Purple Lotus Publisher > Journal > Volumn NO. 16

The Testimonial of a Main Sponsor of the Emperor Liang Repentance Liturgy

By Lo Ah Thye (Karen Lim)

Translated by Janny Chow

My husband, EY Lin, and I are Malaysian Chinese. Although my mother and younger sister have been students of Grand Master Sheng-yen Lu for many years, my husband and I knew practically nothing of Grand Master or the True Buddha School until recently. In June 2002, my husband became severely ill. After admitting him into the hospital for tests, he was diagnosed with terminal colon cancer, and the doctors immediately decided that he should undergo surgery.

The night before his surgery in Singapore, my husband dreamt of Grand Master Lu appearing inside his colon. In his dream, Grand Master helped clean his colon and informed him that his condition was the result of someone exacting karmic retribution from him. My husband spoke to Grand Master and vowed to do three good deeds: to donate for temple construction, to take up the renunciation vow at the appropriate time, and to print Buddhist books and sutras. Afterwards, when the two of us went back to Malaysia, we took refuge in Grand Master in July 2002.

Since the cancer was in its terminal stage, my husband was in constant pain even after surgery. At the time, my sister brought me some of Grand Master's books as well as several issues of the Purple Lotus Journal. In one issue of the Purple Lotus Journal, I read about Master Samantha and how Grand Master had saved her life. The article recounted the many ways in which Master Samantha has sacrificed her own life for the sake of others. I was very touched and had a strong feeling that she could help us. At that time, however, I had already asked a local reverend for help and was afraid that it would be inappropriate if I then turned to Master Samantha for help. I decided to pray to Kuan Yin Bodhisattva for guidance. Not long after, in a dream, I saw Master Samantha inside a temple and my husband and I sitting on the floor doing practice. Although I did not recognize the temple, I intuited that it was the Purple Lotus Temple. Upon awakening the following morning, I immediately faxed a letter to Master Samantha asking for her help. This was in October 2002.

Sometime after taking refuge, my husband had a series of dreams. In one dream, he saw himself and a Jewish man inside a dim room. When the Jewish man told my husband that he wanted his life, my husband asked him, "I did not do anything wrong to you, and I have done many good deeds this life. Why are you hurting me?" The Jewish man ignored him and turned away.

I did not hear from Master Samantha right away, because she was usually very busy. When I finally got in touch with Master Samantha, she gave my husband homework to do. My husband was to read the High King Sutra 1000 times in 7 days. Because my husband did not read Chinese, he read the English version of the High King Sutra and managed to finish in 6 days despite his constant pain and suffering. I was asked to chant the Rebirth Mantra 1,080 times daily for three days and to dedicate the merits to his attached spirits. After three days, I continued chanting for an additional seven days for a total of 10 days.

My husband continued to have more dreams until finally he understood the karmic causes behind his cancer. In his previous life, he had been an assistant to the Nazi leader Hitler during WWII. A good friend of his from that lifetime was one of the war criminals who had lived into his nineties and passed away only in the late 1980's. In one dream, my husband found himself inside a courtroom chatting in German with this friend of his who was wheelchair bound. My husband also learned from Master Samantha that he had taken part in the extermination of two million Jewish people in that lifetime. That was why he had come down with cancer although he had been a good person this lifetime. According to Master Samantha, the sutras my husband chanted had helped to remove some of his obscurations and increase his wisdom. That was why he did not doubt any of his dreams. In fact during his dreams, he asked his attached spirits to forgive him, let go of their karmic grievances, and to travel together to the Pure Land.

In early December, my husband's condition deteriorated and there was the possibility that he might die any day. I wished very much that he could at least live through December 9th which was my birthday and the 11th which was our nineteenth wedding anniversary. I decided to try asking Master Samantha to conduct a fire puja to extend his life. While waiting for an answer from Master (who also had to seek guidance and permission from the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas), my husband had several more dreams.

In these dreams, he very clearly saw that he would get a (wisdom) life extension. He also dreamt of many of his attached spirits, especially the women and children, lining up by a river to board white lotuses. It was nighttime and the moon was very bright. These spirits all sat happily upon the white lotuses which carried them to a large boat. The Jewish representative (who had appeared to him in the dim room in his first dream) and about seven or eight of his assistants and my husband were standing upon a large boulder overlooking the departure of the women and children. The women and children waved happily to them and also to those who were still waiting in line to board the white lotuses. At this time, my husband learned that the Jewish man's name was Hamad. Hamad's assistants were trying to convince him to let go of his hatred and to take advantage of the wonderful opportunity to go to the Pure Land. Later, my husband saw the assistants also boarding the white lotuses and leaving. But he was not sure if Hamad had left or not.

In his dreams, Kuan Yin Bodhisattva reminded my husband that his vows were to be taken very seriously and carried out in the future. He also saw the future Purple Lotus Temple and his return to the Purple Lotus School in ten years. The bodhisattva gave him a yellow robe, and he promised Kuan Yin that he would carry out all the promises he had made.

Master Samantha later told us about the Emperor Liang Repentance Liturgy to be held at the Purple Lotus School in December 2002. My husband immediately signed up to be the main sponsor for this particular service. As it turned out, my husband lived through my birthday as well as our wedding anniversary. On January 7, 2003, he died peacefully in his sleep in the hospital. Although my husband had taken refuge for six months, he had not done any cultivation other than completing Master Samantha's homework instructions and registering as the main sponsor for the Emperor Liang Repentance Liturgy. Surprisingly, we were able to find sariras amidst his cremated remains. All these signs serve as testimony to the extraordinary remarkableness of Living Buddha Lian-sheng and his True Buddha Tantric Dharma.

About ten days after my husband's death, Master Samantha conducted a bardo deliverance fire puja on his behalf. His spirit communicated to Master that because of our different frequencies, it was very hard for him to enter my dreams. I needed to chant the Rebirth Mantra at least 108 times daily for forty-nine days to facilitate the process. When I finished the chanting, he indeed entered into my dreams. He told me to maintain strong faith in Grand Master and to ignore the rumors that I had heard.

Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to thank Grand Master, the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, Master Samantha, and all the reverends and students who helped us during our time of crises. My husband told me that he would have fallen into the three lower realms had it not been for everyone's help. From my husband's story, I hope to remind people of the transience of life. He had worked very hard for his wife and sons, yet all these material pursuits could not help him at the end of his life. My hope now is for all people to take advantage of their time, while they are still young and while they still can, to start cultivating the True Buddha Tantric Dharma.