All Good Knowing Ones:

Most of us are Chinese, and so we should know the great events that have occurred and the influential figures who have lived during the last hundred years in China. In my opinion, although we are Buddhist, we cannot ignore national affairs. Nor can we ignore individual family affairs, nor our own physical health. That's why, in Los Angeles and other places, I have already discussed what I will tell you today. Now that I have come back to Taiwan I also want to give a simple description and explanation of the events that have happened during the past hundred years in China.
   
We who study Buddhism cannot be without a country, without a family, nor without our own physical body. Our physical bodies are the capital we invest in our study of Buddhism. The family is the source of our life. Our country is important, because whether we are left-home or laypeople, we are all under the protection of our country and government. Therefore we should be loyal to our country and filial to our families, and toward all other people we should maintain good faith. "Faith is the source of the Way and the mother of merit and virtue. It nurtures all good roots." It is said, "A man will not be able to establish himself without faith." Therefore, we must have faith. If at home we are not filial to our family members, then we turn our back on our moral obligations. Therefore we must fulfill our filial duty. It's said, "A man and a woman living together is the most basic of human relationships. The way of the superior person begins with a man and his wife."
   
It's also said, "The superior person applies effort at the foundation. After the foundation is established, the Way will come forth. Filial piety and fraternal respect must be the foundation!" In order for the country and the government to protect us, there must be a certain number of people to provide national defense. In establishing our identity, in dealing with the world, and in interactions with people we must be trusthworthy. In our relationships with everyone we must be trustworthy. We cannot be without trustworthiness! Confucius said, "If a person is not trustworthy, one knows not what he is good for." If a person does not value trustworthiness and righteousness, then it's not known of what good he can be. Therefore, trustworthiness is very important to us. Toward the country we must be loyal, toward the family we must be filial, toward ourselves we must pay attention to our health. In that way we will not become a burden to the country.
   
I have already spoken a few times on the topic of the great events that have occurred and the influential figures who have lived during the last hundred years in China. There have been many influential figures during the past hundred years in China. Now we are selecting just a few for discussion.
   
Who spoke this prophetic poem? It was spoken in the thirtieth year of the Guangxu reign of the Qing dynasty. The elder Upasaka Gao Jinghan, the keeper of the Qingxu Tower in Bi Yun Monastery on West Mountain outside of Beijing, was concerned about the affairs of the country, and so he called upon the spirit of the Great Master Bu Xu of the Sui dynasty to speak through a medium. During the Sui dynasty, at the time of Great Master Bu Xu, turmoil prevailed as bands of robbers roamed about and people sought a harbor of refuge from the oppressive government. Great Master Bu Xu had originally been a great general. He had killed many men, but later he felt that this was wrong. He then went into hiding and fled to Tiantai Mountain to cultivate. He composed a poem, which begins as follows:

In the past because of upheavals in the Sui dynasty,
I went to seek Bodhi
And unintentionally came to the western side of Tiantai's Stone Drum.
In the morning I drank the mists to quench my thirst;
For the evening meal, jade dew stove off my hunger.
Facing the wall for nine years, I approached the great Way.
In a finger snap ten dynasties have passed,
changing the courtly rituals each time.
You ask me to open up the road, but the road misleads me.
It is difficult to divulge the secrets of heaven,
so I'll reveal the secrets from my Chan.

In the past because of upheavals in the Sui dynasty, I went to seek Bodhi. Great Master Bu Xu was a general who lived in the Sui dynasty, but because he felt there was no hope of restoring order to the country, he resolved to cultivate. Since he didn't have any specific goal in mind, he wandered about seeking the great Way of Bodhi, that is, searching for a place to cultivate. And during his search, he unintentionally came to the western side of Tiantai's Stone Drum. Without realizing it, he walked to the western side of a place called "Stone Drum" on Tiantai Mountain. Discovering a cave, he stayed there to cultivate.
   
