The Ultimate Compassion: An Interview with Venerable Master Guang Qin

This is a record of an interview with the spirit of Venerable Master Guang Qin, who sought Chao Du at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Australia. He now resides in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. This account reflects upon his observations of the Dharma assembly and the state of modern practice. It was recorded by the chief writer, Shi Hailiang, on February 10, 2021.

Venerable Master Guang Qin speaks:

"Namo Amituofo. Life is much like a play, and every role we perform is unique. As the saying goes, 'Coming and going, there is nothing; yet in all this coming and going, everything is happening.' Who is who? I am I, and you are you; it has nothing to do with anyone else. True practice is not something that can be forced; it is something one must seek with all one's heart.

The Blessing of Practice

Who in this world has the tremendous blessing to truly practise? Most people find that earning enough money to feed their families is already a struggle—where would they find the time to study the Buddha’s teachings? Every one of you sitting here listening to the Dharma is a person of great blessing. You must cherish this opportunity. Do not be ignorant of its value, and do not be afraid of hardship!

Are you afraid of hardship? I have a suggestion: go and carry stones. They do not need to be heavy—just three kilograms each. Carry them while walking back and forth, rest for ten minutes every hour, and you will soon understand what true hardship is. You do not need to do it for long; five hours is enough. Ordinary people work eight hours a day; let them carry stones for five hours, just for one week, and they will understand the difference between worldly work and spiritual practice. The point is, if you carry stones for too long, your hands will ache, your back will hurt, and eventually, you will fall ill in your old age. That is the standard for those without a spouse. For those who are married, because you must earn money to support a family, you must double that effort. If others carry stones for five hours, you must carry them for ten. Now, do you understand how difficult it is to be a human? Especially for those who are attached to romance—because pursuing love requires endurance, you must double it again. To build that endurance, you would have to carry stones for fifteen hours a day. Let us see if you have the strength for that.

The Modern Path and the True Teacher

From the moment a person is born, there are many tasks waiting for them. It depends on which industry you choose. Some hold pens, some hold hoes, and some use the 'one-finger divine skill' to play on the internet. In the past, we had the four classes: scholars, farmers, workers, and merchants. Today, we have added a new industry: the internet. Those who come here to practise are truly the most blessed of all. What makes this place unique is that you can communicate with Namo Amituofo. The monastics here can receive messages from the Buddha, interview the ancestral masters, and follow the son of Adan—Practitioner Su—to listen to his Dharma talks and learn the Buddha’s path. He is a true Westerner, a person of genuine attainment who knows exactly how to point out your shortcomings. His 'Lion’s Roar' is meant to help you achieve success. Those who listen and know how to change their ways will be saved.

I have come forward to speak today to save Taiwan. I heard that my disciple, Shi Chuanwen, has caused chaos in the bodhimanda, leading people to misunderstand the Buddha’s teachings as being purely about supernatural powers. To save the devotees in Southern Taiwan, I must clarify this: studying the Buddha’s teachings must not be based on superstition. A single 'Namo Amituofo' is enough, but your heart must be good and kind. If you chant the Buddha’s name softly but curse others fiercely, that is not studying the Buddha’s teachings. In short, the way we speak to one another must be gentle to avoid conflict. Chanting must reach the depths of your heart. That 'depth' means that at any time—while working, dressing, or eating—you think of the Buddha. Even when you are angry, you think of the Buddha. As the saying goes, 'lower your fire and calm down.' Chanting the Buddha’s name will settle your heart so you do not get angry. When you chant, you should be like the Buddha: look at others with compassion, seeing only their goodness and not their faults. If you see something bad, repent immediately and think of Namo Amituofo, saying, 'Disciple was wrong, I will change immediately!' If you do not change your personality, chanting is merely empty words on your lips; it will have no effect. We must change our personality and our character; only then will there be a response.

True Dharma vs. False Dharma

Let us discuss what is the True Dharma and what is false. It is very simple: if it teaches people to chant the Buddha’s name, to not fall ill, to not have wild delusions, and to not give rise to afflictions, that is true chanting. One will be at ease even in life and death. If you counsel others to chant and change their personality, their faces will naturally glow with radiance.

What is false Dharma? It is when you chant the Buddha’s name, but your thoughts are only of yourself and your family. It is when you chant either to seek wealth, health, or longevity, or to bring good luck to your family. This is chanting with attachment. For beginners, this is understandable because they do not yet know better. But if you chant with such attachments, the more you chant, the more painful you will become, because the suffering of not getting what you want will eventually lead you to blame Namo Amituofo. Those who chant without seeking anything will, the more they chant, come to understand the Buddha’s compassion and the Buddha’s mind-capacity. They will then know how to change themselves and follow the Buddha’s conduct.

