Translated by Guixia Yin, Master’s in English
汉译英：果香居士

《忏悔三昧》https://www.jiuchisu.com/fenxiang/20171/

Repentance Samadhi

(Samadhi means experience of Oneness with the Universe. )

By Master Gao Li and his Team

I repent to all those hurt by me, whether in the past, at present, or in the future; I repent to all for the sufferings or hardships -- whether physically or psychologically -- brought upon by my wrong doings, wrong words, and wrong thoughts.

I am willing to accept the Law of Cause-Consequences; I am deeply ashamed and I repent sincerely.

Because of lack of enlightenment and ignorance of Four Truths, we have been hurting each other for eons, taking revenges, and wallowing miserably in the Six Realms of Life, with no way out.

We all long for liberation.

I pray that all those hurt by me will never experience pain, whether psychologically or physically.

I pray that all those ghosts and non-human sentient beings related to me will hear Dharma, be reborn in a benign form, and be liberated eventually.

I pray that all the humans and non-human sentient beings will share my virtue benefits and chant: “Good. Good. Good.”

May all sentient beings share the Dharma benefits.

王凤仪老人《不怨人》http://www.xuefogm.com/6156.html

No Resentments

By Virtuous Man Master Fengyi Wang

Preface　▲

Master Fengyi Wang (1864 - 1937) was a farm worker. He had no schooling; he sincerely practiced loyalty and filial piety and gained enlightenment. At the age of 35, he was on his way to rescue his friend Bo Yang; while half way there, a light bulb went on in his head, “bright daylight at night”, and gained the Way. At the age of 38, his father passed away; Master Wang stationed himself at his father’s grave; 100 days passed and he gained complete enlightenment, developed the birth-nature-based remedy; he started to explain the roots of diseases, enlighten people, and save people from wrongdoings.

When Virtuous Man Master Wang preached, his language was simple but the meanings were far-reaching. The words all came from the innate nature, not confined by any dogmas; they were fitting for the circumstances, lively and natural. They were not only rules of the thumb but also the dharma of Heaven. The goal was to educate people to follow the way of dutifulness and filial piety so as to amend one’s Nature from Birth and develop good karma; thus, people could practice “eliminating Nature from Habits, amending Nature from Birth, and manifesting Nature from Heaven”; people could “end the Fate from Birth, understand the negative fate, and nurture the Fate from Heaven.” Virtuous Man Master Wang used to say, “ Your Nature from Birth determines your fate. Wood Nature from Birth attracts mishaps, Fire Nature from Birth attracts sufferings, Earth Nature from Birth attracts hardships, Gold Nature from Birth attracts poverty, and Water Nature from Birth attracts bully.” (These are five Natures from Births.) He also said, “The body-inclined are mainly lowly, the heart-inclined are mainly poor, the mind-inclined are mostly rich, and the ideal-inclined are mostly noble.” This shows that one’s richness, poverty, sickness, health, misery, and joy are all in one’s own hands.

(Translator’s note: Venerable Master Hua, the founder of Ten Thousand Buddhas in Ukiah, CA, often attended the preaching services held at Way & Virtue Congregation founded by Virtuous Man Master Wang before Master Hua forwent home-life. On the Dharma Certificate issued by Venerable Master Hua while in China, Master Wang’s verse was quoted for over ten years: Compassion touches all, believers are saved and they attain enlightenment; deity passes and remains; worshippers are blessed and achieve eternity.”)

Part 1 No Resentments　▲

1. I have often contemplated and concluded thus: resentments are endless sufferings. The more you resent others, the more sufferings you will experience; you will fall sick or attract disasters. What is this but endless sufferings?

Trying to control others is Hell; you exercise one notch of control, and others hate you one notch; you exercise ten notches of control, others hate you ten notches. What is this but Hell? You must turn it the other way around. Only by setting a good example can you clear your debts and fulfill your obligations as a person. You are Deity if you can bring one to the Way; you are Buddha if you can help one attain his Way.

2. A virtuous man seeks inward; a lesser man seeks outward. A virtuous man blames himself for lack of virtues; a lesser man resents others for his wrongdoings. Even when he is not spelling out his resentments, he is harboring them in his heart; the more resentments, the more vexed. Resentments are poisonous; harbored in the heart, they cause miseries and sickness. This is the same as drinking poison. If one can reflect on one’s own doings and find faults in oneself, he won’t resent others. If you are competent, you don’t resent those who are not; if you are capable, you don’t resent those who are not; if you see others’ tracks, you won’t resent them anymore.

3. Nowadays, people feel unhappy when others look down upon them. As for me, I don’t care how others think of me; virtues are virtues and evils are evils. Just through no resentments, you can attain Buddha-hood. Cunning people now are habitually calculative; calculation brings either regrets or complaints. How can one avoid sickness?

4. “No resentments” is great! “No resentments” means Land of Yin-Yang balance.

Part 2 No Anger, no Fervor　▲

5. I have often contemplated: fervor causes coughing up blood and anger causes throwing up food. If you can follow the Way and understand the Way, then your anger and fervor will be gone.

