karma

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Q: You mentioned the Master can borrow people's karma. In that case the karma is erased, for these people? What is the consequence for these people?

M: The Master can erase anyone's karma. If that's what the Master chooses to do. In fact all the disciples, at the time of initiation, all the karma in the past has to be erased. I just only leave you the present karma, so we can go on to continue with this life, otherwise we die immediately. No karma - cannot live here. Therefore the Master has to erase the stored karma only, so the person is clean, and leaves a little bit karma for him to continue this life, to do what he has to do in this life. And after this - finished. That's why he can go, otherwise how can he go? Even if he is clean in this life, how clean? And how about last life, you understand?

Q: What is the goal of Your practice?

M:What is the goal? I haven't told you? To travel beyond this world, go back to Kingdom of God, know your wisdom, and be a better person in this life even.

Q: And is there karma in all realms?

M: Not all realms, up to the Second Realm only, because our mind, our brain, the computer, is "manufactured" in that Second Plane. When we go down all of the way, all the way from the higher planes down to this physical plane, supposedly to do some work, right; for example, even the Master goes from the Fifth Plane down to the physical world, then he has to go through the Second Plane and pick up this "computer" and fix it in, in order to work in this world. Just like a diver who dives into the sea. He has to go through a preparation of a mask, of oxygen and everything. Even though he himself doesn't look so ridiculous, but, when he wears the oxygen mask and the diving clothes, he looks like a frog. That's how we look like sometimes with our... this computer and the physical hindrances. Otherwise we are absolutely beautiful. Even though you think you are beautiful now, you are so ugly compared to what you really are, because all the instruments that we have to wear in order to dive deep into this world to work.

So after we pass the Second Level to go upward, we have to leave our computer there, we don't need it up there anymore. So, just like when a diver reaches the shore, he discards all his oxygen mask and all his equipment to dive, and he looks the way he was. Yeah? Okay!

Q: You said that at the end of the Second World, before you go up, that you leave all your karma behind or you have to resolve or clean all your karma. Does that mean that also all of the karma of the past lives that you come into this life with too?

M: Yes. Because no "computer" to register anything. We only have karma because we have this computer, the mind, the brain which is meant to record every experience of this physical world. That's why we have it. Bad or good we register it in here. That's what we call karma. Karma is what? Just the experiences, bad or good, our reactions, our learning experiences in many lifetimes. And because we have a kind of so-called conscience, we know we should be good and sometimes we did bad. Therefore we call that is karma. And the bad things weigh down on us, just like a lot of garbage, luggage, because the law of gravity; it pulls us down and makes it difficult to climb the mountain. Because of a lot of moral disciplines in this world, a lot of rules, a lot of customs, lots of habits, in different nations, bind us within these so-called conceptions of good and bad, guilt and innocence. Therefore when we interact with people of this world, we have experiences of good and bad, guilt and innocence according to the customs, habits of that nation, laws of that nation. And it becomes a habit that we think that way, that we do this, we are guilty; we do that, we are bad persons. And this, all is recorded in here. That's what makes us transmigrate and makes us bound into this physical world or a little bit higher world. But not high enough. We are not free enough. We are not light enough to float above. Because of all this conception; preconception.

Q: Is it predetermined that we will reach a certain level each lifetime when we are born?

M: No, we have free-will to run faster or slower. For example, your car, you put in a hundred liters of petrol. But you can go faster with it, and reach the destination quicker or you go slower. It's up to you.

Q: Well, I just want to ask You: the angels, what level are they?

M: What level are they? Oh! It depends on what kind of angels?

Q: The guardian angels.

M: The guardian angels, they could be up to the Second Level. Angels are less than human beings - less prestige. They are to serve us.

Q: And they never go beyond that?

M: No! Except when they can become human beings. They are all very envious of human beings, because Gods dwell within them. We have all the facilities to become one with God, the angel doesn't. It's complicated. I'll talk to you another day.

They are things made for our use also you see - the different kinds of angels. For example, if it is made by God, then it's made to serve us. And they should not - don't have to go beyond that. But they could. Sometimes, something is made without a proper arrangement to improve.

For example, in your house some things you made for your own comfort. Even though it's very fantastic. For example you sit here and you can turn the lights off and on all over your house and garden, and turn on and off the TV, because you invented it for yourself, but this is only to serve you. Because even though it's better than you in some aspects, like it can sit here and control everything and you cannot do that by human effort. But that doesn't mean it's better than you. It's made for the sole purpose of serving you. Even though it's better than you, but it's not. Okay! All right. It can never be human being, the computer.

