Next, let's discuss the concept of duo-cultivation of mind and body.

    People always talk about that reciting Buddha's name can help one adjust the nature of his heart. In fact true mind-adjustment depends on whether we have obtained any profound, subtle and inconceivable mental Dharma. And the profound, subtle and inconceivable Dharma is not written in scriptures, which is, instead, transmitted between a spiritual master and his disciples through hearing process. For everyone has his unique causes and conditions, and any instant moment also has a certain cause and condition. Your attitude, viewpoint and feeling to a certain event represent your level, the inclination of your soul, and the level of your senses. Therefore, when your spiritual master sees your problems, he must point them out immediately and request you to rein in at the brink of the precipice, and not to indulge in your propensities. He will teach you how to control your mind, what perspective you should take in treating a matter, and what kind of conclusion you may draw.

    This principle is to look at any manifestation of a cause and a condition from many perspectives including from the perspective of our enemies or opponents. It would be easier for you to draw many conclusions if you look at a thing from many respects, and so understand the feelings, viewpoints and benefits of many aspects. If we just concentrate on walking and are unaware of stepping on someone's foot or shoe, would that be good? Are we awake? When we see something that is not going well, we get angry and find fault of others. Do we know more than others? Do we know how others look at us from their perspectives? Now we must learn to look at an issue from many perspectives, especially from the perspectives of the subjects of your senses. This is the most important.

    Taoism's "removing kan (one element in the Eight Diagrams) to fill li (one element in Eight Diagrams) is thought by many people to be a "bodily practice". They don't understand that it also contains "the method of mental practice". As far as the method of mental practice is concerned, it is "treating the hearts of others as yours", which means to stand on the feelings and viewpoints of others to look at issues and draw a conclusion from that. In this light, you can understand others and become "a knower of others". You are then able to help, love, look after, and have compassion for other people. Otherwise, it is even impossible for you to understand your own wife or husband, and your children. You don't understand them. You don't understand their hearts. You are uncertain of their feelings. You don't know whether they are cold or hot. You don't know what they need. Therefore you don't know what to do. Whatever you do seems to always go wrong.

    This is a level of mental Dharma. And this level of mental Dharma is on a one-on-one but not one-on-many basis. It is one method to one monk but not one method to a thousand monks. How can it work if you don't obtain this? You don't visit a spiritual master and receive his instruction and supervision in person. You always feel you handle any matter reasonably and the way of your handling is appropriate. You don't know if you present it to your spiritual master, he will teach you how he looks at this issue and then there will be another world opened up for you. Your morality and feelings will be elevated. You will understand a little bit of the taste of loving others.

    This is a very profound, subtle and inconceivable thing. It must be transmitted orally. After you achieve mastery of this mental Dharma, you will naturally apply it to anything at any moment. When you are in a dream at night, your dream will be also based on this principle. If you attain Buddhahood after death, you will be on this level, too. This is a natural level. You don't need to act pretentiously with your tail between your legs. You don't need to dress yourself up. Nakedly you are the relics of Buddha, which is neither clean nor dirty. You will act in the way it should be.

    Therefore, mental Dharma usually takes up seventy percent of Dharma. It is a vast and huge project. Many people hold a book, excitedly speaking about five-fold practice or how many folds of practice. Those are similar to what Qi Gong discusses. Do you know by which that thing can then work? Even if you have lots of good seeds, what can you grow without a piece of land? (The land is mental Dharma; the seed is bodily Dharma.) One with love comes to sow the seeds. But can the seeds be sowed without land? Can you grow corn in the air? Can it work? Can a farmer do farming without lands? Can he?

    Therefore, one who has not obtained mental Dharma has no viewing ground, which means that he has not found the direction of spiritual cultivation. What is to speak of returning home if without direction? How can one who has not found the direction get home? By a rocket, tractor, or ship? We must find this direction first, and next find the method of returning home. This direction is the viewing ground. Farming requires a piece of land first. It is not based on what kinds of seeds you have at hand. We base on the land to determine what kinds of seeds we need. Is that right? Can you grow the soybean in a rice paddy? Can it grow there? Can you tell everyone to grow soybean because you have the seeds? Can it work?

