Special Reports

Owing to the sincere and longing request of fellow practitioners, Master had kindly agreed to come to Cambodia to bless this retreat after Her visits to USA and Dominica. This retreat was to pray for peace for Cambodia and the world. She said, "Cambodia is a country with great merits. They are very open-minded, accepting people from all countries to come to help in the development of the nation."

Master's Arrival Brings The Blessing Of Rain

In the past few years, Master has helped Cambodia in many ways -- with donations of rice for the building of schools, etc. Recently, there was also the digging of sixty wells to help provide water for drinking and irrigation for people in remote areas.

The sudden arrival of many fellow practitioners over a few days time was a rare occasion for the local community and attracted a lot of attention from the local people. When they saw Master's photos worn by fellow practitioners, they all spontaneously put their palms together to pay respect. They are a very simple and friendly people.

Master had said that a real practitioner, no matter where he goes, would bring benefits to that place. After only a few days of mediation, Phnom Penh, which had been experiencing drought, had a sweet downpour of rain (very unexpected for this time of year). The citizens leaped with joy. Children were dancing and singing in the rain. The blessing of rain announced Master's arrival. According to fellow practitioners who had come previously to help with the distribution of donations to disaster victims, there were also two days of continuous rain in the dry season just before Master came to Phnom Penh last time.

During the retreat, Master suddenly appeared and the familiar and touching greeting of Her voice could be heard. In surprise and happiness, eyes wide opened, I thought I was seeing Master's manifestation body. It was the waves of hands clapping that convinced me that Master had truly arrived. She had been very busy all this time and was a little bit tired after all the travelling, but She was lighthearted and delightful. She chatted with us about what She had seen and done on those few days, pacifying the hearts of fellow practitioners.

Be A Good Example

Master had just come from Dominica. It is a very spiritual country. The President and people had received Her in a very friendly manner. During Master's three-day stay, they enjoyed vegetarian meals together with Her, voluntarily becoming vegetarian afterwards. Master said it is very important to be a good example. You have to insist on what you believe or what you like inside your heart, then people will follow.

Master, in Her welcome to us, said Cambodia was Her previous home. There was a vision by a fellow practitioner that She was the Queen of Cambodia two thousands years ago. Now, after reaching the Truth through practice, She is returning to carry and help Her people to enlightenment. Master, Herself, also feels very close to and familiar with this country. She said, "This country is just like my country."

The Ideal To Serve Sentient Beings

After a little rest, Master came to the group meditation again in the evening. She talked about a story of a son with piety, illustrating the fact that human beings are affected by the environment and also by the movement of the planets and stars. But for us, practitioners, these influences would be less. The more one practices, the more stable one becomes and thus would not be as much influenced. Because our lives have changed and we are not walking in the same track, we can decide anything. What we do now has already surpassed the law of life and earth, but our ideal is to serve other people. Originally, God wanted to let Master go. However, the prayers of fellow practitioners were so strong that after some consideration, God said Master was still to continue Her work, to suffer. That this special retreat could be organized was wholly due to the deep compassion and empathy that Master has towards sentient beings. Fellow practitioners were all most grateful, and felt so fortunate to be able to be with a real Master.

The next day, Master walked around the place to give blessings. She was very happy that we could find such a large and cool place in such a hot country for fellow practitioners to meditate. She said, "It is very hot here, but it is also very cool, and the people are very kind." Fellow practitioners also felt that the people were friendly and the atmosphere was very light and happy. Master told us that work done with a happy heart would be done better and the inner development would be better also. Many people are not successful because they are too serious. When one is too serious, one's mind becomes too narrow, too crowded and too enclosed in a corner. If we do things just like a hobby, then we will feel very relaxed, the mind will be more open and more ideas and creativity will be generated.

When it was time for lunch, Master, with great joy, went to the dining area to give blessings. Fellow practitioners were overjoyed to have a meal with Her. Master told the kitchen staff to put the seasonings on the table. She also told us that there was no chemicals in the vegetables and fruits. On hearing this, we had more of an appetite.

Be A Person With Opinions

During this retreat, concerning independent thinking, Master broke the old and hard concepts. She encouraged us to have our own opinion and to use our wisdom. In the past, when fellow practitioners were facing problems, they would usually deal with them saying, "Give it to God," or "Let Master decides!" But Master said, "It is not easy to discuss with God. Hes likes to test us. Hes said you should try hard, using your own spirit of practice and merits to overcome problems. We, ourselves, should try first. On seeing this, God would feel a little embarrassed, then Hes would give us a hand. Hes gave us the ability to conquer. We, ourselves, have to try hard, for example in meditation, helping other people, helping world peace. Hes gave us the instruments. We, ourselves, have to do the work." This is the real meaning of helping ourselves and getting help from God.