The Buddha exists to save sentient beings from suffering and to help them gain happiness; the Buddha exists to ensure that beings no longer reincarnate in samsara. Therefore, when you understand this intention of the Buddha, your desire to study the Buddha’s teachings is already an act of saving the world, because you are no longer attached to the self. To have the heart to save sentient beings, you must begin by letting go of your own selfishness. Every time you chant the Buddha’s name, you should wish to achieve spiritual success and have the ability to benefit both yourself and others. This is the correct way to study the Buddha’s teachings. The Buddha is not to be worshipped through superstition; rather, you must truly change your own heart and character. Only then are you a true disciple of the Buddha.

The Illusion of Practice

Most people who chant hold prayer beads, pushing them with their fingers and reciting the name with their mouths, while their minds are filled with delusions. This is not true chanting. Some people chant tens of thousands of times a day, but their personality has not changed in the slightest. As soon as they put down their prayer beads, all their bad habits flare up. Everyone chants to go to the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss and to become a Buddha, but I must ask you: 'What are you going to the West to do?' They will tell you they want to become a Buddha. Yet, they do not understand what a Buddha is. You chant to settle your own heart, but you cannot let go of your attachments. How do you expect to go to the West?

Once, a disciple came to me and said, 'Master, I also want to change my attachments. How do I do it?' I said nothing. He asked again, 'Master! I want to change my attachments, how do I do it?' I still said nothing. When I was giving a Dharma talk to the public, with many people present, I brought him up and spoke about where he was lacking and what he was doing wrong. I spoke until he could not bear it anymore, and his face changed colour. During the break, he came to find me, but I still said nothing. During the next session, I scolded him again, pointing out his faults. This time, I was even more severe, accusing him of things he had not done. The more I spoke, the less he could take it. When the talk ended, he came to me and said, 'Master! What have I done wrong? Why do you keep scolding me and pointing out my faults? What did I do?' I said to him gently, 'Did you not ask me to help you change your attachments? Did you not ask me to teach you how to let go of them?' The disciple suddenly had an 'Aha!' moment. He knelt down and said, 'Master, I am sorry! I misunderstood you. I could not understand why you kept scolding me, and I felt so wronged! I will change properly.' I then spoke: 'Scolding you does not take anything away from you. So, who is that "I" you are so attached to? Where did it go just now? Who have you been chanting to all this time?' The Dharma has no fixed form. The disciple kowtowed and said, 'Thank you, Master, for your teachings.'

The Responsibility of the Monastic

Many people know that those who chant want to become Buddhas, but why is it that so many who chant do not become Buddhas? We rarely hear of anyone attaining Buddhahood through chanting because they do not know how to become a Buddha. It is not something you can achieve just by chanting with your mouth. You must act. Act as what? Act as a Buddha. What does a Buddha do? You must do everything that a Buddha does. The Buddha’s compassion, the compassion towards others, the Buddha’s mind-capacity—to save all immeasurable suffering beings—there is no one the Buddha dislikes, no one the Buddha finds annoying. Everyone is a Buddha. Every single being is a Buddha. So, are you polite and respectful to these Buddhas, or are you angry and calculating? You must see this clearly! Those who study the Buddha’s teachings must walk step by step. Do not end up in a state where monastics do not look like monastics and lay practitioners do not look like lay practitioners. That is chaos. You must understand the rules.

It is a pity that young people today have it too easy. They eat well and live comfortably. Everyone is a worldly person who has never suffered; they cannot handle the slightest setback. If they do not get enough sleep, they cannot endure it. Nowadays, fewer and fewer people want to become monastics. In ancient times, one had to be vetted by officials or the Emperor to become a monastic. Even the Emperor would show respect to monastics. Today, some monastics hold alms bowls, wear monastic robes, and stand at the entrance of vegetable markets to beg. They chant only when they receive a hundred dollars; if someone gives five or ten dollars, their chanting becomes quieter. If they do not go to hell, who will? Their masters will also go to hell for not teaching them properly. That is why many monastics are starting to refuse to take disciples; they do not want to bear the burden of their disciples' sins.

The Truth About My Disciple

People call me the 'Fruit Master.' I like to speak here because the son of Adan—Practitioner Su—explains the Dharma so well, and he has been a benefactor to me by saving my disciple, Chuanwen. *Sighs.* Because of him, a Miaotong Temple was built in Liugui, Kaohsiung, using my name to build the temple and worship the Vairocana Buddha and Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva. Devotees believed he had supernatural powers and were obsessed with him. If it were not for the fact that he died and went to hell, and out of consideration for our master-disciple relationship, Practitioner Su’s compassion saved him, I would not want to admit that I had such a disciple. In the past, he was my attendant, following me everywhere. Who would have known that after I passed away, his practice would go so astray? Among fellow disciples, we did not want to hurt each other's feelings. There is the Cheng Tian Chan Temple in Tucheng in the north, and the Miaotong Temple in the south; that was considered a branch, which was fine. But who knew that human greed is insatiable? Temples were built one after another, getting bigger and bigger, and more and more money was taken from the offerings of lay practitioners! In short, my disciple used my name—the 'Fruit Master'—and I do not know how many people were misled and donated large sums of money. In the end, my disciple, Shi Chuanwen, went to hell and begged me to save him. I was truly humiliated. It was Practitioner Su who saved him, pulling him out of hell. At least he finally repented. People in the world do not know that building a bodhimanda is not a simple matter. Building and managing a bodhimanda is not easy; there are many tests. Sometimes demons come to test you. If you are not careful and go astray, you will have to suffer retribution in hell.