Q: Master Ching Hai, I want to know - that because we are in the body now, could it be that we could have a fallen from being liberated from this body before? Have we always been in this state or have we been in a better state before, or just in this state? What is the good attitude or a good disposition to quickly move ahead?

M: To quit the body and move ahead? Yes, we can if we know how. There are many different methods for leaving the body behind and going beyond this world. Some go not far, some go very far, and some go to the end. So according to the comparison that I have made with my different research since I was young - even though I look still young now, but I was younger then, our method here is the best, yeah! Goes to the farthest one, the farthest one, the far end.

There are many other methods, if you choose to experience, you can choose. There are many in the market: some go to the astral world, some go to the Third or the Fourth, but not many can go to the Fifth. So, our method, our practice is to take you to the Fifth before we set you free. Let you go alone. And beyond that we can approach a different aspect of God, beyond the Fifth plane, but it's not always pleasant.

We always imagine that the higher the better; it's not always true. For example, sometimes we go into a beautiful palace and we were invited into the living room of the master. We sat there and we were served with cool drinks and beautiful eating and everything. And then we thought we should go a little bit deeper into the house, have a look. And we would venture into the garbage place and you know many other things in the house. It's not always important. And also into a power house, we went into the electricity house which is just behind the house, beyond the house, and we got shocked so then we die there. So it's not always necessary or recommended to go into deeper, but we could do that for the sake of adventure.

Q: I have two questions. One is, what world do past life memories come from, if you were to have the memory of the past life? And secondly, how do past lives relate to the present karma and to one's present understanding. Are they part of the "excess baggage"?

M: Yes, yes. They relate very much. First question, where does the past karma come from? You can read the past life record, that's for sure. And the past life records, as I have told you, came from the akashic record. Yes. And this is a kind of library in the Second World which is accessible to anyone who can reach there. Not everyone can go to the United Nations' library and have access to it. But I can, for example today, because I'm invited to talk in the United Nations. Right? Not everyone can come in, but you can, because you are a kind of residents here. So, similarly, when we get access to the Second World, we can read the past life. Also when we access into the First World, some of it, we can have some glimpse of the past life of a person. But that's not very high and not very complete record.

And how do these past life experiences relate to the present karma? We can say that these are the experiences we have learned in order to cope with this present lifetime. What you assimilated in the past, you will bring into practice at this present lifetime. And similarly, too many unpleasant experiences in the past would make you frightened, when you see some symbol that is very much similar to the past life. For example, if last life, you drop off from the staircase by accident and then hurt yourself badly and in the dark, and no one helps you. And now when you walk down the staircase, you would feel a little frightened, especially when it is deep and dark underneath; you would feel a kind of struggle whether you go or not. Or if last life you have already studied and researched deep into some scientific field. This life you will find yourself still very interested in. So you still have kind of a pull to any kind of scientific research, even though you are not a kind of scientist now. Any kind of thing like that.

That's why Mozart, he was a genius when he was four years old. He went straight to the piano and he became famous up till now, still. He was a genius because he had practiced in many other lifetimes until mastership, but then he died after that. Before he reached the peak of his career, he died and he wasn't satisfied just to leave his career because he loved music. So he came back and all his learned experience from his past musical talent came back to him, because he had so strong desire to continue when he died.

And some of these people learn many things from the Astral world or the Second world before they are reborn in this world again. Therefore they are fantastically gifted with science, or with music, or with literature, or with any kind of inventions, which other people don't know. You see, kind of very extraordinary inventions that other people cannot understand it and cannot even dream of inventing. Because they have seen them, they have learned them.

Therefore, two kinds of learning in this world or in the world beyond. Those who are gifted and excellent, like geniuses, they are the experts from the worlds beyond, like in the Astral world, the Second world; sometimes from the Third world, if he chooses to come back. They are excellent. These are geniuses.

Q: Specifically, what does Your initiation involve and once one is initiated, what would the day-to-day practice involve?

M: First of all, it's all free of charge and no binding involved, except that you have to bind yourself, should you want to continue to go further? So, the conditions - no experience required. No previous knowledge about any yoga, or any meditation required. But then, you have to commit yourself to a lifelong vegetarian diet: no eggs; milk okay; cheese okay. Anything else without killing is okay.