We like Master because She has Her own personality and views. We have to learn this also. "Here we need those who are more independent, those who have their own opinion, and know how to work. Not those that just lie there to be taken care of by Master. Then I will run away." Master also said, "In order to make a person like us, we have to be more interesting, more lively, more flexible, quick and have your own opinion. Whether your opinion is correct or not, it does not matter! So long as you have your own opinion is all right. Don't just wait for others and observe others every time."

Thus, fellow practitioners were alerted and awakened. We cannot rely on Master for everything. We have to have our own opinion, be responsible, and use the wisdom of practice to present ourselves with courage.

Use Free Will Wisely

Concerning free will, Master had a deeper analysis. No matter what we decide to do it will have its effect and consequence. In fact, there is no right, no wrong; but we have to be responsible for what we are doing. We have to think carefully beforehand. This world has several choices. The universe is not that fixed. You have to see what you want to do, how much you want to take upon yourself, how many missions, and you make it yourself. It is all right as long as you are not hurting other people. God's will is quite extensive and we can choose ourselves. If everything is predetermined, then it is too meaningless. We can change, but this free will sometimes hurt many people, and make us reincarnate again and again. If we use this free will to make a wrong decision, we, of course, have to be responsible. If the decision is good, the result will also be good and we will be rewarded with good fruit. If the result is no good, we have to bear greater responsibility and do more hard work. If the decision is bad, then we have to come back to correct the areas where we went wrong. Without a doubt we have to choose good ones, because it is good for us and others.

Concerning the keeping of an ideal, Master also used a story to advise us that before we change a decision, we have to ask ourselves whether the reason is correct or not. There was a lama who wanted to train a successor and asked another great lama to send him a disciple. The great lama chose and sent five disciples to him. Many people asked him, "Why are you sending five when the lama requested only one?" The great master said, "If we are fortunate enough, only one will be able to reach there." Really, in a few days' journey, four of them were kept in other villages due to various reasons; and only one was able to reach the destination according to the original plan and became the successor.

Master said, "Every person has a reason for throwing away his ideal, aim or goal. Any reason is very logical. Sometimes, it was falling into a trap of Maya's logic. Just the same, to him it is very logical. Any reason is good; but we have to ask ourselves, is that reason real? Is it really that important?

Every Thought In The Tao

Master once again reminded us that the world is ephemeral and we should be quick in our practice. All of us know that we will die sooner or later; but no one really feels like that. We are busy everyday to do our great mission. Knowing is not the same as feeling. So, God has to send us some disaster, some sad circumstances to give us a scare, so that we will have the real deep feeling that the world is really not an eternal place.

If a person is really practicing, he will feel very clearly and treasure every minute. Every moment he will not feel safe as long as he has not reach the answer, and he will not sleep and eat safely and comfortably. His quest would become bigger and bigger. Everyday, his spirit is still pursuing the big question, because he does not know whether he will continue to live. The question has not been solved. What this means is that one is still not fully enlightened, still does not fully understand the ways of the universe; then, he can not eat or sleep well. Most people are not like this and, therefore, there is great advancement.

Every teaching from Master, just like the fresh nectar spring, enlightens and inspires our spiritual thinking and concept. When the retreat was concluded, fellow practitioners were singing praises about this exceptionally wonderful and profoundly rewarding retreat. Only a great Master with such power could give us such an extraordinary learning experience. Everyone of us are looking forward to Master's grace to give us another chance to learn and to be exhilarated!

A Spiritual Group
Propagating Peace

By Supreme Master Magazine Reporter Mu Lin Hsihu, Formosa

In just a few days, almost two thousand "bodhisattvas" poured into the country to join the retreat, which was an unprecedented and spectacular event in Cambodia. The media was immediately attracted; several chief editors from the press who had briefly studied Master's teachings came quickly after hearing the news. They wanted to know more about this spiritual group practicing the Quan Yin Method.

Two reporters from Cambodia Today also came, Sokpov and Puthpor, one of them being a Christian. He thought that Master's elaboration on the Bible conformed greatly with the Christian doctrines and the Truth. He also agreed that Master's teachings were magnanimous and liberal in nature.

The Chief Editor of Cambodia Time, Yeoh Guan Jin, had read Master's books and totally supported Her teachings. He was very touched to know that, despite Her hectic flight schedule and exhaustion, She had to comply with the earnest longings of Her disciples to hold retreats with them all over the world -- to spread the peaceful atmosphere. He discovered that Master does not accept offerings, and that the financial resources of all the activities come from Her artistic creations. By Her own actions, Master has taught Her disciples to follow Her example of serving the multitude through working. The editor then understood better about the independent spirit and sacrificing ideal of Supreme Master Ching Hai International Association. Through their conversation, he felt that fellow practitioners followed Master only after they had judge with their wisdom.

He commented, "I have never seen such a big congregation where everyone selflessly prays for world peace." He further expressed, "I am so happy that this group has chosen our country to meditate and pray for peace." He then took many different issues of Supreme Master Ching Hai News, and with great joy, left.