Chapter 16 - A Blind Cat Meets a Dead Rat

I asked:

“What is self-proclaimed merit?”

White Tara replied:

“First example — when someone dies, the family informs a spiritual cultivator. The cultivator then says, ‘Last night the deceased’s spirit came. I personally performed a deliverance and guided them, and now they have already reached the Western Pure Land.’ When the family hears this, they are deeply moved and grateful, make a large offering, and from then on trust whatever the cultivator says.”

(In fact, nothing of the sort ever happened.)

White Tara continued:

“Second example — a married couple has long been childless and seeks out a spiritual cultivator. The cultivator says, ‘I will give you a blessing.’ Later, the couple really does have a child, and the cultivator says, ‘I carried this child down from heaven and gave it to you.’ The child’s parents weep with gratitude; naturally, another large offering follows, and they revere the cultivator like an immortal or deity.”

(In fact, nothing of the kind occurred; it was merely a coincidence.)

White Tara continued:

“Third example — a person falls ill and remains sick for a long time without recovering. They seek out a spiritual cultivator, and later they do recover. The cultivator then proclaims, ‘I went to the heavenly realm and invited a divine physician especially to treat this person.’ Now that the person has recovered, it is treated as yet another great merit.”

(In fact, nothing like this ever happened.)

White Tara said:

“Fourth example — a spiritual cultivator predicts, ‘This person will die within half a year.’ The person becomes frightened and seeks help. The cultivator agrees to protect them. Half a year later, the person is still alive, and the cultivator says, ‘I asked the dharma protectors and guardian generals to guard this person above, below, and on every side; that is why they did not die.’”

(In fact, the prediction was false, and the so-called protection was fabricated out of nothing.)

White Tara said:

“Fifth example — a spiritual cultivator claims to know the karma of past, present, and future lives. Whenever someone comes, the cultivator says, ‘In a previous life I was your teacher, and you made a vow to follow me life after life. Therefore, in this life, you cannot help but follow me.’ As a result, people trust the cultivator and are easily directed by them.”

(In fact, the cultivator knows nothing of the karma of the three times.)

White Tara said:

“Sixth example — a spiritual cultivator claims to have gone to heaven and entered hell, though in truth they have never gone to heaven or entered hell at all. The cultivator also claims to command spirits and deities, while in fact those very spirits and deities often mock them in secret.”

(The cultivator simply lacks the spiritual power for any such thing.)

White Tara said:

“Seventh example — a spiritual cultivator says that dragons emerge from lakes to bow before them; that whenever they go to a temple, the temple gods and buddhas line up to welcome them; and that wherever they travel, mountain gods and earth deities make offerings to them.”

(Pure exaggeration.)

White Tara said:

“A spiritual cultivator may claim to have attended meetings with the buddhas to discuss how to save the earth and liberate sentient beings, and may even declare that among all the cultivators in the world, they alone were chosen to represent everyone at a great assembly to save humankind.”

(Utter bragging and nonsense.)

White Tara said:

“A spiritual cultivator claims that the heavenly beings above all rely on them as their teacher — a teacher of gods and humans. The kings and judges of hell also obey their commands. This person declares, ‘I alone am the World-Honored One — throughout heaven and earth, only I am supreme!’”

(Far too early for that!)

White Tara said:

“There are many cultivators of this kind. All of them are recorded in the Register of Names in the Three Evil Realms. What begins as exaggeration and falsehood turns into a stream of deceptive speech; over time, it becomes habitual. For the sake of fame and profit, they commit one offense after another and remain unable to transcend saṃsāra and the sufferings of birth and death!”

Such things must be stopped!

Take warning! Take warning!