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Q: I am a beginner and have never recited Little Houses before. I recently began reciting the Great Compassion Mantra, the Heart Sutra, and the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance. Can I now recite the sutras and mantras of the Little Houses?

A:

As a beginner, you can recite the sutras and mantras of Little Houses as soon as you begin performing daily recitations (i.e. the Great Compassion Mantra, the Heart Sutra, and the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance). Initially, you can recite 7 Little Houses, addressing them to your karmic creditors. Afterwards, you should continue to recite Little Houses (the exact number of Little Houses required depends upon your individual situation).

In general, as you continue your daily recitations, you could recite and burn around 3 Little Houses each week addressed to the “Karmic Creditor of <your full name>” to prevent misfortune. ­You will need to give additional Little Houses if you come across the following situations: Deceased people or aborted babies appear in your dreams, you have nightmares, sudden illnesses or misfortune, or you constantly lose your temper for no reason. These situations indicate that you have karmic creditors, so you will need to give additional Little Houses to them.
The following scenarios provide a useful rule of thumb for Little House recitation:

• If you dream about deceased people, you will need to recite 7 to 21 Little Houses for each of them, and address the Little Houses to “<full name of the deceased>”. If you do not know the name of the deceased person, you can address them to the “Karmic Creditor of <your full name>”.

• If you dream about being paralysed and are unable to move due to a spiritual attack, or if you dream about someone chasing after you, giving or asking for money or gifts, treating you to a meal, etc., then you can recite 7 to 21 Little Houses first and address them to the “Karmic Creditor of <your full name>”.

• If you experience sudden illnesses or misfortune, you can recite 7 Little Houses first and address them to the “Karmic Creditor of <your full name>”.

• If you lose your temper easily, or if you have frequent conflicts with people around you for no particular reason, you can recite 7 Little Houses first and address them to the “Karmic Creditor of <your full name>”.

• Your intuition is very important. If you sense that foreign spirits are occupying your body, you can recite 4 to 7 Little Houses first and address them to the “Karmic Creditor of <your full name>”.

• If you have had an abortion, miscarriage, or ectopic pregnancy, you need to recite at least 7 to 21 Little Houses for each child. You can address them to “Child of <mother’s full name>”. Avoid adding any extra phrases, such as “Aborted child of <full name>”, or “Nth child of <full name>”, etc. If you dream about well-dressed and happy children after you have recited the Little Houses, this means that they have most likely ascended to a higher spiritual realm. However, if the children appear to be in an unfavourable condition in your dream, then this means that they have not yet ascended to a higher spiritual realm, so you should continue reciting Little Houses for them.

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Q: Should we burn the Application for Change of Name[1] after praying to Guan Yin Bodhisattva for her blessing? When, where, and how should we proceed with this? I just downloaded the form and would like to use it for my child and myself. Please advise me on how to lodge the Application for Change of Name.

A:

• A person’s name represents his or her spirit, meaning that whenever a person’s name is called, his or her soul and spirit will follow. Our original names that were given to us upon birth are not only written down on our birth certificates, but are also registered in the spiritual realms: the Heaven and Underworld. If you have changed names and used your new name for years, it is likely that your new name has become active spiritually. In this case, you can use your new name in performing your daily recitations and addressing your Little Houses. However, it would be best to lodge the Application for Change of Name to ensure that your new name is registered in the spiritual realms.

• When you lodge the Application for Change of Name, you are updating your new name with Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and officers who oversee matters related to name changes in the Heaven and the Underworld, and with other spiritual beings. Note that there is no need to update your name on your birth certificate, IDs, or any other documents.

• You can download the Application for Change of Name form at www.GuanYinCitta.com. Use yellow A4 paper to print out the form.

• Use a black pen to fill in both the applicant’s original and new name on the application form.

• Write the original name where it says, “Devotee’s original full name”, and the new name where it says, “Now changed to” and “Devotee’s full name”. If the applicant’s family member is to burn the application form on behalf of the applicant,  make sure the “Devotee’s full name” remains the applicant’s new name, not the name of the family member.

• Fill in the applicant’s date of birth according to the Gregorian calendar.

• Fill in your current location, which is the location where you are going to perform the ritual to lodge the Application for Change of Name, in the “Location” field (e.g. “Beijing, China” or “Sydney, Australia”). Finally, fill in the date field, using the date of burning the application form.

• It is best to burn the application form on sunny days. The best times are 6am, 8am, and 4pm.

• You can also hand-write, instead of printing, the form on a piece of yellow paper based on the Application for Change of Name form at www.GuanYinCitta.com.

• You can lodge the application form at home if you have a Buddhist altar. First, light the oil lamps, offer incense and read out the application in front of your altar (you may kneel while reading it). Then recite the Great Compassion Mantra 7 times and the Heart Sutra 7 times before burning the application form (from top to bottom).

• If you do not have a Buddhist altar in your home, you can go to a Buddhist temple to lodge the application.
  You should first kneel and bow to every Buddha and Bodhisattva at the temple, then read out your application in the Guan Yin Hall, in front of Guan Yin Bodhisattva, “I, <your full name>, come to <name of the temple> today, to pay my respect to all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in this temple. May the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva be my witness and verify that my original name <old name> has been changed to <new name>. May all the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in this temple be my witnesses.” Next recite the Great Compassion Mantra 7 times and the Heart Sutra 7 times before burning your application form (from top to bottom) in the container where incense sticks or papers are burnt.

• Generally speaking, you only need to lodge the application once. If, for some reason, you think that your change of name application did not go through, you can lodge it again.

• It is best to lodge your Application for Change of Name yourself. If the applicant is a child who is too young to perform the ritual, his or her parents or elders may lodge the change of name application for the applicant.

• There is no need to lodge a change of name application for a deceased person; just use the name that they used most often while they were alive.

• If you have been called by several names in the past, and now you want to lodge the Application for Change of Name, you can pick the name that has been used most often as your original name (generally names that have been used for more than a decade are already active spiritually), or you can write all the names ever used in the past under “Devotee’s original full name.”

