A VIRTUOUS CYCLE IS SET IN MOTION WHEN ONE IS FILLED WITH ENERGY AND VITALITY Caller: Master, if a spiritual cultivator is full of vitality and he feels very energetic all the time, how can he convert this energy to benefit his spiritual endeavour? Master Jun Hong Lu: In fact, if he is full of […]
STAY DILIGENT IN YOUR BUDDHIST PRACTICE TO KEEP IGNORANCE AND BEWILDERMENT AT BAY Master Jun Hong Lu: Let me share a fable with you. Once upon a time, a horse and a donkey came to know that Buddhist monk Tang Sanzang would be travelling to the West to retrieve the Buddhist scriptures. Reasoning that it […]
EFFECTIVE METHODS FOR SUSTAINING INITIAL ASPIRATION Master Jun Hong Lu: To avoid falling into a state of slackness, it’s best to maintain your initial aspiration. This means reflecting on the reason that thrusted you into the dharma gate, and reminiscing about the blessings bestowed by Bodhisattva. The abundance of inspiration, peace, safety and happiness that […]
WILLINGNESS TO BE AT A DISADVANTAGE AND ENDURING HARDSHIPS ARE WAYS TO ELIMINATE KARMIC OBSTACLES Caller: Master Lu often advises us to learn to endure hardships and always be willing to take the shorter end of the stick. In this present life, if we suffer from humiliations and are on the losing end, does it […]
BODHISATTVAS FEAR CAUSES, WHILE SENTIENT BEINGS FEAR EFFECTS Master Jun Hong Lu: There was a quack doctor who misdiagnosed and caused someone’s son to die. To make up for his mistake, he gave his son away to be adopted by this family. After some time, he caused someone’s female servant to die. To compensate, the […]
LETTING GO IS ABOUT TRANSFORMING WORLDLY AFFECTION INTO THE LOVING-KINDNESS OF THE BUDDHA Question: How can we truly apply the truth of letting go in our daily life? How do we go about showing filial respect to our parents, and taking care of our children, and yet still able to let go of them in […]
THE FOUNDATION FOR OFFERING EFFECTIVE PRAYERS TO BODHISATTVA IS COMPRISED OF THREE FACTORS Master Jun Hong Lu: Number 1: Karma from previous lives. Number 2: The level of your cultivation in the present life. No matter how admirable a person’s cultivation was in his or her past lives, if they only do bad things and […]
ALWAYS KEEP YOUR INITIAL ASPIRATION CLOSE TO YOUR HEART Question: Master, how do we resolve a mental state that oscillates between being tensed up and relaxed that we experience while performing recitation or mind cultivation? For example, under intense pressure, we can recite up to seven or eight Little Houses a day, but we may […]
AVOID COMMITTING NEGATIVE KARMA OF SPEECH IN DHARMA PROPAGATION THROUGH CONTEMPLATING ON CAUSES AND CONDITIONS Caller: Sometimes when performing totem reading for Buddhist friends, Master detected tell-tale signs that they have inadvertently committed negative karma of speech in their effort to propagate Buddhism. It’d be great if Master could give some examples of cases to […]
DO NOT POST MESSAGES RELATED TO FUNDRAISING IN GROUP CHATS Question: There are some Buddhist friends who are not from the dharma-propagation group but are very eager to support the dharma-propagation drive. Unfortunately, in the absence of a local practice centre, the dharma-propagation group is unable to accept any donations whatsoever, even though such funds […]
IS BEING ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT CHARITABLE CAUSES A WAY TO ACCUMULATE PROVISIONS NEEDED ON THE PATH OF SPIRITUAL CULTIVATION? Question: Hi Master, Buddhism in Plain Terms says, “There are endless streams of good deeds that one can undertake, and having a benevolent heart is equivalent to performing all the good deeds there is”. On that note, […]
THE ORIGINAL ASPIRATION IS ABOUT BEING GRATEFUL TOWARDS SENTIENT BEINGS FOR THEIR PRESENCE IN OUR LIVES Master Jun Hong Lu: We must always cultivate a sense of gratitude, which will help us maintain a calm and peaceful mind. As Buddhist practitioners, we should never forget our original aspiration, which is to be grateful towards sentient […]
THOSE WHO PERFORM RECITATION SHOULD BE CAREFUL IN THEIR SPEECH TO PREVENT ‘OUTFLOWS’ Caller: I have been practising Guan Yin Citta for over a year now after being introduced to it by my daughter. Master, can you point out my faults? Master Jun Hong Lu: You don’t know about your own faults? You should refrain […]
BE AWARE OF THE KARMA YOU ARE CREATING Master Jun Hong Lu: One night a man had a dream. In the dream the God of the Earth said to him, “I need you to help me build a wall with that family next door. This is because the man in that family was very virtuous […]
PRAYER IS NOT ANSWERED BECAUSE THE KARMIC CONDITIONS HAVE NOT MATURED Master Jun Hong Lu: We must educate our Buddhist friends that when karmic conditions ripen, the fruit of karma will certainly take effect. When the karmic conditions of your prayer to the Buddha ripen today, your karmic result will come into being. If the […]