6. Fervor is “dragon whimpering”; anger is “tiger roaring”. Only when you keep your anger and fervor in check can you attain the Way.

If someone troubles you, you should not get angry; anger travels downward in your body and becomes coldness. If something is pressing you, you should not get anxious; anxiety travels upward in your body and becomes fervor. Coldness and fervor can both hurt you. Buddhists should not be overjoyed in the face of good things and should not be worried in the face of bad things; this way anger and fervor will not rise; this is “subduing a dragon and a tiger”. If you can subdue a dragon and a tiger, it will benefi you; if you can’t, it will hurt you like monsters.

7. If you follow your Nature from Birth (anger, hatred, resentment, annoyance, vexation), you are controlled by a ghost. When you are angry, fervor causes sickness, and you are beaten by a ghost. A right thought occurs, and Deity follows. An evil thought occurs, and ghosts follow. It is a shame that people would rather be ghosts than deities!

8. Fervor comes from the heart; your heart is disturbed, and fervor arises. When you are anxious, fervor goes up; when your heart is disturbed, fervor spreads out. If you can stay serene, fervor will do down. If you are not dutiful and become greedy, fervor will go out of control. If you can relax and avoid worrying about others, then you will have no fervor. How delightful that is!

9. Throwing a tantrum is fervor; harboring anger is real anger. Buddha says “Seven Heart-Lights”; I say strangling racing thoughts. When racing thoughts are dead, the Way-mind is born; when racing thoughts are born, the Way-mind is dead, and rivalry and greed follow. Rivalry brings anger, greed brings fervor. Anger and fervor attack the heart, and you are vexed all the time. Even if you are rich and honored, you are not joyful. Therefore, our ancestors treated the cultivation of the heart the same way as treating diseases. So I say strangling the heart. How liberating it is!

Part 3 Finding Merits and Making Apologies　▲

10. Many people do good deeds, but few are rewarded. Why is this? It is because your heart is harboring others’ wrongs. How can you expect rewards?

11. Finding merits is “collecting sunshine”; finding faults is “collecting garbage”. “Collecting sunshine” is to store sunlight, warm your heart, and nurture your heart; “Collecting garbage” is to store dark energy, darken your heart, and hurt your body. Everyone has merits; even a bad guy has merits. If you can’t find any from the positive perspective, find some from the negative lesson perspective. Therefore, I say, merit-finding is a heart-warming pill; you will find good connections everywhere and you will have no vexation.

12. Merit-finding is real gold; it must be rooted in ideals; you must find real merits where there is seemingly none at all. When you can bear what seems unbearable, it is “righteousness reaching the sky”.

13. Apologies bring water of wisdom; water can enhance five flavors, mix five colors, fit a square or a circle. If you can cultivate your Nature from Birth to be like water, you have attained the Way. This is why our ancestors say “The utmost well-doing is like water.”

14. Humans and Heaven are one and the same; all the things in the world are our responsibilities. If the world is not well, how can it not be our faults? Faults are everywhere, whether you look down or up, whether you close your eyes or open your eyes. If you find faults in your wife, it is fault-finding while looking down; if you find faults in your elders, it is fault-finding while looking up; if you find faults in others, it is fault-finding while having your eyes open; if you harbor others’ faults, it is fault-finding while having your eyes closed. In my opinion, not understanding the Way or having inappropriate conducts are all faults. If one recognizes one’s own duties, then he will know about faults. If one loses the Heaven's Way, confuses righteousness, or lacks common sense, he won’t apologize. (Admitting one’s fault is apology.)

15. If you sincerely apologize, then you will be refreshed and find peace.

16. Apologizes bring wisdom water; merit-finding brings shiny gold.

17. Merit-finding opens the road to Heaven; apologies close the door to Hell.

18. Making apologies is better than taking “cooling capsules:; merit-finding is better than taking “heart-warming pills”.

Part 4. Five Elements　▲

19. The Five Elements are Wood, Fire, Earth, Gold, and Water; they refer to the same things as the Buddhist Five Precepts, Taoist Five Fundamentals, and Confucian Five Basics.

20. People’s sufferings are all rooted in their Nature from Birth! Stubbornness comes from dark Wood, contentiousness from dark Fire, resentment from dark Earth, argumentativeness from dark Gold, and vexation from dark Water.

21. Wood Nature-from-Birth attracts mishaps, Fire Nature-from-Birth attracts sufferings, Earth Nature-from-Birth attracts hardships, Gold Nature-from-Birth attracts poverty, and Water Nature-from-Birth attracts bully.” It is like a magic jewelry bowl; what is in it attracts more of it. The Taoism Grand Master Lao-Jun says, “Disasters and blessings know no doors; they go to those who bring upon themselves”. This is so true. Therefore, I say that good things and bad things are all brought upon by Nature-from-Birth.

22. Most people’s Nature-from-Birth is imbalanced. The Fire-inclined fight with others, the Earth-inclined bully others, the Gold-inclined hurt others, the Water-inclined dislike others, and the Wood-inclined argue with others. If you can correct the imbalance, you will attain the Way.