• If you are unsure of what your original name is, in cases of adoption where you never found out your birth name, you may lodge the Application for True Name. Download the Application for True Name from www.GuanYinCitta.com. A sample can be found in Appendix C.

• To determine whether your Application for Change of Name has been successfully lodged, address your Little Houses to the “Karmic Creditor of <your new full name>” and assess their effectiveness after burning those Little Houses. Suppose you have been unwell physically, lacking energy, or experiencing nightmares, but you feel much better after burning the Little Houses with your new name on them, this indicates that your application for a change of name has been successful. Please refer to Q&A 81: How to determine if an Application for Change of Name is successful.

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Q: Master Lu, how do we resolve “predestined conflicts”— conflicts between couples or conflicts in marriage? We follow the instruction of  Guan Yin Citta Dharma Door to recite sutras and mantras. But I still cannot wrap my head around the issue.
I recite the Mantra to Untie Karmic Knots every day, but still hope that you could give us a clear solution to this problem. “Predestined conflicts” in relationships can be damaging, as I’ve seen many couples around me breaking up because of them.

A:

“Predestined conflicts” between married couples do exist. If the result of fortune-telling confirms that a husband and his wife are in conflict based on both their birth dates, you could consider employing the following methods to resolve the conflict:

• First, it’s recommended that the couple sleep in different rooms.

• Each person should recite the Mantra to Untie Karmic Knots 21 or 49 times per day to resolve their karmic conflicts.

• The rate of effectiveness for resolving a couple’s conflicts by reciting the following sutras and mantras could be around 50% (results vary from person to person):

  • Recite the Heart Sutra for each other 7 or 21 times per day.

  • Recite the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance to repent and eliminate the karmic obstacles that lead to the conflict in marriage or in a relationship.

• If the situation has not been turned around after practising all the above-mentioned methods for quite some time, you will need to recite Little Houses for each other. Address the Little Houses to the “Karmic Creditor of <your partner’s name>”. You can recite more Little Houses if necessary.

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Q: The telephone line of Master Lu’s call-in radio programs is very busy, so we are not always able to get through and ask him to perform Totem Readings for us to solve our issues related to foreign spirits. We would like to know when we no longer need to recite Little Houses?
What would be the signs indicating that we can solely focus on our own spiritual development and no longer need to recite sutras to help karmic creditors ascend to a higher spiritual realm? 

A:

• If you experience headaches while performing recitations (and not at any other times), this is a sign that your karmic creditors need you to recite Little Houses. You should recite 7 Little Houses first, addressed to the “Karmic Creditor of <your full name>.”

• If you dream about deceased family members or friends, you should recite 7 Little Houses for each of them, and address the Little Houses to the <full name of the deceased>. It is best to recite 21 Little Houses for each of your deceased family member/relative.

• If you are sick, for example, having a fever, it usually means you have karmic creditors. You should recite 7 Little Houses first, addressed to the “Karmic Creditor of <your full name>.”

• If you constantly lose your temper, or if you have frequent conflicts with people around you for no reason, you should recite 7 Little Houses first, addressed to the “Karmic Creditor of <your full name>.”

• If you hear strange noises at home, in your kitchen, from your television, or if the lights go on and off on their own (and they are not faulty), you should recite 4 to 7 Little Houses, addressed to the “Karmic Creditor of the house of <full name of the occupant>.”

• If you have been experiencing a lot of bad luck for a period of time, you can recite 7 Little Houses first, addressed to the “Karmic Creditor of <your full name>.”

• If you recite the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance 3 times a day as part of your daily recitation, then you should recite approximately 3 Little Houses every week, addressed to the “Karmic Creditor of <your full name>.”

• The number of Little Houses required can be determined instinctively. In any of the above situations, if you find that your problem is not completely resolved after completing the first batch of Little Houses, you will then need to recite more.

• If everything is going smoothly in your life, you are in good health, and have pleasant dreams every night, it is best not to recite too many Little Houses. You can offer around 3 Little Houses every week, addressed to the “Karmic Creditor of <your full name>,” to help you stay safe and prevent misfortune.
  Do not burn more than 5 Little Houses per day to your karmic creditors when everything is going smoothly.
  In emergency situations, or when experiencing a chronic illness, you can burn more Little Houses, but no more than 21 Little Houses a day.

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【Audio File】

Q: Could Master Lu advise on the basic requirements and areas of concern regarding the placement of a Buddhist altar in the home from a Buddhist perspective? Thank you! 

A:

The basic requirements for Buddhist altar placement in the home are as follows:

• The kitchen, the toilet or the bedroom of a couple should not be located behind the Buddhist altar.

• The altar must not be near a toilet (the toilet door should be closed at all times).

• The altar must not directly face the kitchen.

• If there is a room behind the Buddhist altar, things that should not be located right behind the altar include beds, study desks and sofas.

• The altar must not be placed on top of the television, refrigerator, or directly below an air conditioner. If it is close to the television or in an untidy environment, you can use a cabinet with a wooden door for the altar.  When you are not offering incense, you can close the door. When you are offering incense, do not switch on the television. You should also not cover the statues or images of Buddhas or Bodhisattvas with a glass dome.

• You should not place the Buddhist altar in the bedroom of a couple (the bedroom of an elderly couple may be acceptable). However, if this indeed cannot be achieved and you have to set up the altar in the bedroom, use a cabinet with a wooden door for the altar.

• You can place the Buddhist altar in single bedrooms, but the foot of the bed should not face the altar.

• You should not place the altar on a balcony extending out from the building (i.e. not attached to the ground). However, if the balcony is inside the building then it would be fine, e.g. sunroom.

• All statues and images of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, as well as other Dharma instruments, including incense burners, oil lamps, etc. should not be placed on an extended fixture (jutting out over empty space). In other words, there must be tables, cabinets or frames, etc. that are connected to the ground to hold up the items.

