We Can Discover the Whole Universe

Spoken by Supreme Master Ching Hai
Tainan, Formosa July 7, 1988 (Originally in Chinese)

Many people in our world have invented lots of wonderful tools, such as computers, airplanes, and spacecraft that can take us to the Moon and Mars. Although they owe it all to their inner power, they have used only a very small portion of it. Yet, before they create these things, they have to consider very carefully and reach inside for this almighty power. If we really know this power well, we will discover many, many things, not just a few machines, spacecraft, or computers. We will be able to explore and discover the whole universe. We will know every planet, moon, and star. We will understand the languages of the ants and birds. We will be able to read the state of mind of any sentient being. We can save them only when we know their state of mind. Otherwise, we will not be able to tell what the ants or birds need, much less read a human's mind. However, this wisdom is beyond description. I can only say: Knowing but not knowing is genuine knowing.

 Let me explain this briefly. Under most circumstances, most of us "know" something, that is, our minds do. Suppose I put two flowers together with another two flowers. That makes four flowers. I know this very clearly because my mind does the addition based on my knowledge. However, there are things that are beyond the realm of knowledge and the imagination of the mind. But we still know everything; we can do and invent anything. We can go anywhere without having to travel by plane or spacecraft.

 The best spacecraft invented by our scientists today can fly only as far as the Moon or Mars. And when it lands at its destination, there is little it can do. The scientists cannot become acquainted or communicate with the living beings there because these beings are invisible. They realize that the temperatures are very high on Mars. On the Moon, there is not much they can do but collect rocks for research or as souvenirs. They devote so much money and effort just to bringing back some rocks for research! These rocks have little to offer besides, since Moon rocks are more or less the same as those that we have here. The dust on the Moon and on Earth is not much different, either.

 By practicing the Quan Yin Method, we can travel to Mars without a spacecraft, if we really want to. We can do many things there, and we do not run about on the heated surface of Mars and then rush back to Earth, because we have nothing to do there. Once we open our wisdom eye, the gate to wisdom, we know everything and can do anything. But our mind doesn't have to know about these things; it is not supposed to know about them. Sometimes, it may be aware of them but it has no idea why things happen the way they do. It can only enjoy the experience without knowing why. It cannot do calculations like adding two and two to make four. It just cannot explain them. Neither can I, but I do know that these things exist. Our fellow practitioners know it, too. It's not just one or two of them, but hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands, and billions who know it.

 The Earth's Atmosphere Will Improve
 If More People Practice the Quan Yin Method

 Today, there are many people practicing the Quan Yin Method. This is the best news there is. Why is this so? Because the more people practice the Quan Yin Method, the better the Earth's atmosphere will become. Otherwise, we may not survive. The atmosphere now is very terrible. Many strong nations are taking part in a nuclear power race. The push of a button by one person could mean the complete disintegration of the Earth. We won't have to wait until there is a war. Let's say that someone decides one day that he doesn't want to live anymore and he wants to take us all to his paradise. If he has control over that button, then we are in grave trouble. The people controlling those buttons are ordinary human beings; they are not Saints or God. As such, sometimes they feel good physically and at other times not so good. They might have taken alcohol or drugs or quarreled with their spouse. Such unhappy situations can affect their decisions, which are made by the mind. This is extremely dangerous for us, and we have no other means but this almighty power within to protect our lives.

 If we know where this almighty power is, of course we will be able to get it. Just like when we know where a gold mine is, we can dig out the gold and use it. If we know where our bank is, how much money we have in our bank account, and how to withdraw the money, then we can get money from the bank every day. It's very simple. The Quan Yin Method is not exactly a method. It shows us how to discover our almighty power. We have always had it, but we cannot use it because we don't recognize it. At the time of initiation, I will tell you how to use your almighty power; it is very simple. Just now I was holding this tissue paper, but because I was busy looking at people, I was not aware of it. However, if someone tells me: "Hey! There it is!" I just look at it and discover it! It is very simple.

 This almighty power has always been with us. We don't have to buy it or get it from someone. No one controls our almighty power, and no one can hide it. It has been in the open all the while, ready to serve us and to let us use it anytime. It is a great pity if we don't use it. It is just that our attention is constantly distracted by the outside. We look outwardly, worship the saints outside, and seek external powers. We worship deities and ghosts, mountains and rivers, and saints' relics, which are bones in another form. Do we want to become bony saints? That was why Sakyamuni Buddha said: You can never reach the state of God Realization (neither going nor coming; omnipresence) by seeking It through worldly languages or physical appearances which are but perceptions of outer sound and vision, unlike the internal sound, which is intangible, formless, and omnipresent. Only such is the real God Realization, which means that we don't have to lift a finger and it is already there! We don't have to look for it and yet it is there. Such is the state of God Realization.

