Supreme Master Ching Hai -- Cult, Orthodox?
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Still remember crescent posted a website on Master Ching Hai last year? Check A website... Gaining enlightenment... Opinions needed...
Supreme Master Ching Hai's cult has become one of the fastest growing cults in the world with millions of followers.
This article will not only talk about her cult personality, but also the question of... is she Enlightened, or a living Buddha she claimed to be? (that will be the second post)
But first a brief intro about her and how I got to know more about her.
My brief impression running through the website is that that Master is definitely a charismatic cult leader. And then my friend told me, yeah, I like the thing about Master Ching Hai that is in one glance you'll be able to see she's a cult master
She is very fond of appearing in fanciful styles:
And her appearance changes all the time too, like Michael Jackson
1993:
1994:
1996:
1999:
2000:
2001:
2006:
So it was pretty easy to tell the kind of cult-like personality she has.
The reason for her changing appearance? "Through her lectures, Ching Hai explains that her way of dress is a statement to prove that one does not need to dress as a nun or monk to achieve enlightenment through her Quan Yin Method."
Next, I briefly read through some articles and realised a few things... Quan Yin method emphasizes a lot on Vegetarianism, 5 precepts, and practising a meditation method called 'Quan Yin Method' that requires a divine transmission from Supreme Master Ching Hai herself. I did not look more into that at that time.
This article shows her cult personality in detail: http://www.metroactive.com/papers/metro/03.28.96/suma-9613.html"No, no, it's not a religion," said one young Vietnamese girl. "It's more like, just finding out about you, who you are." Every follower answered the same question with almost the same words: "No, it's about finding yourself." Their religion, they proudly say, is Buddhist, Christian, Catholic or Hindu--it just so happens that they also worship the Supreme Master Suma Ching Hai.
Family relationships are affected (i.e the Master wants her student to meditate 5 hours a day), financial difficulties, are among those reported coming from this organisation.
In fact, they worship her so much that anything she touches becomes a prized possession. Ching Hai's new book features a picture of the Master about to engage in one of her favorite activities: scattering handfuls of candy to her disciples. The caption reads, "Master offers her love and blessing by sharing candies with the gathered initiates." Indeed, after a recent Ching Hai lecture, one follower offered me a handful of Jolly Ranchers and Fun-Size Hershey bars, saying, "Here is Master candy! We love the candy Master gives us. You know, it's different from other candy. We love going around to get it, it's like being little kids."Krysiak returned home to find he had locked himself out of his house. "I called a locksmith, a Vietnamese guy, and I told him all about it. He laughed. He said, 'In Vietnamese community, there are two causes for divorce: Bay 101, and Ching Hai.' "
Master Ching Hai's lineage is from Sikkhism, though she claims to represent all religions, especially Buddhism too (for example Kuan Yin is a Buddhist Bodhisattva) due to her Buddhist involvement in the past.Reality Check
More info to come...
Ching Hai's knack for self-promotion shines in her official biography, which reads more like a hagiography. In it, Ching Hai appears as a "rare and noble child" who taught herself philosophy at an early age and cried at the sight of slaughtered animals. The prophecies of clairvoyants back up Ching Hai's claims to gurudom: "She has come to this world, on the mission of Quan Yin, to save sentient beings from misery." After Ching Hai learned the Quan Yin meditation method from a mysterious Master in the Himalayas, according to the biography, she relocated to Taiwan, where a group of students guided by their prayers found her and coaxed the reluctant woman into becoming their Master. The rest of the biography is a paean to the Master's humility, humanitarian efforts and impressive output of saleable products.
Entertaining though this mishmash of religious mythology, Eastern folklore and public- relations razzle-dazzle may be, it's rather less interesting than the story of Ching Hai revealed in the thesis of UC-Berkeley graduate Eric Lai.
According to Lai's research, the Supreme Master was born Hue Dang Trinh on May 12, 1950, in a small village in Vietnam, in the same province which later saw the My Lai massacre. The daughter of a Vietnamese mother and an ethnic Chinese father, Trinh reportedly hung out with American soldiers as a teenager, and bore one a daughter. At 19, during the height of the Vietnam War, Trinh left home with a German doctor working for an international relief organization. Trinh's daughter later killed herself at 20. Trinh married the doctor, and the couple moved first to Britain and then to Germany.
There, in 1979, she met a Buddhist monk whom she followed for three years until she was denied entrance to his monastery on the basis of gender. Trinh then moved to India to study Buddhism. It was here that she became a prize pupil of Thakar Singh, who had just splintered off from a Buddhist order, Radhasoami, to form his own sect, Kirpal Light Satsang.
"Thakar Singh turned out to be the most scandalous guru in the history of Radhasoami," writes David Christopher Lane, who while a graduate student at UC- Berkeley met Singh in India in 1978 and has since traced the guru's checkered career. According to Lane's findings: "By the mid-1980s reports circulated throughout the world about how Thakar had embezzled money, indulged in sexual affairs with numerous women, and had engaged in violent interactions with disciples." Some of the accusations included tying women up and beating them regularly. But by the time Singh's crimes came to light, Ching Hai had already learned from him the "light and sound" meditation technique, and had left for Taiwan.
