With diverse flora and fauna, magnificent natural landscapes, and an ecological biosphere that supports life, this wondrous planet is our earthly home. From our animal co-inhabitants to the lush rainforests and life-giving soil, we cherish all these as gifts from the Creator. It is a common theme in the world’s major faiths that during our temporary stay here, we should be good stewards of Mother Earth. Throughout the years, Supreme Master Ching Hai has shared the message of leading a balanced life while following a spiritual path.

Not only must we nourish our spirits, but we share the responsibility to care for nature and our fellow beings. In light of recent scientific evidence which pinpoint the raising of livestock as the number one contributor to climate change, Supreme Master Ching Hai affirms the important message she has noted for over the past two decades: we must be vegetarian, meaning an animal-free diet, and practice sustainable living. Today we present to you a discussion by Supreme Master Ching Hai titled “Serve Others with Your Heart.”

Thank you for your eco-conscious company for today’s episode of Between Master and Disciples. Join us again tomorrow for part 2 of Supreme Master Ching Hai’s discussion titled “Serve Others with Your Heart.”

Animal World: Our Co-Inhabitants is up next, right after Noteworthy News here on Supreme Master Television. May the Providence guide us in wisdom and love.

Thank you for your Earth-loving company for today’s episode of Between Master and Disciples here on Supreme Master Television. And now, Animal World: Our Co-Inhabitants is coming up next, right after Noteworthy News. Please stay tuned to Supreme Master Television. With Heaven’s grace, may all beings live harmoniously in dignity and respect.

It’s good as long as we can see each other, okay? (Yes.) You can sit anywhere – three, four people on top of each other. If there is no space, then three, four people can sit on top of each other. It’s good as long as we can see Master. Sit on the shoulders, like piggyback. Understand? One person piggybacks another person.

To be stable, the skinny one sits on top, the fat one sits on the bottom. When I’m afraid of getting fat, I don’t dare to eat at night. You don’t dare to eat at night? Are you a woman to be so afraid? No, it’s because the male Westerners have such big bellies that I got scared. Only women are afraid, men shouldn’t be. Men nowadays also want to have slim waists. Even men want to have a slim waist? But moving around is difficult. Oh dear!

I also cook in a restaurant so I have to be fast, otherwise, plodding like that, then… People see you plodding along, they will say, “Eating vegetarian like you, I dare not. It’s tough to wear clothes!” Plodding like that we can’t serve the customers. Very good. I would like to express my thanks to Master because you’ve arranged for my parents... They have been vegetarian for about one month now, long-term vegetarians. I’d never imagined that my parents would switch to eating vegetarian like that.

How come? Why did they change like that? I just kept praying to Master. Did they watch TV? I called home and talked to them a few times. I talked to them with all my heart, with love, and they suddenly switched to eating vegetarian for good. Very good. Bravo.

Oftentimes, if we’re sincere, then we can touch the other person’s heart – if we have true love. Okay, very good. I called home a few times, then I prayed to you, Master. Making me work again. After calling them several times, later I was told, “Your parents have become vegetarian.” Everyone is the same, it’s nothing new. Okay, very good. So we keep ordering food from Hà Nội and send them to the countryside, send them home, and my parents just eat those.

Because my home is in the rural area, and in a remote town, (A little difficult.) there is no vegetarian food. You’re so filial. No wonder your parents were touched! Each week I have to call home four, five times (Really?) to talk to them. I ask them this and that and then eventually show them the ways to eat. It’s because they didn’t know. If they knew, they would eat, no problem. Yes. My parents said that after eating vegetarian food, they feel good now, because it’s good for health. They could feel it right away?

Yes. After one week, they were already saying it. Nowadays, people with heart diseases get cured immediately, to that extent, when they eat vegetarian. (Yes.) Because it’s poisonous to eat meat; it’s poison, therefore the body is damaged as well. In the past, my mom was most against my eating vegetarian, but now… Now she’s eating vegetarian. (Yes.) She’s not against it anymore. Now she says that eating vegetarian is good. Very good. Yes, yes. Everything changes. Possible. Very good. So in the future, more people will eat vegetarian, okay? (Yes.) We’re a little slender, but we can work with ease; we can run faster. I look at the fat men and I’m frightened.

Many people are too fat? And they lumber along, heavily. A little chubby is okay. Being a little round is all right, but too fat is tiring. (Yes.) Each day you carry on your body tens of kilograms, it’s unbearable. Just carrying a 10-kilogram bag of rice, we’re already out of breath after running back and forth for a while. Being fat, it’s tens of kilograms more, understand? Every day you…

(Haul the lump of flesh.) Every day you haul the lump of flesh and are still able to walk – that’s amazing. Those people are truly strong. I only crave rice when I’m hungry; otherwise

I just eat a little fruit and it assuages the hunger. I dare not eat rice or much of anything. You don’t get fat from eating rice. Sometimes you get fat from eating fruits; they’re sweet. Eating rice does not make you fat. Food with a lot of oil will make you obese, understand? (Yes.) For example, you eat rice so you stir-fry vegetables, for example, don’t put in too much oil. For instance, usually you put in two spoons, so now just put half a spoon and add 1.5 spoons of water. Then when you stir-fry, it’s similar to using two spoons of oil. It’s less fattening. Otherwise, just eat boiled vegetables, eat salad. Sugar or chocolates also give us a big belly.

