The Mysteries of the Universe

Spoken by Supreme Master Ching Hai
Hong Kong • February 19, 1992
(Originally in Chinese)

Our Earth has a pretty advanced civilization. We have many tools and machines that can make our lives more comfortable. However, in the eyes of a spiritual practitioner, our Earth is not quite civilized enough. There are spiritual practitioners who can travel to other planets and worlds in their spiritual rather than physical form. They can observe other planets and worlds and perhaps learn something that could benefit the people back on Earth. Some people can do that; some have written books on their out-of-body experiences.

Myriad Civilizations and Realms

This is not new to the Buddhist tradition. Shakyamuni Buddha, for example, knew and introduced many other worlds and planets to us. He spoke of the Medicine Buddha’s and the Crystal Buddha’s world in the east, the Land of Amitabha Buddha in the west, and myriad worlds, as many as the sands of the Ganges. However, not all of these worlds are civilized or of supreme levels. Some worlds are more backward than ours. Some are not so backward but neither are they civilized. Some are more technologically advanced but they differ from this planet in their way of life and spiritual level.

For example, some worlds can manufacture UFOs that can travel very fast from one planet to another. Some worlds produce UFOs for export to other planets. Perhaps our Earth would be able to purchase a couple of UFOs some day. This is not impossible. In the past, we never dreamed that we would travel from America to Hong Kong. And before Christopher Columbus landed on America, no one had imagined that it existed. Similarly, we will be able to travel to other planets at a greater speed than UFOs. We can use our wisdom, our soul, our inherent energy, to send ourselves out, and we will be able to go anywhere we want.

I realize that our world has undergone tremendous transformation recently. Many things have taken place. However, we still lead stable lives and our Earth is still inhabitable. Some planets are in far worse situations. In UFO-producing worlds, for example, spiritual practice may not be very popular because the beings there are tightly bound by machines. In some places, there may have been an overproduction of robots made in such likeness to the living beings that one could hardly distinguish them from one’s own kind. Sometimes, the beings become too dependent on and accustomed to using machines that they become estranged from one another and have difficulty communicating. They would rather talk to robots.

I am not here to recommend these worlds or claim that civilized worlds are better than ours. Some are good and some are bad. Except for the truly great spiritual worlds, others are pretty much like our Earth. They are just a little more, or a little less, civilized. Those of us who practice the Quan Yin Method would certainly prefer to go to the higher levels and become liberated from the worlds of reincarnation. Reincarnation is not unique to our Earth only. Reincarnation, hatred, war, and disputes are common to many other planets at our level. The situation is worse in some worlds because they are more developed, their weapons and poisons being more powerful, and their destructive capability even more terrifying. So our Earth is still quite dependable.

We know that many countries and places are not as good, peaceful, or prosperous as Hong Kong. It is not that God is unfair. If we human beings happen to encounter or be born into this kind of situation, it is because we have chosen the wrong path for many lifetimes or hundreds and thousands of years. We did not write this present situation from the time of our birth. If we practice spiritually, we will be able to see our history of many thousands, millions, and billions of years. A person’s soul is very special and his history very interesting. One is more than what one is known as — Mr. Wang, Mrs. Liu, or Charles. There is a long and great history behind everyone. This can be verified. There are many worlds in our universe. When we human beings die, we move on to another world. Death is not the end of everything. There are worlds where we can learn about our past if we go there. Even if we do not practice the highest method, we can see both our past and future. However, a great spiritual practitioner can only find his past, not the future, because he can escape from his past karma, and create and control his own future.

Some of you may be practicing spiritually and know about these things. You understand immediately when I discuss these topics. Perhaps you have had this kind of experience and visited the mysterious universe. Those who do not know about it may find it a little unfamiliar. However, this is no big deal for spiritual practitioners. Just like when you learn English, you can speak English. Those who do not learn English, of course, do not understand you, while those who do, understand you as soon as you open your mouth. You can question and answer each other in a lively and distinct way, whereas those who do not know English, cannot. This is just a question of knowing and not knowing. It is the same with the many sciences in our world. Some people study medical science and some study engineering. They become experts and understand what each other says and does, but outsiders like us do not understand them. Some sciences are supraworldly, such as those related to research on life on other planets and finding out about our past and future.