• The best location to make offerings and pray to Buddhas and Bodhisattvas is near a window where it is bright. The back of the Buddhist altar should not face a window (However, if this cannot be achieved, a solution is to block or seal the window and cover it with the yellow landscape painting). The altar must be placed against a wall, and there should not be any mirrors in its surroundings.

• Do not place unrelated objects or books underneath the altar, nor the statues/images of Buddhas or Bodhisattvas. However, small images or those for mini-Buddhist altars are fine. Buddhist scriptures and Dharma instruments/items would be alright, too.

• The altar should not be too high or too low. It would be best if the statues or images of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas on your altar are slightly above eye level (if they are too low, you can place something, such as a nice box, underneath to raise their height).

• On the altar, there should be oil lamps (refilling the oil lamps with oil can improve your eye health), and water (one cup of water for each statue or image of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. The water should be changed daily. Do not drink the water directly from the cup used for offerings).

• There should be a burner for the offering of incense. You can make an incense offering once in the morning and once at night. The time for incense offerings should be kept consistent. The best times for the morning offerings are 6am, 8am and 10am, and the best times for night offerings are 6pm, 8pm and 10pm.

• It is best not to have too many statues or images of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas on the altar.

• If conditions allow, you can make offerings of fresh fruit (allowing wishes to come true more quickly) and fresh flowers (offering fresh flowers can improve your physical appearance). Generally, fruit and flower offerings should be made once a week. Make sure both fruit and flowers must be fresh.

• The best location for the altar is sitting south and facing north (for the Southern Hemisphere), or sitting north and facing south (for the Northern Hemisphere). However, if your current living conditions do not allow you to place the altar facing these directions, then other directions are also acceptable.

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Q: During one of Master Lu’s radio programs, you mentioned that we can write the name and date of birth of our family member(s) on a piece of paper, and bring it to the Guan Yin Citta Centre to pray for our family member(s) so that they will soon believe in Buddhism. I want to give this a try. Can I do this at the Buddhist altar at home? Do I need to lodge an application for this?

A:

• It is a great blessing that both partners in a marriage, or the entire family, perform recitations and practise Buddhism together.

• If you have already started practising Buddhism, you can gradually introduce it to your family members. You can give your family members some of Master Lu’s books, and ask them to listen to the radio programs if they understand Chinese. You could say, “These books and programs are really interesting, we should study them together”. If your family members are not interested, you cannot force them. It is best to act in accordance with karmic conditions, not cling to them.

• You can recite the Heart Sutra at least 7 times per day for each of your family members. Before you begin your recitation, you can say the following prayer: “May the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva protect <your family member’s name>, help <family member> to gain wisdom, believe in Buddhism and start performing recitations.” You can continue doing this for as long as necessary.

• When you recite the Heart Sutra for your family members, it is best not to tell them to prevent them from feeling uncomfortable or offended, which can easily lead them to create karma of speech. If your family members still do not believe in Buddhism after more than a month of reciting Heart Sutra (7 times per day), you can lodge an application to Guan Yin Bodhisattva and state your prayer.

• Download the Application for Convincing Family Members from www.GuanYinCitta.com. Print the application form on a yellow A4 piece of paper (Caution: Do not burn this application form). A sample can be found in Appendix D.

• Use a black pen to write the full name and date of birth (e.g. 31 December 2011) of your family member (according to the Gregorian calendar), and your full name.

• Every day during the daytime (the best times are 6am, 8am, 4pm, and 10pm; it is best to avoid night time), light oil lamps and make incense offerings at your home altar.

• Read out the text on the application form once, and then place the application form on the Buddhist altar. If your altar has limited space, you can place the application form underneath the incense burner.

• Kneel and make a full bow (with your forehead touching the floor) to Buddhas and Bodhisattvas.

• Recite the Heart Sutra, generally 7 times or more.

• Once you have completed your recitations or the incense has finished burning, it is best to fold the Application for Convincing Family Members and put it away. The Application for Convincing Family Members must not be left on the altar for a long period of time, as this may cause the relevant family member to have fits of temper, and their soul to depart from their body or be incomplete.

• The above procedure for lodging the Application for Convincing Family Members can be performed once a day.

• After a month of lodging the Application for Convincing Family Members, you have to stop for a week. Otherwise, your merits and virtues will go to the relevant family member(s). But during this week, you can continue reciting the Heart Sutra for your family members.

• This is a very serious Buddhist practice and it is best performed after you have recited the Heart Sutra 7 times per day for your family members over a long period of time (usually longer than one month). It is best to perform this without informing the relevant family members to prevent them from feeling uncomfortable or offended, which can easily lead them to create karma of speech.

• Once the application has been successful, the application form can be put aside for one to two months. After this time, you can place the application form in an envelope and then dispose of it. Caution: Do not burn the application form.

• If you do not have a Buddhist altar in your home, please refer to Q&A106: Lodging an Application for Convincing Family Members without a Buddhist altar.

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Q: Dear Master Lu, we would like to ask for your advice regarding landscape paintings of water and mountains. What are the guidelines for placing these paintings at home? Do we need to place these pictures behind the statues or images of Buddhas or Bodhisattvas? Can we place these paintings in other rooms of the house?

Is there anything about the landscape paintings that we should take note of, especially pertaining to the features about water? According to feng shui, it is not recommended to hang a painting featuring waterfalls. Also, what about the direction of the water flow? Is it true that the water should flow inwards instead of outwards? Ocean waves and huge tides are also not very good according to feng shui. Could you please let us know if there are other guidelines? Thank you very much.

A:

• There are many places that you can place landscape paintings of water and mountains (also known as the “blue” landscape paintings.)

• However, the one to use behind statues or images of Buddhas or Bodhisattvas, or behind the Buddhist altar should be the “yellow” landscape paintings.