The Extraordinary Work of Practitioner Su

At first, I could not believe my disciple would do such things. Gradually, I discovered that what the Buddha’s teachings in this age of the Dharma’s decline lack is someone like Practitioner Su—someone who is upright in conduct, keeps the precepts, follows the Truth of the universe, helps others awaken, and saves more sentient beings. Every time there is a Dharma assembly at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Australia, I admire Practitioner Su even more. It is for good reason that the spiritual realms now call him 'Buddha Su.' Those of us who have gone to the Western Land, including the ancestral masters, are all chanting with Practitioner Su, because he has attained true skill and possesses the Dharma Body. His chanting has countless manifestations, just like the Buddha. His Dharma-Body Visualisation Deliverance is immeasurable and boundless. Whether it is going up to the mountains or down to the seas, descending into hell, or going to the twenty-eight heavens, it is all effortless for him. We who chant did not know before that chanting could lead to the attainment of the Dharma Body, but Practitioner Su has it. His countless Dharma-Body manifestations are all for the purpose of saving and helping sentient beings. Naturally, he receives the Buddha’s empowerment because his mind-capacity is as immeasurable and boundless as the Buddha’s. Therefore, the Buddha’s empowerment is also immeasurable and boundless. The beings he saves—from the physical world, the hells, the hungry ghosts, the animal realm, the crawling and flying creatures, the demon realm, the asura realm, to the Four Sacred Realms of Sravakas, Pratyekabuddhas, Bodhisattvas, and the Buddha realm—every realm is the object of his deliverance. Even the planets outside the Milky Way and the sentient beings in the Dharma realm of emptiness, every second, in every different space, are the objects of his deliverance. It is endless.

Currently, the most active work is saving the world from the pandemic, because the pandemic has caused anxiety in people's hearts and many have died, leading to global flight restrictions and the tilting of the Earth due to human selfishness. Practitioner Su is working hard. Every day, he chants, performs Dharma-Body Visualisation Deliverance, and leads the ancestral masters, cosmic Bodhisattvas, galactic Bodhisattvas, and new Buddha-disciples to continuously orbit the Earth while chanting. He aims to awaken the goodness in everyone’s heart and purify every person’s mind, hoping to guide the Earth back to its proper path so that everyone can return to a normal life as soon as possible. I see that Practitioner Su uses his physical body to bear the suffering of sentient beings, putting his own life aside. He has long since become a Buddha.

He has performed deliverance in every province of mainland China, with his Dharma Body present in major cities like Beijing and Nanjing. He has also performed deliverance in Japan, with his Dharma Body in every corner of Tokyo, Osaka, and Hokkaido. In Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Australia, he uses his Dharma Body to visualise countless manifestations to perform deliverance, all at the same time in an instant. In Taiwan, he has performed deliverance for the demon crowds trapped under the large rocks in Tianxiang and Taroko Gorge in Hualien, as well as all the major rivers and mountains from the south to the north of Taiwan. Naturally, in every country, every province, and every mountain and forest, Practitioner Su’s Dharma Body is chanting and performing deliverance.

Participating in every Dharma assembly, everyone praises the son of Adan, saying he is truly excellent and truly compassionate to the extreme! I keep chanting, seeing Practitioner Su helping so many people. To correct the Earth, the greatest compassion is that we continue to orbit the Earth twenty-four hours a day, chanting continuously, all to help save sentient beings.

When a person achieves success, there is always a price to pay. Taiwanese people often say, 'Only those who strive will win.' Saving the world is a task that should not be left behind. Practitioner Su is the only one in the universe who performs Dharma-Body Visualisation Deliverance through chanting. He can fly to the heavens and burrow into the earth; he performs deliverance even in the depths of the sea. Even the Dragon King of the Sea shows him respect, and the Jade Emperor obeys his commands, because he is a true saviour of the world and deserves our respect. To the fourfold assembly of disciples here, I have said so much, but the point is for everyone to practise diligently. With such great blessings, it would be a huge loss if you listen to Practitioner Su’s Dharma talks and do not realise your true nature. Practise diligently, find your true self, and in the future, help sentient beings leave suffering and gain happiness, and counsel others to chant. Everyone is a Buddha.

Namo Amituofo."