Good evening Grand Master, all Masters and everyone.

A student came up to me to ask me a question, and I would like to share my answer with you. For this talk, I will not use the student's real name. He just flew in from far away, and is not here tonight.

This is what the student, who I shall call Chiang, told me: "I practice the True Buddha cultivation and yoga very diligently and sincerely, and I always treat other people with compassion. Nevertheless, it seems that lots of people do not understand me. Why is this? There is another student, Mr. Lee, who is always spreading rumors about me, gossiping about me and my student, and is always picking on me." Chiang feels very bad about the situation, and asked me, "Should I talk with Mr. Lee to clear up his misunderstandings about me? Maybe I could change his attitude towards me."

Chiang walked up to this Mr. Lee, and said, "Although I am friendly with you and I treat you with great respect, it seems that you don't understand me, and you say a lot of bad things about me. Is there some misunderstanding between us?"

Mr. Lee replied, "Why would you say something like that? I have been very patient with you for long enough! I would like to clear up a few things with you. I want to be honest with you and tell you what I think about you."

They started a big argument, and both of them raised their voices and got angry. Finally they both became very agitated and almost turned over a table.

Mr. Lee said, "Maybe I stepped on your tail in our last life together, and that's why you are biting me in this life." This saying implied that Chiang was an animal in his previous life, since only animals have tails.

Chiang said, "Well, it could be that in my last life I could not give you enough food, and that's why you are biting me back now".

Chiang told me about this conversation, and he is still quite upset about it. When Chiang said he did not have enough food for Mr. Lee, that meant that Mr. Lee could have been a hungry ghost in his previous life. That comment really made the relationship worse, and neither of them would back down.

When Chiang went back, he couldn't sleep or eat well, so he flew to Seattle to ask me for advice. But what response did he expect from me? Since I have followed Grand Master for a long time and I have learned a little from Grand Master, I know that Grand Master would say, "If you take student Chiang's side, student Lee will hate you, and if you take student Lee's side, student Chiang will hate you. So it is better for you to avoid taking sides and use dharma to preach to them."

So I told them a story. I hoped to use this story to wake them up.

During the time of Buddha Shakyamuni, there was a student who came to Buddha Shakyamuni to ask for advice. Buddha Shakyamuni said to student, "Since your profession is to train horses, you must understand the character of horses very well. Tell me how you train horses."

The student answered, "I use three methods to train horses. The first method is to be soft and treat them nicely. The second method is to be harsh and treat them with strong discipline. If these two methods don't work, I use the third method, which is a mixture of soft and harsh treatment.

Then Buddha Shakyamuni asked, "What happens if all three methods don't work, then what do you do?"

"If none of those three methods works, then I kill the horse." The student then asked Buddha Shakyamuni, "What method do you use to teach people?"

Buddha Shakyamuni said, "I do the same thing! I also use the same three methods! Sometimes I preach to students using the easy, soft method, and sometimes I teach using harsh discipline. If neither of those two methods works, I use the combination of the soft and harsh methods.

The student asked if all three methods didn't work, what would the Buddha do?"

Shakyamuni Buddha answered, "Same as you, I kill the student."

His student said, "I thought you had great compassion! You always teach us not to kill. To kill is a big sin! How can you kill your student?"

Buddha Shakyamuni answered, "The way I kill is quite different from the way you kill. You kill with blood. If I cannot preach to a student, if I cannot get him to feel close to the dharma, or make him understand the dharma, or have faith in the dharma, that means the student is dead. If a student does not listen, I just leave him alone and let him do whatever he likes. I consider him gone from my mind and sight." This is the same thing as if you had killed him, because you did not talk to him. The Buddha will wait for a better opportunity to teach him and preach the dharma again. If you have used compassion and wisdom and other methods to influence people, and they still don't get the message, then you just have to wait for another opportunity. There are a lot of things that are just beyond our control.

There are situations that may seem one-sided and unfair if you judge them from their outer appearances, but if you view them from the law of karma and the law of cause and effect, then you will be able to see how they could be fair. Chiang answered, "Master Lian Xiang, I understand now. Oh, I understand very well. Thank you Master Lian Xiang!"

Chiang flew back to his city and called me to tell me that after hearing my teaching, he could finally eat and sleep well. He was able to solve his problem in his mind. Indeed, I felt that if this student could achieve the level where he treats everything with compassion, wisdom, joyfulness and understanding, he should be free from all his troubles.

What does compassion mean? It means to give happiness to others and help take others away from worry and suffering. What does it means to give with joy? Happiness is when you see people doing charity work and you feel happy. You can help take others away from their worries and suffering - that's happiness and joy. To eliminate unfairness and inequality and to help others, this is the meaning of giving and helping. If you can attain this level you should be free from troubles and worry already. If you can give others happiness and help them be free from stress and worry, then you, too, will be free from trouble and worry.

Indeed, when we are at home reading scriptures and sutras, there are a lot of things we can do. A lot of people can practice one, two or three yoga practices at home, but when you can treat other people with bodhi mind and correct dharma, that is not easy. Maybe lots of people do yoga in their practice and study lots of dharma, but when there is a test or some temptation, that is when you find out their true level. Whenever you are faced with troubles, stress or worry, you can treat them as nothing and you can resolve all kinds of questions. Or you can solve all your troubles and use them for your own liberation - then you are a good cultivator.

As human beings, there is no good or bad, and there is no absolute right or wrong. This life just gives us a chance to practice and polish ourselves. Whatever level you are in, you will be faced with many temptations and examinations. If you are at a very elementary level, you will have that kind of examination to face. When you are at the high school level, of course examinations will come to you then, too. If you are at the college level, there will be temptation at the college level to challenge you. And even when you are at the PhD level, you will still have challenges, on higher level.

If you attain Buddhahood, then you will be free from all the examinations and temptations because whatever temptation or challenge comes to you, you will treat them as nothing and as like anything else. In other words, all the examinations and temptations come from your mind, from yourself. You are giving yourself temptations and, of course, I have all the temptations and challenges too. I am still in the process of passing my examinations. I encourage everybody to open their minds to study and learn about the dharma. I would like to give reinforcement and encouragement to each of us. Whatever I have shared with you, there is a touch of dharma.

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