• You can place the blue landscape paintings above the toilet door on the outside (not on the toilet door. If the space between the door and the ceiling is too small, you can place it on the wall on either side of the toilet door) to prevent the negative energy from coming out (it is as if there is a mountain above the toilet door and there is water flowing underneath; your toilet door is just a small hole underneath the mountain, so the negative energy cannot escape);

• Above the bedroom door to prevent negative energy from entering the bedroom;

• If the doors of two rooms face each other, you can also place the paintings above the doors;

• Certain locations are unsuitable for large paintings, such as above the head of the bed, since it would be as if a mountain is pressing down on your head. Generally speaking, small paintings are alright.

• The best landscape paintings would feature a large mountain sitting above still water, with valleys and hills in the far background, but the mountains should not have sharp peaks. As for the water, it naturally flows; even if it is still water. A waterfall in the landscape painting is fine as well, as long as the waterfall is not overly aggressive.

• Landscape paintings must be blessed to activate the water and mountains for the paintings to take effect.

• The painting can be an oil painting, a water/ink painting, a printed image, etc. as long as it does not appear artificial or unnatural.

• It is best not to use paintings by deceased artists, as these paintings tend to attract their spirits. Nor should the paintings contain large human or animal figures, as these figures also tend to attract foreign spirits.

• In fact, there is a lot to say about the composition of the painting. For example, the proportion of water and cloud, or the specific traces of stamp, seal or calligraphy, can give rise to different energy fields. In addition, the landscape paintings are required to be blessed to be effective. Therefore, the blessed blue landscape paintings are recommended.

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Q: Master Lu, what should we say before we recite Little Houses? How do we pray to Buddhas and Bodhisattvas for their blessings and protection?

A:

• Before reciting Little Houses, you can say the following prayer: “May the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva help me, <your full name>, to give these Little Houses to <name of the recipient> (The recipient can be your karmic creditor, a deceased relative or friend, an aborted or miscarried child, or a karmic creditor of your house). Keep your prayer short and simple; it is fine even if you do not say anything at all. Because as soon as our thoughts arise, they are precisely recorded in the spirit world.

• At first, you may write down the prayer, and read it each time before you recite Little Houses. Eventually you will be able to memorise it.

• Some foreign spirits, usually in the Underworld or in the Asura realm, tend to transform the sutras and mantras they received into money or energy and spend it all, rather than going to a higher spiritual realm. If you have recited a large number of Little Houses but the spirits have not ascended to a higher spiritual realm, it is best to pray to Guan Yin Bodhisattva so that the spirits can transform the sutras and mantras into energy and ascend to a higher spiritual realm.

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Q: Master Lu, I have started to recite the Little Houses for the two babies that I aborted. I just finished the first Little House and I have been suffering from headaches for two days. What is going on? What should I do? Please kindly advise.

A:

• Generally, if you suffer from headaches when you perform recitations, this is a signal from spirits that you should speed up your progress in reciting Little Houses.

• It may be your deceased children or other karmic creditors who are giving you these signals. You must be persistent with your recitation of Little Houses.

• Now that you know how to recite Little Houses, it is normal for your karmic creditors to come and ask you to repay your karmic debts.

• Some people might say, “I might as well stop reciting, so I will not have to suffer from headaches.” This is not true. It is better to use Little Houses to repay your karmic debts now than repay your karmic debts in other forms later, such as suffering from illnesses, experiencing misfortune, being involved in car accidents, etc.

• For the recitation of Little Houses to be effective in helping spirits ascend to a higher spiritual realm, you must perform your daily recitation as a foundation. In particular, you should diligently recite the Great Compassion Mantra to increase your spiritual power, so that you will become better at reciting Little Houses.

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Q: Master Lu, I have a question to ask you. You mentioned that we must always keep the bathroom door closed. If we close the door, there is no airflow. Once we open it, the air becomes very stuffy. As a result, we are now using the toilet with the door open. Do we need to close the door when we use the toilet? Some bathrooms have a small window, should we keep the window open? Some bathrooms also have exhaust fans, should we have them turned on as well?  When there is no air circulation, the air is still stuffy even if we open the window.

Moreover, can we hang our washed clothes in the bathroom to dry? Would negative energy get into the clothes?

A:

• The bathroom door should be closed at all times (including when you take a shower or bath and when you use the toilet). You mentioned that the air is stuffy when the door is always kept closed. This means that the bathroom has been affected by negative energy, and the energy has been trapped in the bathroom. It is much better to keep such negative energy inside the bathroom than release it to the rest of the house.

• You can place an air freshener in the bathroom, or a flush freshener in the toilet. They are not expensive and will improve the quality of the energy field.

• During the daytime, you can frequently have the window open or turn the exhaust fan on in the bathroom (it is best to close the window at night).

• If you hang your clothes in the bathroom, the negative energy will get into your clothes. In addition, it is best not to drink or boil water from the bathroom tap. The negative energy will affect the molecular structures in the water and make you unwell.

• You can place a landscape painting above the bathroom door on the outside. If the space between the door and the ceiling is too small, you can also place it on the wall on either side of the bathroom door.

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Q: Master Lu, I currently face constant distractions and have wandering thoughts when I perform recitations. How can we maintain our focus while performing recitations? Please kindly advise.

A:

• One of the reasons for reduced effectiveness of recitations is the lack of focus. For example, if you are thinking about your family members while performing recitation for yourself, then a portion of your recitation may be dedicated to them instead.

• How can you maintain focus while performing recitations? Before you recite sutras or mantras, you can first gaze at the sky for one to three minutes and do not think about anything.

• When performing recitations, it is best to visualise what you have prayed for, or visualise the image of the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva. Then listen to your own voice mindfully while you recite, and your mind will not wander.

• When you recite the Heart Sutra as part of your daily recitation, you can add the following line to your prayer: “May the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva protect and bless me, <your full name>, grant me wisdom and help me to maintain focus when I perform recitations”.

• If you are having too many distracting thoughts when you are performing recitations off by heart, you can take out your sutra booklet and follow it as a guidance.

