*With respect，Master  may I ask why you wear make-up and jewelry？



May I ask you why not？Why do you attach so much to the material appearance？Whether you are attached to a beautiful appearance or a 『beggar』appearance，it's all attachment. Throw them all，both，out.
 
 
I can wear this today and I can wear jeans tomorrow. It makes no difference to me. Then why should it make a difference to you？It's me who wears it. Don't worry about me，worry about yourself.


Get enlightenment，that's the best，and then wear what you want. But I understand what he means. I understand what you mean. You mean a practitioner should be very modest，or dress like a monk or something like that，right？
 
 
I have done that for ten years. And I got enlightenment，but not through the monk's robe. And now I try to wear different clothes to see whether my enlightenment becomes less or not. It doesn't. You have to experience something，otherwise how do you tell people？
 
 
I do everything through experience，and then I tell other people what I know. So should some other people who wear make-up and jewelry and have glorious appearance，then she cannot get enlightenment or what？It's nonsense！
 
 
God never says so in the Bible. Does Hes？No. Actually，I don't wear beautiful enough，I tell you the truth. Because what I know，we are more beautiful than this; we are more glorious in Heaven. We have degraded ourselves already into this stage，so this is just a reminder of some glorious state in Heaven.
 
 
I can wear it or I cannot wear it，it doesn't matter at all. Don't you agree？Yes？Okay. You see，what we wear also has some effect. For example，before，I was wearing monk's clothes and I forsook my husband; I wasn't enlightened.
 
 
I don't regret leaving him because then I have more time to dedicate for people，that is true. Instead of having a lot of kids and having to burden my husband to look after the kids while I'm going on tour for many months or I never go home，for example. Then I just let him free and I'm free to dedicate to people and to serve God. I don't regret leaving him，but I was very sad leaving him at that time.
 
 
I felt sorry for him because he loved me very much; also I loved him very much. We had a very beautiful marriage. Okay，so I left him，and then I thought，in search of truth，I'd have to be dressing like a monk and all that in order to serve people. But then it had some kind of side effect: many people left their homes and followed me，left their children and their husbands. It's just that I should not break up their family through my dress. You understand what I mean？
 
 
Yes. I understand，but they did not understand. By setting this example，many family people follow. I'm supposed to bring them happiness，not sorrow; therefore，I changed my dress.
 
 

*Do you believe in reincarnation？


Yes，yes，I do，but then I don't. Because reincarnation is only our habitual thinking that binds us. Our true Self is never born，never dies and never reincarnates.



*How can you explain or justify the existence of people suffering various illnesses through no fault of their own？


Well，if you believe in the reincarnation theory，it explains it. That is what the Bible said: "As you sow，so shall you reap." Sometimes we have done some mistakes in our previous life，or even in this life，and then we get the illnesses. Sometimes we suffer the collective so-called karma (retribution) - meaning the collective effect of the whole society.
 
 
For example，if you don't smoke，but you always have to go around the world，or on the buseswhich are full of smoke from other people，then you would also have some kind of collective effect. It's called karma (retribution) in the Sanskrit term.
 
 
It means you suffer what the society，what your environment，inflicts upon you. Therefore，we have to clear it up by having a purer life，and encourage other people to do the same. We should not need to wait for the neighbor to do it: we do it first. We start the clean diet，vegetarian diet，which has been scientifically proven to be even good for our health; apart from compassion，enlightenment and all that great deal，it's good for your health. Most of my disciples，after initiation，they quit smoking immediately.
 
 
They just quit it on their own. I said，" Quit it slowly，if you cannot bear it.』I do not bear cigarettes，but they quit it. Most of them quit immediately. Most of them quit it immediately after reading my book only.


There is such a power which is awakened inside that helps them to go through all obstacles in life. That is the Supreme Power. It's not me who helps them，it's the Father who helps. It's their own Father who helps when they awaken to themselves and want to claim their greatness again. That's why I say awaken your own power，be your master，be the master. I'm telling you，I'm trying to show you the way to be a master，not to be my disciple.