    Many people today ignore mental Dharma. As a matter of fact, this mental Dharma is the foremost important. Have you read the Biography of Monk Xu-yun? This monk got enlightened at the age of 57 and died in 1959. The definition of enlightenment here refers that he had obtained mental Dharma. I am sorry that he did not obtain bodily practice, but this wouldn't impede his liberation. However, he suffered at the time of death. He couldn't be his own boss at death. When he was in his 110s, he expressed his feeling to his disciples. He told them that, when he was young he made pilgrimage to temples in mountains and built many temples. He focused on those tasks. Now he knew it was too late. His mental practice went ahead but his bodily practice did not keep up.

    Have you ever seen anyone with a pleasant-looking shirt but his pants don't match with the shirt or his shoes that are worn-out? How do you feel when seeing such a scene? Then, can he go to a high-class place with this kind of outfit? Will a five-star hotel let him in? Do you think that kind of high-class place is superior to the Vaikunthas (the eternal planets of spiritual universe)? You look sloppy, inappropriate and inharmonious with yin and yang. You don't know how to wear clothes properly. You don't understand the relation between mind and body.

    Therefore, your clothes must be appropriate and fit. It is not just to have the right size. The style, color, and age of the clothes you wear must fit your occupation, status, markings, age and where you are. In this way, the appearance of a person is easier to be accepted by people. Sometimes when we wear some old clothes and look casual, others feel very comfortable to approach us; sometimes when we wear something very stiff, it is not only difficult for us to walk, but also awkward for other people to look at us. Beauty is a kind of harmony.

    Monk Xu-yun eventually understood this discord at old age. But the good time had passed. What could he do? He is a typical.... Do you know Monk Xu-yun's status? He came down to the world not just to cultivate himself to that level. He just manifested that appearance to show the sincere cultivators at the Latter Dharma Age his misfortune and the consequence of someone who just cultivated his mind but did not cultivate his body. He is an enlightened person. However, he couldn't save his own disciple. He had a disciple at the Ying-xiang Temple on Chicken Foot Mountain, whose name was Gi-guang. Gi-guang helped him to manage finances, but died in an epidemic. Gi-guang was an excellent disciple.

    In the meantime, Xu-yun was on a trip to Thailand to fetch a jade Buddha. On the way back he passed a place called Zhang's village. There was a bandit called Big Scar Zhang who robbed travelers. Xu-yun led a group of people. When they arrived at that place, it was already dark, as well as raining hard. People and horses were both exhausted. No one could move a bit. No one knew what was going to happen to them.

    That disciple, Gi-guang, showed up and kowtowed to Xu-yun. Xu-yun asked him whether he was a human or ghost. He answered, "I am your disciple Gi-guang." "Why did you come here?" He said, "When alive, I couldn't accompany you and nor did I succeed in spiritual cultivation. Now, I also can't transmigrate into a human again. But even as a ghost, I want to help my spiritual master. You guys can take a rest here today. Big Scar Zhang won't come here tonight." He left after finishing the speech. Do you know how Xu-yun felt at the time? As he was an enlightened person, why couldn't he save his disciple by expiating his sins?

    Did anyone who read this book notice this story? Could Xu-yun save people? His disciple Gi-guang was a very meticulous monk in that temple. But he died in an epidemic. He even finished balancing the account before he died. When Xu-yun got back, the account was not short of any cent. Gi-guang supervised the temple until the last minute. There was a layman who borrowed thirty-six strings of money when Gi-guang was alive, and did not intend to return the money. After death, Gi-guang looked for this person. That layman hid away.

    Later on the temple held a Buddhist service. That layman came to the temple. Xu-yun knew about this loan but he did not ask for payoff, still allowing that person to help the service. All of a sudden, that person was in spasms, spitting and falling on his back. Then he yelled his own name, "You bastard! You borrowed thirty-six strings of money. Now pay it up with your life." Actually he was possessed by Gi-guang who wanted to kill him. At last Monk Xu-yun showed up to plead for mercy and resolved it.

    Even as a ghost he was still loyal to his spiritual master. However, can his spiritual master help him transmigrate into a human? What is to speak of the Pure Land? Can he go there? You chat about what one can become by reciting Buddha's name all day. What do you know? You act like you can predict the consequence and know death and life. Aren't you pitiful? Aren't you miserable? Is that horrible? Possessing that kind of merit, if Monk Xu-yun could have received my teachings, he would've had boundless achievement with the life of one hundred and twenty years. It was such a pity!