• When performing recitations, you should unite your mind with your energy (combine your mind with your energy field to create a whole), unite your voice with your energy (combine your voice with your energy field to create a whole), and unite your body with your mind (combine your body with your mind to create a whole). If you can achieve these three unifying processes, your recitation will be very effective.

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Q: Dear Master Lu, I am currently reciting the Great Compassion Mantra 7 times, the Heart Sutra 7 times, and the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance 3 times in the morning. I experience tingling only when I recite the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance. I do not have this feeling when I am not reciting. Moreover, the tingling occurs only in certain parts of my body. It is not intense, but just a mild tingling sensation.

A:

• If you experience tingling only when you recite the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance, then this represents a response from your karmic obstacles. In fact, it presents the best opportunity for you to eliminate your karmic obstacles. (That is why listeners often call into Master Lu’s radio program and ask about the quantity and location of their karmic obstacles, so that they can specifically target certain areas.)

• The best solution to eliminating karmic obstacles is to recite the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance, along with Little Houses (that is, a combination of designated sutras and mantras). As a rule of thumb, you can recite the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance3 times per day or 7 times per day. Before reciting, you should say, “May the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva protect and bless me, <your full name>, help me to repent and eliminate karmic obstacles in my < the parts of your body where you feel tingling>.”

• During this period, you should also recite about 3 Little Houses per week, addressing them to the “Karmic Creditor of <your full name>”, until you have fully recovered. However, if you experience pain in that particular area of your body and the pain suddenly intensifies, then it is very likely that the karmic obstacles have been activated. You should burn 7 to 21 Little Houses right away.

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Q: Dear Master Lu, I was fortunate enough to have you perform a Totem Reading for me. You told me that I have a lot of karmic obstacles. I am aware that I am reaching older age and should repay my karmic debts as fast as possible. Can I invite a friend, a classmate, or a lay practitioner to help me by performing recitations? And if they recite Little Houses for me, would that be effective?

A:

• Asking someone to perform recitations for you is a very important issue. If the person you ask for help is kind and well-cultivated, then you will experience positive effects.

• However, if the person you ask for help is unreliable and dishonest, then not only will it be ineffective, this person is also likely to reduce your merits and virtues or even take them away from you.

• For example, if a shop owner asks a greedy person to be her accountant, in the end, the accountant will become very rich and the shop owner will have no money left.

• Therefore, you should not ask any unfamiliar person to recite sutras or mantras for you. If necessary, find someone who is in good health. You must also have full knowledge of this person’s background. This person must also have sufficient spiritual power, merits and virtues, and a kind heart. He or she must be pure and clean (that is, have few karmic obstacles). It is best if you can ask someone who is also practising Guan Yin Citta Dharma Door to help you.

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Q: Master Lu, I often walk under trees when I walk home at night. I have been feeling scared recently, so I started to recite the Great Compassion Mantra while walking. I do not know the reason for this.

A:

• Trees belong to Yin energy (as opposed to Yang). Therefore, there is a saying, “green trees form a good shade”. When the heat from the sun is strong, people seek the shade of trees to avoid the sun. In fact, they are avoiding Yang (the sun) by hiding under a Yin object. It would be fine to seek shade under trees when exposed to the sun.

• At night, however, it would be best not to stay under trees, since night time belongs to Yin energy.

• Generally, Buddhist practitioners would not be affected much by this situation.

• When you walk under trees at night, you may recite the Great Compassion Mantra. It is best to recite it silently, otherwise it may attract trouble.

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Q: Master Lu, what should we be aware of when we use Buddhist prayer beads while reciting sutras or mantras?

A:

• Prayer beads are Dharma items. Like all Dharma items, you must use them appropriately, and you should not misuse or misplace them. If you are unable to protect these Dharma instruments or use them mindfully, it would be better not to use them at all as it would be a form of disrespect towards Buddhas and Bodhisattvas.

• It is best to choose prayer beads that are made of wood, preferably sandalwood. The colour should not be too dark.

• A lay practitioner must not wear a strand of long prayer beads around the neck, as they are not eligible to do so. It is only suitable for Buddhist monks and nuns with over ten years of cultivation to wear the beads around the neck.

• Hold your prayer beads in your left hand, use your right thumb to count each bead, pulling it to the right as you finish reciting your sutra or mantra. Meanwhile, visualise the image of the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva while performing recitations.

• It is best not to hold the prayer beads with only one hand. Use both hands as instructed above.

• You can also use an electronic counter or your fingers to count the number of times a mantra or sutra is recited. You can record it on a piece of paper, too. Visualise the image of the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva while performing recitations.

• A strand of 108 prayer beads made be worn around the neck is best not to be worn around your wrist.

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• Q: Master Lu, I have followed your instructions and have been performing daily recitations for about three months now. Recently I had a dream that I was fighting with someone and then I killed him. I was frightened when I woke up. Is this a bad sign?

A:

• If you have dreams about killing people, setting something on fire, chasing people, or being chased by others, this indicates that your soul has been to the Underworld. These types of dreams usually have two connotations:

• The first meaning is that the dreamer is suffering from tremendous pressure and cannot let it go, leading to such dreams. This kind of dream usually occurs immediately after you fall asleep.

• The second meaning is that you are fighting with foreign spirits. This kind of dream usually occurs in the morning just before you wake up.

• When you have this kind of dream, regardless if you won or lost, it would be best to resolve the conflict. You should recite Little Houses and address them to the “Karmic Creditor of <your full name>”. 7 to 21 Little Houses are usually sufficient in this situation.

• If you dream about killing someone, you must recite the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance 108 times as well as recite 21 Little Houses addressed to the “Karmic Creditor of <your full name>”.

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Q: Master Lu, when I was burning Little Houses, I suddenly had an extra breath of air in my mouth. What does this mean?  How should I breathe it out?

A:

• If you have an extra breath of air in your mouth while you burn Little Houses, it is very likely to be related to foreign spirits. You should breathe out the air, while thanking Guan Yin Bodhisattva in your mind.

• Foreign spirits enter and exit our body through several locations, including the neck, back of the head, eyes, mouth and forehead.