The highest attainment of a spiritual practitioner is what Shakyamuni Buddha and Jesus Christ called “liberation from life and death, and return to the Home.” Where is our “Home?” It is in a very, very high world. I am not referring to the distance, but rather, to the highest supreme world. There is nothing on this Earth that can compare with it. We may not want to stay on this Earth and want to go back to the Source from where we came. A long, long time ago, perhaps thousands, millions, or billions of years ago, we came here, to live together, open up and develop this world, and share our feelings and experiences. Some of our experiences are good and some are bad. Good experiences make us better. Bad experiences sometimes make us better and sometimes worse. Many good and bad experiences are imprinted on our subconscious, which records behavior and experiences like a computer. If we record only bad experiences, then we become bad people. If we record only good experiences, we become good. This is a learning process.

Sometimes we make what we call free choices, which we refer to as free will. When we first came down to this world, we can judge which experiences we want to absorb, learn, and cherish, and which to reject. However, sometimes we neglect ourselves, become sluggish, and stop caring about what is good and what is bad. The experiences bind us and we react each time according to them. If we consider it a good experience, we react in a certain way; but when it is bad, we also react in the same way. It becomes a habit and as we become more accustomed to it, we react in the same way more and more often. Our reaction is the same when faced with the same kind of situation. This is what we call karma, or being trapped in cause and effect. This is a habit that has formed over many lifetimes. It is a natural reaction. We record it and yield the same output each time.

That is not our True Self; it comes only from our brain. Our subconscious is like a computer. When we enter the inner world, we can see our own computer and know about our past actions. This is no mystery. If we do not think our brain is like a computer, then how do we learn things? The evidence is very clear. We can learn! When we learn English, we remember English. If we learn Cantonese, we remember Cantonese. It is like a tape recorder, a computer that collects and releases the data. This means that there truly is a so-called computer inside us, which we call the subconscious. Death does not destroy this subconscious, because it is not a material thing; it is a spiritual computer. We may say that it is invisible, but that does not mean we cannot see it. It is invisible only to our eyes, our physical eyes. To our wisdom or heavenly eye, it is not invisible. What I have been talking about is not of a very high level, but it is difficult to talk about things of a higher level. (Master laughs) I talk about these ordinary things so that everyone can understand.

If you heard what I have just said, that some people can see the past and future, don’t think that I am being mysterious. No. I am only referring to a kind of computer that we can see. A visible computer can be seen with the physical eyes, while an invisible computer can be seen with the invisible eye. The difference is that we use different tools in different ways. I don’t think that there is anything extraordinary or mysterious about it. Maybe it sounds mysterious the first time we hear about it, but, actually, it is not. It is very scientific and very logical.

We have been going through reincarnation life after life, because we cannot, and do not know how to, delete things in this invisible computer.

We can erase things in an ordinary computer or robot. We can dismantle it and loosen its screws so that its hand goes here and its head goes there. Then the robot is gone. Or we destroy our computer by just pushing a button. It will be gone because it is only a material computer, a material machine. However, our inner computer (Master refers to the mind here) is more powerful because it is not material. Unless we know how to delete the information with an invisible method, it will remain with us life after life and attract us back. When we die, we will take the computer with us because it is not material. Our physical body will decompose, but not the computer or the soul. Our True Self still will be encased in another body.

Manifold Layers of The Body

We have many bodies of different levels. For example, the physical body is thick and coarse, visible and palpable. Another kind of body is sometimes visible to our physical eyes but is impalpable. There is yet another kind of body that we can neither see nor touch but which we can feel. We can see it if we attain a higher level. Then, there is a kind of body which is quite unlike the body. It is a brilliant light, a power, and a great love. That is our true nature, our True Self.

If our True Self has not shed its coarse outfit, the outer box or clothes (like the physical body), the computer will remain with us life after life because we still have a form, which may be invisible but it is visible in another world. Sometimes we hear about a person coming back to make trouble after his death. Sometimes he appears to some people. Such things do happen. They do. Although his physical body has decomposed, his soul is trapped inside his astral body. What we have here is the “physical body.” There is another kind of body called the astral body. It is still a kind of encased body. Our true soul, or True Self, isn’t like a body. However, if we attain a certain level, it is convenient for us to manifest a body. Then we can appear to people. However, this is different from the situation where the soul of a dead person appears to cause trouble.