In the morning I drank the mists to quench my thirst. Cultivating in the mountains, he lived an ascetic lifestyle. In the morning when he rose, he would drink a little bit of the mist in the air, the rosy mist in the sky when the sun is about to come out at dawn. This refers to the glorious sight of a myriad rosy rays of light in the sky, of auspicious energy filling the air. It could also be called the essence of the sun and moon. As he cultivated in that place, he didn't mind being a little hungry at times. He only drank a little, just enough to quench his thirst. For the evening meal, jade dew stove off my hunger. In the evening he would imbibe dew drops to stave off his hunger. It wasn't very filling, but it was enough to sustain his life. That's what he said.

Facing the wall for nine years, I approached the great Way. He said he sat in the mountains facing the stone wall for nine years, nurturing the "spiritual embryo" and cultivating until he understood his true mind and saw his own nature. "I approached the great Way" means he was on the verge of attaining the great Way. In a finger snap ten dynasties have passed, changing the courtly rituals each time. These lines are all matched. The previous line said, "Facing the wall for nine years, I approached the great Way." In Chinese, the word "finger" in this line is matched with "face" in the previous line. In a finger snap, that brief an interval, or so it seemed, ten dynasties have come and gone. The country's government has changed hands ten times. The ten dynasties are probably referring to the Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties, which make five dynasties. If we add the Five Dynasties that come right after the Tang dynasty, that makes ten dynasties altogether. "Changing the courtly rituals each time." Each dynasty had its unique courtly deportment. Each time a new dynasty began, a new set of ceremonial rites and rules would be used.
   
You ask me to open up the road, but the road misleads me. All of you want me to show you a path. You want me to speak about the events of the future and say what the world situation will be like. It's because I myself didn't understand that I went to cultivate. "But the road misleads me." It's not for certain that I know.
   
It is difficult to divulge the secrets of heaven, so I'll reveal the secrets from my Chan. You ask about the secrets of heaven, but it will not be permissible to divulge them. It's an offense to reveal the secret workings of the universe. Since the secrets of heaven can't be divulged, I'll reveal the secrets of Chan instead. I'll speak a prophecy. By the secrets of my Chan, I mean a prophecy. I'll give you a hint about what is to come. This prophecy discusses the influential figures in China, and much of it has already come true, but when he spoke it no one knew whom he was speaking of, because he veiled his language and used riddles. You yourself have to guess.
   
To whom is the first verse referring? Xuan Tong, the last emperor of the late Qing dynasty. How does his story go?

Clouds heavy and dark,
Vapors dense and gloomy.
The dragon has gone back to the earth,
  and mud is modeled into a monkey.
A three-year-old child enjoys only three years of blessings.
Under the moon there is no ruler, and the waters dry up.
In a single day, the vast expanse of mists and ripples is taken over.

Clouds heavy and dark, / Vapors dense and gloomy. The clouds were extremely dark, and there was a fog that made everything look somber. The dark clouds and dismal fog represent the lack of truth and reason. A yin person was in control of the government. The yin person, which is represented by the darkness, refers to the Empress Dowager Cixi. When the Empress Dowager was administering the state affairs from behind a hanging curtain, the sun and moon were both dimmed. It was as if there were no sunshine. The clouds were dark, the atmosphere gloomy. Why? Because the dragon has gone back to the earth, and mud is modeled into a monkey. With the death of Emperor Guang Xu, the dragon burrowed into the earth. Since the dragon returned to the earth, it turned into mud. A live dragon turned into mud, and there was no longer any dragon. There was no Emperor, no Son of Heaven, for the dragon had become mud. The mud was used to fashion a toy monkey. They were playing with the monkey. Who was the monkey? It was the last emperor of the Qing dynasty, Xuan Tong. A three-year-old child enjoys only three years of blessings. They made him the emperor, but he was just like a puppet. The child ascended the throne and became the emperor when he was only three years old. To think that a three-year-old child could be emperor--wouldn't you say they were putting on a play? Isn't it a joke? The day that Xuan Tong assumed the throne, he sat on the lap of the Prince-Regent. But the child didn't understand anything and just sat on the throne crying. At the age of three, he probably didn't think being the emperor was all that interesting. He didn't have any toys to play with. There weren't any toy guns that he could go "bang, bang, bang" with. That's why he cried. The Prince-Regent said, "Don't cry. It will all be over in a little while." You could say that these were prophetic words. Think about it. "It will all be over in a little while" meant it would be finished in a brief time. This indicated that Xuan Tong would not be emperor for