The United Internationally World Buddhism Association Headquarters received a letter from a Buddhist disciple. The following is the original inquiry:
Reply to Inquiries No. 20160101
Subject: Please answer it for us
From: Fan Yu
Date: January 26, 2016
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The United International World Buddhism Association Headquarters,
Why are many LINE messages and emails circulating now that say the following? “The masters of the various centers do not have the qualifications as Vajra Guru and have already retrograded to ordinary people.” What will happen to them is like what happened to Hsirao Gendeng. The messages ask people to leave these centers and masters and instead rely on the holy gurus who claim to be Bodhisattvas or Arahats. On the other hand, the Dharma Voice of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III teaches us: “As long as your master abides by the teachings and carries them out in practical actions, even if they do not have the qualifications as Vajra Gurus now, they will someday become a Vajra Guru if they earnestly progress forward. Therefore, you should rely on them piously.” We are so confused and do not know what to do.
I have been learning from Buddha for several decades and have visited many places worldwide. I have always followed the teachings of the Buddha and made precepts my guiding master. I know not to praise myself, defame others, or destroy others’ wisdom roots. But I have never heard the precedence of someone whose only purpose is to destroy others’ centers by organizing masses to steal people in every possible way in the world of Buddhism. Is that the conduct of a Buddhist? Who exactly is it that has been proclaiming to be a reincarnated Bodhisattva and cheating people with that title? It is so unbelievably abhorrent.
Please answer the questions for us. Otherwise, we are fretted and cannot practice cultivation without worries.
Buddhist disciple Yufan, prostrating myself
Now, we answer the inquiry above.
First, The United International World Buddhism Association Headquarters should not answer these questions.
Second, It is because this is a simple question. Anyone who has carefully listened to the Dharma Voice of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III can naturally get the answers.
The reason is the Dharma Voice of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III and the Office’s public announcements all clearly have precise answers as the basis. If you take the 128 Evil and Erroneous Views to examine the master, you can see it at a glance and tell whether he is genuine, fake, authentic, or evil. Why would you need any other answers? If you are still unsure about it, you can directly see, from the robe the master wears, which level he is and how many buttons he has. No one can fake it. As for whether the master has retrograded, the robe he is wearing can tell you the answer and no explanation is needed. Whether someone is holy or ordinary, one cannot pretend it. It must go through a rigorous examination and verification with seven holy gurus and ten masters being the witnesses. Only after the test has yielded the result will the candidate receive the certificate and the robe worn with the corresponding level.
The purpose of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas is to benefit living beings and to help living beings obtain liberation. That is all. There is no fighting for power and profit or forming gangs for personal interests. Learning from Buddha is not doing business in which one earns powers for oneself. It means to wish living beings to understand better and only to help others. A good master cannot steal someone already learning faithful Buddha Dharma. They should educate and nurture those who have yet to start learning from Buddha or cultivating themselves. The exception is someone who has seen their master not abiding by the Dharma rules and wants to seek learning elsewhere. In that case, the master should accept the disciple and properly guide them.
A practitioner of cultivation indeed cannot learn from a so-called master who has violated the 128 Evil and Erroneous Views and must learn from a good master. If a practitioner of cultivation can find a holy guru in the class of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, every good master should feel happy for the learning practitioner. Any good master always thinks of the benefit of others. They will do whatever it takes as long as it can benefit living beings. Therefore, we must bless the learner from the inside of our hearts.
However, you must not forget this. You must listen to the Dharma Voice of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III and use it as your compass for learning from Buddha. Except that, what any other master says, as long as it is not following the teachings of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III, is wrong.
Wangzha Shangzun said: “You must not listen to the instructions of someone who is not a true Great Holy Guru. From the answer sheets to the one-hundred-problem written test given by all the Dharma Kings, rinpoches, masters, and Dharma masters from the Han Chinese Territory, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, and Taiwan, I can only say that none of them is qualified to expound the Dharma because they completely lack the learning for explaining Buddha Dharma. If I allowed these people to expound on Buddha’s Dharma, then they would only harm living beings. That has been evidenced thoroughly.”
As we conclude, we would like to reiterate the significance of the Dharma Voice of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III. We urge all Buddhist disciples to listen to it seriously, as it is the only authentic way of learning from Buddha.
The United International World Buddhism Association Headquarters
February 4, 2016
(Eric Huang translated this announcement into English. It was last edited on 2024-08-30.)