INITIAL ASPIRATION IS THE STATE OF PERFECT AND SUPREME ENLIGHTENMENT Master Jun Hong Lu: According to Buddhist scripture, a perfect and supreme enlightenment is attained when your initial aspiration is conceived. Think about it, your initial aspiration is your innate nature. The moment you embark on your spiritual cultivation journey, the luminous mind of the […]
WHAT LEADS US TO DO BAD DEEDS? Caller: Master, you’ve mentioned before that when a person did something inappropriate or against the moral principles, say, at a certain time in his previous life, his inner demon will surface and reside in his consciousness. This explains why the person will keep thinking about the said matter. […]
THE INITIAL INSPIRATION IS THE CATALYST FOR DILIGENCE IN BUDDHIST PRACTICE Master Jun Hong Lu: Be diligent, and the basis for diligence is to stay true to your initial inspiration. Anyone who is holding on to his initial aspiration will be diligent. How did you start learning Buddhism? It was when you were experiencing great […]
WHAT IS DOUBLE-TONGUED SPEECH? Master Jun Hong Lu: There will be no arguments or misunderstandings whatsoever if everyone refrains from committing double-tongued speech. What is double-tongued speech? It is essentially sowing discord between people, stirring up conflicts. This is something you should refrain from. A person who observes this discipline is one who cultivates virtuous […]
THE GIVING OF DHARMA IS A HEAVENLY MISSION Master Jun Hong Lu: Sharing of the Buddha’s teachings, or the giving of dharma is a heavenly mission that can be performed anytime and anywhere. It is an integral part of Mahayana Buddhism, and hence, you are doing a bad deed if you deter others from performing […]
A RIGHTEOUS, LOUD AND CLEAR VOICE CAN CHANGE YOUR DESTINY Caller: Master, is there any significance to a person’s voice? Master Jun Hong Lu: Your voice foretells your life. Many people have weird voices, and their life is unpleasant. Caller: So, we should project a loud and clear voice so that we can alter our […]
SPREADING POSITIVE WORDS OR ENCOURAGING OTHERS TO PRACTISE KINDNESS IS CONSIDERED HELPING OTHERS TO BE AWAKENED SPIRITUALLY Question: If we blend in those positive words of Master Lu in our conversation with friends, without intentionally mentioning the dharma element, is this also considered one way to help others to be awakened spiritually? Answer: Of course! […]
ONE WHO ALWAYS PRAYS FOR SENTIENT BEINGS WILL HAVE HIS PRAYER FULFILLED Master Jun Hong Lu: If someone’s prayer is always answered, this is because he is praying for sentient beings rather than for himself. An awakened person understands, when the wellbeing of sentient beings is taken care of, things will certainly go well for […]
WHAT IS CONSIDERED A NEGATIVE KARMA OF SPEECH? FALSE SPEECH Master Jun Hong Lu: Not telling lies means being honest in one’s words with no intent to deceive others. This is called sheer honesty without deception. Think about this: If you are truthful in conducting your speech, you are someone of noble character. The wise […]
TALKING BEHIND OTHERS’ BACKS IS A SERIOUS KARMA OF SPEECH Caller: Master, you mentioned, “One is halfway to achieving Buddhahood when he is able to guard against creating the karma of speech”. May I ask if the karma of speech includes talking behind others’ backs? Master Jun Hong Lu: That’s for sure. Caller: So, it […]
DEALING WITH OFFICE GOSSIPS Question: If I do not wish to partake in my office gossip, can I just say, “I’m sorry, I need to excuse myself as I need to attend to something”? By making claims like having ‘something to attend to’ when I have none, is it considered telling a lie? Answer: Do […]
CULTIVATE ALTRUISM TO OVERCOME GREED Master Jun Hong Lu: Nowadays, people tune out when you try to give them advice. They are only concerned about their most-immediate vested interest and end up forsaking spiritual purification. It is very important to be far-sighted. When people seek the Buddha’s blessings for those vested interests, they are essentially […]
TACTFUL SPEECH LEADS TO LESS CREATION OF KARMA Caller: Hi Master, you once mentioned, “A person who is tactful in his speech will be less likely to create negative karma or suffer from retribution”. Does it mean that being tactful reduces the chances of creating negative karma? Master Jun Hong Lu: Being tactful with words […]
THE GIVING OF DHARMA BY THE BUDDHAS AND BODHISATTVAS Master Jun Hong Lu: The Giving of Dharma by the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Do you have any idea what it is? That is for everyone to learn Buddhism and cultivate spiritually, so that all sentient beings in the world can reap the greatest benefit of it. […]
LISTEN TWICE AS MUCH AS YOU SPEAK Master Jun Hong Lu: One’s ability to argue is not necessarily what is most valuable. After all, we have two ears and one mouth so that we should listen twice as much as we speak. A true mind-cultivator is one who is adept at attentive listening and appreciates […]
