The true ascetic way is that after we practice spiritually, our mind naturally becomes simple, and we don’t desire anymore. The material things are naturally enough, and we don’t need anymore. And so, we feel satisfied. Because as long as we lack something, our mind naturally doesn’t feel peaceful. Then it will demand, but there will never be enough for us.
If we think that spiritual practice is the noblest thing in this life, then at least, it has to make the practitioner improve in all aspects, physically and mentally, in speech and action, from the spiritual to the material aspects of daily life. If the more one practices spiritually, the lower their status becomes, the worse their material life becomes, and they have to depend on social support and thus put more burden on society, then how can they make others listen to them? How can they prove that their teachings are correct and beneficial to the public? If we can’t take care of ourselves, how can we help other people? If our own life is not splendid nor brilliant, how can we promise a bright future for those who want to follow us to practice our teachings? Don’t you think so?
For example, right now, there are a lot of people starving in Africa, and there are a lot of refugees everywhere in the world. And the world is lacking in many aspects. And now, the spiritual practitioners, for example, follow me, and I am leading them. Now there are many thousands of people following me. If they all renounce the world, become renunciates and go out to beg for alms, then the world will have more suffering, no? The world has to feed the refugees, the Africans, and now has to feed many thousands of my disciples. Do you think it is practical? Is it? (No.) Yeah! So, you know, don’t you? So, I advise that our life is not about suffering and misery; it’s just that we don’t know how to make ourselves happy. That’s all.
A worthy human life must have happiness, satisfaction, and have whatever we wish for. Because we don’t know, we think that praying for those things or for a contented life is a sin, and we can’t practice spiritually. No! It’s not like that. That is a grave misunderstanding. There are some spiritual practitioners who practice ascetically and make others follow their examples. It’s because they don’t understand the higher Truth. The true ascetic way is that after we practice spiritually, our mind naturally becomes simple, and we don’t desire anymore. The material things are naturally enough, and we don’t need anymore. For example, like that. And so, we feel satisfied. Because as long as we lack something, our mind naturally doesn’t feel peaceful. Then it will demand, but there will never be enough for us.
For example, in California, there’s been no rain for the past five years, right? The other day, I went to look at a new piece of land, and it looked so barren. The grass and trees are all dead, and there are no flowers, nothing. And I love flowers, leaves, green colors. And I looked down at the reservoirs, which were the man-made lakes to contain water. They were all empty. They were empty all the way down to the bottom. I saw only a little water left at the bottom. The man was a real estate agent. He was not the owner of the land. He was a real estate agent. He said, “Oh, please make it rain! The trees are all dead! A lot of people are unemployed. Please make it rain.” I laughed and said, “I am not a rain god that commands rain!” But he said, “You can do it! Yes, You can. I am sure You can.”
So, he kept begging me all that morning. I don’t know what anyone told him. I just smiled and said, “Let me go find the rain gods and negotiate with them and see what happens. They probably went to drink nectar from Queen Mother of the West somewhere, then became drunk for two, three days and went to hide somewhere to sleep.” And up there, if they sleep for two, three days, it is equal to five, six Earthly years down here. I jokingly said, “OK, let me see where they hid and slept.” Yeah! The real estate agent believed me. He believed and went home to wait for the rain.
Then after it rained and stopped, he came to thank me profusely, thinking that I truly made it rain. OK, it rained. That’s fine. At that time, after making a round trip, I returned to San Jose, to the place where I met the real estate agent who sold me the land. Seeing me, he was so happy, he said, “Ah! Thank you, Master, a thousand times. It was raining enough, raining so much, so much! It rained for one week but it’s worth many months!” There has not been such heavy rain for ten years. The rain filled up all the lakes. He drove me to see all the filled lakes.
I said, “Congratulations to you. Maybe the rain gods woke up and went to work. They were not being responsible before and didn’t do their duties. Now it has rained!” Then he said, “Please make more rain!” I replied, “You got enough water to use already, why do you want more? All that water... My God! That’s a lot already. And you must remember that not only these lakes are full, but it rained in all of California and spread to the desert areas, such as Arizona. Do you know how much water it was? It was brought from all four seas to here, and the wind had to be very strong to bring in such a large amount of water in three, four days. So, why do you ask for more rain? That amount of rain is more than enough for you to use for the whole year!” He said, “More rain, please! It was such a long time since we had rain, now any amount of rain is never enough.”
