HOW DO WE STAY ROOTED TO OUR ORIGINAL ASPIRATION IN OUR BUDDHIST PRACTICE? Caller: Master, could you enlighten us on how we can stay rooted to our original aspiration in our Buddhist practice and cultivation? If we lose touch with it, how can it be regained? Master Jun Hong Lu: If one loses touch with […]
RECITING THE HEART SUTRA CAN HELP IN DISPELLING THOUGHTS OF GOSSIPS OR CONTROVERSIES Caller: There may be times when we hear gossip that we do not wish to hear but, unfortunately, such gossip has already penetrated our mind. What can we do to get rid of it so that it does not stick in our […]
COMPASSION IS THE GOLDEN KEY THAT UNLOCKS ALL ‘DOORS’ Master Jun Hong Lu: The act of giving can quell greed, hatred and ignorance. This is one method of cultivation through physical action. At the spiritual level, one must cultivate compassion, as it is the golden key that unlocks the rest of the ‘doors’. Whenever you […]
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN “TOLERANCE” AND “COWARDICE” Caller: What is the difference between tolerance and cowardice? Master Jun Hong Lu: Cowardice means the person has no psychological endurance. This person is afraid of everything and dares not stand up against others. Such a person is faint-hearted, not having the unyielding willpower nor determination. Hence, they fear […]
ANALYSIS OF THE CHINESE CHARACTER 忍 (FORBEARANCE) Master Jun Hong Lu: In Chinese, the word “Forbearance 忍” has the character of a “knife (刀)” on top. This “knife” represents worries that are able to cut through our heart each time we let our heart be troubled. Hence, it is important to always bring ourselves to […]
LEARN TO GUARD YOUR MIND, ENERGY FIELD AND BEHAVIOUR Master Jun Hong Lu: People with impure souls have a lot of karmic obstacles in their consciousness. For this reason, they are not able to ascend to heaven, and can only descend to the lower realms. Strictly speaking, there is no way that they can make […]
PRAYER FOR OFFERING LITTLE HOUSES TO WARD OFF THE ‘3, 6, 9 PREDESTINED CALAMITIES’ Caller: Master, I offer three Little Houses every week and when I do so, I will state this prayer, “May Bodhisattva bear witness and bless me so that I can overcome the karmic pass at the age of 29”. Is this […]
HOW DOES THE POWER OF VOWS OF A BODHISATTVA ARISE? Master Jun Hong Lu: The Bodhisattvas see the pain and suffering in this mortal world through each person who comes to Them for guidance, crying and begging. The Bodhisattvas’ power of vows arises from the sense of sadness and compassion They feel for others. Source: […]
THE POWER OF VOWS IS THE KEY TO LEARNING THE DHARMA Master Jun Hong Lu: The power of vows is the most important element when it comes to the practice of dharma. A strong power of vows can overcome any obstacle, including those of our mind; a vow is actually a type of powerful energy. […]
THE RAILWAY SWITCH-TENDER STORY: DISCIPLINE IS KEY Master Jun Hong Lu: Once, a television station in Germany organised an activity in its attempt to solicit a “10-second hair-raising shot” and was offering a handsome prize money. The footage must contain a series of terrifying moments. What can we do in 10 seconds? This is precisely […]
THE IMPORTANCE OF OBSERVING MORALITY Master Jun Hong Lu: Observing moral discipline is like having Bodhisattva on top of our head, watching over, protecting and supervising us, so that we do not dare to mess around. If you allow yourself to go crazy as and when you feel like it, or say whatever you want […]
HOW CAN WE PREVENT THE OUTFLOW OF WISDOM AND BLESSINGS? Master Jun Hong Lu: How can we prevent the outflow of our wisdom and blessings? First of all, we must observe moral discipline. What is moral discipline? Do what you should, refrain from doing what you shouldn’t. Think only what you should, stop thinking about […]
OFFERING LITTLE HOUSES AND PERFORMING MERITORIOUS DEEDS TO ELIMINATE THE KARMA OF KILLING Caller: When offering Little Houses with the aim of eliminating our karma of killing, should we address them to our karmic creditors, or write ‘<our full name> eliminates karmic obstacles’ in the recipient field? Master Jun Hong Lu: It’s best to address […]
SHOULDERING OF OTHERS’ KARMIC OBSTACLES – WHEN IS IT CONSIDERED MERITORIOUS AND WHEN IT IS NOT Caller: Hi Master, with regards to ‘shouldering of others’ karmic obstacles’, what kind of karmic obstacles that we shoulder is considered meritorious in nature? Master Jun Hong Lu: When you propagate Buddhism, you will shoulder others’ karmic obstacles, and […]
ARE THERE MERITS TO BE GAINED FROM POSTINGS OF DHARMA TEACHINGS THAT GO UNNOTICED? Caller: When one goes about sharing Master’s Words of Wisdom, do we garner any merits even for postings that go unnoticed? Master Jun Hong Lu: Yes. Bodhisattvas will note it down the moment you undertake such sharing. Source: Wenda20200209 13:43, Master […]