Therefore，after initiation，all the miracles come to you，all the things，the good that happens to you，it is your own Supreme Master at work. So I never claim credit for this. Even though the disciples praise me，that I do this and that for them through manifestation body，but I say，"I know nothing about it." It is because your own Master power is at work after the initiation. So，be the master，be a Christ，be a Buddha.



*If we have followed another master，can we follow Master Ching Hai？


It depends. If you think you need it，then you follow. If your master has already imparted to you the Light and Sound，and you have experienced the Kingdom of God within，and you are satisfied with it，then don't need to follow. You only follow me when you don't know it. If you already know and you have a good master，please don't. But you are welcome，I don't reject you.



*If we become one with God，does it mean that we lose our individuality？


Yes，but no.  In the worldly level you're still Mrs./Mr. so-and-so，and if you happen to be the Prime Minister，you keep your post. God will not take it away from you. And you still have your wife and kids and all the possessions that you need，or all the jobs you have to do，and  you still have your character，but then you are one with God. It means you do without doing. You don't claim credit for anything，because you know it's not you who does it，because you don't have any more ego to glorify yourself. That's the only thing. Our individual Self，it doesn't mean the ego. What we lose is the ego，not the individuality.



*If I realize my own enlightenment，can I help those close to my heart who have a negative attitude towards life？


Yes，yes，definitely，definitely. We have helped many and our fellow practitioners have also helped many，so can you. Because it's not by words of mouth that we convince people，it is by our own greatness，the great wisdom within，which awakens that transmits this atmosphere to their wisdom inside and they perceive it，and that is how we help other people in the more effective way，apart from just talking and consoling them.



*Is God personal or just a universal power？


Both，both. If you want God to be personal，God will appear personal becauseGod can do everything. God is your own Self. The universal power is also your own Self.



*Is there a devil，like Satan？


What do you think？In Australia，maybe no，but in other countries，yes. When you see a lot of disgraceful things that happen through some individuals，some very destructive power at work，these are so-called Satan. But the sooner we practice the heavenly Light and Sound the better，then the so-called Satan will become also an angel.


We initiate him，and make him vegetarian. But I need your love and force together. I alone cannot turn this world into Heaven. I can only turn myself into Heaven. But you yourselves have to also turn each of you into heavenly atmosphere before we can abolish Satan. We have to work together.



*Many ancient masters，for example，Lao Tzu and Quan Yin，described the ultimate goal as a void where there is no attachment，no method，no sound，nothing. So，may I ask why you place much emphasize on exterior things like hearing sound and seeing light？


Does he say no sound，really？No.

I have some books here. "Lao Tzu." Look. Let's see what he said: he talks a lot about heavenly music，about the Tao. 『The Tao you don't need to use the ears，but you can hear it; you don't need to use the eyes，but you can see.』
 
 
These are the invisible Light and invisible Sound. He didn't say no sound; he didn't say anything about no sound. He said，"You don't need to use the ears but you can hear it; you don't need to use the eyes but you can see it.』
 
 
So Quan Yin Bodhisattva became Quan Yin because she practiced the Quan Yin Method - means observing the Sound - and it's full of this evidence in Buddhist scriptures. Like when you practice the Quan Yin，you can hear the Sound of sea waves，the Sound of Brahma，the Sound of thunder.
 
 
Even in the Bible，it mentioned it，that God speaks in the voice of thunder，like thunder，like the sound of many waters，etc. These things we can hear inside，not just like ordinary sound; it's that you hear without the ears. But the more you hear，the more you know what God wants and then you can do the will of God，instead of blindly doing things and clumsily following our own instincts and making a chaos of this world.
 
 
So Quan Yin Bodhisattva was one who practiced on the Sound. That's why her name is "Quan Yin." It is stated very clearly in the Lotus Sutra like that，how she was called that，because she practiced the Quan Yin Method.



*Does everyone get enlightened eventually？


Yes，eventually，maybe a couple of eons or so，thousands of billions of years，if you haven't met a master who is experienced and who'll show you the quickest way.



