Chapter 13 of The Mystical Experiences of True Buddha Disciples, His Holiness Living Buddha Lian Sheng, Grandmaster Sheng-yen Lu’s 58th book. First published in English in 1993.
In early summer 1982, Holy Red Crown Vajra Master Lian-sheng arrived in the United States. At that time, students in the States did not know about my arrival and there were not that many U.S. students anyway. So, the Master made prostrations to the Buddhas in the morning and practiced meditation at night, living a quiet and simple life.
Soon, some students living nearby requested teachings, and some others came for guidance. Because of the Dharma joy my students received and the wonderful guidance service I provided, news spread and many more came to listen to the teachings. Since then, whenever there is a teaching, the attendance is always full.
Right now, in America, there are students in Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, and other places where local chapters are in the planning stages. These initiated students, numbering tens of thousands, all started from the point of believing, and continued through understanding, and on to actual practicing. From there, they help others to understand the teachings, and help the Master to propagate the Dharma. The time is ripe for the joy of Dharma to fill all sentient beings.
This short chapter concerns the psychic experience of a female student.
While the Master was in Seattle, a woman, Mrs. Jung-san Hsueh, took refuge in me. She practiced her meditation very diligently everyday. Her mystical experiences were numerous. During meditation, she saw various strange happenings, yet could remain undisturbed.
After she started her Tantric practice, she had an accident in which her foot was run over by a car, however, the foot wasn’t injured.
She had a stomach operation and Guanyin Bodhisattva appeared before her and healed the incision which became cool and soothing.
She received clear guidance from the Bodhisattvas.
Recently, Mrs. Jung-san Hsueh had a very strong psychic experience. Sometime in February, 1985, while at home, she smelled a very strange odor — a very unusual and bad odor. At first, she thought it was just a coincidence. However, the odor did not disappear; instead, it got stronger every day.
She was the only one who could smell it. No one else smelled it. The smell was strong, like something rotten.
Mrs. Hsueh lived in Renton. She had already achieved response from the Guru Yoga and, whenever she invoked the Master through the Guru’s Heart Mantra, she could see the Master appearing in lights in her meditation. This time after she invoked him, the Master appeared in an aura of auspicious light.
“Master, why is there this strange odor?” Mrs. Hsueh asked.
“Your relative is ill.” Master replied and disappeared.
She wondered which relative of hers was sick. Why hadn’t she heard anything? So she went into meditation again and saw her father-in-law, then she saw black light coming out of the area of his duodenum. Oh! It’s her father-in-law’s duodenal ulcer!
She told her husband right away and he immediately called long distance to Kaohsiung, Taiwan, where his father was living.
The couple found out that the family in Taiwan had not wanted to worry them, and therefore had not notified them. And, indeed, during that period of time, Mrs. Hsueh’s father-in-law had suffered a hemorrhage from his duodenal ulcer. He had vomited a great deal of blood and had two liters of blood transfused into him. He was sent to the Tsai Surgical Hospital and had been in a coma since the operation.
Five days into the coma, the hospital personnel thought he was not going to live and wanted the family to consider the funeral. Upon hearing this over the phone, Mrs. Hsueh was startled and immediately started to practice a healing yoga which the Master had taught her. She continued meditating until she saw a bright white light appearing from the area of his duodenum.
Her father-in-law stayed eighteen days in the hospital. He was in a coma for a week. During this time, the hospital had virtually given up on him. However, instead of dying, he woke up. Resting, over the next ten days in the hospital, he gradually recuperated. This was a miraculous occurrence wherein the dying had begun to live again.
On Sunday, March 10, 1985, Mrs. Hsueh and her husband drove from Renton to my True Buddha Tantric Quarter, for the purpose of requesting me to perform a blessing for their father. They brought along some bread, pastries, fruits, incense and gold decorated papers as offerings to the Buddhas. I lit the candles and recited the Universal Gateway Article of the Lotus Sutra, the High King Avalokitesvara Sutra, and the Six Syllables Mantra “Om Mani Padme Hum.” Together with the mudra and visualization, I gave them blessings.
Mrs. Jung-san Hsueh could “see,” “hear” and “smell” in her meditation. She is extremely sincere and is mindful of Guanyin Bodhisattva at all times. Thus:
All beings who are in distress,
And in an enormous amount of pain;
The wisdom power of Guanyin,
Can save them from all sufferings.
An unusual aspect of Mrs. Hsueh’s taking refuge was, ever since she was initiated, she was no longer obsessed with all the worries she had had before and she gradually eliminated the subjective egoist’s attitude. Every time in her Guru Yoga practice, she was able to achieve spiritual response and, whenever she invoked him, she was able to see the Padmakumara appearing to her in great white lights.
This is the boundless and unlimited power of the Buddha Dharma. If not for experiences such as hers, people might not believe it. Mrs. Jung-san Hsueh hopes everyone, including those who are in distress, will sincerely take refuge in the True Buddha School and pay respect to the Holy Red Crown Vajra Master. In this way, they will automatically receive the power from the Master to protect them. Amazing responses will then appear one by one in front of them.
Mrs. Jung-san Hsueh did not have the intention of boasting about her ability in meditation, nor did she want anyone to praise her because of her mystical experiences. But she just couldn’t help revealing the facts, and she honestly wanted to let others know that she was grateful to the Bodhisattvas for their protection. At the same time, she wanted to prove that the Holy Red Crown Vajra Master is one of the greatest masters and that he is the same as a Buddha.
The construction of Rey Tseng Temple (Ling Shen Ching Tze) in Redmond, Washington is scheduled to be completed in the middle of 1985. Inside the temple, the main deity will be Guanyin Bodhisattva (Avalokitesvara) in the middle, the Golden Mother of the Primordial Pond on the right, and Ksitigarbha on the left. The mystical experiences of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas have increased the confidence of our students. Bodhisattvas are actually “responding to any help anywhere, acting like a boat carrying people across the sea of sufferings.”
The Holy Red Crown Vajra Master has made a compassionate vow for the cause of eliminating illusions. He wants all students to cleanse their three negative karmas [of body, speech, and mind], to practice together the Padmakumara Vajra Yoga, and continuously chant the Guru Heart Mantra. If students do this, they will receive mystical experiences, which is one of his wishes.