The Auckland lecture program began at 7:00 PM, and the several thousand seats were soon occupied by an earnest audience waiting for The Supreme Master Ching Hai to talk about how to experience the divine realm of heaven. A group of Maori people performed a traditional Powhiri ceremony to welcome Master to New Zealand. A Powhiri is more than just a welcome; it is an acknowledgement of the dimensions of spiritual, physical and mental wellness.

A "Kaumatua", the Maori Leader, welcomed Master to their shores, thanking the Creator for the safety of Her journey. He then thanked Her for the tremendous work that She is doing for the higher good of all people. He finished his speech by calling on the Creator and the holy angels to bless Her and Her stay in New Zealand, and to continue to support Her in Her journey. Master was given a "hongi" (a pressing of the nostrils and forehead or third eye area together, thus sharing the breath of the spiritual life force on all levels). This is a sacred greeting of the Maori given to those considered to be friends. Master then proceeded to give a hongi to everyone in the Culture Group. << BACK TO TOP

Sri Lanka, rich in spirituality and famous for its Ceylon tea, is a small island country in the Indian Ocean, south of India. Gorgeous Buddha statues, illuminated at night, stand nobly at the corners of many streets in capital city of Colombo.

On the warm and sunny afternoon of April 29, people began entering the spacious Grand Ballroom of the Trans Asian Hotel. One Dutch man who attended the lecture said that he had flown all the way from the Netherlands to meet Master. He added that he had searched for many years, even going to India to seek the Truth, and was waiting now for an inner "signal" to tell him that the Quan Yin Method was the right path for him. Another man from England came to see Master because he was still not at peace with himself, even after becoming a monk in a monastery.

As Master was led to the front of the hall passing through a respectfully standing crowd, Master humbly bowed to the Sri Lankan monks sitting in the front row of the audience to pay Her respects. Then, following a local tradition, Master lit a string in an oil lamp with a candle and passed the candle to other local people so they could light the remainder of the strings. To the delight of Master and the audience, the colorful dancers and drummers then performed a Kandian dance accompanied by chanting and drumming on tablas (traditional drums used in India and Sri Lanka). Master began the lecture with a prayer for peace in Sri Lanka. << BACK TO TOP

By 6:30 PM, thousands of people, Malays, Chinese, Indians, and others, had filled the lecture hall. When Master arrived, the crowd gave Her a very warm welcome. Feeling the positive vibrations from the audience, She said, "God blesses you for coming in the rain. May God bless you and your country, which is very beautiful, clean and prosperous. We have to be grateful to God, Buddha, Allah, Who have blessed our country and blessed the people here so much. The people here are very disciplined and very highly elevated."

Master emphasized, "All of you are God already! The essence of life is love. The essence of God, of Buddha, of Allah, is love. There is nothing else but love. When we make the choice of love, which is the highest choice, the noblest choice, which is our True Self, we will feel that we are very near to God, very near to Buddha. There are many choices that we can make in life, and depending on the choice we make, we will become the being that represents that choice. Over time, again and again, we keep making different choices -- to be a human being, an angel, a deva, to be one with God, or yet again to come back to human life in order to remember or relearn again the whole process. And when we remember or relearn again that we are from God, that we have God Nature, that the Holy Spirit lives within us, at that time, we say we are 'enlightened'." Master then gave the audience a gift. She asked that whoever wanted to experience God close their eyes, concentrate on the wisdom eye, and taught them the Convenient Method. She also promised that She would be available 24 hours if they called Her name for help. When Master added that it is a local call, everyone laughed happily. << BACK TO TOP

Hours before the lecture, crowded buses and people jammed together in front of the city's Birendra International Convention Center. Many people also passing by on bicycles and cars slowed to a stop just to behold the billboards bearing Master's beautiful portraits.

