Buddhist cultivators, do you know whether the master you follow or have taken refuge in is a common person or a holy person? Does this master belong to eminent monks and great virtuous ones or is this master a person who is an ordinary person faking a holy one and who has evil views? You have to observe them and think with your mind. This is because a life of being a human is rare. It is difficult to meet Buddha-dharma but now you already have the opportunity. Since you have already met Buddha-dharma in the current lifetime, be sure not to get on a wrong path. If we mistakenly follow a master with evil views, we will descend into one of the three lower realms, experience all kinds of suffering, miserably meet evil retributions, and never have a chance to have good fortune and happiness.
You asked about how many types of evil masters there are. This cannot be answered clearly with one sentence because there are very many kinds and categories of evils. We now inform you with a preliminary classification of two kinds. One kind includes those who are inherently evil by nature and who have sneaked into Buddhism to erroneously distort and confuse Buddha-dharma and cruelly harm living beings. The other kind consists of people who are reincarnations of true holy ones. However, because they have not attained a non-receding Bodhisattva level (bhumi), they accidentally entered into evil or deviated views and thus allowed evil devils to get into their bodies. In the latter situation, cultivators often are unable to see that their master has changed for worse and has stepped onto an evil path. For example, some person who is a master even put his or her photo in a parallel arrangement with the visage(s) of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III and/or Sakyamuni Buddha for his or her disciples to worship and present offerings to, without knowing that doing so is a sinful and evil act of devils and demons! Without clearly understanding the rules and disciplines, this type of phenomena is difficult for cultivators to detect and become aware of.
H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III said that His visage is “plain simple and ordinary and can be presented or placed anywhere. It can be put in a Buddha hall, on any common or ordinary table, in a kitchen or bedroom, or on the floor, without a difference. As long as you abstain from everything that is evil, do all things that are good, and cultivate and practice in accord with the teaching, you are doing well.”
However, cultivators must clearly understand that this is because H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III put Himself in an equal position to common people for benefiting living beings. The true nature of the matter is the opposite. Using the dharma of Vajra Fa Man Ze Jue (a dharma in Tibetan Esoteric Buddhism for determining the result sought through selection), our United International World Buddhism Association Headquarters (UIWBAH) determined by nature that H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III is the genuine presence of an ancient Buddha. How can an ancient Buddha be insulted? Of course, to people who do not learn Buddha-dharma, there is no sin regardless of where the visage is placed. However, a Buddhist disciple, especially one who is already a master, must know that the Buddha’s visage must be placed on a high rostrum for worshipping and paying homage to. On the other hand, a master’s picture can only be placed under the Buddha’s feet for disciples to pay respect to. Otherwise, this master is definitely an extremely evil demon in human form with great sin.
Moreover, to broadly benefit living beings, a master should gift the visage of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III to others. Doing so has very great merit because a root of goodness may be planted in the recipient to enable this person to grow good fortune and wisdom and to bring good fortune and happiness to him or her! As to the recipient, if not a Buddhist or not knowing the teaching of Buddhism, how to treat the Buddha’s visage would depend on this person’s own karmic condition and will not involve any sin due to being an amateur. Generally speaking, giving a Buddha’s visage to other people definitely has benefits and is free of any harm.
It must be clearly known that no great rinpoche, dharma master, venerable one, or dharma king, no matter how amazing this person is, has the qualification of being placed at a parallel level with the Buddha’s visage to be worshipped. Only a Bodhisattva at the level of universal or wonderful enlightenment with the realization at the level of Golden Button Grade 5 can be worshipped in parallel with a Buddha’s picture or statue. Examples are Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva (Guan Shi Yin Bodhisattva), Mahasthamaprapta Bodhisattva (Great Strength Bodhisattva), and Maitreya Bodhisattva. However, the top of the head of a Bodhisattva at the level of universal or wonderful enlightenment must be lower than the shoulder height of the visage of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III or any Buddha.
Wang Zha Shang Zun said, “You asked about whether my picture can be worshipped at a parallel level with the visage of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III. I must seriously tell you: Even after diligently cultivating for 10,000 years, I still will not have the qualification to be parallel with the visage of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III. As to your master, who is not an extremely great holy virtuous one at the level of Golden Button Grade 4 or Golden Button Grade 5, he or she absolutely has no qualification to be worshipped in parallel with H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III. Needless to say, a master at the level of Golden Button Grade 3 or lower can only let your disciples to set your own visage below the Buddha’s feet for worshipping. Anyone who commits a violation in this is definitely an extremely vicious demonic person. How can this person be different from birds and beasts? What is the difference between this person and demons? Such a person absolutely is not an upright holy one of Buddhism!!! Cultivators cannot follow and learn from such a person!!!”
United International World Buddhism Association Headquarters
(Seal Stamped on every page)
March 29, 2016