Preface: The True Color of a Person

One afternoon, as I sat on the sofa yawning, I saw a long black moving object entering through the front doorway. It was a little black snake! Once in, it slithered around the area of the door.

Suddenly, I was startled into awareness by the door bell ringing. It was one of my male disciples who entered, and he eagerly wanted to become a vajra master in True Buddha School. He said, "Respected Buddha Master, please observe me with your wisdom eyes. To my utmost ability, I will promote and extend the horizon of True Buddha School, bringing it to be known to the entire world. I will bring salvation to others and myself, diligently engage in cultivation and strive to share your heavy burden

I responded, "Well said!" It has been a painstaking path for me to tread on Although there are many vajra masters in True Buddha School, many of them have become rather a hindrance. My masters have tripped me up, over and over, many times.

He said, "Grand Master. I won't. I can swear!"

I asked, "What are you going to swear to?"

He answered, "I will do whatever Grand Master asks me to do. No matter how difficult it is. I will go through fire and water without any hesitation or excuse, and work my hardest until the day I die."

I said, "There is no need to do that. Make a vow in front of the Root Guru and altar then."

He burned incense and tendered his vows, "I swear seriously: if I do not perform my promise, may I be condemned in Vajra Hell forever and never be reborn ."

I was touched. He knelt before me, in front of my altar and said, "I offer myself to True Buddha School, and will support True Buddha School, as well as the Root Guru Master, Living Buddha Lian-sheng. I will try my very best to attain the fruits of Buddhahood, saving the sentient beings below, understanding Buddha- nature, and transcending birth and death. My sincere heart will never change, wishing for Grandmaster's blessing forever, until I reach the Buddha Land. If I fail in my vow, may I be in Vajra Hell forever and never be reborn ."

I said, "Vows are guarded by the Vows Samaya God. There can be no lies."

He said, "This is all true."

"For sure?", I asked, and he responded with an affirming look, "Certainly!"

Then I asked, "Do you understand that Vajra Master is a non-revokable empowerment?"

He said, "I understand"

I gave him the Five Buddha Dignified Empowerments : vajra bell, vajra sceptre, vajra vase, vajra sarira , and vajra crown -empowerment for a vajra master.

Later, I discovered that my heart had been too soft. I am always persuaded by the beautiful wordings of others. So, I believed his self-confident appearance, and regarded him as one of the elite of True Buddha School. This was followed by a horrible fact. He began to treat me as an enemy. This person I trusted wished to push me down a cliff. He was trying his best to kill his Root Guru Master. He had totally forgotten his 'way back when' promise.

I thought about this quietly. The phenomenal world is so bewildering ! He had clearly told me his vow. I heard it with my own ears. Why would this change? How could it be turned 180 degrees? Please tell me! What could I do?

In order to observe the true color of a person, we do not look at the outer person, but at the inside. To only believe in what the person says is not right. We need to observe his heart, the deep inside one. In my eyes, this person is all skin and mouth, just a mass of outward appearances. In fact, I forget that he is really a little black snake. However, I really wonder where in this world I can find a genuine person, with whom what he says reflects what he really thinks.

Toolbox

Back Top Print Bookmark Tell a friend:

© 2008 Padmakumara. All Rights Reserved.
Copyright & Terms of Use.