Then don’t eat those things. I eat anything. I eat whatever I like, so loose clothing makes it easier to eat. If I wear clothes with a slim waist like those women, it’s troublesome.

It’s all right. Anything is all right. Okay, if you don’t want to get fat, then eat rice with more vegetables and don’t use oil, understand? (Yes, yes.) Oil and vegan butter and sugar and all that (Yes, thank you, Master), those things make you fat. The worse is, if you really still want to eat them, then buy those things that are labeled “diet,” like diet chocolate, diet vegan butter, etc., they seem to also lower the weight.

Sometimes we don’t know what they put in there. Yes, we don’t know if they put anything not good in the diet food, I don’t know, have to check carefully. In regards to reducing cooking oil, that will make you less fat, understand? Reduce the oil, reduce the sugar, reduce all the flour, wheat flour and so on, understand? Products that are made from wheat flour. (Yes, yes.) You won’t get fat from eating rice, because researchers discovered that eating rice is less fattening and it makes you much younger. Therefore, Asian people look much younger, you see? And they stay young longer than Westerners, you see? It’s because we eat rice. Moreover, we eat a lot of vegetables. Take the Aulacese (Vietnamese) people, for example, or the Chinese, they eat less meat than Westerners, understand? (Yes.)

They eat with rice and vegetables, not just meat alone, understand? For example, the Americans, the whole plate is all meat. Sometimes the beefsteak is as big as the plate. There’s fat and all sorts of things in it, toxins, but they still eat it and then get sick, get fat. The digestive system is not balanced. Consuming the poisons into the body, how can you live? The whole world has been deceived until now.

If we can live until the whole world become vegetarian, then it would be great, wouldn’t it? (Yes.) At that time, we won’t need Supreme Master TV anymore. We won’t need it anymore, and every day you go to work and then come to visit me later.

Master, I have a few stories about opening vegan restaurants in Âu Lạc (Vietnam), Master. I returned to the country many times since the beginning of the year, but the thing is, Master, when I was there, I opened the Âu Lạc Loving Hut restaurant. In general, the restaurant is very crowded. Then in June, I opened another Loving Hut in Hà Nội.

Currently in Hà Nội, we are able to sustain it, and there are also a lot of customers. In Đà Nẵng, it’s also very crowded, Master. On the first and the fifteenth of the month, we don’t have enough manpower to serve customers. Overall, many people switch to eating vegetarian, Master. (Very good.) Yes. Moreover, when we received the news from you, Master, then the people in the nation, especially our fellow practitioners and the young people the young people in Hà Nội and Hải Phòng, I noticed that in general there is a huge change, including the people around town or those whom we’ve conversed with previously, and those who know us.

Until now, we have a lot of our restaurants springing up. So I’ve noticed that people in the capital, as well as – I’m not even referring to the South, Master – from Huế all the way inland, everybody eats vegetarian on the first and the fifteenth of the month; some are eating vegetarian four days a month, or some are eating vegetarian more days. It is very good.

But more recently, I noticed that many people are changing, plus the good news from Master, so in general… Which good news? Every day, every hour everybody followed the news about “two years,” and now it has been extended to four years. Overall, a lot of news was shared from fellow practitioners to other people, and people are very concerned about the world, Master… About global warming? About the time being extended? Yes, the time being extended. Very good. Just continue, no problem. Just open any restaurant you can, no problem. It’s to help people to be veg.

As long as they eat vegetarian.

We also try our best to work, Master, and carry out the more immediate tasks like letting our loved ones know about the vegan diet and everything else; these things help us a great deal. (Okay.) Then we can open vegan restaurants everywhere so that people have a place to eat, Master, because if there are no restaurants, then people can’t eat. There has to be a place that cooks and sells, then it’s convenient for people and people will eat, Master. But I noticed that there’s a change, a huge change. (Very good.) But in the South, people are very relaxed about eating; however, in Hà Nội, they are more fastidious, Master.

Anywhere you go you have to do it according to the local taste, okay? (Yes.) “When in Rome, do as the Romans do.” (Yes.) Thank you.

Whoever can open a restaurant, then do so. Loving Hut is okay, if not a Loving Hut, it’s also no problem, okay? (Yes.) As long as you serve people so they can eat vegan. Be hygienic, understand? (Yes.) Cook good food, then it’s okay. The purpose is to serve the mass, understand? (Yes.)

Whatever you do is fine, no big deal. It’s just eating vegan food, that’s all. If you want to cook a lot of dishes that are similar to Loving Hut, (Yes.) then just ask them for the recipes, that’s all. (Yes, the recipes.) But if you cannot cook the same…

Because in Âu Lạc (Vietnam), they sometimes eat differently (Yes.), but if you want to have tasty international fare, if you want to try to see if the Aulacese (Vietnamese) people would like it or not, (Yes.) then ask for their recipes. If you can sell them, then it’s okay; if not, then don’t. Make other dishes, okay? I also think the same. But we are determined, Master, to try to learn to do it, (Whatever is fine.) so that we can serve more people. As long as there are people eating vegan, then it’s okay.

In business, you have to base on the customers’ preference. Therefore, I’ve already said earlier: as long as people are able to eat vegan, then it’s okay. It doesn’t matter if it’s Loving Hut or any “Hut.” Any “Hut” is okay. As long as they come in and they “drink” (“drink” in Aulacese sounds like “Hut”) then it’s okay. If not, it’s also okay to change it to Loving Drink, slurp on vegan phở (a popular Aulacese noodle soup), drink some vegan congee.