Lighthouse in the Darkness

 

The Lost Sheep Returned



Fellow practitioners, charged with Master's love, visit the Great Awakening Association.

[Tainan] The Great Awakening Association, an association devoted to the well-being of prisoners, offers both moral counseling to prisoners and substantive assistance to parolees. They accept them with a magnanimous heart and help them to begin a new life.

The association was founded by a one-time gangster chief, Mr. Hsu Cheng-hsiung, who became a devout Buddhist and devoted his life to living the Buddhist teachings after his release from jail. He rejected lucrative temptations to again conduct illicit activities. Instead, he worked with his wife, cleaning public lavatories, and selling vegetarian soups and cold drinks to earn a humble living. Life was tough, but Mr. Hsu chose to brave through the hard times over breaking the law. Today, he returns to the prisons, citing himself as an example and advising those inmates to turn back from the wrong path.
The Great Awakening Association chairman (left) receives a NT$50,000 contribution to help new-life seekers stand on their own feet.

A fellow initiate, who has been working in the prison for over a decade noted, "I have known Mr. Hsu for more than ten years. He sells cold drinks for 5-10 NT per cup, and uses the meager earnings to help the families of the inmates, so that they can serve their prison terms with peace of mind. He also advises these families to take good care of their children, so that they won't suffer another family tragedy."

Many prison wardens have witnessed the one-hundred-percent change in Mr. Hsu, as well as his perseverance in conducting counseling work in prisons. His positive influence on the inmates is indisputable. Therefore, members of the Great Awakening Association are given easy access to the prisons. The warden of the prison where Mr. Hsu served his sentence proudly named him an honorary alumnus of his prison, and his association is always welcomed there.

Ten years ago, Mr. Hsu attended one of Master's lectures and immediately switched to a vegetarian diet. After a number of spiritual experiences, he went to venerate Master at Hsihu Center. Master, in Her deep concern for inmates, arranged for fellow practitioners to visit the prisons around Formosa. For many years, with assistance from the Great Awakening Association, fellow practitioners have shared Master's divine love and teachings with prison inmates. Many inmates now practice the Convenient Method. Some who have received counseling from the Great Awakening Association have been initiated by Master, and are pursuing spiritual practice. Mr. Hsu is also practicing the Convenient Method and communicates with the inner Master.

Normally, society does not readily accept those who have served time behind bars. The difficulty in finding a livelihood often pushes these unfortunate people back onto the wrong path. To solve this problem, the Great Awakening Association operates vegetarian restaurants, manual car wash garages and stores that sell hand phones and communications systems et cetera, to provide job opportunities for those ready to start anew. The employees are required to observe a vegetarian diet, keep the five precepts, and study the Buddhist scriptures. Each day, Mr. Hsu personally prepares vegetarian meals for these people, but despite his noble ideal, he is often hindered by the shortage of funds. Touched by the benevolent intent of the Great Awakening Association, the Supreme Master Ching Hai International Association in Tainan contributed NT$50,000 to the association, hoping to do its part to help these remorseful souls as well as praying that these lost ones find their way to a bright future!