23. Those dark-Wood-inclined resist the superiors, are not respectful, and often lose their tempers. Losing one’s tempers hurts the liver, which causes dizziness, numbness in the arms, bloating, ringing ears, toothaches, and strokes.

Those dark-Fire-inclined have quick tempers, are contentious, desire vanity, love to look good, and tend to hate others. Hatred hurts the heart, which causes palpitation, insomnia, craziness, coarse voice, and ulcers.

Those dark-Earth-inclined are awkward, stupid, arrogant, suspicious, and resentful. Resentment hurts the spleen, which causes bloating, stomachache, vomiting, diarrhea, weakness, and short breath.

Those dark-Gold-inclined are cruel, jealous, fake, argumentative, and prone to annoyance; annoyance hurts the lungs, which causes coughs, boils, and blood coughing.

Those dark-Water-inclined are stupid, rude, slow, anxious, and prone to annoyance, which hurts the kidney, back pain, night ejaculation and impotence. Therefore, a certain Nature-from-Birth leads to certain diseases.

24. The Five Elements I am talking about are the same as the Buddhist Five Precepts. Getting angry (Wood) is killing; wanting to wear good clothes to look good (Fire) is sexing up; short-changing by even one cent (Gold) is stealing; wanting to eat good food (Water) is drinking; lying even one word (Earth) is lying.

25. Bright Wood is the root of Buddha. Bright-Wood people have their independent ideas, can tolerate, and establish all things. Bright Fire is the root of deities. Fire is in charge of reasoning, understanding the circumstances, amending things without being confined. Bright Earth is the root of Way; it believes in cause-consequences, can tolerate, amend, and bring forth all things. If someone is bad, that’s his cause-consequences; you don’t need to resent him or worry for him. Bright Gold is the root of deities; those of Bright Wood Nature-from-Birth can find merits in others, which can bring shiny gold; they can build good relationships with all sorts of people, uphold brotherhood, make firm decisions, resolve problems, and create all things. Bright Water is the root of saints. Saints can admit being wrong, which can bring water of wisdom; they have even temperament, and they can nurture all things. If a man does not possess Five Elements and only act at the whims of his Nature-from-Birth, he will die from it!

26. You can tell about your previous life from your Nature-from-Birth in this life. Current Fire Nature-from-Birth comes from being an official in previous life; current Water Nature-from-Birth comes from being a business man in previous life; current Wood Nature-from-Birth comes from being a worker in previous life;current Earth Nature-from-Birth comes from being a farmer in previous life;current Gold Nature-from-Birth comes from being a scholar in previous life.

27. Those who killed a lot in the previous life lean towards Fire Nature-from-Birth; those who resisted the superiors in the previous life lean toward Wood Nature-from-Birth; those who lied a lot in the previous life lean towards Gold Nature-from-Birth; those who resented a lot lean towards Earth Nature-from-Birth.

28. Union with Heaven circumstances is Bright Fire; belief in cause-consequences is Bright Earth; merit-finding is Bright Gold; admission of wrongdoings is Bright Water; tolerance is Bright Wood. These are Five True Elements.

29. Nowadays, everyone’s Nature-from-Birth has Fire. Those with Fire Nature-from-Birth are greedy and contentious; thus, there is endless rivalry, greed, and wars. Void of rivalry and greed is True Bright Fire; nothing else but this can attain Heaven circumstances.

Part 5 Three Realms　▲

30. People come from three realms: inherent nature from Heaven, fate from Earth, body from parents. Therefore, the three realms are the origins of people. Only through alignment with Heaven's Way, clear conscience, and proper rites can we return to our original Nature-from-Heaven. Many only know about the Body-Me, but not the Heaven-Me or Earth-Me. Once the Nature-from-Birth is amended, the Heaven-Me gains honor with Heaven; once the righteousness is understood, the Earth-Me gains honor among men. Therefore, everyone has three Me’s, but pitifully people don’t know!

31. The “alignment with Heaven's Way, clear conscience, and proper rites” I talk about are the same as the Buddhist Three Precepts, the Taoist “Three Basics” and Confucianist “Three Fundamentals”.

32. Buddhist “Three Precepts” refer to the inherent nature, heart, and body. Alignment with the Heaven's Way is taking refuge in Buddha; clear conscience is taking refuge in Dharma, and proper rites are taking refuge in Sangha.

33. The Taoist “Three Basics” refer to the inherent nature, heart and body. Blossoming of the inherent nature is manifesting Heaven’s Way; blossoming of the heart is having clear conscience; blossoming of the body is following the rites.

34. Confucianist “Three Fundamentals”refer to the inherent nature, heart, and body. Alignment with inherent nature leads to benevolence, clear conscience leads to wisdom, and proper rites lead to bravery.

35. Three Realms are three religions. Confucianism starts with securing one’s life, Taoism with fostering one’s body, and Buddhism with cultivating one’s nature.

36. Act on your inherent nature, and you should be tender; act on conscience, and you should be peaceful; act properly, and you should be friendly.

