Chapter 17 - The Rite Of Bardo Deliverance

One night in July 1972, I had just fallen asleep when I was awakened by some jabbering noises that sounded like the twittering of birds, or rather, like the chirping of insects. It seemed to be coming from the corner of the house. I listened carefully for a moment and realized that it was actually a conversation involving several people. One of them said,

"Well, let's stay here tonight. Tomorrow we can have a big feast."

"I wonder which Dharma master will be presiding tomorrow over the Bardo Deliverance Ceremony at the Fa Hung

Temple? If he is just a dabbler, he won't even be able to enfetter my shackles!" At this moment I heard the sounds of metal chains knocking around. Another voice spoke, "Lower your voice. You don't want to wake anyone."

The next morning I looked in the directory for the telephone number of the Fa Hung Temple. I made a call,

"Could you please tell me if there is a Deliverance Ceremony at your temple today?"

"Yes, do you want to sign up your ancestors and family members for the ceremony? You must hurry, as the Ceremony Prayer is about to be written soon." I thanked the man and hung up.

From this incident, I realized that disembodied spirits do, indeed, exist.

That evening after work I hurried over to the Fa Hung Temple. Inside, a Dharma master wearing a Five Buddhas Crown was sitting between two rows of nuns who were playing some musical implements and loudly chanting the extra.

The Dharma master was performing hand gestures of Deliverance which were to make food offerings to the hungry ghosts. (The Spirit Master had taught them to me during my night lessons.)

I channelled my psychic energy to my eyes and found that the temple was filled with crowds of spirits, just like the scene I had seen at the Pi Shan Temple. Two ghosts were carrying a bamboo pole and after sliding it through a cloth bag of rice, they took the whole bag away. It was a very unusual situation : the bag of physical rice stayed unmoved while the rice's vital energy was carried away by the two ghosts. I learned that the so-called feasts referred to by the spirits were not the physical consumption of the actual, visible meats, poultry, and fish, but rather, the extracting of the "chi" from the foods. Spirits consume the invisible chi while we who are alive consume the physical foods. This kind of phenomenon proves that food consumed by living people also possesses a special kind of . "chi" in it. Perhaps the reader might wonder if I was born with this psychic vision. No, I was able to see the spirits only after I exercised and channelled the psychic energy to my eyes. If the Dharma master at the ceremony did not have the ability to see the spirits, then he would not be able to unlock their chains and shackles. While I was busy watching, a swirling black shadow suddenly appeared before me, almost making me jump. The shadow squatted and spoke,

"Kind man, I beg you to unlock the chains on my hands!" "Why do you not ask the Dharma master to help you?

"Why are you asking me?"

"The Dharma master has chanted the mantra and made the hand gestures. He is sweating from working so hard, but the chains around my hands have hardly moved at all. When the Dharma master waved his long sleeve, I lost my balance and fell to one side. I asked the Ghost Warden for help. First he shook his head, then tipped me that I should ask the man wearing a white shirt and standing on the side, as he might be able to help me. That is why I am begging you."

"All right, I will give it a try." Several previous spiritual encounters had made me much bolder. Although I was facing the ghosts, I did not seem to have any fear. After all, as long as men and ghosts do not hurt each other, there is nothing to be afraid of. When one does not have a guilty conscience, even a ghostly, midnight knocking at one's door should not cause any fear.

Silently I chanted the Rebirth Mantra three times. The ghost shook his head as his hands were still tightly manacled.

Then I chanted, "The disciple Lian Shen, a practitioner of the Primordial Ultimate Correct Dharma, is asking the spirits of Liuchia Liu Ting, the Twelve T'ien Yu goddesses, the Na Yen goddesses, the Three Generals in charge of the celestial armies... " At that moment I had my palms joined, but suddenly the palms started to form a mudra on their own and with one striking motion, the mudra automatically chopped down on the manacles of the ghost. With a clattering sound, the ghost's hands were free! The black shadow prostrated on the floor and made several bows, then suddenly he sprang up and ran towards the altar. He came back with many ghosts whose hands were also manacled by metal chains. There were more than twenty of them. Now the job had become much bigger. I continued to recite the mantra and form the mudras and, one by one, the ghosts were unchained. They each bowed happily; before leaving. Throughout this process I had stood at the same spot, and the motions from my hand gestures had attracted the attention of the people surrounding me. They probably thought that this young man was mentally ill and having a flare up! How could they have known that I was enfettering the shackles of so many ghosts! They could laugh all they wanted to!

How could they understand this? Up on the stage, the Dharma master was gesturing dramatically. Of course, many truly learned and accomplished Taoist practitioners exist, but there are also many Dharma masters who cannot see the spirits at all. I wonder if these Dharma masters become indebted to the ghosts that they are unable to deliver from their chains?

As I have been able to see numerous ghosts, I have been asked what ghosts look like. This is my reply,

"Like men, ghosts also differ from each other by their body shapes and facial features. Some have kind faces and some have evil-looking faces."

I have seen drawings of green-faced and long-toothed ghosts with long tongues and dishevelled hair; however, these are just the creations of men. In reality, ghosts are just like human beings. There are fair ladies and refined, courteous gentlemen among them. In my opinion there is nothing dreadful about being friends with ghosts. It is actually more scary to be friends with human beings whose true feelings are masked behind their faces.

During that period, I already had twenty Buddhas and Bodhisattvas enshrined at my altar at home although not too many people knew about it. One time, after lighting an incense at the altar so I could do prostrations, a lotus suddenly appeared and slowly descended from above. Sitting on the lotus was a Bodhisattva with brilliant lights radiating from him. He was wearing a Five Buddhas Crown on his head and a gem necklace around his neck. He held a staff in his left hand. His kind, round face was filled with compassion. The Bodhisattva spoke, "Lian Shen, I am Ksitigarbha, the guardian of the nether world. Why don't you conduct some deliverance ceremonies at your home shrine?"

"Bodhisattva, will I be able to do it? I am afraid people will laugh at me. The ritual of transforming and offering food to the hungry ghosts is traditionally performed only by monks. I am just a lay Buddhist who has taken the Bodhisattva Vows. To start performing such a ritual myself would be overstepping a rule set up by past elders. How about inviting a high official monk to head the ceremony while I accompany him on the side? Will this do?"

"Lian Shen, what do you think the Ten Dharma Realms are? The so-called Ten Dharma Realms are in fact Non Dharma Realms. They are inherently nonexistent. Why are you still debating whether you should do it or not?"

"Bodhisattva, how can I conduct a Dharma ceremony in a residence? I would have to apply for an official permit so everything would be legal."

"Then go quickly and get this done," replied the Bodhisattva.

"Should I register as a Taoist or Buddhist organization?"

"Do you regard the Tao and mysticism of Lao Tzu as different from that of Buddhism? Is there really any difference whether you register as a Taoist or Buddhist? There are different kinds of people in this world; therefore, some will encounter the ordinary aspects ofthe Buddhist teachings while others will see its mystical aspects. Actually, both Taoism and Buddhism could vanish and become extinct. Experience this truth yourself."

With these words Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva smiled and disappeared.

Thus I joined the Chinese Taoist Society and became an official member. I also became a member of the Chinese Buddhist Society, and they mailed me a diploma for taking the Bodhisattva Vows. Since I have been baptized as a Christian, initiated into Taoism, and taken the Buddhist Vows, I have indeed become someone who has traversed these three religions. However, with my concurrent practice in Buddhism and Taoism, I think that Buddhism is more organized, its scriptures more complete, and its liturgies more well-defined. Therefore my ideological inclinations tend to lean slightly towards Buddhism.

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