I have mentioned earlier that our computer records many things and there is no escape from the experiences. This is because once we have had these experiences, we think that it is all there is. We come back life after life because these experiences and information are here waiting for us. Death is not the end. The information is still here. We come back again for the information because we are not satisfied, not having studied enough about certain things. We have desires that we have only half-fulfilled or just started to enjoy when we die. So we want to come back again and enjoy them with another physical body.

The science of this world is not very good. This microphone would have been unnecessary during lectures in another world. In some worlds where languages are not used, a Master just stands there like a beam of light. He seems to have a body with no fine details. He is just a brilliant beam of light, glowing and flashing for the audience to understand him. Those worlds do not speak many languages, so neither translation nor machines are necessary. On our way to the lectures sometimes, the car just lies down and refuses to move in the street. The machinery in this world isn’t good enough. I hope that some day we can at least travel to other planets in UFOs to look at their machines, civilizations, or methods of spiritual practice, so we can bring information back for our people’s reference. It’ll be more convenient. I can only talk about it, but I can’t prove it — not unless you practice the same method I do. If you practice diligently, you will see the things I see. You will know that what I have said is true. There is no other way to prove it.

For instance, if I don’t learn Cantonese from you, when you say which Cantonese poems or traditions are beautiful and interesting, or when you speak about Cantonese history, I cannot believe or understand you because I have not learned the same things you have. However, I will do my best to explain it all to you because I believe that your souls within understand me. Your inner wisdom knows, while the brain may not, but what makes human beings the greatest is that we have the inner wisdom. It is this wisdom that has brought us here for the lecture. It is this wisdom that told us that it is better to come. It understands many things that the brain doesn’t, because the brain is just a machine.

For instance, some robots resemble human beings but actually are not human. We have heard about UFO explosions, or seen strange-looking beings left behind by UFOs or disembarking from them. These may not have been living beings but robots made almost identical to the beings. Sometimes we mistake them for something else. There may be a kind of tool that helps us distinguish robots from beings because their inner structures are different. They have mechanical features, screws and computer chips inside, and not hearts, lungs, and stomachs. They cannot digest food. This will tell us what they are. Once we get closer to the robots, we will discover that they have no emotions. They are not like living beings. They do not know what love is. They cannot love others. But they are very smart and can make demands, sometimes very serious demands. Let’s stop talking about these things.

Erasing Recorded Data In The Mind

Now, let me discuss how we can liberate ourselves from the computer that records all good and bad things life after life. There is a method for that. Those of us who practice the Quan Yin Method can erase the records. We can erase the good and bad things, keeping only what we need. This is the only way to forget influences from the past that will lead us to liberation. This is called liberation from life and death. Those of us who know how to use the computer can erase all the information we have input into a computer as soon as we press a certain button. The same goes for the invisible computer. If we know the way to do it, we can delete the information quickly. That is why we can be liberated in one lifetime and become enlightened. What does enlightenment mean? Why do we become enlightened when we erase the information recorded in the computer? The information in the invisible computer inside us has masked the wisdom and the Truth that we should know. Our brain is filled with information from the past which we have collected and learned on Earth. The true information, which we had before we came to Earth, is hidden behind the mess of information collected from many lifetimes. If we can delete the messy information, our true wisdom and True Self that we had before we acquired good and bad experiences will appear. It will shine again when we have washed and brushed off the dust that covers it.

Some worlds don’t have many computers. They are only wealthier than our world. The beings there don’t need to do anything for food or clothes. They can use their will power and desire to create these things. They can do it. But their worlds are not the state of nirvana or the land of the saints. We can call them leisure worlds where there is nothing to do.