    Therefore, duo-cultivation of mind and body is a huge lesson. The first requirement is to be a good person, cultivating the heart. But it is not enough to just cultivate the heart, which is like just eating rice without vegetables. It might be O.K. to have such meal once or twice. However, if you don't eat vegetable everyday and just fill your stomach with rice, you must become very skinny like a monkey. Do you believe it? Your face will turn pale. In a cold day, if you just put on a jacket but still wear a pair of thin pants, won't you feel cold and tremble? Can it work?

    When the mental practice advances, the bodily practice has to keep up. There are three confidential links of body, mind, and speech. The bodily practice is associated with the confidential knowledge of the body. It has form and appearance, but very very very rigorous, and very very very mystic. How can you succeed without it? Do you know the taste of bodily cultivation? Those who strut and brag about please come here and follow my instruction. If anyone can endure a simple posture, I will guarantee to give him one million US dollars. If you don't believe me, try it now! If you lose, you have to become my disciple. This method is so vicious. One fish for one rod fling. A fisherman sits in a golden boat in a bitter sea. I am fishing for your kind.

    It is necessary to learn a certain kind of bodily practice. Without it, one can't become detached from life and death, attain the stage of great love, and obtain ultimate liberation! Therefore the duo-cultivation of mind and body consists of two links. As far as a low-level practice of duo-cultivation of body and mind is concerned, it does not use postnatal energy in the aspect of bodily practice. But as far as a high-level practice of duo-cultivation of body and mind is concerned, it must ignite postnatal energy. This is the distinction of low and high levels. Every posture requires accuracy.

    I have read a few booklets today. It copies a few sentences from the Dragon Flower Sutra and put them together. Who knows how to achieve it? You also know that the satellites can be lifted to the sky today. Can you show me how to do it? You can only repeat what is said of the sutra. Can you do it? You are pretending something mystic. If you have such Dharma-power, as well as qualifications, Buddha Sakyamuni must have made a prediction about you. Can you show me that? It is in vain if you can't. All are mountain spirits and water monsters!

    Many Buddhas and progenitors came down, but none of them was in charge of transmitting Dharma. Regardless of the scale of a ship (Dharma-boat), there is only one Captain. The rest are sailors. Look at what is said in the Dragon Flower Sutra. On the left side, the right side, the fore, the back, etc. stand my sailors. They act according to my instructions. Can you command? Can you order the ship to make a turn? Do you have the maritime map? This person has this kind of spiritual practice and that person has that kind of spiritual practice. Who has Dharma? All kinds of spiritual practices come from one origin, which is right here--Yuan Dun (Perfect and Sudden)!

    How long can people get deluded by that kind of shameful trick? At a moment a decree is sent over, and at another moment there is a wire from the West, or a message and instruction from the West. Look at those demons, those mountain spirits and water monsters. Therefore I would like to tell them, "Don't even speak of your supernatural power. We can have a bet about where you will be tomorrow. Just that." If you are able to tell me that, you are good; if you can't, go home and take care of your children. They dare to talk big.

    As far as "enlightenment" is concerned, old sages said, "The cultivation of the mind depends on self-realization, the cultivation of the body depends on transmission. Don't enter spiritual cultivation if one has not met a spiritual master." As far as mental Dharma (the cultivation of the mind) is concerned, when you act according to my instructions, it doesn't mean that you have obtained the Dharma. If you merely follow every step of my instructions, you would be just like a puppet and I would be like the puppet master. Instead, you should rely on the principles that I have told you and then act with consideration of causes and conditions that you are faced at any moment. I will evaluate your deeds. When I say that you are right, it means that you understand my mental Dharma. However, when I am not with you, you change right away. You appear like a cat today and like a dog tomorrow. (It means being inconsistent.) You advance three steps and fall back two steps. Is this spiritual cultivation?

    One who has obtained my mental Dharma must change totally, having gone through a rebirth. He won't look or act like who he was before. He will stop discussing anything. Why does he stop discussion? For it is in vain to discuss anything if he doesn't encounter someone who is able to understand it, since no one can understand what he talks about. You open your mouth and talk eloquently. He just listens to you with his eyes shut. He won't say you are right or wrong. He won't gossip others. He just remains quiet.