Lai's research revealed that in Taiwan, in 1983, Trinh studied with a Buddhist nun named Xing-jing. Unaware of her association with Singh, Xing-jing officially ordained Trinh in the order and gave her the religious name "Ching Hai," which translates from Mandarin as "pure ocean."
The next year, Ching Hai moved to a Buddhist temple in Queens, New York. She taught meditation, and meditated herself for up to four hours a day. One former colleague told Lai, "We were all impressed by her devotion and sincerity." But a year and a half later, Ching Hai began teaching the "light and sound" technique to her students, though few responded favorably. Returning to Taiwan in 1986, Ching Hai lured followers away from her former master, Xing-jing, and set up a makeshift temple in an apartment in the Taipei suburbs. Rumors about her prophetic abilities and unique meditation methods earned her a large following, and by 1987 posters of Ching Hai appeared all over Taipei. By the time the Taiwanese Buddhist community learned of Ching Hai's past connection to the disgraced Satsang cult, it was too late. The new Messiah had been born. -
I became interested in Master Ching Hai again, about a month ago, when another forum which I am in charge (the Friendster community, 'Buddhist frens', 'World Buddhist Network') had a friendster forummer who asked about Master Ching Hai. He/she said that someone from the Master Ching Hai organisation offered him to guide him in meditation. He was not sure whether to accept it.
Then, I decided to enter the website to read more about her teachings and practise. And then as I look into her teaching... I just can't help but realising that Supreme Master Ching Hai probably had certain transcendental experiences.
From her http://www.godsdirectcontact.org/eng/faq.txtQ: Master, Why is it seeing light and hearing sounds so important in
meditation?
M: Because that is our own real self. Light and sound is the
manifestation of our wisdom inside, which is invisible to our eyes and
ears. Hearing the sound doesn't mean you hear with the ears. Seeing the
light doesn't mean you see with eyes. It's just the inside awareness of
your own self, of your own glorious nature, that we are light; that we
are a beautiful melody and that we are not the body. And the more you
hear of this invisible, inaudible sound, the more you'll see this
invisible light or heaven, the wiser you'll become; the more loving
you'll become; the more satisfaction you'll gain; and the more
efficient you will be to serve the world.
It's not because the light and sound are important; it is because it is
ourselves. It's just like food, we don't eat because of the taste only;
it's because it will give nourishment that will later manifest as
strength and energy, so that we can work for the family; we can think;
we can read books; and we can do other things. That is the importance
of food. Similarly, the importance of the light and sound is that it
makes us wiser, more loving, more capable in all aspects. Alright?
Supreme Master Ching Hai answered on March 9, 1993 in SingaporeQuan Yin Method -- the meditation on Inner Light and Inner Sound.
The inner Light, the Light of God, is the same Light referred to in the word "enlightenment".
The inner Sound, is the Word referred in Bible:" In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was God. ..."
It is through the inner Light and Sound that we come to know God...For example, the Christian Bible states, In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (John 1:1) This Word is the inner Sound. It has also been called the Logos, Shabd, Tao, Soundstream, Naam, or the Celestial Music. Master Ching Hai says, It vibrates within all life and sustains the whole universe. This inner melody can heal all wounds, fulfill all desires, and quench all worldly thirst. It is all powerful and all Love. It is because we are made of this Sound, that contact with it brings peace and contentment to our hearts. After listening to this Sound, our whole being changes, our entire outlook on life is greatly altered for the better.
The inner Light, the Light of God, is the same Light referred to in the word "enlightenment". Its intensity can range from a subtle glow to the brilliance of many millions of suns. It is through the inner Light and Sound that we come to know God.For example like, for an ordinary person to get enlightenment, you normally will see Light and hear Sound - Light of different colors or brilliance, sometimes more than a thousand suns. Some people will see less than that. Some people just see kind of moving black clouds for some time, but very rare. Most people see immediate Light from God.
And many more... I shared them with Thusness, who replied that there is without doubts that Master Ching Hai had transcendental experiences of the divine Presence, or the I AMness. His first comment was "The description is true but the explanation is not quite right. It is distorting a transcendental experience similar to that of "I AM". It is having an experience of non-dual but not knowing what is non-dual. It is also not knowing what is emptiness nature."
Light represents wisdom, the super consciousness; the Light without shadows, the Light that you don't see with your eyes but you see with your inner awareness. That is called enlightenment when you see that. Then you hear the Sound, the silent Sound from God, which brings you the message from heaven. It's kind of like music, but without instruments. You can't make out what it is; but it is so beautiful and melodious, it lifts you up above the mundane level of consciousness and brings you back to where you are supposed to be.
-- ching hai, http://www.godsdirectcontact.org.tw/eng/ls/php/show3.php?id=138&code=b5
Regarding her cult personality and association with Buddhism, Thusness said, "But as long as she does not bring in buddhism, it is okie. But if she does, then she is distorting the essense of buddhism." and that she might be accepted under certain Hindu teachings, but not in Buddhism.
