Living Buddha Lian-sheng Sheng-yen Lu Discourse on Wish-fulfilling Youth at Taiwan Lei TsangTemple on Feb. 4, 2023

(This translation only includes content pertaining to the debut transmission of Wish-fufilling Youth)

Today, we performed the Wish-fulfilling Youth homa. Wish-fulfilling Youth, Pingala, is also known as Lotus-leaf Youth. All three names are correct. Pingala, or Lotus-leaf Youth, is the Wish-fulfilling Youth. There are references to Pingala in some of my previous books. What wishes does Pingala fulfill? Pingala responded as follows:

I assist those who are seeking helpful relationships with valuable people.

I help those who wish to be loved and respected by a man or woman.

From the void or in dreams, I instruct those facing difficulties.

I remove evil ghost spirits.

I destroy black magic spells cast by evil persons.

I enable one with bad grades to be ranked number one.

I harmonize couples in discord.

I detoxify one who has been poisoned.

I smoothly resolve unfavorable lawsuits.

I help one win debates.

I see that debts are paid back to one.

I cure all kinds of illnesses.

I change haunted houses into auspicious abodes.

I enable a pregnant woman to give birth smoothly.

I cause Buddhist practitioners to swiftly attain spiritual union.

I ensure career success.

I assist one to invent new things.

I inspire one's writing.

I enable one to attain spiritual union with one's personal deity.

And so forth. This is the power of the Wish-fulfilling Youth.

I have mentioned that it’s easy to attain spiritual response with this deity. If one recites his mantra 100,000 times while making appropriate offerings in accordance with the Dharma, Pingala will appear and one can attain spiritual union with him. 

Let’s recite the mantra together:

"Om, pi-li-yin-ga, so-ha." "Om, pi-li-yin-ga, so-ha." "Om, pi-li-yin-ga, so-ha."

There is a mantra in Chinese that was originally taught in secret. It’s meant to be a secret. What are your thoughts? (Applause). There are two mantras, and one has already been transmitted.

I will now transmit the “common mantra”. Please remember this mantra: “Tian-luo-shen, di-luo-shen, tian-ling-ling, di-ling-ling, he-li-di-mu, le-ling, man-yuan-tong-zi-jiang-lai-lin.” To make it simpler, don’t recite “Tian-luo-shen, di-luo-shen.” Just recite: “Tian-ling-ling, di-ling-ling, he-li-di-mu, le-ling, man-yuan-tong-zi-jiang-lai-lin.” Recite this mantra 100,000 times.

“He-li-di-mu” means Hariti, Pingala’s mother. When Pingala’s mother commands him to come, he will come. “Tian-ling-ling, di-ling-ling, he-li-di-mu, le-ling, man-yuan-tong-zi-jiang-lai-lin.” Recite this mantra 100,000 times, make proper offerings, and Pingala will appear. Today, during the fire offering, we offered a lot of alcohol. Wish-fulfilling Youth is probably not even 18 years old! This is against the law. Are you trying to get the Wish-fulfilling Youth drunk?!

There’s a joke that goes like this: A police officer was conducting a random check when a car pulled up. The officer said, "Roll down your car window." The officer went to inspect and smelling alcohol, said, "you jiu wei (meaning ‘there's a smell of alcohol’ in Chinese)," The driver replied, "jiu wei (meaning nine people in Chinese) ? Don't scare me. There are only five people in our car!"

Today, while performing the homa for Pingala, the son of Hariti, I also smelled alcohol. Fortunately, the alcohol was not consumed by Wish-fulfilling Youth, but by the vajra protectors.

So how did he become the Wish-fulfilling Youth? Actually, everyone knows that during the time of Shakyamuni Buddha, Hariti, who was also known as the Mother of Ghosts, gave birth to five hundred children. Wish-fulfilling Youth was the youngest, and Hariti loved him very much. Hariti was notorious for eating other people's children. In those days many children died as a result of childbirth complications or disease. Hariti would then eat them. When Shakyamuni Buddha saw this, he seized Hariti's youngest child and kept him in his alms bowl.