*How did you become a Master？Did you train with a teacher？

Yes.



*Can you describe God？


No. No，but I know Hirm intimately，just like I know you. Just like I see you，I can see Hirm just like I see you.



*Before we descended to this world of matter，we were pure as God，but why were we asked or forced to descend to this world to experience these everyday difficulties？


So that we learn，learn to be God. We are born from God，but then we are not God. Just like you are born from your parents，but you are not yet grown up so your parents send you to school with difficult examinations and all kinds of classes，homework，and makes you feel headache and sometimes you cannot sleep enough，and you cannot play，because of the schoolwork.
 
 
But they have to send you there，okay？Same way with God. All these are experiences for us to grow，otherwise we become just like spoiled angels，doing nothing，knowing nothing，having no inheritance of God's power.



*Thank you for this experience. You spoke of no longer being the doer. Master，please expand upon this.


It's very difficult to explain to you. But these come through experiences. It has two levels of understanding. First，through meditational experiences and later through just grace，just living in the presence of God.
 
 
And you don't even know that you have healed people a thousand miles apart. You don't even know that you bring goodness to those near you，but you do，all the same，and people know it. So，to do without doing…
 
 
The first stage，before I met you，I had the experience of being one with the whole universe，but this I cannot describe to you. You just know it in the meditational samadhi. You can call it "samadhi." Samadhi - you are just be in the state of non-desire，or you can call it "Nirvana" or Kingdom of God - whatever you want. You will be one with God. You just know it. In that state you can only exclaim: "I and my Father are one. I and all the beings in the universe are one." - but you have no way to explain or to describe it. I regret to disappoint you，but I invite you to come to me and let me show you how to experience it yourself，because I cannot describe it in the human language，what I know.



*Can Quan Yin Method be used for healing the body？


No，but yes. If you are supposed to be healed，then you get healed. Most of our people get healed，even from cancer，after initiation. Just now I was in Singapore. One of the girls just sat there crying and thanked me for helping her，but I don't know anything about it. She said after initiation，the doctor discovered she had stomach cancer or something and he definitely wanted to operate on her，and then she was even administered the anesthetic injection，but she was fully awake，she didn't go into a coma.
 
 
And then the doctor just searched her stomach and said，『Hey？It's gone！』So，no more operation needed; she was pushed out again，just like that. Yes，many of these situations have happened，therefore I told you all the healing powers are within you.
 
 
If you practice well，you're sincere，if you seek the Kingdom of God，all the things shall be added unto you. But sometimes the time is not proper，therefore，probably you experience some illness.
 
 
But the God power will take away already half or two-thirds of it，in most cases. But I do not boast about this because I don't want people to come to me or to come to God with the motivation，just because they want to take care of their body alone. If we come to God with the sincerity，then God will give us a lot of things.
 
 
But if we come to demand just one thing or another，probably we will be disappointed. That is because we should surrender our ego，we should let God run the universe and not dictate to God what to do.
 
 
Therefore，I don't advocate healing power or miracles in our path. If we have it，we don't use it even. We just let God grace whomever Hes wants and whenever Hes wants in whatever situation is fit. I don't use healing power myself，even though my disciples claim that I have a lot of healing power.



*Why is the Quan Yin Method suitable for 16 to 65 years old and not for people over 65，or indeed to those under 16？


No，under 12. We have initiated children from six，if they have their parents or protectors who are meditating with them，in case they don't know what to do. Children are very young，they might do something that is not proper. Or just to help them，or protect them by the way，keep them in line with the precepts，with vegetarian，cook for them，etc. Children，how can they cook？That's it. And above 65 if you have been vegetarian for a long time，it's fine. If above 75 or 65 or 70，we worry that you might not be able to adapt to the long sitting procedure.


