Demons, monsters and ghosts do have some attractive power because they are different than the human standard. We humans have power also but are suppressed because we have been doing things that suppress all our power or we vowed to work without the power because in the maya world, which is this world, you’re not allowed to use power. If you came from Heaven, you’re not allowed to use obvious magical power to attract people. Only the demons, monsters and devils can do that because they have controlled this world since long ago.
So, Whoever came from Heaven has to kind of sign a contract to be quiet, to work quietly or else. But to be a Master, you can’t work quietly. Sooner or later, people will tell each other, will tell far and wide, and the Master always gets into trouble. You name any Master that doesn’t have trouble. No, none. None of the real Masters lived a peaceful and wonderful life. Well, of course, in some period of time when there was peace in some peaceful countries – probably lucky Masters, but rarely any, rarely. Mostly They were being tormented all Their lives and die brutally; if a real Master, it’s like that. Because the maya knows Who the real Masters are, so they will be after Them to obstruct and/or eliminate the Masters and Their teaching!
Those lousy monks and preaching-nonsense monks... I even saw a monk, a Buddhist monk who preached to his followers – his faithful monks and nuns – that “there is no Amitābha Buddha Land; it’s just a theory. And also, there is no hell. The hell concept has just been introduced 500 years ago.” No, no! In the Buddha’s time already we had hell. That’s why His disciple Mục Kiền Liên (Maudgalyāyana) had to go to hell, then come back and beg the Buddha to rescue His mother, who cheated the monks and gave them (animal-people) meat to eat, telling them that it was vegan food. And the one (King Virūḍhaka) who destroyed the Buddha’s clan also went to hell directly, immediately after that. After he killed and massacred the Buddha’s clan brutally, he and his whole army drowned in a flood – suddenly died just like that, all of them – and went to hell, Avīci or relentless hell. That’s in the Buddhist sutra; it’s not I who says it!
“The Shakya clan then ordered the city gates to be opened. At that time, King Virūḍhaka said to his ministers: ‘Now the Shakya clan members are numerous; swords and knives cannot harm them all. Therefore, bury them alive in the ground, and later, have fierce elephants crush them to death.’ At that time, the ministers obeyed the king’s order and used elephants to crush those people to death. […] The World-Honored One said to the Bhikkhus: ‘Now King Virūḍhaka and his army will not remain in this world for long. After seven days, they will be destroyed.’ King Virūḍhaka sent people to count the days, and by the beginning of the seventh day, the King was overjoyed and could not contain himself. He took the troops and the female attendants to the banks of the Aciravatī River to enjoy themselves and then rested there. At midnight, unexpected clouds gathered, and a strong wind and heavy rain came very quickly. King Virūḍhaka and the soldiers were swept away by the water, and all perished, their bodies destroyed, and their lives ended in the Avīci hell. There was also a Heavenly fire that burned down the palace in the city. […] Then the World-Honored One recited a verse: ‘Evil deeds are truly overwhelming, All due to actions of body and mouth. This body suffers and is short-lived, If at home, It will be burned by fire, When life ends, One is surely born in hell.’”
So how can that monk, who’s supposed to be a famous monk in the high rank of monkhood – his name is Thích Nhật Từ – preach and tell his people that there’s no hell and no Amitābha Buddha’s Land?
“Excerpt from ‘Is hell real or not? – Thích Nhật Từ’: Based on that Theravada Buddhism, it is clear that the image of hell is just a means of moral education, because if everyone would be reborn immediately, then there would be no hell.”
“Excerpt from ‘Thích Nhật Từ: The Western Pure Land Realm does not exist.’: Can reciting the Buddha's Name lead to rebirth in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss? The answer, according to history and based on the 18th sutra in the Dīgha Nikāya, is no. Because the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss is not real.”
My disciples even went to Amitābha Buddha’s Land and described what it is all about.
“Each of Master’s disciples has similar, different or more inner spiritual experiences and/or outer world blessings; these are just some samples. Usually we keep them to ourselves, as per Master’s advice.
A Journey to Heaven – Amitabha’s Western Paradise or ‘Extreme Bliss Pure Land’
Master once told us that following Master to practice meditation is ‘we die every day while alive,’ meaning our soul consciousness can come and go between Heaven and Earth without having to wait for this physical body to actually die.