37. Your temperament must be amicable; otherwise, it will hurt your temperament. Your heart must be loving; otherwise, it will hurt your heart. Your body must be relenting; otherwise, it will hurt your body.

38. There has been no peace in inherent nature, heart, and body because there are three thieves: Nature-from-Birth (anger, hatred, resentment, annoyance, vexation), selfishness, and bad habits. To ensure peace in the world, you must catch the thief in the Nature-from-Birth by inherent nature, the thief in the heart by clear conscience, and the thief in the body by proper rites.

39. The three Emperors refer to Emperor Heaven, Emperor Earth , and Emperor People , the so-called Three Ancient Emperors. I say Emperor Heaven is the highest ranking Emperor and is in charge of people’s temperaments; if you lose your temper, Emperor Heaven will inflict disasters. Emperor Earth is Emperor Hell and is in charge of people’s life and death; if you have no conscience and act immorally, Emperor Hell will inflict sickness. Emperor People is the emperor of humans and is in charge of our bodies; if you commit a crime, the national law will punish you. The Three Emperors are in charge of people’s temperaments, hearts, and bodies with the goal of ensuring people’s righteous conducts.

40. It is a mental disease if you harbor others’ faults; it is a temperament disease if you often lose your temper.Mental diseases will surely lead to temperament diseases; temperament diseases will surely lead to physical diseases. It will be fine if reversed.

41. Clean nature has no temper, clean heart has no selfishness, and clean body has no bad habits. Dirty nature has no blessings, dirty mind has no wealth, and dirty body has no longevity. Therefore, it is important to cleanse the three realms.

42. I can treat the diseases in all the three realms; they must be separated and cleansed. Your body will have no disease if it does not have bad habits; Your heart will have no trouble if it has no selfishness, and your nature will be well if you do not have bad temper. A mental disease can’t be cured by medication but by the Way. It is a shame that people don’t know.

43. If people are greedy, contentious, and disturbing, they owe others. If they are greedy, they owe Heaven; if they are contentious, they owe people; if they are disturbing, they owe Hell. If they are all of these, they owe all three realms; how can they expect blessings? Greed is a fault, contention is a crime, and disturbance is an evil.

44. Complaints hurt your heart; no complaints save your energy and your life. Regrets hurt your inherent nature; no regrets save your inherent nature and ensure you blessings. Resentments hurt your body; no resentments save your body and ensure you longevity. If people can be free of complaints, regrets, and resentments, there will be no harm in the three realms.

45. I also have three reflections. The first reflection is on my tempers. If someone ruffles my feathers, how do I feel? The second reflection is on my contentedness. Am I selfish? How do I feel if someone takes advantage of me? The third reflection is on my conducts. What can I really do? These are my three reflections.

46. I also have three fundamental principles: alignment with inherent nature, clear conscience, and proper rites. Besides, I have eight rules: no greed, no rivalry, no complaints, no regrets, no resentment, no worries, no fervor, and no anger. If you can do all this, you save money and labor; you can attain the Way and become Buddha.

47. People have three jewels: inherent nature, heart, and body. The inherent nature has the same nature as Water, the heart has the same nature as Fire, and the body has the same nature as Earth. Water is people’s essence, Earth is people’s energy, and Fire is people’s soul. Rich essence brings wisdom, rich energy brings growth, and rich soul brings anima. Take brick-making for example. A brick is first molded with mud, then baked, finally watered over; only this way can it be sturdy. We talk about inherent nature, heart, and body; the number of times we talk is like the number of times a brick is baked. When the “three jewels” are understood, it is better than the collective wealth from a hundred officials.

48. Tolerance is the liberation of the inherent nature, contentedness is the liberation of the heart, and hard work is the liberation of the body. This is all liberation. No liberation, no well-being.

Part 6 Three Natures　▲

49. People have three natures: inherent nature, Nature from Birth, and Nature from Habits. Inherent nature is pure good, which is the same as defined by Mencius. Nature from Birth from previous life is pure bad, which is the same as defined by Xun-zi. Nature from Habits from experiences can be good and bad, which is the same as what Gao-zi states “Who keeps company with the wolf will learn to howl.”

50. If you act according to inherent nature, you will find merits in others; if you act according to your Nature from Birth, you will surely find faults in others. This is the law of attraction.

51. Inherent nature has its origin, and Nature from Birth has its roots. Your Nature from Habits from your previous life is your Nature from Birth in this current life. If you can perfect your Nature from Birth (eliminating worry, hatred, resentment, annoyance, vexation), then your inherent nature is perfect. If you can’t perfect it and explode at every trigger, it is like being possessed by ghosts; therefore, it is called “Five Ghosts”, which keep your household in turmoils. They are also called “Five Poisons”, and they can cause sickness and death. Their roots are deep and hard to pull up. If you can’t control them, it is hard for you to be a good person. Buddha says, “Your negative karma is on you, and it causes crazy moves and ignorance”; it is hard to attain Dharma.