 It is very easy for us to find this state, but we must know where it is. Just take a look and you will know. Just like when someone reminds me that I have this tissue paper in my hand, I only have to take a look at it and then I know, because it has always been there! Therefore, Jesus Christ said, "The Heavenly Kingdom is within you. You are the great temple, the grand church of God, and God dwells within you." Such is the meaning of His words. That was how He managed to find God so easily and be Hiers son. His disciples also had no problem finding the power of the Holy Spirit. Sakyamuni said, "God is within your heart." Precisely because It was in His heart could He find it so easily. Otherwise, if It were not there, He could not have found it in six years, sixty years, six hundred years, sixty thousand years, six billion, or six trillion years.

 The World Is Pure When Our Minds Are Pure

 When we say that God is within our heart, we do not mean the physical heart. We mean that it is within us. Since this concept cannot be expressed in words, for the time being, I will say that it is within us. I use the term "within" to differentiate it from "without", or the outside. The outside refers to such situations as worshipping wooden Buddha statues. I am sorry, but those are really just wooden statues! What else could they be? Stone Buddha statues are more or less the same. We may make pilgrimages to the mountains or rivers. If God is in the mountains, then Hes has discrimination, I If Hes lives only in a temple, then Hes has discrimination. Or if God dwells only in a church, then Hes too has discrimination. But really, Hes is omnipresent. Instead of dwelling only in our heart, Hes is in the heart of everyone, every flower, tree, rock, and grain of sand, and in every strand of our hair. Within everything, there is God, the God Nature, and the Truth. We shouldn't have to look for the Truth anywhere else; we should seek It here. We are transforming this world into Heaven. That was why Sakyamuni Buddha promised us clearly: "The world is pure when our minds are pure." [Applause]

 Just moments ago, we heard that our fellow practitioners have wonderful experiences regardless of where they are. However, some of them have more experiences and some have fewer. It is because some are more diligent, and some are not; some have stronger powers of concentration, and some don't, but they still have a little bit of it. It is because this God Nature has always been here waiting for us; we already have it within ourselves. It's just like the tissue paper that has been there all the time, waiting for me to see it, and then I become aware of it. It's very simple. Enlightenment is as simple as that.

 What is enlightenment? The moment we realize our almighty power, we get a glimpse of the glorious dimension of this power, but that is just a part of it. We can never finish discovering the universe, and we will continue to learn even after we have become enlightened Masters. It would be too boring if we stopped learning after we became enlightened Masters! In the outside world, for example, after we get our Ph.D. degree or complete our teachers' training, we still have to go on learning. We cannot even learn all the things in this world, let alone all that is in the universe! I cannot tell you that there is a highest level waiting for you; there isn't.

 By practicing the Quan Yin Method, we can go beyond the three realms, and once we do, that's when the learning process begins. We do not practice the Quan Yin Method to transcend the three realms and then stop there immediately. This is not the case. It is beyond the three realms where we begin to learn the Truth. Otherwise, why did Sakyamuni Buddha meditate every day? He went into samadhi during meditation and when He came out of samadhi, He would say a few words.

 In some realms, there is no birth, death, deterioration, or destruction, but on our Earth, we have all of these phenomena. There are many realms where there is no birth, no destruction, no contamination, and no purity. They exist forever. Only after we have reached these dimensions can we attain immortality, which is impossible in this world. Many people ask why we do not practice for physical enhancement. They think that instead of practicing for the upliftment of the heart, one should first practice for the physical body to achieve longevity. They have misunderstood the method of Laotzu, of Taoism. They have heard that Taoist practitioners can attain immortality. However, we know that all the ancient Taoist practitioners left us; none of them ever stayed. If they became immortals, then where are they? Stop dreaming anymore. [Applause]

 The Path to Immortality

 There is a path to immortality. I can tell you in which world you can stay immortal. Such worlds will never be destroyed, and so we can live there forever. Even if I told you all the details and we could find a way to become immortal here, this world is not immortal. So please do not ask such questions! [Laughter] You should wake up and use your own wisdom to decide which is the ultimate way, and where our eternal abode is. Don't build houses on water or sand.

 Once, when I went to Taitung to give a lecture, we pitched our tents by the riverside. One day, there was a heavy downpour, so we moved quickly. Half an hour later, the river overflowed. If our tents had still been there, they, as well as all the people and vehicles, would have been washed away. We shouldn't build houses in such places! Because no matter how sturdy our house is, one day it will be washed away by the water.

 Therefore, do not seek immortality here. Instead, we should find a way to move from this world to another world, where the conditions and environment are conducive to immortal life. We can live forever only in those places. This world, not to mention our fragile life, can perish within seconds. Therefore, I am really amazed that people believe in practicing to gain immortality. You should see the truth clearly and practice a logical method to get logical results. There are still people who run around telling everyone that they are practicing to gain immortality, trying to make others think that they are great. I don't know them, and I don't want to know them, either. When I heard about them, I laughed. That is really building castles in the sand!

