Now, number fourteen: “Bathe in the center of a sound, the continuous sound,” such as waterfall or maybe seashore. “Or if you cannot...” because sometimes in the public, then you cannot do the Quan Yin (inner Heavenly Sound meditation). Then if you are at the seaside, perhaps you bathe yourself in the sound of the Universe, of the nature. Like when you are next to the Niagara Falls, then you concentrate on the sound, until you merge within the essence behind the waterfall, behind nature. There is the force behind all trees, and waters, and rivers, and rocks, and mountains, then you concentrate behind that. By hearing the sound of the waterfall and concentrating on the force behind that, you will merge within the Cosmos again. Or, if not, if you can, then do the Quan Yin (inner Heavenly Sound meditation). It says so. Well, He described it in detail, but I won’t say it here. You know already, so I don’t have to tell you how to do it. “Or do the Quan Yin (Sound) and hear the Sound of all sounds.” You know now what that is. Well, I can show it to you what He says, but don’t let the other people know. Alright, do the Quan Yin and hear the (inner Heavenly) Sound of all sounds. Now it should be very clear to you as the water of the Nectar River. Is that not? Yeah!
Now, number fifteen: “Intone a sound,” like the Five (Holy) Names, “and let it be very slow, slow, repeating slowly, and enter the soundlessness and become your Self.” Sometimes, you remember, you say you can’t concentrate, and you are disturbed, and this and that and other, so I would advise you to repeat the Five Holy Names for some time, maybe 15 minutes, maybe half an hour, maybe an hour, loudly, while no one else is around you. So you won’t disturb people and also you don’t leak out your secret. Don’t let people know that you are, at the moment, in difficulty of concentrating while they are in the Fifth Samadhi. If you sit on the bus and intone these Five (Holy) Names and try to concentrate with your eyebrows knit together, do you think the people will not put you somewhere? You know where, right? Not talking about you’re disturbing the whole bus, and maybe drive the driver crazy. Therefore, these things we have to do alone, because it’s our private business. When we have difficulty in concentration, it’s our private problem. We don’t disturb other people’s ears, and other “Fifth-Level or Sixth-Level Masters” around us, like those. I’m not sure whom, but like those, for example. Alright... “but then you enter the soundless state and become your Self.”
Number sixteen… Oh, my God, only sixteen, from one hundred and twelve, my goodness! I didn’t know He talked so much. I didn’t know the old-time God spoke so much, what we call “big-mouth” in modern time. I never talk so much. I teach you only one thousand and ten, and He teaches you so much. Originally, I intended not to speak at this retreat, because I just don’t know what to say anymore. I thought whatever I have to say, I said it already, and so you have to practice. There’s no need to listen all the time, but to bring what you have heard into practice. That’s more useful to you. But I feel pressure, like everybody sits there in silence and keeps repeating, “Master, say something.” “Master, speak up!” “Master, it’s time; lecture time or not?” Oh, and I feel such tremendous pressure, so I gave up. I surrender to your will. I say, OK, then I will say something, and that’s how it ends up with me talking like this. It’s more difficult to remain silent than to speak to you. So I thought, OK, never mind, give them something, and then they will all be quiet.
Because we are all used to listening, hearing, and so we cannot accept the silence. Very difficult. Maybe after three years, you get used to it. But I don’t know what you do in the meanwhile, and I don’t know what I do meanwhile. We both will probably get on each other’s nerves, having so much pressure. Like the four monks who vowed to have a silent retreat for seven days. But then when they sat together, and then suddenly there was a monk who spoke up, saying, “You know, in this retreat, you should remember, none of us can speak anything!” And then the second one said, “Why are you speaking now?” And the third one said, “My God, you both broke the precept.” And the fourth one said, “I never said anything. I’m the only one who hasn’t spoken at all!” Alright, I’m also the only one who never spoke here.
OK. Suppose it’s difficult for you to concentrate, again, you may choose any letter and try to follow through with the beginning and the gradual refinement of the sound, of that letter, and then be awake. Perhaps when you’re sleeping and then try to awaken yourself; it’s very difficult. So try to do something new, like inventing a letter, an ‘A’ or an ‘Om’ or something, and try to follow through in the beginning as... only in your mind, don’t disturb neighbors; if you’re alone, you can. Then you follow through with first very crude sound of the letter by spelling it out in your mind or loudly, and later finally refine it until silence. At that time you will be awake, perhaps, or awakened. Or at least awake, from your “samadhi.”
Number seventeen: “While listening to any string instruments, try to hear their composite central sound and thus become omnipresent,” or at least be one with the omnipresence, or at least remember the omnipresence. Because when we go to a concert or go to the theater, perhaps it’s difficult to concentrate on the (inner Heavenly) Light and then you won’t see anything, so you have to listen to the music. But then try, while listening to the music, try to remember the central note, the note-less note of all the music, and then at that time, perhaps you will enter the omnipresence as well. So while you’re watching the theater going on, or while listening to the music, you are within yourself, and not lost in the merriment of the ephemeral nature of the world. Capiche? (Yes.) I hope I make it clear.
Oh, my God, He talks a lot. We’re still at eighteen only. Oh, I dare not read any further. I dare not turn the pages. Oh, my goodness. See that? Or we can make it tomorrow night again? Yeah, sure, sure. Oh, it’s nearly nine o’clock. Thank God, thank God that somebody invented the clock. I spoke since half past seven, huh? (Yes.) It’s one and a half hour already. For my small size, that’s a lot.
Now, number eighteen: You can concentrate or divert your mind from all these topsy-turvy thoughts by “intoning a sound audibly and then less and less as your feeling deepens into this silent harmony.” First, you intone audibly, and then less audibly until you enter the silence, and become harmonized with the Universe. That’s just how you concentrate sometimes. We can concentrate on our Five Holy Names in this way. No need to search elsewhere. Since it is already very difficult for you to remember the Five (Holy) Names. I think you should not have to include another name or another letter. It’ll make more confusion. So, if you remember, then do that; if you remember. If you cannot, of course, then grab anything that your mind just thinks at that moment, stop him. Stop him right there and just do our business, and let him forget where he wants to wander and where he wants to go to.
The mind always wants to go somewhere and do something, inside, so we stop him right where we remember, and turn around, concentrate. Probably at that moment, he was thinking of (vegan) ice cream. So if you continue to follow him, he will bring you to the (vegan) ice cream shop next, and then will empty your pocket and your time into that (vegan) ice cream cone, again. So, the moment he thinks of (vegan) ice cream, if you are meditating or at home and if you don’t want to go out in the cold weather to fetch (vegan) ice cream, if you don’t want to waste your time on that, or if you say, “Tomorrow I go to town, and by the way, I will feed you (vegan) ice cream.” So now you turn the (vegan) ice cream letter into screaming loudly, and then follow the letter until it’s less and less loud, until you enter your harmony again. And that’s how we turn around and have victory over the wandering mind.
Photo Caption: “GOD Makes Nature All Beautiful”
