Question:

Ven. Master,

Will you please clarify a few things for me?

My parents have medicine to cure stomach ailments and ulcers. They healed a lot of people but never charged a cent for it.

Once, they gave the medicine to a person in the neighborhood. Once healed, this individual started criticizing my parents. When my parents brought the medicine to the temple’s free clinic, they would encounter criticism as well! I really fail to understand; why that would happen?

Please kindly explain this to me.

Respectfully,
​
NTB

Question:

Ven. Master,

I am a lay disciple.

I took refuge with my Master at my village in 2010.

Recently, I  set up an altar at home to worship the Buddha. ​

Each morning, I offer incense and make the vow for rebirth to the Pure Land. I do not have a lot of time to recite sutras or recite the Buddha’s name. I have two children of school age who keep me quite busy.

After I learned about Buddhism I resolved to attain liberation this lifetime. My wish is that my two children would someday leave the home life and cultivate vigorously in order to help society and others.

I don’t know which Dharma Door to cultivate or how to cultivate it. Many people advised me to cultivate Pure Land. My husband does not want me to go to the temple, except for on the first and fifteenth day of the lunar month. Often, he scolds and berates me severely. It makes me quite upset but I do not know what to do. My husband is much older than me.

Please kindly tell me what to do?

Emituofo!

Thank you very much.
​
NTTT

Question:

Ven. Master,

I worship Shakyamuni Buddha. Is it OK for me to recite the Infinite Life Sutra? Please clarify this for me.

Emituofo,
​
VTH

Question:

Ven. Master,

First, allow me to say that my sister and I are very grateful that you took time of your busy schedule to talk to us for so long. ​

​Unfortunately, we had an engagement with our family or else we would have loved to ask you to clarify a lot more things for us. Please kindly clarify the following for us:

1. In your Chan Handbook, you transmitted the Buddha Recitation Dharma Door to the readers. Can we use the same methodology to recite mantras?

2. When we Use the Guan Yin Dharma Door (Contemplating the Sounds Method), do we contemplate both the sound and the Dan Tian. Would that not create distractions [the mind being split between two tasks]?

3. In the Handbook, you indicated that the Shurangama Mantra is the most powerful. Should I memorize it in Vietnamese, Chinese or English? If I do not have the time, is it OK to just recite the heart of the Shurangama Mantra?

​I hope that we will have the opportunity to participate in the temple’s Fo Qi (Buddha Recitation Week) or Chan Qi in the future.

We wish you good health, peace and bliss, blessings and wisdom in abundance and success in the Buddha’s work.

Respectfully,

TD

Question:

Greetings Venerable Master,

I came across your website while searching for the teachings of Venerable Master Xuan Hua, and I had the luck of finding the Q&A section. ​
​
I’d like to say in advance that I am sorry if I may sound rude or offensive. I do not consider myself to be a Buddhist but I greatly admire Buddhist teachings; they sound right in my heart. I also admire the resolve of left-home people to cultivate in order to help all living beings. I already learned a lot from the Q&As, but I have some questions I was hoping that you may clarify:

Question:

Dear Master,

First of all, I would like to pay my respects to you in thanks for organizing the Chan Qi retreat for us. During the one month I stayed at Lu Mountain Temple, it felt like I was living in a small version of the Mahayana Pure Land and that you were the Cardinal who with altruism saved living beings by teaching us the meditation dharma.
​
Lu Mountain Temple is a calm, relaxing, dignified place, and very suitable for meditation. While there, I learned a lot of meaningful things: Spiritual cultivation practice is the best daily activity; we should have no fear of suffering (that is, we should be willing to accept the suffering and have patience to bear it when most people do not); and do not be satisfied with what we have achieved. You have taught us that we should not waste our samadhi energy with false thoughts. This energy which is on a higher plane is unconditional but it is lost when we think false thoughts because they are conditional.

Question:

Emituofo.

We already have two children but my husband still prefers to spend time with his friends, drinking among other things. I want to convince my husband to walk the Buddha path with me but am not sure what I should do. ​

I often recite the Buddha’s name and repent, hoping that my husband will quickly change his ways. I also pray that the Buddha will awaken my husband: but is it too greedy of my part?

Please kindly instruct me.

PSD