 Many people ask why we practice the Quan Yin Method rather than other methods. It is simply because this is the method we should practice in the first place. We practice other methods only because we do not know this true method. We guess blindly and try everything we can until we find this true method and realize: "Oh! We have wasted so much time in futility!" Suppose there were a few entrances to our venue here. If you didn't come in through these entrances but instead said, "All entrances are the same. So let's go through any entrance!" They could all be entrances, but they would lead to other places! We want to leave this ephemeral world, transcend the three realms, and attain immortal life. Thus, we should practice the method of immortality. Only when we have found and arrived in an immortal world can our dreams come true.

 We know that such worlds exist because many people have been there before and have told us about them. Jesus Christ, Sakyamuni Buddha, Mohammed and others have told us about the existence of worlds that are eternal, happier and more glorious than this one. You may not believe in the words of the ancient people because you are uncertain about whether they are only myths. We have no way to verify with Jesus Christ whether the words in the Bible were indeed His own words, or were added by other people later. We cannot ask Sakyamuni Buddha whether He had really been to the Western Paradise and if it really exists. Therefore, we may be skeptical. However, we should have no doubt that there are people today who can go there. [Applause]

 We can go today; this I can guarantee you. Our fellow practitioners can go. Everyone can go. So can the teacher who was here yesterday. One of our fellow practitioners who is a cab driver can go, and so can you. Just now that person with a Ph.D. had a very good experience, and you too can have good experiences. The title of Ph.D. is not important. We should discover our greatest inner wisdom, which is above all worldly intelligence and beyond any imagination. The more I talk, the lazier I become, and the more difficult it is for me to talk. Every day, I feel very frustrated because I don't know how to translate this most important and beautiful thing into the ephemeral language of this world, in order to introduce it to people who have never experienced it. Suppose we have tasted some cookies and know how sweet, delicious, and fragrant they are. But some of us have never eaten the cookies. So how can we share with others our experience to convince and persuade them to buy the cookies?

 The Quan Yin Method Measures
 Our Spiritual Level Accurately

 Our spiritual practice doesn't begin only from the moment of initiation. Yesterday, I told you a story about Master Kong Hai. He learned the secret ways in three months instead of the twenty years normally required by people. His master told him: "You have completed your learning. You don't need to learn any more." I also told you yesterday about the story of another monk from the Tendai sect (of Buddhism). He begged Master Kong Hai to accept him as his disciple and teach him all the secret ways. But he wanted to accomplish it in three months, because he thought he could do it, too. Master Kong Hai told him, "No, you cannot complete your learning in three months," because Master Kong Hai had begun his spiritual cultivation when he was a little child. Before he arrived in China, he already had an intense aspiration for the Truth; he already knew the secret ways. Knowing them doesn't mean that he learned them. It was his inner realization. Owing to his intense and firm aspiration for the Truth, he had already attained some of the secret ways. Therefore, when he was in China, he learned only the final step in three months.

 This is why many people have experiences of the higher dimensions when they first receive initiation. It is because they have practiced spiritually in the past. Some people have fewer experiences because they are less focused and weaker in faith. I don't mean that they do it deliberately; it is often related to their spiritual background in the last life. However, we should try to see and know our spiritual level. The Quan Yin Method can measure our spiritual level accurately; we cannot deceive anyone. Suppose some people come and tell me that they have practiced for decades, but at the time of initiation, we can know where their true level is. Yet there are people who have never practiced before and may not have any religious beliefs, but after listening to my lecture, they believe. Their aspiration for the Truth emerges and they decide to practice spiritually. When they come to receive initiation, they have superb experiences because they have practiced in the past, or because of their inner yearning.

Before I found the Quan Yin Method, I traveled to many places, visiting ashrams, churches, and temples, chanting sutras and scriptures and worshipping. I yearned very much to realize the Truth. I often went to churches and joined their choirs, but there were times when I didn't feel like singing. I loved to pray to God alone in the church. I prayed only for one thing: "God, if You really exist, please let me know You." That was my prayer, the same one every time. I think this is the highest prayer, because everything else is ephemeral. Trivial things like gaining powers, healing illnesses, preserving good health, and winning a fortune do not deserve our attention.

 Suppose a king offers all his treasures and jewels to his people, and men and women come to choose from among the jewels, gold coins, antiques, and other precious things. However, this is only a part of the king's wealth. A woman walks by all these things without choosing any of them, and goes to the end of the hall and asks for the king. She only wants to see the king because she likes him and has never seen him before. The king is overjoyed and marries her. Now all his possessions are hers! [Laughter and applause] Therefore, it is said in the Bible: "Seek you first the Kingdom of God within, and everything else shall be added unto you." I hope that all of you will quickly find this Heavenly Kingdom and Heavenly Heart within you, and then all will be yours! [Applause]

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