52. Nature from Habits is entangled in greed; Nature from Birth is the human vexation. When you volunteer at a religious place, your body is liberated. When you act like a man is supposed to, you are liberated from the heart realm. When you perfect your temperament, you are liberated from Nature from Birth realm. Otherwise, how can you liberate yourself from the three realms?

53. A perfect soul is virtue, and it is joy. Joy can amend Nature from Birth. When your temperament is perfect, your cycle of cause-consequences will end itself.

54. Eliminate your Nature from Habits, amend your Nature from Birth, and fulfil your inherent nature.

Part 7 Three Fates　▲

55. People have three fates: Fate from Heaven, Fate from Birth, and dark fate. Inherent nature is the oneness with Fate from Heaven; righteousness is Fate from Heaven. Heart is the oneness with the Fate from Birth; knowledge, skills, and wealth are all Fate from Births. Body is the one oneness with dark fate; anger, hatred, resentment, annoyance, and vexation are all dark fate. You need to understand the three fates very well. If you cultivate good fates, you will have good fates. Whether good or bad is all in your own hands. What is the point of seeing a fortune-teller?

56. “You can’t be a Virtuous Man if you don’t know about Fate from Heaven”; you can’t “reach the other side” (of nirvana) if you don’t know about people. Knowing others’ merits is knowing Fate from Heaven; knowing others’ contribution is knowing Fate from Birth; knowing others’ Nature from Birth is knowing Dark fate. Only he who knows about fates is a Virtuous Man. Acting upon one’s Nature from Birth (losing temper) shortens Fate from Heaven, resentment shortens Fate from Birth, and free-loading lengthens Dark fate. If your Fate from Heaven is small, you need to learn to grow it; if your Fate from Birth is small, you need to learn to increase it; if your Dark fate is long, you need to learn to shorten it. When you know how to grow a small fate and shorten a long fate, you are “in charge of your Fate from Heaven”

57. I first ask about his trade when someone comes to see me. Then I can tell how big his Fate from Heaven is. Then I ask about his wealth and situations, I can tell how big his Fate from Birth is. Then I judge his Nature from Birth, and I can tell whether his Dark fate is big or small. The three fates are the three realms; how can it be hard to tell?

58. People are not selfless; they are always selfish. That’s why things are bad. The reason why I am a Virtuous Man is that I fired my selfishness; that’s to say I strangled my Fate from Birth. Predetermined fate is endless; how can there be a way out?

59. Mencius says, “If you practice being a Heavenly knight, then man knights will follow your footsteps.” However, once one gets to be a man knight, he stops practicing being a Heavenly knight! Cultivating virtues is lengthening Fate from Heaven; studying skills and accumulating wealth is lengthening Fate from Birth. He who acts upon his Fate from Birth is often content and can shorten Dark fate; otherwise, he lengthens it. Only by lengthening Fate from Heaven can he clear up his Dark fate. Nowadays, people only act upon Dark fate and emphasizes Fate from Birth, but they don’t lengthen their Fate from Heaven. How can thy understand Fate from Heaven?

60. You lengthen your Fate from Heaven if you use your Fate from Birth for the public benefit; you lengthen your Dark fate if you use it for your own benefit. Therefore, you are liberated from the Three Realms if you know how to spend your money correctly; you can’t escape from your sinful fate if you don’t know how to spend your money correctly.

61. A sweet melon grows fastest when it is bitter; Fate from Heaven grows fastest when it is bitter.

62. You shorten your Dark fate if you don’t talk about others’ faults; only through tolerance can you shorten your Dark fate. You will shorten your Dark fate if you can tolerate a big insult.

63. If your Fate from Heaven is big, your Fate from Birth is big, too; if your Fate from Birth is big, your Dark fate can’t be ended. Therefore, it is important to stop Fate from Birth, end Dark fate, and grow Fate from Heaven.

Part 8 Fate from Birth　▲

64. Fate from Birth is a man’s root. When I find my root as a man, I find my root of the Way. The root of the Way is a man’s nature; a man’s root is a man’s fate. Your life will be good if your root is good. Therefore, whether a man has a good fate or bad fate depends on one’s root. So I urge people to improve their roots; they will attain the Way if they can amend their nature from Birth.

65. Nature from Birth is the root of life. Those virtuous people have good Nature from Birth. Good Nature from Birth will have good fates. People all have good Fate from Heavens, but their bad birth nature brings their bad fates!

66. Nature from Birth is the root and fate is the fruit; only deep roots can produce good fruit. If you can’t stabilize your Nature from Birth, your roots are not deep. If you don’t acknowledge fates, you won’t have fruits; it is like a male flower. The Way aspirants first need to amend their Nature from Birth and then acknowledge fates. After amending the Nature from Birth, they don’t lose temper; they will accept losses. Accepting losses is profiting. Acknowledging fates is no resenting others; they will tolerate hardships, and then they can live in ease. It is a shame that people don’t know about this; they think too little of Fate from Birth and think too much of fame and benefits!

67. Our ancestors say, “If you don’t work on amending your Nature from Birth while working on to improve your fate, it is No. 1 ailment. If you don’t work on improving your fate while working on amending your Nature from Birth, it is not of much use.” This points out the importance of working on both very clearly!