• When you exhale, you should do it slowly and gently. You do not need to stretch your mouth wide open; you can simply let the air exit through the spaces between your teeth.

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Q: There is an old lady who lives with four or five people in one bedroom. The only bright place in the house is the bedroom. Can she take out the statues and images of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas when she is performing recitations or prayers, and then put them away when she has finished?

A:

• This is not a good situation. It would be better not to have the statues or images at all.

• You can offer the “Heart Incense” in your mind while you pay respect to Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Constantly taking out and putting away statues or images of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas is disrespectful. It is like constantly staying at a hotel without having a proper home – it is not stable.

• We must be mindful. If your living place is small, or if some family members do not believe in Buddhism and often speak inappropriately, it is best not to have statues or images of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in your home for the moment to prevent other people from creating karma of speech.

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Q: Dear Master Lu, how should I burn Little Houses if I do not have a Buddhist altar in my home? Can I burn them in a temple?

A:

• It is best not to burn Little Houses in temples.

• If you do not have a Buddhist altar in your home, you can burn the Little Houses on your balcony, near the window in your living room, or in the backyard.

• You should offer the “Heart Incense” and say, “I express my sincere gratitude to the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva” three times. You can then recite the Great Compassion Mantra once and the Heart Sutra once.

• Raise the Little Houses slightly above your head, visualise yourself kneeling down and bowing, and say the following prayer: “May the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva protect and bless me, <your full name>, help me to give these Little Houses to <name of the recipient>”; the recipient can be your karmic creditor, a deceased person, an aborted or miscarried child, or the karmic creditor of someone’s house.

• When you are burning Little Houses (it is best to burn them from top to bottom, starting from the upper right-hand corner where it says, “Offer To”), you can say the following prayer: “May the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva protect and bless me with your compassion.” You can then light the Little Houses using a lighter or matches. While you are burning Little Houses, simply say, “May the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva protect and bless me with your compassion.” Do not recite or say anything further.

• After you have finished burning Little Houses, you can say the following, “I bow in gratitude to the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva for helping me give these Little Houses to <name of the recipient>. I express my sincere gratitude to the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva for protecting and blessing me.” (Visualise yourself kneeling down at the altar and performing a full bow so that your forehead touches the floor.)

• You could also say corresponding prayers. For example, if you give Little Houses to the karmic creditor of <someone’s full name>, you could pray to Guan Yin Bodhisattva to grant this person good health, safety and good fortune. If you use a Little House to resolve X’s karmic conflicts, you could pray to Guan Yin Bodhisattva to help resolve the negative karmic affinity between X and Y.

• Ensure that the entire piece of paper is thoroughly burnt. You can use metal tweezers to hold the Little House while burning it. It is inappropriate to hold it with your hands while burning it.

• The best times to burn Little Houses are 8am, 10am and 4pm. Any other time during the day on a sunny day would also be fine. Generally speaking, the period between 6am and sunset is suitable for burning Little Houses if the weather is good. For more details please refer to another Master Jun Hong Lu’s publication: A Guide to Reciting the Combination of Buddhist Scriptures: Little Houses.

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Q: Dear Master Lu, my cat that had been with me for the past 12 years has just passed away. I buried it in my yard along with Buddhist sutras. Is this alright?

A:

• It is never a good idea to bury bodies in or near your home, whether it be dogs, cats or humans. If the cat was buried only a short while ago, it is best to take the body out from your yard, and bury it somewhere else. You should also recite the Amitabha Pure Land Rebirth Mantra for the cat to help it ascend to a higher spiritual realm.

• Buddhist sutras and mantras are sacred; they must not be buried or burnt. Such action is extremely disrespectful to Buddhas and Bodhisattvas and constitutes a major offence. You need to recite the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance 21 times to sincerely repent of your wrongdoings. Committing such wrongdoings will bring bad luck.  

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Q: Dear Master Lu, some people see golden light when reciting Buddhist sutras and mantras, some see green light, and some have reportedly seen a golden halo on top of your head when you give Dharma talks. Could you please explain this?

A:

• The golden light is from Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. In many temples, there is a golden halo at the top of every statue of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. It is great if you see the golden light when performing recitations, as it means you have seen Buddhas or Bodhisattvas.

• Seeing green light indicates the presence of other spirits. In such cases, you would need to recite Little Houses for your karmic creditors. Green light could also be a sign of the presence of Dharma Protectors. 

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Q: Master Lu, are the effects of reciting the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance for the purpose of accumulating merits and virtues different from the effects of reciting it for the purpose of eliminating karmic obstacles?

A:

• Sutras and mantras can be seen as medications that Buddhas and Bodhisattvas prescribe to us. However, for them to be effective, we need ingredients that can enhance their efficacy. The overall purpose of reciting the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance is clear— to eliminate karmic obstacles. However, the prayers said before reciting this sutra can vary depending on the individual.

• If you are reciting the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance to eliminate karmic obstacles, you can say the following prayer before beginning your recitation: “May the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva protect and bless me, <your full name>, and help me to repent and eliminate karmic obstacles.”

• If you are reciting the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance to enhance your merits and virtues, you can say the following prayer before beginning your recitation: “May the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva protect and bless me, <your full name>, and help me increase my merits and virtues.”

• If you do not have many karmic obstacles, your recitation of the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance will automatically be transformed into merits and virtues. In fact, the process of eliminating karmic obstacles itself increases your own merits and virtues.

• When the black patches of karmic obstacles on your body are greatly reduced, you will become cleaner and purer. This makes it easier for the sutras and mantras that you recite, including the Great Compassion Mantra, the Heart Sutra, and the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance, to be gradually stored within you.

• Why do some people find performing recitations ineffective or not efficacious? It is because they have accumulated far too many karmic obstacles. Therefore, it is very important to recite the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance to eliminate our karmic obstacles. If your karmic obstacles are activated and transformed into spirits, then you would need to recite Little Houses and address them to the “Karmic Creditor of <your full name>”. 

