You never know another person’s situation. And when you don’t know, regardless whether he’s got money or not, we just pay whoever come and work for us because we asked them to do so. If he’s got money, that’s his own business. Understand or not? (Understand.) At least we don’t have to worry, knowing that we didn’t take advantage of him, so that his family was short of something. […] For ordinary people, it’s hard to earn money.
You’re still here? You went to Korea and came back? It’s good. Hong Kong also OK. We have a Hong Kong meditation center, you know? (I got initiated in Korea.) In Korea? So you have a connection in Korea. Ah, the Korean connection. OK, just longer flight. Is it more expensive? (It’s like two to three hundred dollars.) Only? The difference is only two to three hundred dollars? (It’s a round-trip ticket.) Oh, I see. It’s similar to Hong Kong I guess. Hong Kong is cheaper? (It’s more or less the same, I checked before I came here.) I just don’t like to travel too much anymore. I don’t know why I cough. Feel nothing, just cough like that. You know, when you have itching throat or something pushing? Nothing, just cough out of nowhere.
I updated it (phone) myself. Because the other dumb-dumb phones don’t work. You go tell the other guy. (OK.) You know, right? OK, then I don’t have to call now. But I can only call. They fix everything already, all the names and numbers so I just push the button. But it took a few weeks for me to learn to push which button because I forgot. I push once and then it goes to the other direction. I don’t know how to return. And I still could not text yet. I haven’t got the time to learn all that. And how to Line. I newly know something called Line. And they told me, “Oh, it’s all free, Master.” I said, “Is the karma also free? Are we cheating or something?” They said, “No, it comes together with the phone.” Is that correct? (Yes.) We are not taking advantage of anybody, right? (No.) OK, good. (It’s paid, nothing’s free.) Together, package? (It’s for the internet access.) OK, very good. Very good.
Is the contact person here? Now I remember something to ask him. Otherwise, I’ll ask face to face. I have to ask him something, face to face, otherwise I’ll forget again. The phone is difficult. Come here. Sit over here. Before I chasten someone, I usually give him something nice first. Let me tell you. Sit down. I asked you one or two weeks ago, “Did we send money to you?” Right? (Right.) It was more than (the amount) you asked for. Right? (Well…) Or was it just the right amount? (Yes, you sent it.) Did we send more than what you asked for? (Yes.) More than our current expenses. Yes? (Yes.) OK. Because I want you to pay the working staff. (I did try to pay him, but the brother said he didn’t want it.) Really? I said I would pay him yesterday. (Understand.) They must get paid. (OK.) We have to pay people when they work for us. (I know.) And when I asked you, you said, “It’s all paid! It’s all paid!” That’s why I didn’t think anything of it. I only found out yesterday because…
(I did try to hand the money to him, but he said… Last time when I tried to pay him, he said no.) Is that true? (Yes.) Is he the one who worked for about ten something days? (Yes, that one...) The one who did most of the work? (Yes, yes, the leader.) Yesterday I said I would pay him. He didn’t say anything. (OK.) OK? If I hadn’t asked, I would owe him money! They have physical bodies. They have husbands, kids and wives. They have to make a living. Coming here to work for 14, 15 days means that they didn’t do any outside jobs. Then where would money come from? You can’t do it this way. (I see.) Whatever I tell you to do, you just do it. You can’t just talk to him, and not pay him simply because he won’t take it. OK?
Of course, everyone who comes here to work for me never thinks of getting paid for it. Nobody would do this – come here to work and think, “Oh, I come to work for Master to earn money.” No! Nobody thinks that way. But we must think for him. He has a family and a house. His house needs maintenance. His car needs gas, and the taxes need to be paid. And it’s expensive for the kids to go to school. OK? (Understand.) Even if he is single, it’s still very… It still costs a lot of money to take care of oneself. He has to eat and to cook. Electricity and water are needed for cooking. Clothes are needed for cold winters. Air conditioning, heat, gas, etc., are needed. None of those are free. You should try your best to understand it clearly. You also have a job to do yourself. Of course he doesn’t want to take it. Or maybe he is too shy to. But it still can’t be done this way. Just say that Master said so, then he dares not refuse to take it. Don’t do it again next time. OK? (Understand.)
Even if you try to pay him, and he won’t accept it, you still have to report it to me. When I asked you, you said, “It’s all paid.” There was no need for me to worry. I trusted you. I asked them to wire money to you, so that you can help me take care of these matters. I can’t spend all day asking this or that person to pay. I don’t know who is who. That’s why I rely on you. You can’t be like this, doing things behind my back and not letting me know about it. (I know. I know. From now on, if they won’t take it, I’ll still insist on paying them.) When I asked, you should have said, “I paid everybody except for one person. He wouldn’t take it.” You should have told me. But you said, “It’s all paid. It’s all paid.” And that was not the same. They are all like that. Everybody is generous and supportive to Master, but I can’t just accept it like that. Understand? (I understand.) If I didn’t have money, of course I would accept it. But I do have money myself. He worked hard for his money. How could I make him feel so embarrassed?