I had the honor to visit the Amitabha’s Western Paradise or ‘Extreme Bliss Pure Land’ a few times during my meditation even though I’m not practicing the ‘Pure Land Buddhism,’ but the ‘Quan Yin Method’ that Supreme Master Ching Hai has imparted to me, which enables me to tour the Western Paradise while living. That’s why the ‘Quan Yin Method’ is a complete and perfect method, the ultimate of all spiritual practicing methods.
I saw that the Western Paradise was exactly the same as described in the Buddhist Sutra: the ground paved with gold and the palaces made with soft and elastic gold, looking transparent and shining with golden light. Pillars inside and outside of the palaces were all inlaid with gemstones of seven or nine colors. Everything there was composed of light. The radiant buildings there were like those ancient buildings on Earth, including gorgeous Buddhist style, Islamic style, or elegant Catholic style, as all buildings here on Earth are imitations of those in Heaven. The buildings in Heaven were truly so beautiful that no worldly language can describe them. The palaces all had their own consciousness, like living creatures that we can communicate with. Even though they apparently had doors, but we could just get in without having to pass through any door or any obstruction.
The colors of flowers and plants there were especially transparent and bright and they can all sing. The trees there were also glittering with light and radiating a kind of subtle vibration, as if singing. The light there was so strong that I couldn’t distinguish between trees, flowers, or plants in the beginning. Even animal-people there were all sparkling. The mountains there were also green and very radiant and vivid in color.
I first visited the lower level of the Western Paradise, which was either for people who had meritorious rewards while living on Earth or had chanted the name of ‘Amitabha Buddha’ and had less karma. After arriving there, they had to first clean their contaminated parts after living in the big dyeing tank of Earth, and then gradually rise up to the middle level after being thoroughly cleansed.
In the middle level were those who had practiced spiritually and meditated more but still had lots of distractive thoughts. I saw some of them still missing their previous worldly pleasures; for example, whatever they wanted to eat would appear for them to enjoy instantly, and whatever they desired would instantly be created just by their thinking.
One thing worth noticing was that I saw some monks and nuns who had practiced the Pure Land Buddhism and kept the precepts rather strictly. They were reborn into the low or middle level there and regretted that they hadn’t practiced well while in their human bodies; they wanted to practice diligently after going there.
Therefore, in each level of the ‘Extreme Bliss Pure Land’ there’re Buddhas or Bodhisattvas mercifully giving lectures. When Quan Yin Bodhisattva lectured there, all beings would miraculously transform into teenage girls to listen to the lecture, wearing exactly the same clothes. Then Quan Yin Bodhisattva would give a lecture through vibration which the whole audience could understand.
I also saw that when Amitabha Buddha went there to lecture, every being would miraculously turn into young boys to listen to the lecture, and Amitabha Buddha also used vibration instead of language to let everyone understand. After the lecture, everyone would return to their own original clothing, which to me was so interesting! I also joined them to listen to the lecture.
Over there, every being had a ‘home’ – a ‘lotus flower.’ They would meditate, practice spiritually, and recite sutras, and so on in one’s own lotus. One lotus there is bigger than our Earth, because one eye of Amitabha Buddha alone is already as immense as the Universe. Therefore, beings in the Western Paradise were correspondingly very, very big, unlike us earthly humans who are so small. Even though it is the Buddha’s world, if beings there don’t practice well, their lotus flowers would wither and lose light; they cannot cheat.
The sutra described the well-known ‘Eight Merit Water’ in the Western Paradise. I saw that it was transparent water which is extraordinarily ‘pure, cool, sweet, soft, moisturizing, calming, thirst-quenching, and nourishing all qualities.’ Beings could go there to wash whatever dirty stuff is attached to their souls and then return to their house – the lotus flower – to continue practicing meditation.
There’s only happiness in the Western Paradise, no suffering or vexation, that’s why it’s named ‘Extreme Bliss Pure Land.’ Almost all the residents in the top level of the Western Paradise were Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, where They study laws and mysteries of the Universe and prepare to liberate beings, in anticipation of becoming Buddhas or Bodhisattvas of even higher levels, which is the goal They are striving for while living there.