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Q: Master Lu, my friend and I are following Guan Yin Citta Dharma Door, and reciting Buddhist sutras and mantras. After reciting the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance, my friend dreamt about people asking her for Little Houses. My friend was so scared that she stopped performing recitations. Could you please explain the purpose of reciting the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance?

A:

• When a person steals something, kills a dog or a person, or commits any wrongdoings, a cloud or patch of dark energy will arise in their mind. This cloud of dark energy will then enter this person’s body. These dark clouds of energy are commonly known as karmic obstacles.

• When Master Lu states that a person has a lot of heavy dark energy on their Totem, it means that this person has committed many wrongdoings, both in past lives and in their present life. The more such dark energy accumulated within the body, the more likely this person will encounter problems regarding their health, career, relationship, etc.

• Suppose explosives represent karmic obstacles. When a person has accumulated a large quantity of karmic obstacles in their body, it is similar to having a lot of explosives stored in their body. Once this person has committed many wrongdoings and the storage is full, as soon as the karmic obstacles are activated and transformed into one spirit, they will then undergo karmic retribution. When all the stored explosives explode at once, this person will be “blown to bits”. This may be the time that a person is diagnosed with a terminal illness such as cancer, or is involved in a fatal car accident.

• Master Lu rarely sees a Totem that is very clean and bright. Everyone carries a lot of karmic obstacles. The main reason is that humans often have too many unwholesome thoughts, and desire to take advantage of others. They are reluctant to give, and do not know how to treat others well. Therefore, their body, speech, and mind are not pure. As a result, karmic obstacles from their past lives and the present life keep accumulating.

• It is very important to carry fewer karmic obstacles and to stay pure. The best way to eliminate karmic obstacles is to recite the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance and eliminate the dark energy stored in different areas of your body. That is, to reduce the quantity of “explosives” in the body. The more the explosives are reduced, the less likely you are to experience serious injuries, even if a small quantity of the remaining “explosives” is ignited in your later years.

• Unless you are certain (after Totem reading) which part of your body has karmic obstacles that requires you to eliminate them by reciting the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance, it is not recommended that you recite the scripture in this way.

• Many illnesses are possibly related to karmic obstacles, such as heart disease, high blood pressure, cerebral thrombosis, coronary heart disease, skin disease, epilepsy, Ménière’s disease, psychosis, and so forth.

• Back to your question, when you recite the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance, you may sometimes dream about someone asking you for sutras and mantras, or the part of the body in which you wish to eliminate karmic obstacles starts to ache – this is an indication that your karmic obstacles have been activated and transformed into spirits. You should recite 4 to 7 Little Houses as soon as possible. If you are still feeling unwell, you should continue to recite more Little Houses until you achieve full recovery. The karmic obstacles in this particular part of the body will then be almost completely eliminated. In your later years, you will be less likely to suffer from an illness in that part of your body.

• However, if you leave it until you reach old age, then when the negative karma ripens, you may not be able to completely recover even if you recite several dozen or over a hundred Little Houses.

• It is beneficial to allow karmic obstacles to be activated early and transformed into spirits. At this stage, these spirits would be less powerful and the number of Little Houses required will be fewer than when the karmic obstacles are activated later. This concept is similar to receiving treatment at an early stage of an illness.

• While reciting the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance, it is best to kneel down and perform a full bow (with your forehead touching the floor) in front of the Buddhist altar after reciting, “All the wrongs I have committed, I now repent (Suo Zuo Zui Zhang, Jin Jie Chan Hui)”. This is only applicable if you are reciting before the altar.

• For the rest of the sutra, when the text indicates that you should make prostrations, you can visualise yourself kneeling and performing the full bows in your mind, and nod your head instead.

• You must recite the last line, “Namo Great Conduct Samantabhadra Bodhisattva (Na Mo Da Xing Pu Xian Pu Sa)”, 3 times before standing up. If you are reciting whilst kneeling, you should also recite this last line 3 times and then stand up.

• It is fine to perform recitations at a fast speed, provided that you do not miss any words. Also importantly, the holy names of Buddhas should be pronounced clearly and respectfully.

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Q: Master Lu, is it true that the law of cause and effect cannot be changed？Can we change the resulting outcome or retribution by reciting sutras and mantras? Also, is getting to know Master Lu also a part of the law of cause and effect?

A:

• Can we change the law of cause and effect? 70% of our fate is predestined, and the remaining 30% is subject to change. Then why is that some people find the readings of fortune tellers very accurate? It is because they cannot influence the 70% which is fixed, by changing the 30% of their fate that is not. Hence, their lives can only follow the path formed by the 70%.

• So, are we able to change the predestined 70% of our fate? We cannot change it through our own efforts alone. It is just like a child who sees a 7kg object but only has the strength to lift 3kg. How can he lift that 7kg object? We need to rely on the blessings and power of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas to change this.

• You are the only person who can change your own karma—no one else can change it for you. Just like your own temperament—you are the only person who can bring about change.

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Q: Master Lu, if we regard going to Heaven as our ultimate goal, is this considered a desire?

A:

• Wishing to go to Heaven is not considered a desire. Once you have attained a certain level of spiritual development, a desire will not constitute an element of greed. Desires can be good or bad. We are encouraged to have good desires and to eliminate bad desires such as craving for alcohol, lust, money, or getting your own way.

• As human beings, when we wish to go to Heaven and live as Heavenly beings, these wishes are not desires. They are simply wishes.

• Your wishes will elevate as your spiritual state rises.

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Q: Dear Master Lu, is there anything that we should take note of regarding the quantity of fruit that we offer to Buddhas and Bodhisattvas? Does it have to be an odd number?

A:

• The quantity of fruit offered to Buddhas and Bodhisattvas should be an odd number. Specifically, the amount for each layer of fruit should be an odd number, not the total amount of fruit.

• For example, if you offer 4 apples, place 3 apples on the bottom layer and 1 apple on the top layer, you will then have an odd number for each layer.

