WHAT IS A GREAT VOW? WHAT IS CONSIDERED HELPING OTHERS TO BE SPIRITUALLY AWAKENED? Caller: What is considered a great vow for lay practitioners like us who practise Buddhism at home? Master Jun Hong Lu: For example, a vow to print Buddhist books, or “I want more people to get to know this dharma door, […]
ONLY SINCERE AND THOROUGH REPENTANCE CAN PREVENT ONE FROM REPEATING HIS MISTAKES Caller: Master, why is it that people ‘forget the pain where gain follows’? How can we remember this pain and never commit the same mistake again? Master Jun Hong Lu: Humans are an entity of desires. In fact, the human body shares a […]
WHAT KIND OF SPEECH KARMA WOULD RESULT IN FALLEN LOTUS PEDESTALS IN HEAVEN? Caller: Hi Master, in some totem programs, you caution about the dire conditions of the lotus pedestals of Buddhist practitioners, who have committed negative karma of speech. In some cases, their lotus pedestals have fallen from heaven. Under what circumstances would negative […]
IS FORWARDING ALERT ON DECEPTIVE SCHEMES CONSIDERED AN ACTION THAT INTERVENES WITH THE WORKINGS OF KARMA? Caller: It’s common to observe an online social norm where people disseminate information to forewarn others of deceptive schemes, etc. For example, information cautioning people against scams or child abductions. We do pass on such information to those around […]
EVEN BODHISATTVAS DO NOT INTERVENE WITH THE LAW OF CAUSE AND EFFECT Caller: I heard of a saying, ‘Even Bodhisattvas do not intervene with the law of cause and effect’. I used to think that those who suffer from cancer or other terminal illnesses must have sown the evil seeds that have come to fruition […]
LET GO OF WORLDLY PHENOMENA AND LIVE IN EASE Master Jun Hong Lu: Think about it, just how many things we have given up since we were little. The minute we let go, we feel at ease. Whenever we say, “I don’t want it anymore”, our heart just settles. If we still think about those […]
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN BUDDHIST PRACTICE AND THE LAW OF KARMA Caller: Is it right to say that everything in the human realm will change accordingly when we practise Buddhism? As long as we are diligent in our practice, we will definitely have good karma come our way. Assuming we are not fated to get married […]
HOW POSITIVE ENERGY DERIVED FROM ONE’S EFFORT IN SPIRITUAL CULTIVATION AND RECITATION COMES ABOUT? Caller: The increase in positive energy that Buddhist practitioners experience through spiritual cultivation and chanting are brought about by the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas or from within themselves? Master Jun Hong Lu: If you give some thoughts to this question, you will […]
THE BEGINNER’S MIND IS ABOUT BEING GRATEFUL TOWARDS SENTIENT BEINGS FOR BEING PRESENT 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 beginner’s mind, which is to be grateful towards sentient […]
KARMA FOR SOWING DISCORD – A LONELY LIFE Caller: You mentioned before that if a person commits extensive acts of killing in his past lives, he would suffer the retribution of having a short lifespan in this lifetime. Some people seem fated to be lonely, having no one to rely on in this life. May […]
MYTH OR TRUTH?: THE MORE YOU DO, THE MORE MISTAKES YOU MAKE; THE LESS YOU DO, THE LESS YOU ERR? Master Jun Hong Lu: I am being very honest with you here. Do no evil because even if you are unable to make it to heaven when you die, at the least you can reincarnate […]
DOES CEASING OF THOUGHTS LEAD TO CEASING OF KARMA? Question: When a person ceases to have any thoughts, karma shall cease too. Is this true? Answer: Can it even be stopped? This is the foundation of a theory. What does it mean to cease one’s thought? It is about being down to earth and going […]
HOW DO DHARMA PROTECTORS RECORD OUR DAILY GOOD AND EVIL DEEDS? Caller: Master once shared that regardless of what we do in the human realm, heaven and the underworld will know about it. All these deeds will also be recorded by the Dharma Protectors. Just out of curiosity, there are six billion people on earth, […]
