PAIN STEMS FROM OUR UNWILLINGNESS TO FACE REALITY Master Jun Hong Lu: One of the humans’ greatest pains is living with regret. We should never regret things that have happened. After all, it is said in the Buddhist scriptures that even the Buddha cannot change the past. The Buddha will accept whatever happens and He […]
DEBUNK THE MYTH OF DILIGENCE: IT IS NOT ABOUT TRYING HARD Master Jun Hong Lu: If you are diligent in your spiritual cultivation, you will immediately correct any shortcomings pointed out to you – this is what being “diligent” is about. However, this explanation is not what you would usually hear from other venerables, whereby, […]
FEAR NOT ABOUT KARMIC PASS; THE KEY LIES IN TRANSFORMING ONESELF Question: Some new Buddhist practitioners fret over metaphysics concepts such as foreign spirits, the predestined karmic pass at the age ending 3, 6 or 9, zodiac year of birth and karmic grievances. In fear of imminent calamities befalling them, every now and then, they […]
WHEN ENTANGLED IN A MESS DURING THE ‘3, 6, 9 PREDESTINED CALAMITIES’ PERIOD, HOW SHOULD WE FINE-TUNE OUR DAILY RECITATION? Question: Some Buddhist practitioners notice that during their zodiac year of birth (Ben Ming Nian in Chinese) or the ‘3, 6, 9 predestined calamities’ period, for some reason, they will find themselves stuck in a […]
SUCCESS COMES TO THOSE WHO ENDURE HARDSHIPS Master Jun Hong Lu: Once, up in a mountain, there were two identical-looking stones which experienced very different endings after a few years. One of them was carved into a Buddha statue and was regarded with veneration by many; while the other was made into a stone step […]
LESSONS FROM TWO BUSINESS MINDS: TURNING WEAKNESSES INTO STRENGTHS Master Jun Hong Lu: Two bosses were eagerly exchanging insights about managing their businesses when they met. One of them grumbled, “I simply can’t tolerate incompetent employees. I currently have three such useless individuals in my company, and I’m planning to fire them in a few […]
WHEN YOU LOVE SENTIENT BEINGS AS GUAN YIN BODHISATTVA WOULD, IT WILL NEVER GO UNNOTICED Master Jun Hong Lu: During the era of Northern Zhou dynasty, there was a monk named Shi Chan who lived in the capital city. He was a monk with high moral standing and supernatural powers. One afternoon, out of the […]
WHERE WEEDS ARE OVERGROWN, NO FRUIT GROWS Master Jun Hong Lu: Fourth question. Don’t get too anxious. So brilliant are the words of Bodhisattva. My question to Guan Yin Bodhisattva was, “Guan Yin Bodhisattva, while many people are able to accrue meritorious blessings, there are others who, despite having performed many good deeds, don’t seem […]
MYRIADS OF ILLNESSES STEM FROM A MIND THAT IS DEFILED Master Jun Hong Lu: Second question: I said to Bodhisattva, “Guan Yin Bodhisattva, nowadays people are plagued with illnesses, and what’s more, many of these illnesses are medically unknown. As I go about helping sentient beings daily, the stack of phone recordings is filled with […]
PATIENCE ENDURANCE: A PREREQUISITE TO ATTAIN A HIGHER SPIRITUAL STATE Master Jun Hong Lu: Spiritual cultivation requires a great degree of patience. There would be no accomplishment without patience. A calm person is a patient person. Without patience, one is not able to advance to a higher spiritual state. Patience is like a ladder that […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
GIVING IS THE KEY TO WEALTH Master Jun Hong Lu: After learning about the karma of giving, a man eagerly told the Zen Master, “When I strike it rich in the future, I will definitely cultivate generosity and make a career out of helping others”. The Zen master answered, “If you are only willing to […]
WHAT IS THE OTHER SHORE? Master Jun Hong Lu: What is the other shore? It is the other side of a pure and untainted world. From the perspective of Mahayana Buddhism, “the other shore” means to be awakened to the truth where there is purity of mind and when one discovers an eternal balanced spiritual […]
EMBRACE THE FLOW OF LIFE Master Jun Hong Lu: When giving advice to others to cultivate their mind, it’s important not to reprimand them. This is because the reflection of human wisdom is not limited to a specific aspect. In this world, not every seed can grow into a mighty tree, not every flower can […]
DIRE CONSEQUENCES AWAIT THOSE WHO SLANDER A DHARMA DOOR THAT IS CAPABLE OF ENLIGHTENING SENTIENT BEINGS Those who have yet to realise the path of the Bodhisattva or have yet to be enlightened, if they were to slander any dharma doors that have helped enlighten others, innumerable karmic calamities will befall them, besides having to […]
THREE WAYS TO AVOID BEING ANGRY Master Jun Hong Lu: When someone in your family is angry, the first thing you should do is to stay away. But for many people, their first reaction is to put themselves on a collision course with their spouse, only to be embroiled in a heated exchange. In fact, […]
ALWAYS LEAVE ROOM FOR MANOEUVRE IN OUR INTERACTION WITH PEOPLE Master Jun Hong Lu: Anish Kapoor, a contemporary British sculptor, became famous overnight with his sculpture “Descent into Limbo”. One day, a reporter from the famous British newspaper The Sunday Times interviewed him. The reporter, who was a sculpture amateur, was eager to find out […]
THE MIND IS THE ROOT OF ALL INTERNAL DISORDERS Master Jun Hong Lu: There is another type of ailment that we humans suffer from and that is, internal disorder. We are highly vulnerable emotionally, either due to the lack of understanding from others or our lack of understanding towards others. All of these are capable […]
GREED BRINGS OUT THE WORST IN A PERSON Master Jun Hong Lu: During the era of Xia Dynasty, there lived a famous archer. His name was Hou Yi. Being the best archer in all of the lands, his fame spread far and wide. One day, the king invited him to the palace to showcase his […]
KARMA OF SPEECH: THE FOUR TYPES OF SPEECH WE SHOULD ABSTAIN FROM Master Jun Hong Lu: There are four types of speech we should abstain from because it will help prevent missteps in life. You must be aware that there are four types of unwholesome speech and be very careful so that you avoid committing […]
HOW BIG CAN THE HEART OF A MAN BE? Master Jun Hong Lu: In the mountains, there was a small temple, inhabited only by a Zen master and his young novice monk. One day, the novice monk asked the Zen master, “Master, you always say that circumstances arise from the mind and that everything is […]
HOW SHOULD WE MAINTAIN PROPER DISTANCE WITH BUDDHIST FRIENDS WHOM WE INTRODUCE BUDDHISM TO? Question: A Buddhist friend has been practising Guan Yin Citta for many years and has propagated the dharma to a few others. To strengthen the faith of new practitioners, this Buddhist friend has always closely followed up with them. However, after […]
GREED: THE ROOT OF UNHAPPINESS Master Jun Hong Lu: In truth, all the happiness in this world stems from worldly desires. The pleasure of eating stems from our desire to consume food, the pleasure of wealth and fame stems from our greed, our quest for physical intimacy stems from our sexual desire, the pleasure derived […]
COMPASSION CAN SHIELD ONE FROM HARM Master Jun Hong Lu: Let me tell you that in the 21st century, you can bank on compassion to help you ward off calamities, dispel troubles, eliminate vexations, and defuse conflicts. With a heart of compassion, no major calamities whatsoever will befall you. Conversely, if you lack a compassionate […]
