Later I’ll tell you a story about “you are what you eat.” And then, “you are what you follow.” Now let’s first talk about the four seasons in Taiwan (Formosa). So, in autumn it was like that. Spring, summer, autumn… One is left, winter. Have you experienced it last time? (Yes.) Huh? (Yes.) Yeah. We also held a 7-day retreat in winter. (Yes.) It was so miserable. Especially for the foreigners. It’s never enough, no matter how many sleeping bags they use to cover themselves. I have experience in this, I have. And the tents, strangely enough, the wind god knew very well where to find people. The tent was already so tightly zipped up, the wind still slipped in to find us. The wind just blew all over, and the wind went “Bang! Bang! Bang!” outside. It was so noisy and cold that we couldn’t sleep. That is what happens in winter.
Therefore, after considering everything, it’ll be fine if we just put up with it. No weather is perfect. Besides, a typhoon comes uninvited when it wants, without informing people in advance. Sometimes it does inform us, but only a few days in advance. Announcing when its tail will come, that its head is arriving tomorrow, its tail will come again the day after or whatever. For example like that. The fact is, when we organize a 7-day retreat, it has to be announced at least two weeks before, so that people can get flight tickets, and arrange their vacation days, etc. We can’t announce at the last minute and organize a retreat only when there’s no typhoon. Sometimes we organize it when there’s no typhoon, but then it comes. Normally it’s like that. It’s crazy. Therefore, from what I see, there’s nothing perfect in this world.
But why have I been talking for so long? Why have I talked so much just now? Where were we? Tell me quickly, so that I can continue. (Three generations.) (Generations of the ashram.) Ashram? Oh, I was telling you… Yes, there was nothing in the first generation. The ashram then was formed by everyone putting up an umbrella. Which means the ashram is a bit “short.” It couldn’t be considered as a “long” (proper) ashram but a “short (improvised) ashram.” That’s how it was. In the second generation, we did have a roof. Yes, we did. You know it. Then, the roof became bigger in the third generation, which is the present situation. We have the entire sky as our roof. That is the third generation. And the fourth is yet to come. We don’t know yet. It’s like that. So, you are now the third generation. Because I was talking about the weather, I explain it to you by the way. In autumn, it’s also very difficult.
Alright. Where were we? I’ve promised to tell you about “you are what you eat.” Right? (You are what you eat.) OK. I know you’re most interested in this. Enough. OK. OK. Strike while it’s hot. If we spiritual practitioners often mix around with virtuous people, we will definitely receive good influences. Otherwise, as Mozi said, society is a big dye vat, a dye vat. Here it’s also a very big dye vat, just that our process of dyeing is slower. Because here there is no incentive pushing you to go fast. In society, you’re forced to struggle, sometimes even when you’re reluctant. In order to survive, you have to do it when people compel you to. For example, out there in society, you’re obliged to enter military service or to go to work. Everyone is forced by situations to do something.
Here, no one forces you. For example, I tell you to meditate for three hours and everyone knows it, but if you just sit there having nightmares or sweet dreams, or daydreaming, I also cannot say anything. As long as you close your eyes, you can have whatever dreams you like. You may look obedient, but your mind is wandering. No one can say anything. Because this is not for survival, not an immediate matter of life & death. So you don’t have to force yourself. Even the guards standing there might also fall asleep from time to time. Then, everyone sleeps together. No one forces anyone. And I, sitting here, see that everyone is sleeping, it’s also fine with me, OK. Alright. Let’s sleep together. Both Master and disciples are very nice. No one interferes with anyone. For example like that. Since we are in this situation, though a bit reluctant, but seeing everyone else is meditating, we also try our best. Then, in this way we practice, and then it becomes a habit.
If you continue doing the same thing, same action every day, after 40 days, it’ll become a habit. That’s according to scientific statistics which have been tested. (OK.) Therefore, eating (animal- people) meat, drinking alcohol, and smoking are all the same. You start doing it for one day, two days, and three days, and then, after a month, it’ll become a habit. The same with many things.
There’s a person, a girl, she is in a… what is it? I think it’s a Muslim country. She is only 17 years old. She’s specialized in training snake(-people). Normally, we’re so afraid of snake(-people) when we see them, but this girl eats, sleeps with snake(-people) every day, hugging a pile of snake(-people), all over her body at the same time, tens of them, not only one. Some are very poisonous, but she’s used to it. Since birth, her father fed her a bottle of snake(-people) venom, like feeding her milk. After she grew up, she is used to it, and now she has… She personally has a very strong resistance. How do you say? (Antibody.) (Resistance.) Resistance. And so, she would not die if snake(-people) bite her.
She mingles with snake(-people) every day, sometimes kissing them, putting their heads into her mouth, and hugging them. Snake(-people) also randomly crawl on her face and kiss her, licking her. Sometimes she intentionally provokes the snake(-people) to bite her until she bleeds, and then she sucks out the venom and spits it out. If it’s too poisonous, she’d suck it out. On any day, if no snake(-person) bites her, she cannot sleep. She’s used to it to such an extent. Can you believe that? It’s a real story. Most so-called artists who keep snake(-people) are like that. They’re all like that. People call them artists, a rather strange art, but it’s also a kind of art. There are many strange arts in the world. The weirder they are, the more people like them. Is it not so? Very few people know normal people like me.