So might as well start it anew，yes？You have not a long way to go. Come back again and start it，all right？But we put you on the waiting list inside so we won't forget you next time when you come back. Don't worry，as long as you're sincere，you can be taken up without having initiation. Now，for example，we will offer the people，non-vegetarian people，a so-called "expedient method，" "convenient method，" so that it would be convenient to eat vegetarian whenever you're convenient.



*What is your attitude to abortion，contraception，sterilization，and the abortion pill？


These are the affairs of you human people. I come to teach you the Kingdom of God and should you follow it，then you know the answer yourself，according to circumstances.



*Why is it that even when living the way God has told us - loving our neighbor，not killing，not desiring material things - there is still an emptiness in my heart？


Yes，because you have not come in contact with the God within you. You only do Hiers commandments but you have not known the Commander-in-Chief. Get to know Hirm and then you feel fulfilled.



*Plants do have life also. What is the reason to become vegetarian and why？


Well，we have to eat something，no？Jesus ate something，Buddha ate something. It's all right to take vegetables，because in the Bible，even in the Old Testament，it is said so. God said: "I made all the beautiful fruit which is pleasing to your eyes，pleasing to your taste，all the herbs in the field，these are your food." No？Hes didn't forbid us to eat vegetarian diet，so why not？You don't study the Bible well，that's the trouble with you.



*Why is it detrimental to our spiritual progress to practice any meditations that involve breath control？


Because breathing is ephemeral. Everything we use concerning ephemeral phenomena，it will end in ephemeral. So what we practice is using our own Kingdom of God，our own wisdom，which is eternal.  Therefore，we can get eternal lasting happiness.



*What is mind？


Mind is the one that makes you drink coffee when you don't want to drink it，makes you have two wives when you know you should have only one，and causes a lot of trouble when you know you should have peace - very stubborn，obstinate. Mind is only the computer; only computer，and registers all things that happen around it and then puts out again the same information，whether the circumstances have changed or not.
 
 
Therefore，sometimes we make mistakes and we have very harsh judgment in some cases because the mind has registered the same information but to different circumstances. Therefore，we have not learned to be flexible，therefore，we stumble and we suffer.
 
 
That's why we have to learn to get in touch with the real source of wisdom and then handle every situation accordingly，without condemnation，only with love and with understanding.



*How can the majority of people find the 2.5 hours daily to meditate？Can this time be reduced to be effective？


You don't have to sit straight 2.5 hours. You can get up early one hour in the morning，half an hour at lunch break，and another hour in the evening. Less television，less rock-and-roll，etc.，maybe，or less talk on the phone- save the phone bill even- and then we will have a lot more time.
 
 
Actually，we have more time than we suppose we do. We just waste it because we don't have anything else to do. But now we have a purpose，we have another work to do，we will concentrate and we will have time for that. And even when you sit on the bus，you can meditate. I'll show you how，later，at the time of initiation. When you sit on the airplane，you can meditate.
 
 
When you sit on the beach to enjoy the breeze of fresh air，you can meditate. When you sit in the park，you can meditate. But not when you drive the car，please. Very easy to get 2.5 hours. In fact，you can have more，more，more time.



*Do you believe in marriage？


I do，I do. Why not？If I don't believe in marriage，where do I come from？



*If one is enlightened，is he or she still subject to the law of causation？


No，but he respects the law of causation. But he probably，she probably，suffers also，because of the disciples，sharing with them the burdens. Just like you yourself go around empty handed，but if your friend，neighbor，carries too much stuff which he needs - probably he was ill，he takes a lot of medicine or probably he needs food，more special food，and he takes a lot of stuff with him - you cannot just bear to see your best friend burdened with all this stuff，so you share half of their luggage，yes？
 
 
Therefore，you're burdened also even though you don't need this medical stuff，you don't need extra food but you are burdened with thesebecause of love for the friend. Therefore，the enlightened person，may undergo some apparent effect from the bad karma (retribution)，but actually he or she is free from it. Subsidies for vegetable organic farming and vegan production.


Now，if we want peace，we want benevolence，we want love，blessing from Heaven，we have to start showing that，by action. We have to show love to each other. We have to be benevolent to each other. We have to be