Hariti went home to find her beloved Pingala missing. She was depressed and searched everywhere. She had supernatural powers and was known as the Swift Ghost. Although she moved rapidly,  after scouring the entire world she could still not find her youngest son, Pingala. Finally, she had no choice but to consult Shakyamuni Buddha and inquire about the whereabouts of her youngest child. The Buddha, a holy man, asked her, "Having lost a child yourself, you are devastated and grief stricken. Wouldn't other people feel the same way when they found out you ate their children? Think about it." Hariti realized she had done something wrong. She felt remorseful and that it was never right to eat other people's children. She reflected on this, placing herself in another person’s shoes and thinking “How would a person feel if someone ate their child?”

However, consuming other people's children had become a habit. The Buddha said, “If you stop devouring other people's children, in the future, Buddhist practitioners will make offerings to you”. These offerings are known as the Nectar Offering. When making this offering, recite:

"Da-peng-jin-chi-niao (To the great Garuda),

Kuang-ye-gui-shen-zhong  (To the multitude of ghosts and spirits in the desolate wilds),

Luo-cha-gui-zi-mu (To the Rakshasas and to Hariti),

Gan-lu-xi-chong-man (May you all be filled with nectar), om, mu-di-li, so-ha, om, mu-di-li, so-ha, om, mu-di-li, so-ha.” “Gui-zi-mu” in the mantra refers to Pingala’s mother, Hariti.

We have therefore learned a lesson: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." If you don’t want something done to you, don't do it to others. I previously made this pledge: "From this day on, I will never initiate a lawsuit against anyone. If someone sues me, that's fine! I will never sue anyone." That's my vow. Do you like being sued? No!  If you don’t like it, don’t do it to others. In the saha world, this is the most fundamental requirement of a bodhisattva. As I just mentioned, if it's beneficial to both yourself and others, you can do it. If it's detrimental to yourself but beneficial to others, you can still do it. But don’t do anything that is harmful to others and only benefits yourself. One must not, of course, do anything harmful to either  oneself or others. To be qualified as a disciple of Shakyamuni Buddha, a practitioner must uphold these four principles. It's about putting oneself in another person’s shoes.

Pingala was imprisoned in Shakyamuni Buddha’s bowl. Strangely, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise. The bowl was the Buddha’s source of sustenance. Using his bowl, the Buddha prayed upwards to the heavens to acquire the fruition of Buddhadharma, but he also begged downwards to laypeople for basic necessities like clothes and food.  As a result, the bowl itself had spiritual capabilities. Being confined inside the bowl was equal to getting the greatest blessings from Shakyamuni Buddha. While in the bowl, Pingala acquired Samadhi, the three insights, and the six supernatural powers.

What is meant by “the three insights”?

The first insight is insight of the past and future lives of oneself and others  - Pingala could see into his own past and future lives and the past and future lives of others also.

The second insight is the insight of the divine eye - Blessed by Shakyamuni Buddha, Pingala immediately acquired the divine eye, allowing him to see the Buddha’s pure land, the six realms of heaven, human, asura, hell, hungry ghost, and animal, and the four holy realms. He was able to see all ten Dharma realms. 

He could see his own past and future karma, and the past and future karma of sentient beings also. This is the insight of the divine eye.

The third insight is the insight of the extinction of outflows - This insight, which uses vajra wisdom to sever all afflictions, is the greatest of the three insights. Those who enter monastic life should use vajra wisdom to eradicate all afflictions. This is the insight of the extinction of outflows.

These insights are called the three insights - the insight of past and future lives of oneself and others; the divine eye; and the extinction of outflows. In addition to acquiring the six supernatural powers, Pingala, the Wish-fulfilling Youth, acquired these three insights as well. His abilities are truly extraordinary.  

What are the six supernatural powers?  

The power of the divine eye - the same as the insight of the divine eye.

The power of knowing the past and future lives of oneself and others - the same as the insight of past and future lives of oneself and others.

The power of divine ear – Pingala was able to hear the voices of sentient beings. 