    When you truly understand Dharma, you will be reluctant to say a single word. Who would be willing to talk about it? You see a person staring at you like a fool and can't understand anything you have said. What can you teach him? You may choose to let him realize Dharma by himself, but he still can't. When we are enlightened, we will understand the word "appropriateness". It may not be perfect in the beginning, but it will gradually become smoother. One's mood will at last change entirely. His life will change entirely. Old propensities will be gone. Distress will be gone. Is there still a need for liberation?

    Many people who are doing devotional work gradually understand this mental Dharma and experience the truthfulness of my doctrines. Although they are not perfect now, they gradually grab the meaning of mental Dharma. After understanding it, they no longer want to discuss anything in front of me. Although they don't discuss it, I know they have it within them. With a glimpse of their eyes, hair, face, and practice of the Way such as holding a pair of chopsticks, putting down a bowl, putting on a pair of shoes, I can grade their level, which is very accurate without a mistake.

    The Way is in every act, and is manifested naturally. It can't be faked. Therefore true enlightenment occurs in the execution of vows. In serving others, we observe how people handle issues and treat others. They teach us, and we teach them. Who knows who teaches whom? At last the most humble one will succeed first. The most humble one will learn the most. The most arrogant one will learn the least.

    Therefore, let me tell you a story. There were two psychos living with us in the mountain, one of which had been mentally sick for twelve years and the other one for sixteen years. Two of them got recovered by spiritual cultivation. It is not only that they have recovered from their illness, but they also became good people! There were a lot of "intelligent" people who couldn't compete with these two. A lot of "intelligent" people gave up spiritual cultivation and ran away. Therefore, are we really better than the one whose six senses are insufficient? Can we compete with those patients with mental illness? At least they don't lie. They are honest. We are the kind of people who are "impeded" by our own smartness. This word "impede" is not equal to that word "enlightenment" (they are pronounced the same in Chinese)! Therefore, I can tell immediately whether one has attained the confidential knowledge of mental Dharma or not. It depends on your ability of self-realization. You will achieve self-realization in the process of trying to be a good person. Therefore, we can't achieve self-realization if we are just busy in taking the responsibilities for a number of people in our family and take care of their feelings only. Stop bragging about yourself.

    There are four stages of spiritual cultivation. The first stage is the grhastha period in which one finishes the lesson of a householder first. It is a small mission. The second stage is the brahmacari period, which is the so-called the stage of a celibate student. The student learns to be alone. The third stage is the vanaprastha period. One in this stage is the so-called traveling monk, or a Buddhist monk. The fourth stage is the sannyasi period, which is the stage of pure devotion, true renounced order. One at the fourth stage is truly leaving his family. He does not just shave his head or leave his home due to resentment. It is true detachment. He sacrifices small love for the sake of greater love. He renounces his family for the sake of all families.

    Therefore, in the process of executing vows as well as in devotion, our self-realization must be gradually elevated and our propensities will be refined by other people for they will manifest the energy of Transformed-body. The energy of Transformed-body does not have form. It is manifested through the flesh, brains, hands, legs, bodies and mouths of people. They speak on behalf of "Buddha" to tell you what to do. It emanates light, boundless light, to wake you up! It makes you realize that all living entities are Buddhas and there is a teacher in the company of three. It makes you understand how to learn the virtues and shinning points of other people to perfect yourself. At that time you will feel that it is not that you have taught them something, but it is them who have taught you something. Therefore you love them. Enlightenment depends on this kind of cause and condition. Without this practice, it is impossible for one to become enlightened.

    As far as the bodily practice is concerned, you should work hard on it when your body is still good, young and energetic! Even for those old spiritual cultivators, I am able to revive their life energies. After having practiced the method for a while, you will understand the symptoms that were told at the transmission of Dharma are the evidence of the revival of life energy. If you are sick, we should first cure the illnesses, including the fatal illnesses. Have you heard that? Some old ladies, age 62 or 64, all of a sudden found that their menstruation came back. They were abashed. And some cultivators who are not at the age of menopause found their period stopped.

    There are a lot of things like these in the School of Yuan Dun. An old man, who is more than seventy years old told me, "I have something difficult to speak out." I said, "Don't worry." He said, "I got a problem related to sexual desire. Very serious." I said, "This is good news. Do not fear. That's O.K. I will teach you something in a while." "How do you teach me in a while? I can't see you frequently." Do you think you have to see me so I can teach you? I can adjust you within you. What are you afraid of? It is all right even though you are old. Aren't old people not my disciples?   