Part 9 Four Realms　▲

68. The four realms are ideal, mind, heart, and body. Superstitious people say: the bridge to the other world has three paths: a “Gold” path, a “Silver” path, and a “Nether” path. I say it is “Gold” if you act on your ideal, it is “Silver” if you act on your mind, and it is “Nether” if you act on your heart and body.

69. I often say that man must differentiate the four realms. How? If you can remain undisturbed (undisturbed in the face of swears, undisturbed in the face of beatings, undisturbed in the face of killings) raise up all the ignorant people and enlighten them, then you are in the ideal realm, the Pure Land realm. If you don’t cling to anything in your heart, remain worry-free and blissful, you are in the Heaven realm. If you are greedy, insatiable, worrisome, then you are in the sufferings realm. If you are competitive for the sake of fame and profits, over-partying, addicted, audacious, combative, and cruel, then you are in the hell realm. Therefore, the ideal realm is Pure Lang, mind realm is heaven, heart realm is sufferings, and body realm is hell.

70. People in the ideal realm don’t criticize (Everything is fine.); those in the mind realm are content; those in the heart realm are greedy; those in the body realm are combative. Non-criticizing people are free from comparison, content people are clean, greedy people are burdened, and combative people are bad. Bad people are ghosts, burdened people are men, clean people are deities, and non-criticizing people are Buddhas.

71. The body realm people only think of themselves, with no consideration of others; they are unreasonable and they want to grab to themselves when they see good things; they get bad and vexed if they can’t take advantage of others; therefore, they are ghosts. The heart realm people are greedy and insatiable; they are full of fantasy thoughts and they are calculating; therefore, they are lesser people. The mind realm people are content, and contentedness is “deity”. The ideal realm people are not criticizing; they see through cause-consequences; they don’t seek recycles; non-criticism is “Buddha”. If people want to rise above the mundane world and attain saint world, they need to learn to traverse realms.

72. The body realm people point out each others’ shortcomings, heart realm people debate with each other, mind realm people concede to each other, and ideal realm people thank each other.

73. The ideal realm people get what they want without thinking about it, mind realm people get it when they think about it, monster (heart) realm people get it when they “seek” it, ghost (body) realm people get it when they “fight” for it.

74. The ideal realm has its nature: he does nothing and does everything. The mind realm has its nature: he is trusting, and he is willing to let others take it in the face of good things. The heart realm has its nature: he is greedy and insatiable; he is always selfish and wants to take advantage of others. The body realm has its nature: he is destructive; he doesn’t repent even when he hurts himself and others. Therefore, it does not work to let heart body take charge; they must be controlled.

75. Sutra masters say:People enter the six ranks of the karma wheel upon death. I say the six ranks are all on our bodies. Why do we look outward? It is Buddha rank if a man acts upon the ideal; it is the deity rank if he acts on the mind; it is a human rank if he acts on the heart; it is an object (animal) rank if he covets immorally; it is a monster rank if he always gets anxious; it is a ghost rank if he often gets angry. These six ranks are all upon us; what is the point of waiting until death?

76. Buddha says there are astronomical worlds; I say there are four. Those who are enlightened can tell right away which world a man is from. He is a loser if he acts upon his body, no matter how hard he tries. He is a worrier if he acts upon his heart, no matter how capable he is. He is a jolly guy if he acts upon his mind, no matter how busy he is. He is a Buddha if he acts upon his ideal and remains undisturbed, no matter how challenging his circumstances are.

77. Your ideal falls if you worry about something; your mind falls if you fear something; your heart is crooked if you desire something; your body is crooked if you are mad at something.

78. Utmost sufferings lead to ideals, and utmost joy leads to mindfulness. Real discard is Buddha, and fake discard is demon. Sickness is hell, and greed is sufferings.

79. For a man of ideals, the more adversaries, the more joyful. For a man of mindfulness, his determination equals his mindfulness.

80. You feel tired because you are destined to be tired, and you will have tiring issues.

81. Getting dissatisfied is beginning to scheme. Mindfulness is like a balloon; it begins to deflate even if it has a pin hole. Nature is the essence, and mindfulness is the root, the root of all things. A root is like the rain; the rain is non-differential; when it rains on a tart pear, a pear is sure to be tart; when it rains on a sweet grass, the grass is sure to be sweet. The ideal is like the rain.

82. Only through strangulation of the heart can a man amends his Nature from Birth; amendment of the Nature from Birth achieves the right mindfulness; right mindfulness achieves the right ideal. This is certain.

83. Amended Nature from Birth is the mindfulness. We improve the world either through the mindfulness or through the ideal. If a man can act upon his ideal, all his wrongdoing karma from thousands of previous life will be cleared. You must remain undisturbed if a demon comes; a slight disturbance sows the seed.

84. See through all fake (superficial) things, and you attain truth. There are no bad guys in the Paradise, no good guys in the Hell, no true men in sufferings, and no fake men in Pure Land.