Egg because it also involves of half-killing, even though it's infertile. And also it has kind of quality to have a tendency to attract negative power. That's why many people of the black and white magicians field, or many voodoo people - so-called voodoo - they use eggs to draw some of the entities from possessed persons. If you know it or not? [Someone answers: Yes.] You know? Oh, that's fantastic! At least, I have immediate proof, if not immediate enlightenment, for you. [Laughter]

The time of initiation, you experience the Light and the Sound of God. The Music of the spirit, it draws you up to the higher level of consciousness. You will understand the taste of samadhi - the deep peace and joy. And after that, you continue to practice at home, if you are serious. If you are not, I cannot push you, I cannot bother you any more. If you continue and you want me to help you all the way, then I continue. If you do not - you see that's the way. 

And two and a half hours a day meditation. Wake up early in the morning, before you sleep - meditate two hours; and maybe half an hour in the lunch time. When I am not here to speak, you have one-hour lunch. You can hide away somewhere and meditate. That's already one hour. And in the evening, you make one more hour or half an hour. In the morning, get up earlier one hour.

Regulate more of your life, less TV, less gossip, less telephone, less newspapers, then you have a lot of time. Yes, truly we have a lot of time but sometimes we waste away our time. Just like our car running in the backyard instead of going to Long Island, yeah. Are you satisfied with that? No conditions for you, nothing else except you commit yourself to this lifelong practice. And everyday you experience different changes for the better, and different miracles for your life, not that you wish for it. It will happen anyhow. And then you truly experience what's heaven like on Earth, if you are really serious about it. That's how many hundreds of thousands of our disciples still hang on, still hang on to me after many years, because they have better and better experiences, because they are serious about it and they do practice.

Q: Please explain the nature of consciousness.

M: Nature of consciousness, okay. It's hard to explain but you could use your intelligence to imagine. It's a kind of wisdom, like you know something better than you ever did before. Yes, you know something that is beyond this world, and you know something in this world which you did not know before, and you understand many things that you do not understand or you did not understand before. That's the consciousness.

And also when you open this consciousness, or the so-called wisdom, you will understand truly who you are and why you are here and what else is beyond this world, and who else, beyond or apart from our worldly citizens. There are many things. So the level of consciousness is a kind of different degrees of understanding, just like a graduation in college. The more you learn, the more you know, until graduation.

It's difficult to explain something that is abstract, but I have tried. It's a kind of awareness. It's difficult to explain awareness. When you go to different, higher levels of consciousness, your awareness is different. You know things differently, you feel different. You feel just absolutely in peace, tranquillity, blissful. You have no worries, and everything in your daily life becomes clear to you. You know how to handle things and how to take care of problems better. Even it benefits already in the physical level. And inside you, how you feel - that only you know. It's difficult to explain these things. Just like you are married to the girl you love - how you feel, that only you know. No one else can feel it for you.

Q: Honorable Master, thank You for the insight You have given us. I wonder if You would like to address Yourself to something that is in my conscience. Why are so many Masters on Earth today giving us a chance to learn so quickly, whereas that in the past it has been so difficult? Can You address Yourself to that?

M: Yes, sure. Because in our times, the communication is better. So we know better about the Masters, not that in the past, Masters did not exist, or Masters were inaccessible. Of course, it is true that some masters are more accessible than the others. It depends on his choice, or his willingness to give, or his affinity with the people at large. But then, in any age, always there are one, two, three, four, five Masters. Depends on the need of the time. Just we are more aware of the presence of many different Masters, maybe different degrees of Masters, because in these times we are fortunate to have the mass media, to have television, to have radio broadcasts, and books, which we print in millions, in thousands of millions of copies in no time.

In the olden times, we want to print a book, we have to cut the whole tree down first and chop them with very unsophisticated axes, which are "kaput" in no time and no use in another time; and have to polish it with stones and all kinds of things, and to carve one word after another. And when you want to transfer a whole set of Bibles, it takes a whole convoy, big trucks, if you have a truck at that time. So that's why we know of many Masters.

Yes, so it's lucky, this is very good for you that have - you can shop, you can choose what you want. So no one will be able to cheat you and say, "I am the best. Yeah, you can have comparison and use your wisdom, intelligence to judge: "Oh, this one is better," or "I like that one better," "Face looks terrible," "Oh, that one - ugly." [Laughter]

Q: Since You have talked about shopping, would You consider initiating someone who has been initiated by another Master?

