Hallo, comrades. Now, we are truly comrades, because we have the same ideal. We have the same direction, going up there. So, we are truly comrades. Following Auntie Hải, you are truly my comrades.
Hallo, everybody! (Hallo, Master!) Good, good! Is this the kitchen crew? (Yes.) Many thanks to you. Thank you for coming to cook on such short notice.
Thank you. Hallo. Aulacese (Vietnamese)? (Yes.) All Aulacese here? (Yes, Master.)
Just initiated? (Yes.) All of you are new? (Yes.) (New young initiates.) Just initiated. Oh, young initiates and other initiates as well. OK. Young initiates, Aulacese (Vietnamese) initiates, and others as well? (All mixed together.) All mixed. Then which language shall I speak? Hallo. Hallo! (Hallo, Master.) Hallo!
Hallo! Hallo, you are healthy and well? (Is Master healthy and well?) OK. I’m OK. Healthy, but not well, because there is so much work and I could not finish it all by myself. Therefore, I said I am healthy, but not well. It’d be better if I could do more, but I could not do it all by myself. Therefore, I said I am not well, but still healthy. Not very well. (Hallo, Master.) Hallo. All right. Congratulations! (Yes, Master.) Everyone will become Buddha soon.
From Taiwan (Formosa)? (Taiwan.) Where are the mainland Chinese? Are they here? (Yes, they’re in the meditation hall.) (Over here.) Over here? OK. (In the main meditation hall.) In the main hall? Overseas initiates are all in the main hall. Hallo, everybody! (Hallo, Master!) Is it cold today? Why do you cover yourselves with hats? You seem cold. Are you? Is it cold? (Hallo, Master!) Hallo! (Hallo, Master!) Fine. I’m fine. Very good, very good. Thank you. Thank you.
(Hallo, Master!) OK. I’ll just use one hand, and use the other hand to keep myself steady. We’re all getting old. Just looking at you, I know how old I am. (Hallo, Master.) Just like looking in a mirror, right? We all grow old together. (Hallo, Master!) Ah, this place is too small. There’s not enough room, no matter where you sit. Good that not all of you have come. Luckily some initiates did not come. (Hallo, Master!) Hallo. From China? (Taiwan [Formosa]). (Master looks so pretty!) It’s because you see me from a distance and you aren’t wearing your glasses. Can you all see me? (Yes, we can!) I came down just to have a look at you. (Thank You, Master! Thank You.) (Master is so beautiful!) My clothes are beautiful. That’s why. (Master is beautiful.)
Ah! Ngọc? How come you still look so young? Why don’t you sit with the Aulacese (Vietnamese)? You don’t have translation? If you sit there, you wouldn’t have translation. Is it OK? (Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.) It's OK.
Ah! People will misunderstand. They’re good at misunderstanding. I don’t mean they will; I mean they’re good at it. They’re experts. I used to hug you before, didn’t I? When I first started to teach. No? Sometimes I hugged a thousand people and was exhausted when I got home. My hands were so tired. Now, I dare not hug people again. I have no time for that. OK? Having a look is already very good. A look every year, maybe. It’s enough, isn’t it? Yeah, you also have to earn your own merits; can’t just steal them from me. (Thank You, Master.) Thank me for what? Thank you. Hallo, everybody! (Hallo, Master.) I’m fine, OK.
You were given just one day’s notice. There was not enough time. I’m sorry for causing you so much trouble. Was it hard for you? (No, it was not.) Are you upset with Master? (No, we’re not.) Some of you might be. Some of you. (No, we aren’t.) Some might be upset that I didn’t allow them to sit up there, very close to me. Some are angry with me. If you’re angry, you won’t have merit. OK? I’ve done nothing bad. I’m a good person. You’ll have a lot of bad karma if you’re angry with a good person. Understand? (Understand.) I’m warning you. Your anger will not affect me, but it will affect you. That’s what you should be afraid of, not me. OK? I’m old. If I have to die, I’ll just die. It’s nothing. I’m prepared anytime. I’m prepared to go anytime.
Why do you sit there? You can sit in the front. You like it there? (I must go early.) Ah, OK, OK. What time do you have to go? (It’s 4:30 p.m.) Ah? (4:30.) 4:30. Is it 4:30 p.m. already? Not yet? Good. Ah, you speak Chinese? (Yes.) OK. If you want. No, it's just, you have a privilege, not an obligation. I thought people did not tell you. It’s up to you.
(Hallo, Master.) Aulacese (Vietnamese)? (Yes, Master.) You just became the Buddha recently? (Yes, Master.) Hallo, comrades. Now, we are truly comrades, because we have the same ideal. We have the same direction, going up there. So, we are truly comrades. Following Auntie Hải, you are truly my comrades. (Yes, Master.) Âu Lạc (Vietnam) is all well? Are you well at home? (Yes, Master.) The whole country is well? (Yes, Master.) Nothing happened, right? (No, Master.) OK. I like your hair.
