Uncle Ma was a Formosan army veteran who was spending his last years at the Ren-Ai Home. He had suffered a stroke at age sixty and so had difficulty moving the limbs on one side of his body, and saliva dripped from his mouth when he talked. In this condition, when he met Master Ching Hai and was initiated, he knew that he did not have long to live, and decided to practice diligently. Through observing his life after initiation one can appreciate the kinds of miracles brought about by devotion to the Quan Yin Method.

Period of Devoted Practice

Each day, residents of the Ren-Ai Home follow a fixed schedule. After dinner, normally beginning at six, they gathered in the Home's main hall to watch television. However, at these times Uncle Ma preferred to retire to his room to sleep. Then at about midnight, fully revitalized, he would meditate until six in the morning, and afterwards do exercises to loosen up his body and occasionally help the Ren-Ai maintenance crew clean the facility. Upon finishing breakfast at seven, he would take a nap in his room, and then go out for a walk or go window shopping in the local area. Next, after lunch, he would take a brief rest, and meditate for another two hours. He thus meditated eight hours a day, and kept accurate records of all his meditation sessions.

At that time, the Tainan Chigu Center held group meditation sessions every Tuesday and Thursday, and on those days local initiates would drive by to pick up Uncle Ma, and he never failed to show up for his ride. Also, when there was a retreat at the Hsihu Center, he would always eagerly attend. Less than six months after beginning his practice of the Quan Yin Method, Uncle Ma, who formerly had difficulty moving, changed into a new person. Saliva stopped dripping from his mouth and his limbs became more agile. Even his dim-looking eyes became clear and sparkly!

Following his initiation by Master, Uncle Ma constantly basked in the bliss of meditation and never complained about physical ailments or needed to see a physician. The only time he consulted a doctor was when some yellow fluid began oozing out from between his toes, and the doctor told him that it was a natural excretion of toxins from his body, and therefore a good sign.

Then one day, after two years of diligent spiritual practice, Uncle Ma said, "Master has instructed me to take up permanent residence at the Hsihu Center." So, when he had completed the paperwork and made the proper arrangements for leaving the Ren-Ai Home, he paid a special visit to my house to bid farewell to my husband and remind me to practice diligently. When he departed, he left behind his bamboo hat, and I quickly went up to the car he was riding in to return it. But in a carefree manner, he waved at me with a smile and said, "Keep it! I don't need it anymore."

Peaceful Departure from Earth

On the third day after Uncle Ma moved to Hsihu, a resident practitioner there notified the Ren-Ai Home that he had passed away while sitting in meditation. It was later reported that when the local prosecutor tried to take photos as evidence of Uncle Ma's passing, the extremely bright, divine Light emitted from his body ruined all the negatives!

In the company of Uncle Ma and the other elderly residents of the Ren-Ai Home, I gained a deeper realization that birth, old age, illness and death are processes that every human being must go through. At the Home, some of the people were permanently bedridden due to illness and so suffered more while living than if they had been dead. Some appeared physically healthy, yet experienced deep depression and often tried to end their own lives.

When karmic retributions knock on the door, not even the best physician can help us. It is extremely difficult to encounter an enlightened Master in a billion years of lifetimes. The Quan Yin Method imparted by Master can liberate us from life and death, and uplift us from suffering into happiness. Old Uncle Ma's peaceful demise was the best testimony to this truth that I can ever imagine.