You have to be fairer as a contact person. Or I’ll trust someone else with the job instead of you. I am telling you for the last time. (OK.) If you do things differently than what I told you to behind my back, then it’s wrong. It’s just not right. (OK, I understand.) Three people were not right either. But I’ll spare you again this time. You can’t be like this from now on. Do things exactly the way you are told. OK? That will save me a lot of trouble and keep me from wasting energy just for a few thousand dollars. It’ll also avoid situations where maybe he can barely make ends meet, but is too embarrassed to say anything, and or where he can’t afford something that his wife wants. Maybe because he spent 14, 15 days working here he couldn’t make more money to buy an extra something for his wife or his children. You never know another person’s situation. And when you don’t know, regardless whether he’s got money or not, we just pay whoever come and work for us because we asked them to do so. If he’s got money, that’s his own business. Understand or not? (Understand.) At least we don’t have to worry, knowing that we didn’t take advantage of him, so that his family was short of something.
All disciples are reluctant to take money from their Master. That’s why it is more convenient for me to go through you. This way, they don’t need to deal with me in person, which is even more embarrassing. You just give it to him quietly. I don’t have to know who he is. Now all this makes him feel even worse. There are many aspects to consider. Can’t just think about yourself. Now you know. For ordinary people, it’s hard to earn money. There is no such… Are you guys all billionaires here? (No.) Ordinary people all need to earn money, right? It’s not easy to earn money. And you still have to save up for situations like old age and times of sickness, and for your kids to go to school, to get married, to have their own children, and for them to do this and that. Oh! There are so many things to do. Why are you laughing? Am I not right? (Right.) Yes! Fortunately, your Master is very forgiving. Otherwise, you would be fired. (Thank You, Master.) I’m telling you. Alright. You can go now.
I told you to make a name list of the people who have been paid, and who haven’t. Is it done? (Yes, I did.) Only that one? (Only this guy and that guy. The rest of the carpenters’ wages are all included inside.) Included inside? Inside where? (When he came to me with the invoice, I wanted to pay him the wages. But he said they’re already included inside the invoice.) Really? (Only the carpenter. Only him. I wanted to pay him, but he said, “I don’t want it.”) OK, OK. Where is this carpenter? Let me ask him again. Is he home or here? You need to check clearly. There should be an invoice that came with the material purchases he made. How much is that? It says how many wood planks for how much, and how many acrylic sheets for how much. Check the invoice, and you’ll know if he charged for the cost of labor. The shop must have given him an invoice, in which his cost of labor is not included. So you must check that invoice in detail. Is that right? Invoice? The bill. (The bill.) Check if the bill only listed acrylic sheets and wood planks. Understand? (I understand. I did ask him specifically. And he said yes. He said the cost of labor was already included.) OK. (Because I did tell him that Master wants to pay.) I have told him. (I did tell them.) He said he would take it. But I don’t know.
As a contact person, you should take care of all these things for me, instead of having me worry about so many little things. OK? I don’t like to use people, especially my own children. (Understand.) They have their own lives. I know life is hard enough already. Today you’re healthy; tomorrow you may be sick. All sorts of things happen. We have to think about others. Even if he’s rich, you still have to pay him. You need to make sure of it. Understand? If we owe people money, we simply just pay them, regardless whether he has money or not. Right? If he is rich, it’s OK. That’s good for him. But we just pay what we owe him. Let alone an ordinary fellow initiate. Ordinary people don’t have that much money. OK?
That’s why I never take your money, and you can be carefree. Because if I want money from you, even if you don’t have money, you would go… what? Go… (Go borrow.) Go raise funds or sell your properties and whatnot. It will put me in debt to others. Understand? It cannot be so. That’s why I don’t want any donations. As a Master… It’s different for a Master because the disciples are one with Him (Her). Really, the disciples are one with Him (Her). It’s like that after initiation. So, this kind of Master gets whatever He (She) wants. The disciples would not deny His (Her) requests. So, it’s a very dangerous position to be in. Understand? Dangerous for the disciples. Fortunately, I’ve been honest and upright since childhood. I never liked to take money from others. Oh, I would feel ashamed.
I’ve told you before. I worked at some place before. Then something happened, and I left. I didn’t take any money. He asked me if I wanted the money. I said no, because I was too shy. Even though that was my pay, I didn’t dare to take it. Understand? I felt embarrassed. I said, “No. I don’t need it.” And he left. I went for three days without food! How could I not need the money? I was in Paris, with no place to stay. Then I went looking for jobs. I was looking so desperately, and ended up working for… A restaurant hired me to wash dishes and whatnot. To wash dishes and mop the floor. At the time, I was all alone there. My parents hadn’t sent me money yet. Three days without food. I still wouldn’t… I’ve told you?
I was there babysitting his kids. And he ended up falling in love with me. I also liked him a lot. I was young then. I liked him, but he was married. He was a doctor with a wife and kids. So, I ran away. I left. Because I had some feelings for him, I was too embarrassed to take the money. If he were really just the boss, and if there were no feelings involved, maybe I would have taken it. I was really shy, so I just quickly left. I didn’t want to stay any longer, just in case the feelings got stronger, and it would’ve been troublesome. Because of that, I ran as if fleeing from it. That was why I didn’t even have a place to stay. If I had continued working there, I would’ve had a place to live. Suddenly I lost it, and I didn’t dare to take the money from him. I was too shy. I was very shy when I was young. Still the same now. I’ll feel very shy if I take money from others.
OK. I’ve got things to take care of. Be good and meditate. OK, brother. Turn it off. I’m going to recite the Five Holy Names for them for a while, and then I’ll leave. Some people haven’t heard me recite them, right?