If you look at fashion, you’ll know. If you read those fashion magazines, when I read them... I don’t know who could wear those kinds of clothes. Their models are the so-called most good-looking in the world. They don’t look any better than our models yesterday. Have you seen them? (Yes.) If you have watched the fashion shows or fashion magazines, you’ll know what I’m talking about. Our models yesterday were really the best, the best-looking. But they’re not the most famous. Only a few of them are famous. Others are ordinary ones, not considered first-class models. In my eyes, I don’t like any of those so-called “first-class” models. I don’t like any of them. All our models yesterday are good-looking. Even the “least good-looking” one still looks better than those most famous models. I can say this, frankly speaking, in my opinion. What I mean is, in this world, those weird things and concepts, the weirder they are, the more famous they become. Because the mindsets of people in the world are weird. Facing the world, I feel I am like a child. Facing the world, I feel that I am a small child. Because I’m so surprised by their tastes and styles, and their common sense. I really can’t understand it. This is just by the way.
So, this snake(-people) lady is only about 17 or 18 years old. She’s in a Muslim country, specialized in training snake(-people), and performing to make money. She was used to being bitten by snake(-people) since childhood; she could not sleep if no snake(-people) bit her. Now, what has she become? Everyone is afraid of her, because she also becomes poisonous like the snake(-people). It’s really like that. Therefore, she lives a very lonely life. She thinks maybe no boy is bold enough to marry her as his wife. A few times, some animal(-people) went near her, and were carelessly scratched by her and then died instantly. Scratched by her fingernails when she scratched the animal(-people). Animal(-people) like dog-, cat-, or bird(-people), or… Sometimes the animal(-people) came near her, and she touched them, maybe tried to play with them, but if accidentally her fingernails scratched them… Normally, when animal(-people) scratch us, we may get poisoned. But if any animal(-people) are scratched by this girl, they will die. Because inside her body there’s venom, even on her fingernails. So horrible! It’s not her blood or anything flowing out from her body, and then mixed together, or that she bites them to bleed. No. Just her fingernails. When her fingernails scratch animal(-people), they’d die. There have been several such cases. That’s why people are afraid of her. But she said that she has never hurt any people. Luckily.
Because she’s been with snake(-people) for too long, of course she has the resistance, which is good for her, for sure. However, in order to develop that kind of resistance, she herself must also have that kind of venom. Understand what I mean? It’s just like if we want to resist a certain kind of plague, we have to first inject the poison of that plague into our blood. Isn’t it so? Use it as an antidote. “To combat poison with poison.” The same with this girl. She’s been drinking venom since young. I don’t know if it was through drinking or injection. Her father gave her that after she was born, because her father wanted her to become a performer with snake(-people). She’s been trained like that since young. So, she’s 17 now. She began to be very familiar with snake(-people); she did not begin now, it’s since her childhood. She’s familiar with snake(-people) like we are familiar with dog- and cat(-people). She even says that snake(-people) are not harmful and they do not hurt humans. If they are disturbed, of course they’ll attack you. Otherwise, they don’t hurt people.
She is often bitten by snake(-people), bitten every day, only then can she fall sleep. So scary. You see, she’s often bitten, every day. If there’s too much venom in her body, she’ll suck it out, but still leaves a little bit inside. Since childhood she’s been fed venom, in incremental amounts every day. She allows snake(-people) to bite her more and more. She’s now becoming a poisonous snake(-person) herself. That’s why when she scratches animal(-people), animal(-people) will die. She does not do it intentionally. Because of hanging out with snake(-people), she is supposed to be like that. She has to develop resistance so that she can mingle with snake(-people). Whoever you are with, you will become like that person, so that you can survive, isn’t it so? (Yes.) The difference is, she knows and she won’t purposely bite others or do anything. But snake(-people) don’t know. That’s the only difference.
The same with us spiritual practitioners. That’s only physically. Being with a snake(-person), only physically, she can become so poisonous. So, our thoughts can also be trained to become very poisonous or very kind, very powerful. Those wizards or old witches who are more vicious, who can cast spells which are so effective – it’s not the spells that are effective; it’s they themselves who make the spells so effective. They do not just recite it one day and the spell will be effective, that is impossible. They practice it every day injecting their own willpower into the spells, like wanting to kill or to help. They keep developing and developing their willpower, so when they cast the spell, it becomes effective. After they have trained themselves to make the spells effective, if they transmit it to others, the spell will also be effective.
Like the girl, she herself is not a snake(-person). It’s because she often gets in touch with the venom of snake(-people), so she herself becomes very poisonous. When she scratches… Originally when snake(-people) bite others, others will die, but now the venom has been absorbed by her, by the girl, the snake(-people) have passed on the venom to the girl, so the girl has become like an instrument of the snake(-people). Whoever she bites or scratches now will all die. If any husband dares to kiss her, I wish him good luck! Because she can poison anyone, even with her fingernails. The fingernails are washed every day, and still are so poisonous. If she gives birth to a baby, I wonder what would happen? Maybe the baby would be poisoned inside already, then it’s OK, if the baby can be born, for example like that.
Likewise, we spiritual practitioners rely on our own Self Nature. We truly want to be liberated, we truly want to become a benevolent power, a loving person who can save sentient beings. Then our willpower will develop toward that direction, and then we’ll get that kind of power.
Photo Caption: Do Remember TRINITY Always