M: I would only if that person truly believes that I am more able to take her or him to a higher level and faster. Otherwise it is better to stick to one's own Master if one still feels very much attached, and has much faith in that Master. If you believe your Master is the best already, then don't change. If you still have doubt and if you still have not got the Light and Sound which I have mentioned, then you should try. Yes, because Light and Sound is the standard measurement for a real Master. If anyone who is not able to impart you immediate Light or Sound he is not a real Master, I am sorry to say. The road to heaven is equipped with Light and Sound.

Just like you go to dive into the sea, you have to be equipped with oxygen mask and all that. There are things for different purposes. That's why you see all the Saints with the halo on them. That's Light. When you practice this method, you radiate the same Light like they draw on the pictures of Jesus, and people can see it. If the people are psychic, they can see your Light. That's why they draw Jesus with the halo, and they draw Buddha with the Light around Them. You can see practitioners, of high degree, with this Light if you are opened. [Master points to Her forehead] Many people can see that. Have any of you seen, who are here? You? What did you see?

Q: Well, I can see auras, auras...

M: Yeah, but auras are different from Light. Auras are different colors, sometimes black, sometimes coffee, coffee colored, and sometimes are yellow or red. Depends on his temperament at that time. But when you see a person with a strong spiritual aura, you know it's different. Right?

Q: I don't really have a question. I just - I used to do raja yoga for a while. And I thought I saw also auras. I mean at that time, I didn't have much knowledge, understanding.

M: And you don't see it now? You only see it sometimes?

Q: No, I don't meditate now.

M: Oh, that's why, you lost your power. Should meditate again. If you still believe in that path, you should meditate. It helps you to some extent. It would not harm. Okay?


Q: I saw in Your leaflet that there are five precepts. Once you are initiated, you have to live according to these five precepts?

M: Yes, yes, yes. These are the laws of the universe.

Q: I don't understand "sexual misconduct".

M: It means if you have a husband already, please don't consider the second. [Laughter] Very simple. Keep your life more simple, no complications and quarreling over emotions. Yes. It causes hurtful feelings for other people. We don't harm other people, even emotionally. That's what it is. We try to avoid conflicts, try to avoid suffering emotionally, physically, mentally for everyone, especially our loved ones, that's all.

If you already have one, don't tell him. It hurts more when you tell. Just solve it slowly and quietly, and don't confess to him. Because sometimes people think if they have an affair, and then they go home and confess to his wife or her husband, that's very wise and very honest. It's nonsense. It's no good. You already made mistake, why you bring garbage home and to let other people enjoy it? If he doesn't know about it, he doesn't feel that bad. The fact of knowing hurts. So we try to solve that problem and not to have it again, and that's it. Better not to talk to the partner about this, because it will hurt them, hurt the partners.

Q: I have noticed that many spiritual Masters have a great sense of humor. What is the relationship of humor to spiritual practice?

M: Oh, I guess they are just feeling happy, and relaxed, and lighthearted about everything. And they could laugh at themselves and laugh at others; laugh about ridiculous things in this life when many people cling so tensely and take so seriously.

After we practice somehow, we just get "loose", we don't feel so serious any more. If we die tomorrow, we die; if we live, we live. If we lose everything, we lose everything; if we have everything, we have everything. We have enough wisdom and ability after enlightenment to take care of ourselves in every situation. So we are not scared of anything. We lose our fear, we lose our anxiety. That's why we're relaxed. We feel detached to this world. Whatever we gain or lose doesn't mean much any more. If we gain a lot of things, it's only for the benefit of people, then we offer; and for the benefit of loved ones. Otherwise we don't consider ourselves or our life that important to go through all of the struggles and sufferings to preserve it. If we preserve it, it's all right. It doesn't mean we sit in bed all day on the nail-bed and then meditate. But we do work.

For example, I still work. I do my painting, and my handicraft works to earn my living. So I don't want to take donations from anyone. And even my earning is so much I can help people. I can help the refugees, the disaster victims and all that. Why shouldn't we work? But we have so much talent and abilities, and life is so easy for us after enlightenment that we feel there is just no need to worry. We just naturally relax. That's how the sense of humor is born. I guess that is what it is.