After visiting the ‘Extreme Bliss Pure Land’ a few times, my realization is: while still in this human body, we should endeavor to be vegan, practice spiritually, lead a virtuous and loving lifestyle, and diligently practice the ‘Quan Yin Method,’ which is the highest. Then, we don’t need to wait until we die to travel to various high Heavens with our consciousness. Heavens welcome spiritual practitioners like you and me.
Master has prepared the ‘New Paradise,’ an incredible Heaven that is even more extraordinary and magnificent, for good disciples and good people. Thank You, Master! It is difficult to repay Your Grace. I can only kowtow to You three times from here. Respectfully, Ji-Guang from China”
And even one monk in Âu Lạc (Vietnam), he said he can see Amitābha Buddha’s Land like the lines on his palm (Thích Giác Khang).
“Excerpt from Seeing the Pure Land of Amitabha Buddha as Clearly as Seeing the Lines on Your Palm – The Venerable Thích Giác Khang: Anyone who reads the Diamond Sutra and understands ‘the momentariness’ will perceive the world of Amitābha. In the past, I didn't believe it. Now, I don’t have issues of belief or disbelief; I see the Pure Land as if it’s right in the palm of my hand. It’s that clear. Therefore, if you can achieve a single thought of concentration, you will be reborn in the Heavenly realm.”
So, quite a few people can see Amitābha Buddha’s Land. How can you, as a monk, say that there’s no Amitābha Buddha’s Land? He said it’s “just a concept”… and no hell even. Wow, wow, wow! Hopefully, he doesn’t have to go to hell to find out. There’s one nun, she wrote her hell experience. She used to sell chicken- and duck-people, and she went to hell and they punished her. She almost had to be gone forever, but because Quan Yin Bodhisattva interfered and helped her… Then she had to be punished for some time, temporarily. And then she was released and came back to continue her nun practice more diligently.
“Excerpts from A thrilling story of a Vietnamese nun who went to hell; many truths revealed: It was around 10 AM when I found myself in a beautiful scene, with lush green trees. There was a very long bridge. I walked onto the bridge for a while, then it collapsed. I fell into a river and struggled to swim but couldn’t get to the shore. Strangely, the riverbank was right there, but I couldn’t reach it no matter how hard I swam. At that moment, I felt lost and extremely scared. Gradually, the current carried me out to the sea gate, and the water became very cold, piercing my heart and liver.
I looked around and saw that I wasn’t alone; countless others were drifting with the current into this cold sea. There were Westerners, Asians, old and young, men and women. I felt freezing and my body became stiff. Overwhelmed with fear, I heard a voice from above say, ‘Recite the Buddha’s Name!’ I tried with all my might to recite, but it took a long time before I could pronounce the word ‘Buddha! Buddha!’ Gradually, I was able to recite ‘Amitābha Buddha.’ Then the full phrase: ‘Namo Amitābha Buddha.’ Thanks to that, I felt much more at ease. At this moment, I turned to the two people beside me and recited Buddha’s Name to help them.
Finally, I was brought to a grand castle, with towering mountains behind it. As I ascended the castle, I was horrified to see the fearsome bull-headed and horse-faced beings, as well as the countless enormous Demon Kings, all of them towering like mountains. Then, one of the Demon Kings led me to a door, which opened automatically, revealing a radiant Light that was incredibly magnificent and beautiful. At that moment, I recognized the Majestic Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva, Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva, and Cundi Bodhisattva majestically seated on Their thrones. I immediately bowed my head and knelt in reverence to the Three. Then the Three Bodhisattvas guided me to confess and repent for my bad karma. Once the repentance was complete, the two Demon Kings led me into the hells, beginning an unprecedented and terrifying journey. The hells were truly immense and could not be traversed without the supernatural powers of the Demon Kings.
