He causes all of his listeners to think they know their karma from the past. Each person feels he knows, as if in a dream, what he was in his previous lives. One says, “Oh, in my last life I was a watchdog.” Another person says, “In my previous life I was a cat.” Someone else says, “In my past life I was a chicken.” Another person says, “In my past life I was a cow.” None of them were human beings.

Or he, the demon, may say to someone there, “You haven’t died yet, but you have already become an animal.” What does he say? He says, “You were a dog in your past life, and even though you haven’t died yet, you’ve become a dog again. Don’t you believe me?” Then he instructs another person to step on the first person’s “tail.” He says to someone else, “He doesn’t believe what I’m telling him. Go behind him and stand on his tail and then see if he can get up.” Then that person stamps his foot on the ground and says he is standing the first person’s tail, and suddenly the first person cannot stand up. Wouldn’t you say those were great spiritual powers? After the demon said the person had a tail and told someone to step on it, the person could not get up. The person has no choice but to believe. “He says I’m an animal, and now I really do have a tail. Otherwise, how could he step on it and prevent me from standing up?”

At that, all in the assembly pour out their hearts in respect and admiration for him. “It’s magic,” they say. “He knows the person is going to be an animal even before the person has died. He must be a Buddha or a living Bodhisattva.” Actually, they’ve been duped by a ghost and don’t even realize it. They see a ghost or a demon king, and mistake it for a Bodhisattva. Living beings are really upside down.

If someone has a doubt, the demon detects it immediately. Someone in the assembly may be skeptical and think, “How can that be? It isn’t reasonable.” As soon as he starts to doubt, the demon knows it and says, “So you don’t believe me?” These people take one look, “Oh! He’s really a Bodhisattva! I didn’t say what was on my mind, and he knew about it. He exposed my doubt. That’s incredible.” After that he doesn’t dare to disbelieve.

He establishes intense ascetic practices that exceed the Buddha’s moral precepts. He says, “The Buddha’s Vinaya is not enough. I’m establishing a new Vinaya for you. I want you to be new Buddhas, and I am creating a new Buddhism. The previous one is obsolete and inapplicable. This is the scientific era, the nuclear age, and everything must be modernized and improved. The old way of thinking is no longer useful. The old Buddhism cannot be applied either.” That is how he changes Buddhism. He says that people can be Elders or Bhikshus or anything they want.

[January 1983] There are old-fashioned religions and trendy religions. No one believes in religions they consider old-fashioned, but everyone chases madly after trendy things. Of all the Dharma spoken by the Buddha, the most important part is precepts. Nowadays, people consider the Buddha really old-fashioned, and they want to find something more up-to-date. Their search takes them right into the demon king’s lair. None of the external sects are free from greed and desire. They are insatiable, and they desire to benefit themselves at the expense of others.

I cannot say that we at the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas are definitely in accord with the Proper Dharma. Nevertheless, I ask each of you who has followed me for so many years: Have I ever asked you to hand your wealth and property over to the temple? Why have I never done this? Because I’m very old-fashioned. I want to uphold and honor the precepts. The precepts tell us to give to others, not to demand that others give to us while we don’t give anything to them.

At the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas, our revenue comes very naturally. We don’t scheme for contributions. We receive enough income as it is. If you were to try to cheat people of their money, how would you be any different from demons? People who tell others to donate their personal and family wealth and their own lives to the Way-place are totally misguided. I’m not like them. I do not want anyone’s wealth, nor do I desire any beautiful women. I want neither fame nor a good reputation. In fact, I have quite a notorious reputation, not a good one. The very mention of my name gives some people a headache, especially those goblins, demons, ghosts, and freaks.

He slanders Bhikshus, saying, “Bhikshu? What’s a Bhikshu?” He makes fun of the name. He says, “You say he’s a Bhikshu? I say he’s a loach!” [A loach is a kind of carp. In Chinese, “Bhikshu” and “loach” end with the same sound.]

He also scolds his assembly of disciples. He scolds his disciples however he pleases. He may tell them, “You’re a dog,” or “You’re a cat,” or “You’re a rat,” or “You’re a pig.” The disciples hear his scolding and accept whatever he says, thinking he is a Bodhisattva. “You say I’m a pig, so I’m a pig.” “You say I’m a dog, so I’m a dog.” “You say I’m a cat, so I’m a cat.” They don’t dare talk back. This demon king has such tremendous power that he manages to delude people into believing everything he says.

To be continued