The Sutra-lecturing Trip to the Asuras

With such great eagerness we look forward to the treasure being transmitted here, both when awake and in our dream. The Self-nature shall manifest as it is. Greed can help with the cultivation. Who knows when we can return to the Proper Path once deviated from it? If we can let it go, the sutra lecture shall be presented to us right today.
I was sitting in meditation when all of a sudden I felt impatient as if something was grating my nerve. I set my mind at peace, and realized it was the Asuras who were getting anxious waiting for the sutra lecture. My soul therefore travelled again. In a flash of thought, I arrived at Mount. Asura. There were both heaven and earth in the Asura Realm.
I took a look and saw the tall and mighty Asura King standing there waiting for me. He fell down and made obeisance to me at the sight of me, and said, “We have been waiting for master for long. This is a precious opportunity that we hardly encounter once in ten thousand eons.”
I found the Asuras were not that frightening. They were of different levels, with some flying in the air and beautifully dressed, and others, different in size and shape, kneeling down on the ground, incalculable in number. I thought of what Master had told me, and decided to take a close look at how they looked. Exactly as Master had said, the male Asuras were ugly, but mostly strong and mighty, while the female stunningly gorgeous. I knew well that they were very anxious for the sutra lecture, and said, “At the behest of Master, I have come to lecture the Sutra of Longevity for you. You please do not get too excited. Pacify your mind. In this case, you shall benefit fully from the power of the Sutra.”
I went on to read the following passage from the Sutra for them: “Now I will teach you also The Six Paramitas, which are also practised by the Bodhisattvas. What are the Six Paramitas? The first Paramita is to give expansively. The second Paramita is to uphold the precepts firmly. The third Paramita is to be patient always. The fourth Paramita is to be diligent constantly. The fifth Paramita is to cultivate concentration diligently. The sixth Paramita is to clearly penetrate wisdom. When a man is able to uphold the six paramitas fully and completely, he will arrive at the other shore. He should never even neglect any one of the Paramitas.There is also a verse on the accomplishment of Buddhahood by The Buddhas in the past: “All activities are impermanent. They are the dharma of birth and death. When there is no more birth and death, a man will enjoy the bliss of quietude and extinction. You should uphold and practise this dharma joyfully.”


The Asuras showed utmost sincerity as they attended the sutra lecture. They kept making offerings to me with the best of their treasures. Without hesitation, I transferred them to Master. Myriad flowers fell from the air. The Asuras in the heaven were even more sincere. They kept flying around me.

I knew how sincere they were, and transferred the sincerity to Master, too. In fact, I no longer need to pay attention to myself. I had long been integrated with Heaven, Earth, and everything in the universe. I could read the mind of them wherever they were.

As I was about to depart, the Asura King knelt down and bowed to me, saying, “The brotherhood between us is unsurpassed. We listen as our tears dropped like rain, as we are overwhelmed with emotions. It is because of the kindness and compassion of the Buddha that we get the chance to listen to the Sutra lecture. His blesses all the beings with his grace, and the responses are evoked as long as we show sincerity. Master, you make a request, and we shall do it for you even we have to grind our body and bone into powder to achieve it to perfection. I only hope that Master you will be thinking of us no matter how time flies. Shedding tears we bid you farewell. Before you take your departure, please always remember that we shall be thinking of you all the time and do not forget about us.” The air was filled with Asuras as I was about to leave. How they wished I could stay for longer. I certainly knew their mind except time did not allow for it. By sending the treasure of the Sutra to them, I win their sincerity that is unsurpassed. It is a pity that we humans never match them in sincerity. It is a moment so toughing that it shakes heaven and earth. I really hate to leave them.

In less than a second, I was back. It took a long time before I got pacified from feeling overwhelmed by their sincerity.
Then, I heard Master’s voice speaking, “Excellent Lingmei! Master knows clearly what a meritorious deed you have done. You have tried your best. Free your mind from attachment to it. Soon there will be a new mission for you. Take it as a flower-viewing experience. The heavens were all revealed.” I said, “Master, I know.”
The voice then spoke to me again, “The beings are in such huge suffering and yet they fail to realize they should cultivate to cross it over while staying attached to spiritual power. Nor have they realized that their own mind is the foundation of the Buddha Dharma. Amitabha-Buddha! Talk about it later.Your kindness binds us from heaven and earth together. We living beings are benefited and blissful.”

I looked into myself after hearing Master’s comment. It is all because of Master’s warrant that I am able to travel around. Curiosity, however, does kill people, sometimes. If our mind is not well controlled, we may go deviant. Me is not me, and you are not you. We cultivate to get our mind bright and enlightened, to bring out our Buddha nature, and our true-self.
Having travelled to so many places, I realize that the humans are the dullest. They just do not realize that the treasure is right in their mind.

By then, I heard a voice speaking to me, “Time goes by so fast and you should cherish it. Almost within the twinkling of an eye, one’s life is over. Your mind is the effective medicine and it is a cure-all. Find the means that suits you the best. By doing so, you not only shall cross yourself over, but will ferry over others. Your minds are not distant from each other but connected. Such devotion will prove to be worth it when the Buddha Dharma illumines all.”
Whatever we are doing, it is our mind that matters. As Master often says, You will get the result as much as you want it. The Sutra of Longevity grants your wishes better than anything else. The Sutra is the very granting-your-wish fruit, the cure-all medicine. In the final analysis, we have to comprehend it with our mind.

Amitabha-Buddha!