What’s your nationality? Aulacese? No? (Mongolian.) Mongolia, yeah! Speak English? (A little bit.) A little bit, yes. Everybody tells me the same. I told you guys to learn English. I don’t know, since the Qing dynasty already. Nobody learned anything. Everybody comes here, hanging the ears like that. What’s wrong with English? So easy to learn. Coming here, hanging all the ears like that, looks funny.
Hallo. (Hallo, Master.) The Aulacese are here too? Peace and prosperity, right? Why did you shave your head? You want to be a renunciate? You want to be a monk? I am a nun having long hair! See? Why did you shave your head? It can be cold. Just be natural. But a shaved head is more convenient, right? Taking a shower is also convenient. You don’t have to dry your hair, to curl your hair, too much work! I used to shave my head before; it looked beautiful. Now I leave my hair long, and it doesn’t look beautiful at all. I work too much; my eyes and my face all wrinkled! My hair is falling out, only some hair left. I still have hair but thin hair.
(Hallo, Master.) (How are You?) Fine, fine! Fine! Are you comfortable? (I love You!) Love you too. (Hallo, Master!)
(Master. Master is beautiful.) Old beauty! Thank you, thank you. Thank you, thank you, all of you. Thank you.
Thank you all for your support. (Hallo, Master!) (Hallo, Master!) You still come to visit this old person? (Thank You, Master.) You still come to see this old lady? (Hallo, Master.) Hallo. (Thank You, Master.) Your hair is gray now. My God! Time flies. Time passes so quickly. In no time and… You see my earlier pictures. I had very dark hair, didn’t I? Even without hair, it was dark. Now I touch it, it’s gray. (It’s a beautiful gray.) I wear the hat to cover it. Thank you. To cover the gray hair. Are you OK? (Yes.) OK? My hair is just like yours. You can’t see it because it’s covered. Yeah, I am here.
(Hallo, Master.) They sit in the back, so I’ll go and have a look. Look as much as you want. It’s very tiring to come see you, just like seeing a king. Yeah. I had to choose which clothes to wear and to take a shower first, because sometimes I’m too busy with work to take a bath. I was afraid I might smell. Your smell is already very strong and I didn’t want to add to it.
Before, when I came back from Austria, I sat in a small van with five, six, seven, or eight seats. Early in the morning, we drove to the airport. Three or four people from Taiwan (Formosa) had come to invite and accompany me here. I knew their intention before they opened their mouths. I said, “I’ll go on my own will. You don’t have to say anything.”
Actually, they used a ploy. They sent old people. Understand? Those who were older, sick, and had a cold or something; not a serious cold. These people flew such a long distance, all the way from Taiwan (Formosa) to Austria. After they arrived, they kept coughing. I felt bad. They were so old and were sent there or maybe dragged there, to see me. Doesn’t matter; they had good excuses to invite me back.
Ah! I forgot. The point was about the smell. The van was small. When I came out, just opening the door of the van, I almost passed out, because the smell was so strong! I thought it came from all of them. Then I realized, after sitting in the front seat, that it was from the person next to me. Just one person. He had forgotten to take a shower or something. And he had slept in the clothes from the day before, then got up and went to drive the car without changing. Later I found out it was him. And I mistook it to be from the clean Taiwanese (Formosans). I’m sorry! Wow! The smell was too strong. I don’t know if you’ve ever been in that kind of situation. Have you? (Yes.) You have? Ah, I thought I was the only one! You’ve also had that kind of experience? It’s the same with all smells. The nose is international, right? No matter what smell it is, it’s all the same.
Some people do not have a sensitive nose. They can’t smell anything. There was a man who was newly married. Wanting to please her husband, the wife sprayed a lot of perfume of a certain brand, deodorant, etc. Then she showed up with her lustrous hair also sprayed with perfume. They were newly married. The husband was busy working at home. She hung around, but the husband was unaware. Then she drew nearer. He did not inhale deeply, like take a deep breath or something, like this. He did not. The wife thought it was odd. “I’m so beautifully dressed, with so much charming perfume. He should have noticed and reacted. Why does he have his nose glued to the computer and show no response?” Later she found out that her husband’s nose does not work; it is not sensitive.
Some people have weak eyes. They look just like us, but… One of my assistants can’t see colors. Some people are like that. I was not aware of this kind of thing. I thought that I myself had a lot of physical defects. And then I look around, oh, many people have problems. Some have a poor sense of smell, some have weak eyes, and some can’t hear well. They might also have other physical defects that I haven’t noticed. Therefore, we are very OK.