• It does not matter how many plates of fruit are offered.

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Q:  Master Lu, what should we be aware of as Buddhist vegetarians? Can we drink milk or take fish oil supplements?

A:

• There are five “non-vegetarian foods” within the vegetarian diet known as the five pungent spices, including onions, garlic, leeks, shallots, scallions (green onions) and chives. You should not consume them if you have adopted a vegetarian diet while practising Buddhism. These five pungent spices can be commonly found in many foods.

• The five pungent spices are considered stimulants as they affect our brain cells and trigger desires.

• The five pungent spices can also cause bad breath. It is best to avoid consuming products that contain them before reciting sutras and mantras, otherwise the merits and virtues of performing recitations will be reduced to almost nothing, and the effect will be greatly diminished.  This then prevents Buddhist practitioners from accomplishing their spiritual practice. Consumption of the five pungent spices is also one of the reasons why some people do not experience positive results from performing recitations.

• If you have made a vow to have a fully vegetarian diet on certain days, you must not consume even traces of onion, garlic or any of the pungent spices on those days.

• If you have made a vow to adopt a fully vegetarian diet, you cannot take cod liver oil or fish oil.

• There are three “not strictly vegetarian” foods that can be consumed by vegetarians: milk, cheese and eggs.

• Please also refer to Q&A 115: Consuming vegetables in a non-vegetarian dish.

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Q:  Master Lu, as a Buddhist practitioner do we have an obligation to aim to go to Heaven?  Can we aim to be reborn as a human in the next life?

A:

• When a person cultivates and practises Buddhism with the aim of going to Heaven or the higher realms, they have a broader perspective. Therefore, they will improve themselves in order to attain this higher spiritual state.

• If a person enjoys life as a human being and believes that it is alright to experience some suffering, and that it is also fine to be reborn as a human again in the next life, this person is in fact insensitive and has not awakened to the truth.

• First of all, we should aim to achieve a state of perfection and flawlessness.  However, not everyone understands what the state of perfection entails, and therefore would not have the motivation to pursue it. 

• If you believe that being reborn as a human being is great, then consider an old lady in the remote countryside. Throughout her life, all she does is work on the farm, get married, raise her children, grow old and then pass away. She does not know the existence of Heaven, and she is likely to be reborn into the Human Realm again in her next life.

• We must aim for higher goals in order to progress towards higher levels. This is similar to having a pleasant dream—You will still remember every wonderful detail of the dream long after you wake up. If you have not yet reached that state, you would not aim to go there. Only when you realise the benefit of going to Heaven will you aim high.

• However, to go to Heaven or the higher realms, you have to be a very good person. Many people wish to go to Heaven, but they have not cultivated enough or performed enough good deeds in their lifetime to ascend to the higher realms. You need to cultivate and attain the necessary spiritual state to ascend to Heaven or the higher realms.

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Q:  Master Lu, I am praying to an image of Tai Sui Bodhisattva on the Buddhist altar in my home.  During the course of following Guan Yin Citta Dharma Door, I realised that Tai Sui Bodhisattva changes every year.  Should I invite this Tai Sui Bodhisattva off the Buddhist altar?

A:

• “Tai Sui” is a sacred position in Heaven, and there is a total of 60 Bodhisattvas on duty there on a rotational basis. In the Human Realm, there are endless natural and man-made disasters, and these Bodhisattvas are specifically appointed to protect us. There is a different Bodhisattva on duty every year. When we pray to Tai Sui Bodhisattva, we are praying to the Bodhisattva on duty for the year. As we may not know the exact Bodhisattva on duty, we should avoid using a particular image or statue as Tai Sui Bodhisattva. 

• You can use a piece of yellow paper (A4 or A5 in size) and write “Tai Sui Bodhisattva” on it, or you can print these words from a computer (Chinese characters, either Traditional or Simplified text is acceptable).  You can then frame this piece of paper and place it upright on the Buddhist altar, to the right of Guan Yin Bodhisattva. That is, when you are facing the statue or image of Guan Yin Bodhisattva, the image of Tai Sui Bodhisattva should be on your left-hand side.

• The first time that you pray to Tai Sui Bodhisattva, you can make offerings of water, fruit and oil (using an oil lamp).  Then you can make an incense offering in front of the Buddhist altar and say the following prayer: “May the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva bless me, <your full name>, with your compassion, please invite Tai Sui Bodhisattva into my home.”  Finally, recite the holy name of Tai Sui Bodhisattva 108 times, and then recite the Xiao Zai Ji Xiang Shen Zhou 21 times.

• If, as in your case, you are praying to Tai Sui Bodhisattva with a particular image, not sure whether the Bodhisattva is on duty for that year. You can change it to a piece of paper printed with the words “Tai Sui Bodhisattva”, frame and place it on the altar for praying. This way, you can continue praying to Tai Sui Bodhisattva without having to change it every year.

• Before inviting the image off the altar, you should recite the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Great Repentance 21 times, the Great Compassion Mantra 7 times, and the Heart Sutra 7 times.

• Then you should say, “Thank you to Tai Sui Bodhisattva, for helping me, <your full name>, and my family in the past.  Thank you, Tai Sui Bodhisattva!  Thank you, Tai Sui Bodhisattva!”  (You must not say, “I’m inviting Tai Sui Bodhisattva off the altar.”)

• Please also refer to Q&A 97: Zodiac year of birth (or Ben Ming Nian).

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Q:  Master Lu, the Chinese New Year is approaching. What is the significance of setting off firecrackers during Chinese New Year (the Spring Festival)?

A:

• It is generally good to set off firecrackers in celebration of Chinese New Year.

• Firecrackers can drive away evil spirits and enhance positive Yang energy.  They can therefore prevent unwholesome entities from entering the house.

• During Chinese New Year, setting off firecrackers before midnight on Chinese New Year’s Eve sees the old year out; setting off firecrackers a second time after 12am welcomes the New Year.

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