Do you find me humorous? [Audience: Yes] [Laughter and applause] Then maybe, I must be a Master of some kind hah? [Laughter] Let's hope so, for your sake, so that you didn't listen to an unenlightened person for two hours - waste your time.

Q: The questions that we, as seeking souls, always ask and we get theories and stories, and I'd just like to hear what you have to say about them. The first is: Who are we? Who am I? And How did I get to be in the predicament that I have to get back Home? How did I leave Home and why is it important to go back Home? And You talked about going back to the Fifth realm, and it is not necessarily being important to go further than that. But if there is a further than that, then what is the purpose of it? What relationship does it have to me if I don't necessarily have to go back there?

M: It's getting humorous now. [Laughter and applause] Okay. Pertaining to the question of "Who am I?", you can go and ask the Zen master, which is abound in New York State. You can look in the Yellow Pages and find one. [Laughter] I am not specialized in that.

And the second, "Why are you here?" Maybe because you like to be here. Or else who can force us to be here since we are the children of God. The so-called children of God are like God Hirmself. No? A prince is similar to the king, in some aspects, or more or less like the king, or the future king. So only when he likes to be somewhere, then he'll be there. Anyhow, we have free-will to choose to be in heaven or to be somewhere else to experience for ourselves. That's - probably you have chosen to be here in the beginning, many ages ago, to learn something more adventurous, something more frightening. Some people love scary experiences.


For example, the prince, he can be in the palace but he could be wandering in the jungle because he loved to be exploring things in the nature. It could be that way. It could be that we were so bored, bored in heaven, because everything was made ready and served to our palace doors, so we want to do something for ourselves. Just like the royal household, sometimes they want to cook for themselves and they don't want the servants to be near. And they smear themselves with ketchup and oil, all over the place, but they love it. Doesn't look very princely, but they love it.


So for example, I have people who drive for me. Everywhere I go, people would love to be my driver. But sometimes, I like to drive for myself. I drive on my small tricycle, nonsmoking tricycle, electric plug-in - ten kilometers an hour. I like to go around like that. Because everywhere I go, people notice me a lot, so sometimes I want to go somewhere that the people don't know me. I'm very shy except when I have to talk in the lecture, because it has become kind of duty now since people dug me out and made me famous up till now. I cannot run away so often but sometimes I do run away, for two-three months. Just like a pampered wife who runs away from husband. And so it's my choice.


So perhaps you have chosen to be here for a while. And perhaps it's time now that you want to go because you have learned enough of this world, and you feel that there is nothing more that you want to learn, and you are tired of traveling. You want to rest. Go Home, have a rest first. And then see whether you want to go again or not, on an adventurous journey. That's all I can say up to now.


And why do you have to go Home? And why the Fifth and not the Sixth? That's up to you. After the Fifth, you can go anywhere you want. There are many more levels upward. But it's just more comfortable, more neutral to stay there. It's too powerful, further upward, maybe like that. You can go for a while, but maybe you wouldn't like to rest.


For example, your house is beautiful, but there are some parts of the house are for rest-rooms and you wouldn't want to rest there forever, even though it's beyond your house. It looks like up the hill and the higher, more beautiful, but it's not the place to rest. Or in the electric-power department in your house, the generator - noisy, loud, heat, hot and dangerous. So you wouldn't want to be there even though it is very helpful for your house. That's all.


There are many aspects of God that we could not imagine. We always imagine the higher we go, the more loving. But there are different kinds of love. There is violent love, strong love, mild love, neutral love. So it depends on how we can bear. God will give us different degrees of love. Right. Different levels, offer some different degrees of love from God. But sometimes it's too strong, we feel we are torn into ribbons.


Q: I see so much destruction going on around me - environmental destruction. Cruelty to animals. I just wonder how You perceive this and what You can recommend to people who are trying to release themselves from this world in the spiritual fashion, to help them cope with their surroundings and cope with all the devastation that is going on around them? And do You think that going beyond this world is enough for us to recognize what we are leaving behind, or do You feel we in this plane have a duty to try to alleviate the suffering? And will it do any good?




M: It will. It will. At least for us, for our conscience, so that we feel we are doing something and we have tried our best to relieve the suffering of our fellow beings. I do all the same. Whatever you ask, I am doing. I did, I do, and I will.