    The lesson of body must be passed. If it is not passed, you will suffer the loss! If you don't complete this harmony in this life, you will have to spend very very long time to get another human form again. Do you understand? This lesson can not be completed by using the body of the dog or other animals. It is effective only with the human body. This is not something you can ignore. Therefore you must fulfill my requirements. But you are absent-minded, don't know to race with time and don't want to endure some pain and persist it. You were pursuing it when you had not obtained the method. Having obtained it, you don't appreciate it. It is so upsetting!

    Bodily practice doesn't depend on "enlightenment", but on "disciplic succession". It must be transmitted accurately. Of course it may be different among different people, which is related to "the duration and degree of heat". If you have some problem, no matter whether you are with me or at any place, I am able to instruct you. There are also great disciples of mine who travel between you and me. Even not through them, I surely have the internal potency to correct the mistakes of your bodily practice.

    The opening-up of energy channels is a crucial moment that runs a fatal risk. But there will be no problem if the mind is under control. I went to see a disciple a while ago, who did not follow my instruction. After receiving the Dharma, he went to help a funeral service as a drummer. While beating the drum, he gradually entered the state of concentration. When other people stopped, he was still beating the drum. Someone slapped his shoulder and he fell down on his back. People looked at him, wondering why he fainted. They put their fingers underneath his nose and found him breathless. They hurried up to give him a shot to boost his heart, and then sent him to hospital. The hospital gave him a checkup and found that it was bleeding in his brain. He died. (He had entered into deep concentration and got disturbed.) On the way to the hospital he said, "I want to go home. I want to go home." But his son insisted on taking him to the hospital. O.K. This person was done. Although he was done, his stage of fruition was not held up. All of his family members are Buddhist. His wife is also my disciple. His body was cold, but this part of his head was warm. Do you understand that now?

    But if he was alive, he could do a lot of work for me. He was not old yet, not even sixty years old. And he was such a nice guy. But no one understood his condition at that time. There were two persons over there who had this kind of condition, which is the state of Samadhi (deep concentration). During beating the drum, his mind drifted away. As a matter of fact he had entered into Samadhi. No one else there knew that. That slap...Do you understand it now? You act rashly. Can you expiate sins for others? You don't understand the truth! He said that he would just do it once. Could it be allowed to do it just once? What was the consequence? You can't act like this! The people outside do not know the truth and gossip about it, "Is that a spiritual master? How can one who has obtained Dharma die? What is the matter?"

    Maudyalyaayana was the disciple of Buddha Sakyamuni. Do you know how he died? You have lived in a temple for a few days and have observed vegetarianism for two years. You brag about that you know everything. But you don't know how you are going to die. Therefore this is a very stringent issue.

    Another disciple at that place was in concentration for three hours. Her husband and children are also my disciples. They insisted on not sending her to a hospital. She got over it and everything was O.K. She suffered from uterus tumors before. When the tumor on that side was removed, there grew another tumor on this side. When the tumor on this side was removed, another one on the other side sprouted. But this time she recovered entirely. All illnesses are gone for her. Look, of the two people in concentration, one got out of it successfully. The other did not listen to me! What do you think why I am afraid of the kind of person who doesn't listen to me? This kind of person doesn't know the seriousness!

    Therefore, the extent that bodily practice has been executed also depends on how well our mind has been adjusted. If the trial of the mind has not been passed or the mind has not been well adjusted, and the quality of submission as well as faith have not been nurtured, you won't develop steadfastness. When your karma is manifested, you will do stupid things. You will move a rock to hit your own foot. At that time, I have to let you go. Therefore, one who has obtained the Dharma for less than a hundred days should push himself hard to catch up with the practice. You can't miss a single day.

    The lesson of duo-cultivation is very huge. It cannot be explained in full in this thin booklet. But there are many methods of practice that are claimed to be the lesson of duo-cultivation of mind and body. I am discussing this topic roughly. I do not intend to criticize other methods. I just want to introduce Yuan Dun's duo-cultivation of mind and body to the people who are doing these kinds of practices. We have Dharma but we don't have to appear mystic or ask people to take a malicious oath. As long as one is sincere in spiritual cultivation, he can obtain this method. To those who are not sincere, just forget it. It is no more difficult than climbing up to the sky. My discussion today is just for the purpose of leading all the people to the Buddha's land.