He also commented, "i wonder why these people must bring in Buddha's name and say this is the essence of his teaching. just remain what they experience. there is no need to ascribe this to the teaching of buddha."
According to Thusness, Supreme Master Ching Hai entered through the door of Eye and Hearing consciousness and only a person that has experienced it will know what she is talking about.. HOWEVER, that is not realisation of the nature of non-duality.
More info later... -
So my reply to the Friendster friend was...
Supreme Ching Hai is a charismatic cult leader. She has some meditative experiences, but I can honestly tell you that it is NOT enlightenment. When I read the articles, I already know what her experience is about.. and I confirmed it with one of my experienced friends.
Her experience is the 'I AM' which is a form of luminosity.You hear a lot about that in other religions including Hinduism and other mystical traditions. It is like experiencing the Atman, the Brahman, the Self, which is also known as God. It is having experienced certain luminous aspect of the Mind (citta), which is transcendental, but without understanding of 3 dharma seals or Emptiness/dependent origination, he will impose subtle wrong views and become an eternalist, holding onto the concept of a transcendental Self. Many people who experienced this thought they attained enlightenment or liberation, but they haven't.
In short, in Hinduism, she might be considered enlightened already, but not in Buddhism. I've heard Master Ching Hai is from Sikhism lineage, and it would have been better that she stayed it that way rather than becoming a charismatic who tries to incorporate Buddhist teachings and then distort Buddhism's essence.
My suggestion is to find someone in Buddhism of PURE lineage (means from unadulterated authentic Buddhist lineages), someone who is very enlightened and you're sure his Dharma views are in accordance to the 3 dharma seals. -
Just now went youtube and searched 'ching hai', found this talk: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6o4EmEpQUc&mode=related&search=
The talk was quite interesting.. You might want to check it out to get a feeling of how she teaches... But doesn't mean I agree with all of it
though there are certain degrees of truths in it. The topic is more on self-realisation (though only the luminous aspect of our Buddha Nature).
Very 'new agey' flavour.. -
interesting.
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She is definitely at 'I AM' stage. She has not yet understood 'no subject-object split'. That is why she say there are 2 parts... body and spirit.
For one who realises non-duality (no subject-object split) there is no division of body and spirit. At non-duality realisation, body is not seen as entity but as perceptions and sensations that are 'not separated from environment'. In fact perception and sensation is the 'environment'.
Just my opinion... Hope that i am writing it correctly. -
Well saidOriginally posted by longchen:She is definitely at 'I AM' stage. She has not yet understood 'no subject-object split'. That is why she say there are 2 parts... body and spirit.
For one who realises non-duality (no subject-object split) there is no division of body and spirit. At non-duality realisation, body is not seen as entity but as perceptions and sensations that are 'not separated from environment'. In fact perception and sensation is the 'environment'.
Just my opinion... Hope that i am writing it correctly.
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has she incur heavy kamma? misleading people?
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I think nope, in fact if she can help people reach her experiences that will be good, AS LONG AS she does not keep claiming her realisations = Buddha's realisations. Because there are certainly different levels of insights there.Originally posted by marcteng:has she incur heavy kamma? misleading people?
Of course, I do hope that all followers of SMCH eventually find true Buddhism and follow it. -
Originally posted by An Eternal Now:
well said. Amituofo!
I think nope, in fact if she can help people reach her experiences that will be good, AS LONG AS she does not keep claiming her realisations = Buddha's realisations. Because there are certainly different levels of insights there.
Of course, I do hope that all followers of SMCH eventually find true Buddhism and follow it.
i noticed the Bodhisattva Kishitigarbha Vow Sutra also show a quite similar example of Brahma girl :-
http://web.singnet.com.sg/~elyagaz/Kishitigarbha%20Bodhisattva%20Vow%20Sutra.htmDuring this time of the Dharma-Image Age, there was a girl who was born in the Brahmin caste, and because she had done so many good deeds everybody admired and respected her. Many gods from heavens protected her every move. However, her mother had improper beliefs and did not respect the Triple Gems. She used many ways to convince her mother of the truth of Buddha's teachings, but her mother died before completely accepting them. Her soul fell into Endless Hell. This daughter knew that her mother who did not believe in cause and effect, resulting in retribution, might have fallen into the evil level because of her karma. To save her mother, this daughter sold all her family possessions and properties to buy flowers and offerings for Buddha. She went to the temple in which there was a shrine to Buddha Enlightenment-Flower Self-Sufficient King, then contributed all her offerings.....
She later followed and practice the Buddha's advice and reach arahathood.
ps: i didn't read any of the above stuff, so i'll jus say Buddhism accord with Essence than on appearance.
http://sg.search.yahoo.com/search?p=%E4%BD%9B%E6%B3%95%E9%87%8D%E5%AE%9E%E8%B4%A8%2C%E4%B8%8D%E9%87%8D%E5%BD%A2%E5%BC%8F&y=All+the+Web&ei=UTF-8&fr=yfp-t-web&x=wrt
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