The Flying Carpet of the East By Living Buddha Sheng-yen
Lu This was translated from Grandmaster Lu's 31st book, 東方的飛氈. CHAPTER 34 - Reincarnation And Retribution It was New Year's Eve. My family and I were sitting by the fire while a cold wind blew outside. We were in the middle of dinner when my good friend, Mr. Hsieh, came bursting through the door. "Hey! Lu! he said. "You have to save my niece! She's dying!" He held a statue of the Veda Bodhisattva. Shih is a devoted Buddhist. "Where is your niece?" "Wu-feng Center. All the members are there praying for her." Reaching for my jacket and bowing to Buddha I left quickly with him to catch a taxi. On the way to the church my friend told me this story: Liu Min-yu, his niece, was a junior at the normal university, and was doing well there. Two years before, however, she began to act strange. She often mumbled, and said things that didn't make sense. Sometimes she slept for five days without eating or drinking anything. The school had notified her parents to take her home for therapy. They took her to see one doctor after another. None of them found anything wrong. Her father was a prosperous businessman and he spent large amounts of money on doctors for her. When all else failed, he took her to the temple. One of the mediums in the Pu-li Temple said that an entity had bestowed very bad energy on Liu Min-yu. The remedy was that she should stay in the temple for 49 days. While she stayed there, Miss Liu slept the days through. Whenever she awoke, she continued to mumble nonsense. Finally the medium gave up on her. Her father took her to another temple, the Five King Temple. There they worshipped the Emperor of Jade, and burned tons of hell money. She improved a bit and at times she was quiet, but for the most part she cried and screamed. Once in a while people had difficulty restraining her. They worked through the temple for six months, then her father asked the resident monk at Tiu-yun Temple for help. The monk claimed to have a fan that could sweep away all kinds of bad entities. He said, when he examined Miss Liu, that it was the spirit of the carp fish that caused the trouble. He chanted, used the dharma water and waved his fan to get rid of the spirits. It didn't help. Mr. Liu then took his daughter to the King Mother Temple of Wu-ch'i. The medium there covered Miss Liu's body with paper charms. No food was allowed her-only sacred water. After four days of this, the girl had a high and serious fever. Her face turned dark and her eyelids white. She mumbled ceaselessly. She was sent to a mental hospital for electric shock therapy. Hsieh told me, "We've visited the famous Buddhist scholar, Master Lu. He told us he was only a teacher. I am thinking that you have some kind of psychic power, and you can help. If you don't help her she will die today! She told us there are two entities coming to get her tonight." When we arrived at Wu-feng Temple I bowed to the Buddha in the hall. Members sat in a circle chanting to Buddha for the girl. I was touched, since this night was New Year's Eve. Liu Min-yu was there, speaking loudly, sometimes screaming. She repeated that she could not live anymore; that someone was coming to get her. She pointed to the temple members, "It's useless to chant! The god of death will come to get you too!". I met her father, Liu Ta, and her mother. I inquired briefly about her situation, then followed the ritual ceremony of Buddhism to pray for sacred water to spread on her body. Nothing changed. I requested all the members to chant for Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva. I stood in the center of the hall and focused myself on the Ksitigarbha statue, chanting the mantra to invite the Bodhisattva. Finally, I saw the Bodhisattva appear, sitting on a lotus flower and holding a staff. "Lian Shen," he opened his eyes slightly and said, "nowadays people often have this ailment. This is the retribution of insanity. It should be that way." "Bodhisattva! Does she have to die tonight?" I anxiously asked. "No. What has happened to her is an accumulation of the grievances and hatred of many entities who are upset with her." "Can I help her?" "It is from an entanglement of her mind with other entities. Great power will be needed to resolve this. " The golden body of the Bodhisattva slowly disappeared. I turned to Liu Ta, "Your daughter is possessed by very strong entities. Great power is needed to resolve it. But she will not die tonight." A few days later Mr. and Mrs. Liu came to visit me. "Mister Lu, I'm hoping so much you can cure her. We have done everything we can!" I nodded. "I will do my best, but it all depends on Buddha. I hope the almighty power of Buddha will cure her insanity." That evening I burned incense and prayed about this matter. Lying on the bed half asleep, I saw a mysterious phenomenon: It was late at night and foggy. Near a long bridge a man carried a woman's body. A big rock was tied to her body. He threw her into the river. The vision was so painful that I couldn't breathe. I felt almost as if I were the woman's body. Then I saw the same man running into an alley with a samurai sword. He killed a man and threw the body into a lime pond. When the killer turned around I saw a woman's face! She looked like Liu Min-yu! I was frightened and I woke up. It was four o'clock in the morning. I washed, went to my altar, burned incense, and asked for the Buddha's guidance. Buddha said, "What you saw in the dream is her past life. Those entities are coming back for revenge. The only resolution is to negotiate with those who are grieved. At seven o'clock in the morning I rushed to Mr. Liu's house and I told them about my dream. They said nothing. We all went back to my altar. I took out my ouija board so they could experience direct guidance. "In Liu Min-yu's previous life," said the ouija board, "she killed a man and a woman. in this lifetime she reincarnated as a woman. The victims have come to take revenge. Liu Min-yu will be crazy for eight years. Only then will the grievance be neutralized. This is the retribution. Even the gods cannot help. One victim's name is Huang, a male. The other is Lin, a female." After seeing the ouija board spell this out Mr. and Mrs. Liu Ta looked at each other. Mrs. Liu sighed and said "No wonder! Min-yu once was yelling and begging Miss Lin for forgiveness!" Liu Ta asked the ouija board if there was any solution, and the board said, "It's up to the person who tied the knot to untie the knot." I respectfully asked the Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva to bring the souls of Mr. Huang and Miss Lin to express their opinions through the ouija board. To begin with they responded that they would not yield at all. They wanted full revenge for their grievances. Mr. and Mrs. Liu Ta begged and pleaded for compassion, and finally the two souls gave this condition: First, donate a statue of Buddha to the temple in the name of Mr. Huang and Miss Lin. Second, hold a three day deliverance ceremony for the two souls. Third, pledge a sum of four thousand dollars in the name of the two souls to help in building a temple. Fourth, hold a deliverance ceremony every July for five consecutive years. Mr. and Mrs. Liu Ta, because of their love for their daughter, agreed immediately to follow all of the conditions. I was in charge of the three day deliverance ceremony. Seven days after the ceremony Liu Min-yu slowly recovered her sanity. A month later she had recovered normal health, and had a lovely face. She became a teacher. |
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