The first gate of hell to open is the Hell of Filial Impiety. What catches my eye are the horrifying iron spikes on a giant spiked platform, circular in shape, with a countless number of people on it. The Demon Kings push the sinful souls floating in mid-air, then they are crushed by boulders falling from above, impaling them on iron spikes as thick as fingers, blood gushing out profusely. This punishment, like all others, repeats itself endlessly in succession. Elsewhere, there are icy cold tables where souls lie and sit in disarray, chilled to the bone. The two Demon Kings say this is the consequence of abandoning parents to hunger and cold.
Next, I am led into the second hell called Avici (Uninterrupted hell), where souls were sent here due to committing 80 different types of guilts, such as fraudulent business practices, robbery and harming others, usury, exploiting workers, and siblings fighting over inheritance. The punishments here are diverse, including pouring boiling copper into mouths, pulling out and cutting tongues, chopping off hands and feet, letting snakes and scorpions bite and tear the flesh, etc. The guilty souls scream in terror. If there were a camera to record this, no horror movie could compare. Anyone who saw it would rather die than dare to commit a sin.
Next, I am led into the Hell of the Ten Great Evils, where there are numerous torture devices such as grinding mills, piercing nails, flaming copper pillars, etc. There is an extremely enormous cauldron, like a large lake, filled with people writhing and screaming as they bob up and down. Guilty souls are condemned here for sins such as murder, abortion, adultery, incest, prostitution, etc.
Following that is the Hell of Fire. Everywhere is ablaze with fire, reserved for teachers and students who have committed sins, such as teachers who withhold knowledge, teach wrong curriculum, lack conscience, harm their students and students who hit or kill their teachers, etc.
Next is the Hell of Twelve Great Evils, reserved for 12 major sins that endanger society. It’s extremely difficult for the souls condemned here to escape and be reborn in other realms. Within this hell is a sea of freezing water, with fierce monsters lurking beneath the surface, and above are various torture devices that send chills down one's spine.
Encountering Many Monks and Nuns in Hell
I was shocked to recognize my aunt among the countless souls there. She was being dragged by ox-headed and horse-faced demons, who were continuously hacking and slashing at her body, with blood and flesh scattered everywhere.
If one struggled to escape, they are immediately stabbed into pieces by the iron hooks hanging above. I tried to call out to my aunt, but the souls here seemed to have no ears and could not hear. When she was alive during the old regime, my aunt trafficked drugs from Cambodia to sell domestically. She lived a life of luxury, with an abundance of money, houses, and cars, while her children spent extravagantly. After 1975, karma caught up with her swiftly. Her wealth dissipated entirely, her children became unfilial, wandering off to different places. When she passed away, there wasn’t even enough money to buy a coffin for her. But worldly people can only see a small fraction of that karmic retribution, unaware that the consequences are millions or billions of times more horrific down here in hell.
False Cultivators Are Severely Punished
The next prison I was led to was called Great Avīci. As its name suggests, this prison is much larger than the other prisons, with a gloomy, creepy atmosphere that is hard to describe. This prison is for fake monks of different religions such as Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, and many other religions. It includes hundreds of different sins, such as scolding true monks, misusing public money and property, breaking precepts and moral discipline, putting family members in power in the temple, pretending to be monks for profit, building fake temples for profit, giving false explanations of the Buddha’s teachings, blinding people from the truth, etc.
The Demon Kings showed me a monk who had been promoted to the rank of Venerable, about 70 years old, wearing a yellow robe, sitting on a bed of spikes, his arms and legs being bitten by dogs, and his eyes being pecked by crows, covered in blood. He misinterpreted Buddhist teachings, often giving false explanations, frequently preaching and attacking genuine monks. Additionally, he used the offerings for personal gain, buying houses under the names of relatives, accumulating heavy karma.
Finally, after taking me through various hellish realms, the Demon Kings brought me back to the original place, where I respectfully bowed to the three Bodhisattvas: Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva, Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva, and Cundi Bodhisattva. After bowing, the Bodhisattvas instructed me to chant the Buddha’s Name and follow Their guidance. I saw myself rising into the air, returning to the human world, and re-entering my body. It was noon, marking the end of my horrifying journey through hell.”
So many stories! Not just the nun’s; I’m just telling she’s a nun because she would not lie to you. Though some monks and nuns do lie for their own profit. I don’t know why. They truly did not study Buddhism. They don’t feel afraid of karma. Or maybe they came from hell themselves or they’re the children of the Mara King, as he vowed to send his children to be monks and nuns to destroy Buddhism. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have said such things.
