Buddhas rest under trees

About twenty minutes drive from the city lays a village surrounded by hills. In this rustic village there is a row of single storey bungalows where two of them have been converted to temples. One is dedicated to the ‘thousand hands’ Kwan Yin and the other one, formerly a haunted house as I was told by the master, has a three layered altar laid full of Buddha statues of various sizes. The bungalows have flights of steps leading down to the front door as both face a slope. The Kwan Yin temple is usually quiet while there is always a bustle of activity at the other temple during night time except for weekends. The Buddhist temple is entirely staffed by volunteers including the master who work during the day and rest on Sundays. The temple accepts no donations from those who come seeking for a cure or a blessing. Although not a necessity, visitors can place flowers and fruits at the altar for Buddha and praying materials are accepted. (The temple only accepts donations during Buddha’s birthday and the donations are then passed on to the less fortunate.)

Through word of mouth many come to seek cures for their illnesses. Those who have affinity with Buddha will be given a special herbal remedy for illnesses which modern medicine cannot cure, and do recover quickly usually to the astonishment of their own specialist doctors. These cures are not the specialty of this temple. For its real specialty is healing those who are possessed, charmed by black magic or injured by evil spirits. (Please skip this blog entry if for some reasons the reader is upset or feels uncomfortable by what has been written so far.)

I have been visiting this Buddhist temple for more than a decade taking relatives and friends there to seek cures for their ailments or for spiritual healing. Probably by now some readers may want to know who actually prescribes the remedies or heal the sick. Who else in the Buddhist temple but the Holy Ones can prescribe such herbal remedies and/or heal people harmed by evil spirits or dark forces. Over the years, I have witnessed many healings by the Buddhas and some battles between these Holy Ones and unseen dark forces. At the height of these battles I have seen yellow rays emitting from the mediums’ (the master and her disciples) finger tips. (The master and her disciples have only limited knowledge of inner alchemy.) But that is not what this entry is about, actually I would like to share a little secret with the initiated and believers, something I had overheard a senior disciple teaching her junior, who was in sitting meditation at the time. This training is to groom disciples to act as mediums at a later date. None of the mediums are allowed to do healing for monetary gains or gifts whether in the temple or elsewhere, otherwise they eventually lose the spiritual power to connect to the Holy Ones. (Mediums in Taoist temples for deities or those who hold planchettes for immortals could do well to take note that corruption impairs the spirit.)

Without revealing too much, the overheard conversation between the two disciples was that both can visualize and describe which Holy Ones were resting under which tree!

As to whether the Holy Ones were in the Valley of the Gods, your guess will be as good as mine!

Joking aside, this Buddhist temple will be one of two places, the other a Quanzhen temple, where my wife will take my body to seek help in the event the capricious spirit does not return by a certain day. Such pre-arrangements for any eventuality may be necessary for fellow travelers progressing to that inner alchemy level. It is wise to plan ahead for the far journey.