You may ask me, “Well, you always advertise for other planets and tell people to go and live there. Why don’t you advise people to stay on Earth? After practicing spiritually, can we still stay here?” Yes, you can. My only fear is that you cannot develop your talents well. We get into danger here when we do things differently from others. Sometimes when people discover a good scientific method or invent a good machine, or find a good method to save human beings, others may become jealous and cause them harm. A typical example is Jesus Christ, who was crucified after only preaching the Truth for a little more than three years. If you are a Buddhist, perhaps you haven’t read much of the Bible. But I’ve read the Bible and I know that Jesus spoke the Truth. The history and the wars that were recorded in the Bible were not spoken by Jesus. The Bible is not the same as what He said. The Biblical records covered events dating back to the creation of the world — additions that were included in the Bible and not spoken by Christ. What I am trying to say is that even a person who spoke the Truth, who advised people to do good and keep the precepts, was still not able to live.

Nevertheless, there is still hope for us. If each one of us practices spiritually, we will all know the code of ethics and understand the philosophy of Confucius and Lao Tzu. If we work on applying it along with advanced scientific studies in our world, our Earth will not lose to any other planet, except for the very spiritually advanced ones. Our planet can attain a very high level because it is quite good. We can grow things here. We have many mineral resources, like diamonds and crystal. We have lots of diamonds. They will not be so costly if we are to open up all diamond mines on our Earth to the people. Women everywhere will be able to wear diamonds. It will no longer be expensive to wear just a tiny one on the fingers. We have many, many diamonds, but not many are currently available because of their high price.

We can make many good tools with diamonds and crystals. The beings on other planets use these minerals to produce machines that can make their lives very comfortable. They produce UFOs and do many things for their good health and to serve others. Originally, diamonds were not ornaments for the people. They were a very precious mineral that could be used to make good scientific and civilized machines and tools. We cannot make use of them at the present time. We do not have scientists who are good enough to invent advanced equipment by blending diamonds, crystal and gold, etc. We may have them in the future. If we get a chance to contact other planets and learn from them, then together with the wisdom and support of the Earthians, we can make our Earth magnificent. I also hope that the time will come soon when the people on Earth will have greater comfort.

Our Earth is better than some other planets. Some planets aren’t as good as ours. Their land isn’t as good as ours; they can’t grow things; they have fewer minerals, less gold and fewer diamonds than we do. But they live in different ways. Their situation demands that they survive in different ways. Their way of life is not as good as ours. They can hardly compare with us in terms of comfort and natural lifestyle. Although their machines are more advanced than ours in certain aspects, they cannot compare with us when it comes to the comfortable and natural lives we lead, to the amount of trees, fruit and agriculture that we have. Of course, there are planets that are more beautiful than ours; however, practitioners of the Quan Yin Method do not want to go there. I am only giving you a brief introduction so you know about it. We have better places to go to. The planets that produce machines are similar to our Earth, but they are not spiritually advanced. Some spiritually advanced planets do not even use machines. They can travel without UFOs and are highly knowledgeable. They can communicate without language. But our Earth isn’t that advanced. The most advanced machines that we have are rockets. We don’t have UFOs yet. Perhaps we will in the future.

Ways To Improve World Civilization

I think there are two ways to make our world more advanced. One way is to practice the Quan Yin Method, develop ourselves, and find our true wisdom so we can follow other planets. Another way is to import UFOs and go up to see other planets. Or it will be such a waste of our Earth. Our air is very good. There are many things in the atmosphere besides oxygen that we can utilize. Perhaps scientists will discover in the future that we do not need gasoline, coal, or electricity, and we can come up with a very fast airplane that uses natural atmospheric gases surrounding our Earth. We have many gases that we can use. Then our Earth will not be filled with the bad odor from many cars, which pollute the air and are bad for our health. Our Earth is rich in resources. Our soil is very good. If you do or want to do spiritual practice but don’t want to go to other planets, fine. But you still need to practice to make our Earth better. If we don’t want to live on Earth, but we practice spiritually, we will have greater wisdom, do our work better, and be more capable of serving society. Our future generations will benefit from it.

Each day, every one of us works long hours, eight or ten hours. Sometimes we become so exhausted that we cannot help society as much or as quickly as we would like. We who practice the Quan Yin Method can develop our abilities more. Even if we do not want to leave the Earth, it is good too because we can serve the world more. We can go to other worlds to learn, because we have no good schools here. At the present time, our Earth does not have great schools of science that teach advanced sciences. So we should practice the Quan Yin Method. If you have found a better method or are practicing a good method, that is fine. If you cannot find one, you can try practicing the Quan Yin Method and you will gradually develop your wisdom. Or you can go to other planets to learn, so that you can serve the world when you come back.