85. A man who acts upon his ideal is non-criticizing and non-changing. You benefit me even if you bully me or swear at me. You benefit me even if you pretend or cheat. You benefit me even if you kill me.

86. A man is a true man if he acts on his ideal. If his daughter-in-law swears at him, he should respond right away, “If your swears can disturb me, then I am not worthy of being your father-in-law!” If a man can stay undisturbed like this, he is Buddha; he is protected by deities. Acting upon the mind is joy; joy is deity.

87. All the saints in each religion invariably act upon the mind. I hear that when Confucius was starving in the Kingdom of Chen, he was still at ease and did not pause his singing. I also hear that Jesus was crucified, but he rose three days later to save the world. When Gautama Buddha was a Tolerance Practitioner, he was sliced by Kalinga-Raja; still, Buddha said, “I will save you first when I become Buddha!” Don’t they all have the same spirit? Therefore, all religions have the same spirit even though they have different forms; thus, it is wrong to have parochial views.

88. In our world, all the deities and Buddhas are around us, but they are not in the visible human form. If you aspire to emulate a man’s ideal, his spirit arrives. If you aspire to emulate a deity, his spirit arrives. If you aspire to emulate a saint’s ideal, his spirit arrives. Act the way a past saint acted in the same circumstances. It is like picking a flower; Pick one and do one. Mencius says, “Everyone can be “Yao Shun” (Two Saints in ancient China); this is to teach people to emulate ideals. An ordinary man remains an ordinary man if he does not emulate past saints’ ideals.

89. When you reach the ideal realm, you have no trace of anger; all is left is bliss!

Part 10 Practicing the Way　▲

90. Everyone is fond of loftiness and ease. They don’t know everything fails at loftiness and ease. How can there be the Way at loftiness and at ease? People misunderstand the Way because they are not enlightened! Do what others don’t want to do; pick up what others throw away; this is virtue; this is the Way. Take water for example. It flows downward and raises all things; all things yield to it; this is called underpinning. It is a shame that everyone fights to be on top and no one wants to be below; therefore, it is departing far from the Way!

91. People are all fearful of deep water and hot fires; they are afraid of dying in them. They don’t know that they die in fame if they are fond of fame; they die in profits if they are fond of profits. They are living in deep water and hot fires, but they don’t realize it! I say no seeking fame is “not burning even in fires”; no seeking money is “not drowning even if in water” .

92. I follow the Way and I first learn to work with losses and poverty. Others learn to reach high stages and preach, so they lag behind me.

93. Only being content can a man hit the ground and attain the Way. This is the key.

94. The Way is the Heaven Way, and everyone has it; it is never away from anyone. When don’t people perceive it? Take a pea seed for example. When it (germinates and) grows a stem, it must carry water upward, until pea pods are complete. People have roots; if you often think of your roots and pray sincerely for three months, you will attain the Way. This is how I attained the Way.

95. Fondness of loftiness is greed; fear of failure is stickiness; fondness of ease is sin; dislike of no-good is lack of virtue; negligence of duties is loss of the Fate from Heaven.

96. A simple word “fondness” is the pitfall of all outstanding heroes!

Part 11 Securing Life　▲

97. People all want to enjoy life, but why are there more who suffer than those who enjoy life? It is because people are insatiable and don’t accept their fates. If they know the Way, they know how to enjoy life; they know how to find joy even when they don’t have it.

98. Thinking less of oneself is cheating on oneself; it is also insatiability; a man like this is sure to suffer. A content man has a long Heaven life; being virtuous grows ethics; being ethical grows heavenly principles; this saves hard work. If a man thinks of another matter while working on one matter, this is deflation. It is like a balloon; it flattens if it is deflated; it is also like steaming buns; the buns are half cooked if the pot is deflated. Therefore, a true man does mind working on a small issue; they give it their 70%; they are relaxed and delighted, like super immortal beings. Once greed starts, a man falls into sufferings; he has no joy, no matter how rich or honored.

99. Fate is a man’s duty. Fulfillment of one’s duty is securing one’s Fate from Heaven. If his Fate from Heaven is long, he will enjoy fame. He must follow the Way. If he does not fulfill his duty, does not make efforts, is fond of vanity, cheating on issues, is unworthy of his name, he can’t secure his life.

100. The Way is to be practiced; virtue is to be built. There is no Way if it is not followed; there is no virtue if it is not cultivated. Heaven reigns according to heavenly principles; men need to fulfill their duties; this is in harmony with heavenly Way. Acting upon Heaven’s Way is heavenly virtue; it is achieving without thinking.

101. Following the Way must stick to one’s duty; neglecting one’s duty not only gains no credits but also makes a mistake. What is one’s duty? It is the duty of a Man; “acting according to your duty” can attain the Way.

102. If a man “acts according to his duty”, works accordingly, talks accordingly, thinks accordingly, he will attain truth right in this life. If someone was born a woman but is jealous of a man, if a poor man fantasizes being rich, if someone thinks of another matter while working on one matter, all this is departing from one’s duty; how can this attain the Way? A pear has to grow on a pear tree, not on an apricot tree.