I have told you already, our finances are distributed to different organizations, sometimes, or different countries, when they are in disasters. And I would not like to boast much about it, but since you ask - and for example, we helped the Philippines last year for relief of their Mt. Pinatubo. And we helped the flood victims in Au Lac, and the flood victims in China et cetera. And we are trying to help the Au Lac refugees now to help with the UN's burden, provided the UN wants us to help. But we are trying. We help them with financial support, and also we could relocate them if the UN lets it happen - with the blessing of the UN.


Yes, so we do all these things that you have requested and also because, since we are here, we might just as well clean our environment as much as possible. Therefore, we help with the suffering and we help with the moral standard of the world. Both spiritually and physically. Yes. Because some people don't want to take spirituality from me. They only want to take physical help. So we help them spirituality physically. And that's what we do; that's why I have to earn money. That's why I don't want to live on people's donations.


All my monks and my disciples have to work, just like you do. And then, apart from that, we help spiritually also; and help with the suffering of the world, help to relieve the suffering of the world. We have to do this. Doesn't mean we sit in samadhi all day long and enjoy ourselves. That's a very selfish Buddha (enlightened being). We don't want to have him here. [Laughter]


Q: You spoke about a level where one is aware that they have powers that come from that awareness. Now what if you are aware of the powers, you don't know that you have them, but you are aware of them? You may even feel like you do. How do you access it or not access it? If you don't access it, how do you not become impatient with the process that's going on around? Like you see the process taking a slow, mundane way when you know you can just pray or do something else to bring about a better or quicker resolution. What does that mean and how does one access it with the blessing that it will come out okay? Do You understand what I mean?




M: I understand, I understand. What you meant is that when we have the power to change things and when the things around go in a bureaucratic way and a slow way, how would you have the patience to bear it. Right? Or would you just pray or do some magic or point a finger and push it. Right? No, I have patience because we have to work with the pace of this world in order not to bring it into chaos. Yes.


For example, a child cannot run. Not because you are in a hurry or you want to run that you make the child stumble and fall. So we have to be patient. Even though we have the power to run, we walk with the child, yes. That's why sometimes I am also frustrated and impatient but I have to teach myself to be patient. That's why I have to go and bow my head from one president after another for the refugees, even though we want to add all the financial support. We would give all we have, everything, millions of dollars, or billions even. We have to go through the bureaucratic system. Give Caesar what belongs to Caesar.


I am not going to wield my head or to point a finger at the UN even make them run. No, no. We cause disasters in this world if we use psychic, magical power. It has to go the way it goes. But we can elevate people's consciousness by spiritual healing, by spiritual wisdom, understanding. Impart to them the knowledge that they are willing to do it, and cooperate. That's the best way, not to use magical power. I never intentionally use magical power in any aspect of life. But miracles just happen around the spiritual practitioners. That's very natural, but not intentionally. Not trying to push things. Yes, that's no good. The child cannot run. All right? You satisfied with my answer?


If any of my answers don't suit you, please let me know, because I can explain further. But I trust you are very intelligent - being the most chosen and intelligent people of all nations. Therefore I don't elaborate very much.


It's good that we have United Nations, I have to say, by the way. Yes, yes. We eliminate many of the world's conflicts and wars, even though we cannot completely minimize. But I read your books of United Nations. Everyone is United Nations. And I have followed some of the United Nations work. And I must praise its effort and efficiency in rescuing hostages where other people cannot rescue. All the power of the world can not rescue and one United Nations' commissioner did it. Yes, and many other things concerning disaster relief, refugee problems.


You have about twelve million refugees, I heard - responsibility. No? It's a lot of work, and the wars and everything. So it's good that we have United Nations, yeah! It's very good.


Q: Thank You, Master Ching Hai, for sharing Your wisdom with us. I have a question. It's about the escalating world population and its accompanying problem of further environmental abuse and the further greater demand for food. Would You like to comment something on this escalating world population? Is this a world karma? Or is this going to create certain kind of karma in the future?


M: To have more people for this world is also very good. Why not? More crowded, more noise, more fun. No? [Laughter] It's not that we are overpopulated, really. We're just not spread out evenly. People just condense in certain areas of the world and do not want to move to another area. That is all. We have so many vast areas of wild land that have not been used. Many virgin islands, many vast plateaus which are only green with forests and nothing there. People just like to concentrate in New York, for example, [Laughter] because it's more fun here. If a government or any government is able to create jobs and industry, and employment of different kinds in different places and people would go there also to work. They just condense in some places because it's easier to find employment here, or safety. If the safety, security and employment opportunity presents itself in those other different places, people would go there also. They would go for security, for their livelihood. That's very natural.