If we continue to lead stable lives and do a little work each day, I am afraid that our world will not improve quickly. Even if great scientists will come here from other planets to invent machines and educate us in many aspects, we still have to prepare ourselves in advance. We have to be prepared with a high level of wisdom so we can assimilate the advanced knowledge and sciences they will teach us. No matter what, we should practice the method of wisdom to develop and nourish our wisdom. Then we can do anything. That is why Confucius said that we should cultivate ourselves and establish family harmony before we can rule the nation and bring peace to the world.

We have all heard about self-cultivation, and we have all worked toward that. It is not that we haven’t. We all do. Because we are human beings, we practice the human method. We try to be a good son, a good parent, and a good citizen. We try to do our job well. We serve the country and show filial obedience to our parents. We help others and refugees who are weak and in need. These are all ways of self-cultivation. However, there are more beneficial methods of a higher level, such as spiritual practice, the Quan Yin Method. They increase our understanding of how wise and capable we can become, how we can contribute to society, and how we can make our Earth better. If we don’t feel like going to God’s land, we need more talents to stay here so that we can serve the public and make the world more glorious and comfortable for future generations.

Our present world is not uncomfortable, but it is not comfortable enough. Some places suffer severe shortages, while others are too extravagant. We cannot depend entirely on science or money. For example, we all know how strong and powerful nations have collapsed despite their flourishing economy and advanced technology because they depended solely on them. We have seen that happen. So unless we dig out the eternal wisdom deep within us, no matter how blessed or civilized our country is, we do not know how long it can last. This is not very secure. Many big and powerful countries have fallen under economic breakdowns because we have not realized our greatest wisdom and capabilities. So I would like to contribute to you this method, which can bring back your great ability and wisdom so you can do anything with it. You can use it to dash to the Eternal Blissful World, the Buddha’s land, Heaven, or the Kingdom of God. You can also visit other planets to do research. If you want to stay here to serve humankind, it is fine too. This is my way of introducing the Quan Yin Method. Of course, whatever the method we want to learn, there are requirements to fulfill. Here, our emphasis is on being a vegetarian to avoid negative reactions. Being a vegetarian is also good for your body, health, and mental state. (Master points to Her wisdom eye.) I want to allow you some time to ask questions. When you do, I will explain more.

Selected Questions and Answers

Q: Is there a way to prove what you said about alien planets as not being an illusion?

M: I don’t need to prove it because I have explained it already. For example, we have enough proof already if we want to know whether there are other worlds. Some UFOs and aliens from other worlds have visited our world. Newspapers have carried reports on these things. There are movies and TV programs about them. There are also pictures of them. You read more newspapers than I do, so why do you ask me? You have to read only a little to know that other worlds do exist. Of course, if you want to know everything about those worlds, you have to go there yourself. For example, you have never been to London, but you want me to bring London over here to you. How can I do it? You have to go there yourself. For example, you have never been to the United States. But I have, so I tell you about it, and that there is a place called the USA, but you want me to prove it. How can I do it? Even it is hard to prove that the USA exists, not to mention other planets. However, we can prove it, because we have seen UFOs from other worlds, right?

Q: How do the beings in a more spiritually advanced planet survive without food? They have nothing to eat and things don’t grow there. How do they live on this kind of planet?

M: This kind of planet has its own way. Its land isn’t fertile and is poisonous because of earlier wars with other planets, when the rich land was destroyed and turned poisonous. But beings can live underground. They do not live above the ground. So sometimes we send rockets to some planets and we find no one living there. It is because the beings have hidden themselves. They use a scientific method to plant things. They also recycle. With recycling, they can use the same thing over and over again. Water can be used repeatedly. Air can be used and purified again and again. Their machinery is more advanced than ours, but they are less fortunate than we are. Some planets are drier and their climates are bad, so their lives are harsher. But their machinery is more advanced. In some aspects, they’re much more advanced than we are.