《Guru’s Talks》
Book 129 Entering the Most Hidden Yin-Yang Realm: Master Cat
(《走入最隱祕的陰陽界》＜上師貓＞)
by H.H.Living Buddha Lian-sheng, Sheng-Yen Lu
About two years ago, a white cat suddenly appeared at the Ling Shen Ching Tze Temple in Redmond. This cat was not pure white and had multicolored spots on its coat. He had a majestic, powerful appearance, and clear, bright eyes.
At that time, Ling Shen Ching Tze Temple was having a problem with mice. There were many, numbering at least twenty or more, scurrying everywhere. They ate food intended as offerings, stole oil and rice, and chewed clothing and personal property. Some were so bold as to eat the food off dining tables, before we had even taken a bite!
We monastic practitioners dared not commit a killing, but just as we were reaching our wits’ end, in walked this white cat. His movements were nimble and he caught mice one after another.
The cat had a unique behavioral trait. Each time he caught a mouse, he would bring the dead body to the same place to be displayed. The monks and nuns would hasten to collect the dead bodies and recite the Rebirth Mantra or sutras, dedicating the merits of sutra recitation with the hope that the mice would be reborn in the pure lands of the buddhas, avoiding transmigration and rebirth as mice.
In a very short time, the mice of Ling Shen Ching Tze Temple in Redmond were eliminated. Not one was left.
The reverends of Ling Shen Ching Tze Temple were left with two puzzling questions:
1. Most cats in the United Stated have owners. A cat as handsome and powerful as this one must surely have an owner. However, when asked none of our neighbors had lost a cat. After a long search, we could not find the owner of the white cat. It was as if we were graced with a divine cat fallen from the sky.
2. Cats and dogs born and bred in the United States are usually fed by their owners, and all supermarkets in this country sell cat and dog food. The cats even have regular health checks and their lives are more comfortable and luxurious than that of many humans in this world. American cats simply do not know how to catch mice as there is no necessity for them to do so. So how was it that this white cat was so skillful?
The reverends brought the white cat before me, asking me to help him take the Fourfold Refuge.
Half-bending his front legs, he raised his hips high.
I recited:
“Namo Guru bei, Namo Buddha ye, Namo Dharma ye, Namo Sangha ye.” (Refuge in the Root Guru, refuge in the Buddhas, refuge in the Dharma, refuge in the Sangha.)
I gave him empowerment, and placed my hand atop his head to bless him.
He did not move in the slightest. Crying “meow meow,” as though saying, “Yes, yes.”
I gave him a refuge name “Lianhua Xiaomao (Lotus Little Cat).”
Lotus Little Cat was a cat with rigorous discipline. There were two places he would not enter. The first was the great hall of Ling Shen Ching Tze. The second was the dining room of Ling Shen Ching Tze. He would walk to the doorway of the main entrance and sit by the side of the doorway of his own volition.
He respectfully welcomed and respectfully sent off Grand Master.
Each Time I went to the dining room, he would be at the doorway to welcome me, and when I finished my meal and got up to leave. He would be at the doorway to see me off.
The reverends asked him to perform the Great Homage, and he would lie prone on his front legs, with his hips raised high. This was the Great Homage.
The reverends asked him to place his palms together, and he would stand up on his hind legs and put his front legs together.
Lotus Little Cat was like a superintendent at Ling Shen Ching Tze where all the animals here came under his jurisdiction.
Mice. He was definitely in charge.
Squirrels. He was also in charge. (The squirrels stole and ate food intended as offerings to the Dragon God.)
Dog. Dogs were bigger than him, but when dogs went to the garden and trampled on the flowers or damaged the plants, he used his claws to scratch and hurt the noses of the dogs. Over time, when the dogs saw him, they became afraid.
Crows. The crows flew in the air and cawed loudly. From the ground, he tried to catch the crows with his claws. They shrieked back. Later on, crows would gang up to attack him, dive bombing and charging at him again and again. He was like a battle chariot, baring his fangs with claws dancing. Both parties waged a great war. Incredibly, Lotus Little Cat would engage in a fierce battle with the crows flying at him from the air. It was truly a spectacular sight seldom seen. Neither side lost nor won.
Birds. Some birds would land on the lawn, and Lotus Little Cat would tread lightly and stealthily on his paws towards them. Then with quick speed, he would seize the bird and then play with it!
He was majestic and powerful.
He was clever and intelligent.
He strictly observed the precepts.
Because of this, he rendered acts of merit over and over again.
We addressed him as: Master Cat.
●
Once, Master Cat and I gazed into each other’s eyes and I found that his irises were deep and unfathomable, hiding many secrets like mist and fog.
Initially I had no other suspicions.
But, when I looked at his eyes again, I noticed a shadow behind them. The shadow quivered and was not very clear.
It reminded me of a contemporary poem titled “The Face Upon Which I Gaze,” which is as follows:
The face upon which I gaze
Is a face from my memory.
He imitates me,
Imitating me to learn Buddhadharma.
This face,
Unfamiliarity gradually fades.
Indeed we seem to have met before.
I was indeed a little surprised,
In this life. In this world.
I am now no longer young,
Yet seeing him age,
I was once full of sorrow,
He had lost sight of the significance of learning Buddhadharma.
I finally saw his face and I was startled, shocked in fact, that he had transformed into Master Cat.
How had he become Master Cat?
It was utterly beyond comprehension!
Karmic cause and effect and transmigration were simply too mysterious. How we go, how we come!
●
One night while I was dreaming, Master Cat entered my dream, and told me his experiences.
After he died, his soul drifted aimlessly. He was found by a guard from the netherworld and brought to the palace of the Yama King. The Yama King saw that his heart was full of resentment and discontent, and thus sentenced him to the “Hell of Flying Rocks.”
Thereafter, a Lord Liao came forward and said, “This person still has a sliver of respect for his guru!”
“Who is his guru?”
“Living Buddha Lian-sheng Sheng-Yen Lu.”
The Yama King replied “Oh!” nodded, and then asked, “How did he respect his guru?”
“One year, during the Dragon Boat Festival, he joyfully and excitedly brought along rice tamales, with the intent of visiting his guru. But when he arrived at the front door of his guru’s house, he did not dare enter. He hesitated several times, stretching out his hand with the intent of ringing the doorbell but then withdrew his hand again. He thought about his childish ways, how he had erred, and he was filled with both remorse and great sorrow. He was ashamed by his own prodigal way of life. He imagined his teacher’s derision and reproach, could not bear to face it, and thus hung the rice tamales on the door, turned and walked away.”
“Is this considered paying respect to his guru?”
“Yes, it can be.”
(to be continued)