The power of discerning the minds of others – Before one has opened one’s mouth, Pingala already knows. He can tell what someone is thinking without them ever saying anything. Therefore, one doesn't need to actually open one’s month to ask Pingala for something. One can just think, and Pingala will know what one is thinking about. This is the power of discerning the minds of others.

The power of divine ear - He is able to hear the voices of sentient beings. 

The power of discerning the minds of others - One doesn’t need to say anything. Pingala will still hear you. He can read minds.  

The power of knowing the past and future lives of oneself and others  - the same as the insight of past and future lives of oneself and others. He knows everything about everyone’s past, current, and future lifetimes.

The power of divine foot is also known as the wish-fulfilling power. With this ability, everything is auspicious and wishes are fulfilled. Whatever one wishes for, one gets it. Shakyamuni Buddha’s alms bowl had the ability to grant wishes. This is known as the wish-fulfilling or divine-foot power. With this power, one can swiftly travel back and forth, reaching the trichiliocosm in seconds, and a buddha pure land just by a thought!

Lastly, there is the power of extinction of outflows. Through the vajra wisdom, afflictions and attachments are entirely eliminated.

Pingala, the Lotus-leaf Youth, also known as the Wish-fulfilling Youth, has a level of awakening that is fundamentally equivalent to samyak-sambodhi or Absolute Universal Enlightenment. This realization encompasses  the equality of all things.

Shakyamuni Buddha’s seizing a person and confining them in a bowl is truly unusual, precious, and very unlikely to happen. I would be willing to be captured by Shakyamuni and held in his bowl. Once inside, I would attain all the powers! I would acquire the three insights and the six transcendental powers!  The blessings of Shakyamuni Buddha are unique, and because Pingala was blessed by this power, he became the Wish-fulfilling Youth!

When Pingala emerged from Shakyamuni Buddha's bowl, a '棒' (bang) syllable  appeared. A lotus leaf grew out of the bowl, and Pingala was sitting on the leaf.

Pingala’s seed syllable can also be visualized as “LA.” That's the abbreviation of Los Angeles, California, right? Los Angeles is called LA, and California is abbreviated as CA. So, I am talking about the English pronunciation of LA as the seed syllable “LA.” The seed syllable looks like a circle with the character '工' (gōng) underneath, but it's a little longer. His seed syllable is located beneath it. You can visualize that seed syllable and then transform it into Pingala. His actual name is Pingala.

The mantra is:

"Om, pi-li-yin-ga, so-ha, om, pi-li-yin-ga, so-ha, om, pi-li-yin-jia, so-ha."

Why is it so easy to attain spiritual union with Pingala? He is a young boy. After emerging from the bowl, he played in the saha world assisting all sentient beings. 

Rev. Lianshei presented me with a statue of Pingala. A Dharma sister from California also gave me a Lotus-leaf Youth statue. I placed the statue from the California Dharma sister in my spiritual consultation room. Wow! I wasn’t expecting it to be so responsive! It was so efficacious that it could "eat cakes" (Taiwanese: very efficacious). Pingala is particularly fond of sweets. He will jump and leap with excitement if you offer him sweets. When you ask him questions, he is really responsive, almost overpowering! Grandmaster's pocket is full of sweets. In my opinion, Pingala is exceedingly efficacious.

So, all you have to do is recite Pingala’s name. Everyone who is here today is an expert in fortune-telling. Disciples of the True Buddha School (TBS) will be the greatest diviners of all time. As the saying goes - when one asks the heavens questions, the heavens will respond. When one asks the earth, the earth responds. When one asks for longevity, it is granted, and when one addresses evil spirits, the evil spirits depart. Pingala is truly and extremely efficacious. The best fortune-teller will be the person employing Lotus-leaf Youth in their divination.

Previously, Grandmaster was hailed as the best diviner. With the help of Pingala, Grandmaster knew the heavens, earth, the cause and effect in the Three Times, and all sorts of causes, conditions, and resultant rewards. Pingala could disclose all of this. Moreover, if one makes even a small improvement in oneself, one’s request will be promptly granted. One can also pray to Pingala to remove karmic obstacles. He will let you see your own karmic hindrances, and through him, one can escape disasters and gain auspiciousness.