Do you understand? In California, if it normally rains every day, or every year, it is also… it is called “timely rains and favorable weather,” then he would not crave for rain to such a degree. All the lakes were filled and he still wanted to have more rain. He said, “The more the better! The more the better!” He kept chanting that phrase, like an incantation. He walked next to me, but didn’t ask how I was, or whether the lecture went successfully or not. Instead, he kept reciting “More rain. The more the better.”
Why? Because he had longed so much for the rain. Five, six years without a drop of rain, the grass and the trees were all dead. Now you see those hills becoming green and beautiful? Because it was not enough, so people were craving the rain. But in areas that have a lot of rain, people wouldn’t tag along to beg for more rain like that, and they wouldn’t believe that anyone could make rain or wind.
So, it is similar like that. In our life, why do we have greed, anger, and delusion? Because we don’t have enough, we have desires. Because we came from a brilliant and splendid realm to this physical realm, which lacks so much, we demand this and that. It’s not that the people are greedy, angry, and hateful. We are greedy, but don’t have enough, so we become angry and upset. When we get upset, our mind is clouded, so we become deluded. Do you see?
So, that ignorance is not understanding the root of the work and the insight of our mind, and that is the only sin! From that, it creates all the greed, anger, delusion, hatred, competition, war or invading other people’s land… All due to our ignorance. So now, no need to go to war, no need to fight the communists, no need to argue, compete, or argue about anything. Everyone just practices the Quan Yin Method, then the world is peaceful immediately.
But I have to be patient. Because even if what I said is clear, sentient beings have been ignorant for such a long time. What I said is very clear. I understand it very thoroughly, but they don’t. That’s the problem! But having some people practice spiritually and that’s better than none. It is like having one lit lamp is better than no lamp at all. So, if you want to be beneficial to the citizens and the country, to be filial to your parents, to show that you are patriotic and compassionate, then I invite you to rediscover your wisdom. That is all there is to it! The Quan Yin Method helps us re-discover our clarity, our latent abilities, which are unlimited.
The other day, one of my disciples asked me, “Master, when did You learn to paint that You can paint so good? Did You study with anyone?” I said, “No. I have never read even one book about painting.” After I started painting, my disciples bought me a book about painting. But I dared not read a lot, because I was afraid that it would influence me. I wanted to paint from my own inspiration, not being influenced by van Gogh or by any so-called famous painters. I didn’t like that. I know it intuitively; I don’t need to study. They bought many books, but I only opened a few pages, and I dared not read any further. I didn’t dare to read the instructions in those books. Because sometimes their instructions are not compatible with my own ideas. Painting has to be natural, to come from our feelings, not from anyone who can teach us. Sometimes one studies painting for four, five years, but still can’t paint any worthy pictures.
Then, I told that person I didn’t study nor did I read any books about painting. We have learned many professions life after life. Now we just take it out to use whatever we need. No need to learn again. That’s unwise! Understand? There is nothing you can’t do. It is just that you don’t know where you can get it out to use it. So now, if you want to use your incredible innate ability, there is only one way, that is to practice the Quan Yin Method. I have experienced it and tried it. I have used my own body, my time, my youth, my mind, my own money and time to test it, to play this game. And I won! So, I want to share that joy with you. That’s all.
Please don’t think that I “fish” for disciples. Why would I need to do that? I don’t. We are the inhabitants in this world, we are the citizens in this world and in this universe. If we discover anything, like a scientist discovering or inventing some new instrument, then we should let everyone else enjoy it with us. That’s all!
Now, if you want your life to be more joyful, happy, prosperous, then you have to practice spiritually. You have to find your own wisdom and your power. Because no Buddha or God can save you. If They could save you, They would have done it a long time ago! Why? Why can God and the Buddha not save us? Because a human is the noblest being in the universe. If the sentient beings don’t want God to come, God wouldn’t dare to come. If the sentient beings don’t want to pray to the Buddha, then He can’t save them. You are very noble and great. God and the Buddha admit defeat. If you don’t allow it, then no Buddha can save you at all, do you see? So please, don’t say that I use spells to entice you. How can I use a spell? If I could, then I would do it for the whole world. Why would I use it only on those refugees?
