never mind, let it keep raining.” So last time, we held a seven-day meditation retreat. (Yes.) Wow, oh my! Water everywhere. Who said they lost their water I see too much water.
Photo Caption: “Home Is Safe in Heaven”