103. Eight virtues are eight doors, all leading to Pure Land. However, everyone has a right door for him; everyone enters through his own door; this is the meaning of “fulfilling one’s duty”. I entered through the door of dutifulness and filial piety; I was dutiful when I herded cattle or worked for others; I was filial to elders; I am sure of all this.

104. “Fates are names”; when the names are right, fates are correct; when fates are correct, natures are amended. Therefore, the most important thing is to teach people natures and fates.

Part 12 Amending Natures　▲

105. If you see a man struggling in the ocean of sufferings and you jump in to save him even though you don’t know how to swim, you will drown. Therefore, I am determined to save a man’s natures. Saving a man’s life is temporary, and he is still in the cycle of cause- consequences. Saving a man’s natures works forever, it is eternal, and it forever stops the cause-consequences cycle. Therefore, saving a man’s life is visible and temporary; saving a man’s natures is invisible and eternal. Saving a man’s natures is like saving him from the ocean of sufferings; it is like reaching across the ocean, and there will be never be any downfall.

106. People are clouded by things, so they take the fake (superficial) as being true. This is called not seeing through, thus they criticize others and get mad at others. As a matter of fact, it is because they don’t see through things; if they can see through things, they will surely smile; how can they get mad and fight with others? I used to see no single good guy in the whole world, and I would get mad; as a result, I had tuberculous ulcers for 12 years and I almost died from anger. When I heard the teachings of virtue books at the age of 35, I realized that it was wrong to get mad; so I repented to Heaven, and my ulcers were cured overnight; I came out of Hell.

107. Those who respect me are actually harming me; those who insult me are actually benefiting me. When the fake (superficial) things (wealth, sex, honor, and insults) come, you must see through them and know that they are tests from Heaven; enduring insults and sufferings is reducing disasters and hardships.

108. You can only know about a man by knowing his Nature from Birth; you can only utilize a thing if you know its Nature from Birth. This is to connect with Heaven. A man of a certain Nature from Birth thinks accordingly, speaks accordingly, and acts accordingly. If you find faults in him, it is because you don’t know his Nature from Birth and you don’t know his Way; you will surely get mad at him. A dung beetle pushes dung, a weasel enjoys little chicks, and a greedy man wants to take advantage of others. A man of a certain realm acts accordingly. Therefore, all is correct.

109. I had all sorts of blows, and I made up my mind not to get angry or get heated. Someone laughs at me, but I don’t get angry. Anger and fervor are two “grim reapers”; if you can control them, turn fervor into “a golden boy”, and turn anger into “a golden girl” instead of being controlled by them, you are Buddha!

110. An adversary is a virtue; people must realize this. If you suffer a loss, you shouldn’t complain; you must have owed that person; when other people complain on your behalf, it lengthens your life. If you are bullied and beaten up for no reason, it is still your fault; you endure it, and then the debt is paid off; you should thank him. If I am not beaten by him, how can I ever clear my bad karma? So I say a lesser man has merits; he bullies others and compels them to be good; he benefits others from a negative angle.

111. Endure it, and it ends. Endure hardships, and you end hardships; endure sufferings, and you end sufferings. If not for your guilt, you won’t be called names; if not for your offence, you won’t be beaten. When an adversary comes, it is sending you virtues; you not only need to endure it but also thank it.

112. Everything is in the cycle of cause-consequences. When an adversary comes, you endure it with a smile and take it as an obligation; this way it ends. If you can’t take it and get resentful, more adversaries will come even when the first one passes; it is because you took it but did not end it.

113. All that comes your way is destined to come; therefore, you must endure it when you experience undesirable things or unpleasant people. When Confucius was starving in the Kingdom of Chen, when Jesus was crucified, when Buddha was sliced, none was resentful; that was accepting fates. Only by accepting fates can one attain the Way,

114. People cheat, but Heaven does not cheat. When Heaven bestows blessings, it comes in the form of an adversary. If you can not remain steadfast in the face of an adversary, then it is failure halfway.

115. Diamonds are the hardest; a man should forge the mind of a diamond. An ignorant man is insulted or yelled at, he does not find this a blessing but gets mad; this is a diamond cracking! A reasonable man gets mad at an ignorant man; it is a diamond breaking into pieces! Only no cracking or breaking can a man forge a mind of a diamond.

116. “Practicing among fellows is learning”. A man needs to practice among the relatives. After he perfects his practice, he will not be afraid of blows. Similarly, a brick is sturdy after it has been baked well; if it has not been baked well, it is still brick clay and will fall apart immediately in water!

117. If a man wants to show virtue, he must perfect his Nature from Birth. If he wants to perfect his Nature from Birth, he must give up his heart (longings). If he can live like a dead man, his Nature from Birth is perfect.

118. Giving up money is not as good as giving up your body; giving up your body is not as good as giving up your heart; giving up your heart is not as good as giving up your Nature from Birth. If a man can give up his Nature from Birth, he has attained the Way. Therefore, I educate men to amend their Nature from Birth. This is the eternal ultimate remedy; spiritual essence is never gone.

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