When Master arrived, people rose to their feet applauding heartily, and the atmosphere teemed with excitement. Addressing the large audience, Master said that She felt a great deal of love, as well as the purity of the people of Nepal -- Buddha's land, (Buddha was born in Lumbini, southwestern Nepal, 2,500 years ago.), and that it was Her honor to be in this beautiful country. While Master gave the lecture there were still at least a thousand people waiting outside the hall, longing to see Master. When the lecture was over, Master walked into the crowd to personally greet as many as She could. Speaking through a microphone to the people outside, She said that although they did not have seats in the lecture hall, they had a seat in Her heart. << BACK TO TOP

Around six in the evening, the Stadium was brightly lit as guests began to pour in. The seats inside the stadium were fully occupied before seven. Master entered the lecture hall in a graceful and elegant manner, and the room was immediately drowned in thunderous applause, while the excited audience members rose to their feet to greet Her.

Despite the fatigue caused by Her arduous journey, Master maintained a relaxed and humorous demeanor, while infinite mercy and love naturally flowed from Her. With words of humor and wisdom, She caused the audience to laugh delightedly and applauds. Master's talk was lively and simple, yet easily understood, pointing directly to our inner Self and wisdom.Hundreds of people received initiation after the lecture. There was even a reporter from the press who asked to learn the Convenient Method. Apart from local Hong Kong residents and visitors from abroad, many Truth aspirants also came from every corner of Mainland China, including elderly people and young children. << BACK TO TOP

An impressively large group from all walks of life streamed into the Manila Midtown Hotel on May 3, 2000, to attend Master's Ocean of Love Tour lecture. The hotel's 3,000-seat Grand Ballroom was packed, with people in every corner. Many could not find a place, even in front of the several television monitors installed in the hotel corridors and lobby. A radio reporter announced that between 6,000 and 7,000 people gathered to hear Supreme Master Ching Hai, and an expert in Manila rallies said that, by his accounting, the number of people at the lecture might have reached 10,000.

"This is unexpected, especially considering that the Philippines is a Catholic-dominated country, and meditation and vegetarianism are not very popular here," stated Dr. Rene Santos. Catholics, Muslims, Christians, Buddhists, and members of other religions were represented at the lecture. Many dignitaries also attended. Master arrived at the lecture hall looking very fresh and beautiful in a simple but elegant white outfit. A group of students performed a Philippine folk dance to welcome Her. Before beginning the lecture, Master asked audience members to close their eyes and pray for the Philippines and its people. She then apologized for the insufficient size of the lecture hall. Addressing those who were unable to obtain a seat inside, Master said, "You have a seat in my heart, always." << BACK TO TOP

The lecture was scheduled to start at 7:00 PM, but eager visitors from all around Formosa began to pour in from early in the morning, and the Taoyuan County Stadium was soon brimming with fervor. A television station covered the entire lecture, broadcasting it live to Formosa and North America. The huge indoor stadium have a seating capacity of 20,000, and fellow practitioners took meticulous care in its decoration, transforming the stage into a Chinese mythical fairyland, with a waterfall in the background, ethereal clouds above the stage, and surrounded by orchids, green grass and trees.

By seven, not only were all the seats and several thousand additional ones fully occupied; even the stadium passageways were fully packed with guests. In the corridors outside, many people sat watching a live broadcast of the lecture on TV or huge projection screens. Everyone waited eagerly as Master appeared, wearing a white outfit with colorful floral patterns. She looked like a gorgeous summer flower amid the zealous crowd. Since She had not visited Formosa for a long time, She immediately felt the intense emotions of people who had missed Her, and so, upon entering the stadium, She walked around the venue, greeting everyone in every corner. All the audience members rose to their feet and waved to Master, and tried to get a handshake from Her.

Before Her lecture, Master, with eyes closed, led the audience in a sincere prayer for peace in Formosa, mainland China, and the rest of the world. She thanked the large numbers of Buddhas who came to see Her. Although not everyone knew that they were Buddhas, She saw the Buddha in everyone. She said. "We are all one. We are the same. Each one of us is like a drop of water in the ocean. Although every drop is individual and special in its own way, it is still the ocean. If we want to know rather than just hear others say that we are all one, it is not so difficult. We only have to approach it from the other side. If we listen inward to our Self-Nature, we will immediately see our God Nature. We have all read about "listening inwardly to our Self- Nature" in the Buddhist scriptures, but we don't know how to do it. Why do we need to 'listen inwardly', and not 'look inwardly,' 'touch inwardly,' or 'feel inwardly'? This is because it is really possible to listen to our True Self. We do not listen to It with our hearing faculty; we listen with our inner heart. We can really listen. Why do we say listen? It is because there will be heavenly music, Buddhist sutras, heavenly teachings, and the inner Sound current that is as beautiful as music, but no musical instruments are needed to produce It."

