Story World

Golden Words

Recorded by Sister Hsu Tsai-hsia, Taipei, Formosa

After the four-day retreat at the Florida Center in December 2001, a group of disciples was lucky enough to spend a wonderful night at Master's house before New Year's Day. That night, Master again reminded us of the importance of positive thinking, and hoped that we would all speak positive words in the future. For instance, when we describe certain circumstances, we should try not to use such words as "bad" or "ugly" and instead try to use "not good" or "not good-looking". Though the word "not" is used in these cases, there are still such positive words as "good" or "good-looking." The positive and the negative each make up half the sentence, but it is still okay. Since what we think will come true, and any idea bears energy, we have to be very careful about that.

After Master's short discourse, several fellow practitioners voiced their personal opinions and gratitude to Master and some shared with us true stories about their lives. For example, one fellow practitioner from China told us that in his hometown in Shandong province, there is a one-year-old boy who can tell whether someone is a fellow practitioner or not without being told. If a fellow practitioner comes near him, he says, "This is a Bodhisattva!" And if a non-fellow practitioner comes, he says, "This is not a Bodhisattva (meaning 'enlightened being' in Sanskrit)!" He also calls one of the fellow practitioners in the area a great Bodhisattva. When fellow practitioners pointed at Master's photo on the wall and asked him about Her, the boy immediately said, "She is a very, very great Bodhisattva!" A non-initiate who thought himself to be spiritually elevated once asked the boy, "Am I a Bodhisattva?" The boy answered, "No, you are not!" and the person was extremely disappointed. But after he was initiated, he asked the boy again, and the boy naturally said, "You are a Bodhisattva!" so the person was very pleased! After hearing this story, Master said, "Such little boys do not lie."

Another fellow practitioner shared his views on "Golden Words," saying that his words often came true. From his childhood, he has not dared to speak irresponsibly. He remembered once seeing clusters of mangoes on the trees at the Hsihu Center and wanted to have some, but dared not tell the resident disciples that they all belonged to God and everyone could pick them. So he silently prayed, "If one falls into my hand, I will not be stealing if I eat it." Not long after that, a mango fell from a tree and rolled right into his hand. So he ate the mango. Another time, he went to the mountains with his child. When he saw the trees full of red persimmons, he said, "These persimmons belong to God and if they fall, then we can eat them." Immediately, some persimmons fell from the trees. He and his child picked them up and ate the good ones. Master commented, "You only use your good willpower to 'steal' fruit." The humorous exchange between Master and disciple brought rounds of laughter from the fellow practitioners.

The wonderful time at Master's house passed in joyful laughter, warmth and happiness. Master then stepped out of the study after the clock struck twelve, leaving an atmosphere of immense love to take us into sweet dreamland. For each fellow practitioner present, it was a truly unforgettable night.