WHY SHOULD I LET GO? ATTACHMENT CAN ONLY DO YOU HARM Master Jun Hong Lu: Everyone comes to this world with his own destiny. Similarly, each and everyone of us is endowed with varied karmic rewards in life. One thing for sure, whatever you cling on to will be the thing that will cause you […]
HOW DO WE ENHANCE OUR POSITIVE AFFINITY WITH GUAN YIN BODHISATTVA? Caller: Hi Master, is it true that the deeper our positive affinity with Guan Yin Bodhisattva, the more blessings we will gain and the easier it is for us to make it in our spiritual cultivation? Master Jun Hong Lu: That’s for sure. Even […]
STAY TRUE TO YOUR INITIAL ASPIRATION Master Jun Hong Lu: You must strengthen your power of vows to protect the impetus that propelled you to make those initial resolutions. What does strengthening your power of vows mean? It means to regularly recollect the time when you gave rise to your initial resolve. At the early […]
THE SEVERITY OF NEGATIVE KARMA OF SPEECH DETERMINES THE PART OF THE BODY THAT SUFFERS FROM ITS RETRIBUTIVE EFFECT Caller: With regards to the karmic ramifications from negative karma of speech, different people suffer from different diseases ranging from oral, lungs, kidneys and lower back. Why is that so? Master Jun Hong Lu: It’s very […]
IS IT POSSIBLE TO ELIMINATE KARMIC OBSTACLES FROM THE EIGHTH CONSCIOUSNESS? Caller: When reciting the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance (LIFO) and praying to Bodhisattva to prioritise the elimination of karmic obstacles in our eighth consciousness, would it make it easier for us to eliminate karmic obstacles related to our bad habits and at the same […]
TO UTILISE MERITS TO ELIMINATE KARMIC OBSTACLES, ONE NEEDS TO MAKE THE PRAYER REQUEST TO BODHISATTVA Caller: Master Lu often says that to eliminate our karmic obstacles, we need to have merits. Given that the recitation of the Buddhist scriptures is one type of meritorious deed, so when we recite the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance […]
YOU WILL NOT MAKE IT IN YOUR BUDDHIST PRACTICE IF YOU STILL HARBOUR HATRED Master Jun Hong Lu: As a Buddhist practitioner, if you still have hatred in your heart, you will tend to enjoy scolding others. And, with this disposition, do you think you will make it in your Buddhist practice? In fact, it […]
WHO HAS THE FINAL SAY OVER YOUR DESTINY Master Jun Hong Lu: When we perform recitation of Buddhist scriptures and pay respect to Bodhisattvas, it does not mean that they will result in Bodhisattvas helping us remove our karmic obstacles. In fact, performing recitation and paying respect to Bodhisattvas are acts that are in themselves […]
ONLY MERITS AND VIRTUES HAVE THE POWER TO OFFSET KARMIC OBSTACLES Master Jun Hong Lu; There are only two ways karmic obstacles are transformed – either they are offset or break out in the form of foreign spirits. While the latter can be an effect of one’s ‘transformed’ karmic obstacles, it can also be due […]
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 […]
HOW DOES NEGATIVE KARMA OF SPEECH AFFECT ONE’S BODY? A discourse by Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva (Di Zang Wang Pu Sa) Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva: “A person who commits serious negative karma of speech may be born with a stutter or has problems swallowing food. These are the karmic ramifications related to this transgression and punishment is definite. One […]
CONSTANT PERFORMANCE OF GOOD DEEDS AND THE RECITATION OF THE EIGHTY-EIGHT BUDDHAS GREAT REPENTANCE (LIFO) WILL EXTEND THE TIME IT TAKES FOR NEGATIVE KARMA TO COME TO FRUITION Caller: We often hear Master narrate stories of the Lord Buddha about the law of causation, featuring this phrase, ‘May all my evil deeds not come to […]
ONE LAMP DISPELS THE DARKNESS OF A THOUSAND YEARS Master Jun Hong Lu: “One lamp dispels the darkness of a thousand years.” The ignorance within our minds is indeed like a room that remains dark for a thousand years. However, with a single lamp, everything can be illuminated. In Andersen’s Fairy Tales, there’s a story […]
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 […]
Life is impermanent, so learn to harmonise with conditions. Let go of all affinities and you will be free from suffering while attaining happiness. 人生无常，一切随缘。放下万缘，离苦得乐。 – Master Jun Hong Lu, Words of Wisdom Volume 9