In the middle of Her lecture, Master said that those who wanted to learn the Quan Yin Method could go outside to register. Then, there was a lot of movement in the venue, and many people went to the registration counters. More than a thousand people received initiation or learned the Convenient Method. << BACK TO TOP

With people in Japan becoming generally inclined toward material values in recent decades, very few were interested in spiritual practice, or had much idea about God or the Buddha. However, recently, Japanese have shown a discernible change in their willingness to pursue spirituality.

The lecture was held at the U-Port Kan-I Hoken Hall in Tokyo. Wearing a silver-gray blouse, long blue skirt and jacket, and with Her hair tied at the back, Master looked very beautiful and graceful. In Her lecture, Master pointed out that there is something within human being that makes us know that we are great, and when we find it we will know that we are from God, that we are Buddha. Some of us find a portion of this something, and some of us find the totality of it. The Buddha and Jesus found it completely, as did many other Masters, such as Mohammed and Krishna. When they found it completely, they became Buddha, they became completely enlightened, they became one with God, and they knew where they came from and where they would go after leaving the physical body. And then they told us that we also have God Nature within us, that we have God dwelling within this physical temple. If we find even a portion of this magnificent quality, this magnificent Original Nature within us, we will become wiser, more intelligent, happier, more peaceful and more loving.

During the question and answer session, one person spoke about feeling a very strong energy radiating from Master toward him during the lecture. Master said that everyone is not ordinary, everyone can develop this kind of power that makes you feel elevated, and then everyone around you feels elevated in just the same way. Not only can She, but also we, can have the same energy that radiates all over our surroundings and around the whole planet. Everyone who is near us, who is sensitive and a little spiritually elevated, can feel it. This energy is the God Nature, the God within us; once we have awakened this Power, we are powerful like that, and at that time, we can bless many people; we can bless the whole world with our energy. << BACK TO TOP

Seoul, the capital of the highly spiritual country of South Korea, was Master's final destination. The lecture was held at the Convention and Exhibition Center, a brand-new facility in the downtown. The new hall is large and spacious, and easily accommodates 10,000 audiences. Long, colorful banners, decorated with galaxies, the moon, and stars in sparkling silver and gold colors set a brilliant background for the raised stage where Master spoke. An elegant white lotus was gracefully wrapped around Her seat, with two smaller white lotuses at either side. Surrounding the stage were images of floating white clouds.

On the day of the lecture, people began coming early in the afternoon, and the lecture hall was soon filled. A welcoming team in traditional Korean dress could be seen lining the way from the first floor entrance to the third floor where the lecture hall is located. In the evening, Master arrived wearing a beautiful blue, yellow, and red "hanbok", the traditional woman's dress of Korea. Before Master spoke, a group of lovely female dancers performed a traditional Korean dance. After a fruit and flower offering, Master led the audience in a silent, sincere prayer for Korea (North and South) and for world peace.

In Her speech, Master said, "We have all heard from the Buddha that Buddha's Land is right here, and you can find it within yourself. We have all read in the Bible that the Kingdom of God is at hand: 'Lo and behold, the Kingdom of God is at hand. The Kingdom of God is within you.' But we just read it, and do not even have time to think about how to find it. If it exists, we must be able to find it. Yes, we can!"

Master also said that She was very happy that the Korean people show a very great interest in spiritual issues, and came in such great numbers to the lecture -- 10,000 people that day. Master added: "That's a lot, because you don't even know me. But I think your soul knows. Your purity tells you, therefore, you came because you are very near to God, very near to your God Nature, and you sense that you are something more than just this human physical body. So you came." The entire audience signaled their agreement with resounding applause. During the question and answer session that followed, the audience seemed sincerely curious about exploring the Truth that Master had presented. When Master announced that those interested in initiation should go to the booth outside the lecture hall, many people immediately took up Her suggestion. << BACK TO TOP