So, it's not that we should fear about overpopulation. We should be more organized to give people of the world more benefit of employment opportunities and housing and security. Then everywhere is the same. We would never be overpopulated.


And about your question concerning food, you should know better, because in America, we have so much information concerning how to preserve the world. Vegetarian diet is one of the best, to preserve the world's resources, to feed the whole population of the Earth because we waste a lot of vegetarian food, energy, electricity, medicine, to raise animals. Whereby it could feed other people directly. And many countries of the Third world nations, they sell their protein-enriched vegetarian food for cheaper prices. But that is not a help to the other world nations' populations. If we spread all the food evenly, and vegetarian diet will help this, not only for ourselves, not only for the animals, but for the whole world.


One of the research something, magazines, they already said that if everyone in the world eat vegetarian, the world will not be hungry anymore. And also we have to organize. I know some person, he can make rice bran into nutritious food and milk even. And we have talked last time about that. He said he spent about three hundred thousand dollars and he can feed six hundred thousand people in Ceylon - the poor, the under-nourished, the mothers, and all that. It was fantastic. Because the way we do it in many parts of the world, it's that we waste the natural resources, not that we don't have enough. God wouldn't put us here to starve. Actually, we starve ourselves.


So we have to rethink, reorganize, and that needs the blessing of many countries' governments. They have to bless us with their absolute honesty, cleanliness and dignity, and the will to serve people instead of serving themselves. If we have this blessing from all the countries' governments, we have no problem really. No problem.


We have to have good leadership, good economic organization and ruling talents and honest governments. But that can come about more rapidly when many people or most of the people or all the people become spiritual. Then they know the discipline. Then they know the precepts. Then they know how to be honest and clean. And they know how to use their wisdom then. Then they can think of many things to do and reorganize our lives.


Q: That seems to be very difficult because as I see, much of the, as I understand, much of the environmental abuse today has to do with a growing population's demand for more living space, for homes, for living the way we, in the 20th century, know and want to live.


Say the jungles in Brazil - the environmental abuse there. The destruction of the forest there, the rain forest. The land, it's being defoliated and that results in floods. And these are not unrelated to the problem of overpopulation.




M: Yes, everything is related to each other, of course, in this world. And the only solution is to solve it from the root, not the branches. And the root is spiritual stability. Understand? [Applause]


So all we have to do is to try to spread the spiritual message; what we know, and keep to the spiritual discipline. That's what people don't have. It's okay to plug yourself in the electric machine and have some lights and some buzzing music and get samadhi. But if you don't have moral discipline, then you only use the power for bad things sometimes - can't control it.


That's why we in this group, we keep, teach people the precepts first. Precepts are important. We have to know where we go and maneuver our Power. Power without love, without compassion, without proper understanding of the moral value, then it's no use. It becomes black magic - abuse. Yeah. That's where black magic comes from.


So it's easy to get enlightenment, it's hard to keep it. In our path, if you are not truly disciplined and morally equipped, the Master will take away some of your Power so that you cannot abuse it and do bad things to the society. That's the difference. Master has control. The Master Power, the Master Power, okay?


Yes, I am very happy with all of your intelligent questions. Very intelligent.


People do these things because they are not wise enough, like abusing the land that you have said, or doing something just because their lack of wisdom. Yes, so the root is wisdom, spiritual practice. Get enlightened.




I thank you for your attention. All the best.






The world is full of troubles.
Only I am full of You!
If You were placed within the world,
All troubles would be removed.
But, as the world is full of troubles,
I find no place for You!I'd sell all the suns, the moons and the stars
In the universe,
Just to buy one of Your Beautiful Glances.
Oh Master of Infinite Radiance!
Be gracious and shed a few beams into my longing Heart.Worldly people go out at night to sing and dance,
Under the worldly light and worldly music.
Only I alone sit in trance,
Swaying with the Radiance and Melody within.Since I got to know Your Glory Oh Lord,
I could love nothing in this world.
Embrace me in Your Loving Grace,
Forever!
Amen




~ from "Silent Tears", a collection of poems
by the Supreme Master Ching Hai~