THE MEANING OF REPENTANCE Master Jun Hong Lu: Let me explain the two components of the word ‘repentance’ (忏悔). 忏 (chàn): to express our penitence for all our past misdeeds, which are effectively the causes of our karma; 悔 (huǐ): to be remorseful and regretful for these misdeeds, which resulted in the karmic consequences that […]
LET THE PRECEPTS BE YOUR FOUNDATION Master Jun Hong Lu: When the Buddha was about to enter nirvana, kneeling beside Him, His grief-stricken disciples implored, “Buddha, when you enter nirvana, what shall we do?” The Buddha replied, “Let the precepts be your foundation”. This goes to show that the observance of the precepts is a […]
THE PRACTICE OF MORALITY Master Jun Hong Lu: To observe the precepts is to maintain the purity of one’s body, speech and mind. To maintain such purity, we need to speak less and upkeep a body, speech and mind that is pure. A woman of few words has a dignified appearance; The same is true […]
PRAY TO BODHISATTVA TO CATEGORISE OUR MERITS INTO TWO PURPOSES – FOR KEEPING IN RESERVE AND FOR THE ELIMINATION OF KARMIC OBSTACLES Caller: Master, in one of your radio programs, you mentioned that after performing meritorious or kind deeds, we may state the following prayer to Guan Yin Bodhisattva: “May Guan Yin Bodhisattva have mercy […]
NEGLIGENT DHARMA SHARING COULD HAVE THE EFFECT OF SEVERING THE SPIRITUALITY OF ANOTHER PERSON Caller: Motivated by Master’s comment that the giving of dharma engenders immeasurable merits, many Buddhist practitioners are now going all out to disseminate all types of discourse, be it videos or radio recordings. However, they might not even take a good […]
A MOTHER WILL SURELY HEAR WHEN HER CHILD CRIES Master Jun Hong Lu: Third question: I asked Guan Yin Bodhisattva, “Many people, who were not spiritual cultivators in their past life, have this question about praying to You. They often ask, ‘When we pray to Guan Yin Bodhisattva, would She know?’ Many of those who […]
THE PRACTICE OF GIVING – ACCORD WITH CONDITIONS Caller: Is it appropriate for me to put forth a vow to the Bodhisattva that I will channel a certain percentage of my monthly income for dharma propagation which includes, cash donations, making offerings to the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha, and other virtuous deeds? Master Jun Hong […]
SHOULD WE GIVE TO THOSE BOGUS BEGGARS? Caller: I have one more question on “Compassion”. We are taught that we need to have the same compassion for all beings. Unfortunately, in this day and age, there are many fake street beggars, who just want to make a quick buck. If we give without knowing whether […]
GIVE, EVEN IF NO ONE KNOWS Master Jun Hong Lu: Once, there was a small business owner in the USA who had repeatedly failed in his quest to strike a business collaboration with the owner of a big corporation. One day, as he was walking out from another failed business pitch, he passed by a […]
AN EXPEDIENT MEAN IS ABOUT PLAYING TO ONE’S STRENGTHS WHEN PROPAGATING BUDDHISM TO OTHERS Caller: Every Bodhisattva has His own strengths in terms of dharma propagation. As for us, while practising, we apprehend the truth. In this aspect, I’d like to seek Master’s advice on whether it is appropriate to pray for Bodhisattva’s blessings on […]
TO MAKE DHARMA PROPAGATION MORE PERSUASIVE, LEARN FROM MASTER’S APPROACH OF USING EXAMPLES Caller: Master often uses examples to explain and answer questions from Buddhist practitioners. Should we also use more examples when sharing the dharma with others? This is especially relevant to questions that cannot be directly answered but can be better explained through […]
WITH A CALM MIND, EVERYTHING WILL NATURALLY GO SMOOTHLY Master Jun Hong Lu: First question: I asked Bodhisattva in my mind, “Guan Yin Bodhisattva, nowadays many people often ask me this question: Why does my prayer go unanswered?” Guan Yin Bodhisattva said, “With a calm mind, all prayers will naturally come true”. Are you able […]
GIVING WITHOUT PERCEPTION Master Jun Hong Lu: It is essential for the practice of giving not to be attached to any perception. If you become attached, you will be caught up in the scenario where you are fixated on the act of giving. Do you understand? What this means is you anticipate an reward every […]
SEVEN TYPES OF GIVING IN BUDDHISM THAT DON’T COST MONEY A man once went to the Buddha and cried, “I am such a loser; I fail in everything I do”. The Buddha told him, “That’s because you didn’t practise giving”. This person said, “Buddha, I am a poor man. How am I supposed to practise […]
WHAT YOU GIVE IS WHAT YOU GET Master Jun Hong Lu: Once, there lived two brothers. One of them focused on reciting Buddhist scriptures and he did it diligently, but he never performed any kind deeds nor practised the perfection of giving to cultivate good fortune. The other brother, on the other hand, was fond […]