As a result, our blessing ceremony today is, without a doubt, the best! Pingala is the best! Earlier on, I mentioned the three insights and six supernatural powers. If one attains spiritual union with Pingala, Pingala will teach one how to attain the three insights and six transcendental powers. Once you master this, you will have attained the Absolute Universal Enlightenment which encompasses the realization of the equality of all things, which is equivalent to a buddha. It means one has achieved attainment of the Wisdom of Equanimity and Great Perfection Wisdom of a buddha.

Notwithstanding the fact that Grandmaster will return to Seattle, USA on February 8, his heart remains with the disciples of TBS. Taiwan is the Grandmaster's hometown, and one always returns to one's hometown. Let me sing a song called Hometown!

“My hometown is in Rikaze, where there is a beautiful river.

Amala says that the hills are filled with cattle and sheep, blessed by the bodhisattva

The sky is blue, with white clouds floating, and the river water is clear and rippling.

Eagles soar and leave behind a touching melody 

Om Mani Mani Padme Hum  Om Mani Mani Padme Hum

Om Mani Mani Padme Hum  Om Mani Mani Padme Hum

Om Mani Mani Padme Hum  Om Mani Mani Padme Hum

Om Mani Mani Padme Hum  Om Mani Mani Padme Hum”

This is a song called Hometown. I hope my heart will always be together with all of you. Let's sing another song!

The city’s moonlight illuminates the dreams, please guard it by staying close to it.

If we are ever reunited, the night will be filled with joy and happiness.

The city’s moonlight illuminates the dreams, please guard it by staying close to it.

If we are ever reunited, the night will be filled with joy and happiness.

Firstly, Shimu would like to begin by greeting everyone. Secondly, Professor Wangli, a member of the Doctoral Professor Group of TBS and Professor of Electrical Engineering Department at National Cheng Kung University, has been recognized as being in the top 2% of scientists in the world. This is a tremendous honor for TBS. Thank you very much!

Today, everyone should remember Lotus-leaf Youth, who has two mudras. The first mudra: Pingala holds an auspicious fruit in his left hand, and his right hand is held downward in the Wish-fulfilling Mudra. Be sure to form the mudra when receiving empowerment. Put one’s left hand in front of one’s chest as if holding an auspicious fruit, followed by forming the Wish-fulfilling Mudra with one’s right hand. How does one form the mudra while holding something in one’s hand? If one is holding something in one’s hand, visualization is an option. If you don’t have anything in your hand, you must form this mudra.

The second mudra: form the Wish-fulfilling Mudra with both hands. It's not about requesting something from others, but rather offering something to others. Your receiving the empowerment is equivalent to Wish-fulfilling Youth giving you something, and at the same time, you become Wish-fulfilling Youth. If, in the future, one attains spiritual union with the Wish-fulfilling Youth, by forming this mudra one will become the Wish-fulfilling Youth. Form the Wish-fulfilling Mudra by placing both hands in front of or just below your chest. One can also hold an auspicious fruit in one hand and form the Wish-fulfilling Mudra with the other hand held downward facing out. Be sure to form the mudras.

Tomorrow, Grandmaster will autograph books at the True Buddha Prajna Treasury Book Fair in Taipei. You can go there to buy books because Grandmaster's heart is represented by books. Since Grandmaster is also the Great Blessing Vajra, bringing the books home is like bringing the Wealth God home. Tomorrow at 3:00 PM in the Taipei World Trade Center, Grandmaster will be signing books at the True Buddha Prajna Treasury Book Fair. If so many of us crowd in, all the book stalls will be overwhelmed. Remember to maintain order at the World Trade Center. Running around Taiwan Lei Tsang Temple is fine, because it is our temple. The World Trade Center, however, belongs to someone else. We must obey their regulations and maintain order, because there are just too many of us. Tomorrow, Grandmaster will autograph books at the book fair. Thank you all very much!

Translated by TBTTs

Translator: Lynn Ang

Editors: Henry Wolf and DJ Chang