Because for Buddhism, Amitābha Buddha’s Land, it’s so popular. A lot of people can’t do much, anything, so they just recite Amitābha Buddha’s Name because He has unlimited Light; His Light is shining everywhere, even into hell, even though the hell people cannot see it. So people believe in Amitābha Buddha greatly, because He’s famous and His liberation method is easy according to Buddhism. People just recite “Amitābha Buddha” non-stop, with one-pointedness, and also imagine, visualize His Land as Shakyamuni Buddha described to them.
This was because one time Shakyamuni Buddha responded to a Queen’s prayer, took pity on Her, used His Light Body to go into a prison, where the queen was incarcerated, to teach Her this method of reciting Amitābha Buddha’s Name, so She became liberated after Her death. They will be reborn into the Amitābha Buddha’s Land in different levels, from the lowest to the highest gradually with time. It depends on how sincere you are, how concentrated you are when you’re reciting the Buddha’s Name and when you visualize His Holy Land.
“After worshiping Him, Queen Vaidehi raised Her head and saw Shakyamuni Buddha, the World-Honored One. […] ‘I beseech You, World-Honored One, to reveal to me a land of no sorrow and no affliction where I can be reborn. […]’ Then the World-Honored One said to Vaidehi, ‘Do You know that Amitābha is not far away? Fix Your thoughts upon and contemplate that Buddha Land. […]’ ‘In each region of this jeweled Land there are five hundred koṭis (fifty billion) of jeweled pavilions in which innumerable Devas play Heavenly Music. There are also musical instruments suspended in the sky, which, like those on the Heavenly jeweled banners, spontaneously produce Tones even without a player. Each Tone proclaims the virtue of mindfulness of Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha. When this contemplation has been accomplished, it is known as the general perception of the jeweled trees, jeweled ground, and jeweled ponds of the Land of Utmost Bliss. This is a composite visualization and is called the sixth contemplation. Those who have perceived these objects will be rid of extremely heavy evil karma which they have committed during innumerable kalpas (eons) and will certainly, after death, be born in that Land.’” ~ Amitāyurdhyāna Sūtra
Amitābha Buddha is one of the most beloved Buddhas. So if you are a Buddhist monk and you say there is no Amitābha Buddha’s Land, I don’t know how people will react to that. I myself refuse that talk. That’s garbage. That’s nonsense. That’s non-existent. That’s anti-Buddha! That’s disrespectful to Amitābha Buddha and disrespectful to all the Buddhas, disrespectful to all Buddhists, disrespectful to Shakyamuni Buddha under Whose name he (Thích Nhật Từ) became a monk, and became famous, well-known and trusted by many of the Buddhist faithful who follow him. That’s very disrespectful to the whole of Buddhism in total.
So I truly don’t understand nowadays what kind of monks people have become. You judge for yourself. I just tell you the truth. That Mr. Thích Nhật Từ said that. You can read his talk. And he also swears in front of the public. That’s the truth. I don’t want to judge or anything. I just tell you the truth. You can look on YouTube or the Internet. I just happened to see it. And some of my team printed it and gave it to me to read also. Maybe we can share that if they can find it again, some of his talks. And even teaching the followers how to have sex and stuff like that. Do we need a monk to teach such things? Nowadays, they can read it anywhere.
“Excerpt from ‘Shocking News’: People sh*t on the head, sh*t on the head, sh*t on the head, sh*t on the head, sh*t on the head of Buddhism, sh*t on the heads of monks and nuns, and sh*t on the practice and study of Buddhism.”
“Excerpt from ‘Fake Monk Thích Nhật Từ Preaching About Sex’: In terms of karma, if you use tools to satisfy your sexual desires, it's not considered a sin. The Buddha also didn’t see that as a sin.”
They have it before everybody is born, even. Before we even know we have this planet, humans already know what to do for such things. Such things don’t need a monk to mention. He just says anything. It’s beyond my understanding. But as the Buddha said, in this Dharma-Ending Age, monks are not monks.
Photo Caption: Shielding You Even While Tattered!
