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In 1989, the Venerable Master Hua once again
returned to Taiwan to host the Great Compassion Guanyin Dharma
Assembly for Protecting the Country and Dispelling the Disasters
under the invitation of Bao Jie Temple, Taipei and Miaofa Temple,
Taoyuan, Daxi. The delegation of over thirty members flew to
Taipei on October 8. From October 10 to October 29, the Dharma
Assemblies were held respectively in the Sun Yat-sen Memorial
Stadium in Hualian, Dongjing Temple as well as Miaofa Temple in
Daxi. The Great Compassion Mantra, Guanyin Bodhisattva's Sagely
Name and the Universal Door Chapter were recited every day. On
October 30th and 31st, the Master lectured at Zhili Business
College in Banqiao, Taipei. During the Dharma Assembly, the Master
once again went on a fast, transferring his blessings to the
residents of Taiwan. He drank only pure water everyday.
Upon arriving in Taiwan, the Master said, "I am ready to starve in
Taiwan." The Master had fasted for seven days countless times
before. The writer remembers that when the Master was in Hong
Kong, whenever his disciples committed offenses, the Master not
only fasted in the afternoon, he would fast for a whole day. On
one occasion during a Dharma Assembly, the disciples dared not sit
down to eat, thinking that the Master was not eating. This
irritated the Master even more, and he admonished us all.
Gradually, we came to understand that the Master was capable of
fasting for many days. If we did not eat, however, we would not
have the energy to conduct the seven-day Dharma Assembly
consisting of six sessions a day. This time when the Master fasted
in Taiwan, despite his advanced age of seventy-one, he still paid
no attention to his own physical welfare; his only concern was to
benefit the multitudes.
On October 15 and 29, the Master transmitted the Precepts for the
Deceased at Dongjing and Miaofa Temples. "News of Blessings"
reported this incident: "The Venerable Master Hua transmits the
Precepts for the Deceased for the first time in Taiwan." The
announcement for the Precepts Transmission stated, "Whoever seeks
to receive the Precepts on behalf of the deceased should bring
forth a vast resolve, wishing that all beings in the dark realms
will benefit from the Buddhadharma, leave the agony of the hells
and gain rebirth in the good paths. Moreover, you should sincerely
contemplate the countenance and appearance of the deceased as you
prostrate and take the refuges and pure precepts on his/her
behalf, thus moving the deceased soul to bring forth his/her
utmost sincerity and be willing to receive the refuges and the
Mahayana Ten Major Bodhisattva Precepts (the Ten Major Pratimoksa
in the Brahma Net Sutra).” From this we know that the Precepts of
the Deceased can certainly save living beings who suffer in the
hells.
During his visit in Taiwan, the Master dedicated all his heart to
quelling disasters and praying for the residents in Taiwan;
furthermore, to rescue deceased souls, the Master transmitted the
Precepts for the Deceased for the first time. On October 17, at 5:
04 pm, a sudden earthquake registering 7.1 in magnitude occurred
in San Francisco. Twenty seconds in duration, it shook the whole
Bay Area and resulted in bridges breaking, cars overturning, the
ground cracking, and buildings collapsing. Fortunately, the
aftershocks the following week were not immense. Therefore, while
property loss and damage totaled over a hundred million, there
were only sixty-some fatalities. Was the earthquake a form of
collective karma that could not be avoided? Or had the
Dharma-protecting spirits been negligent? In 1968, in order to
reassure disciples from Seattle so that they might stay in the Bay
Area to cultivate, the Master had declared that as long as he was
in San Francisco, he would permit no earthquakes to occur in San
Francisco. Only those with virtue as well as cultivation would
dare to utter such words. Only one week after the Master left San
Francisco for Taiwan, San Francisco suffered an earthquake!
Although the Dharma Realm Buddhist Association did not incur any
loss during this incident and everything was functioning smoothly,
the Master nevertheless hastened back to the U.S. for a few days,
then returned to Taiwan to resume hosting the Dharma Assemblies
there. On October 30 when the Master delivered an instructional
Talk at Zhili Business College, he said, "I owe deep apologies to
the people of San Francisco, because my vow is: As long as I am in
San Francisco, I will not allow San Francisco to have an
earthquake. This time when I came to Taiwan, I have been
preoccupied with praying for Taiwan to be free of all disasters
and calamities, and totally forgot about my vow. Consequently, San
Francisco suffered an earthquake. That's why I feel very
apologetic towards the people there." From his lamentation, I
realized that due to his concentration on dispelling the
collective karma of Taiwan people, the Master had overlooked the
fact that the disasters delayed for many years from striking San
Francisco would be hard to escape. On November 1, the Taiwan Board of the Trustees of Dharma Realm
Buddhist University held its first meeting at the Grand Hotel,
Taipei. Several dozen members enthusiastically supported the
University and donated funds. The Venerable Master Hua pointed out
that education is a person's foundation. The genuine purpose of
education is to promote ethics, with emphasis on the virtues of
filial piety, fraternity, loyalty, trustworthiness, propriety,
righteousness, integrity, and conscience. The Master further
stressed, "To propagate the Buddhadharma, we must promote
education." On November 3, the Master led the delegation back to the United
States to conduct the Opening Ceremony for the Medicine Master
Lapis Lazuli Thus Come One at the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas. |
