‧Written by Sheng-yen Lu‧
A US Daden Culture Publication
I returned to Taiwan on November 15, 2014. Two days later, I woke up and my voice was hoarse.
I did not mind it at first.
Then I started coughing, and this turned into more and more serious and frequent coughing fits.
It was such a severe, dry cough that I started heaving slightly each time.
I visited an ear, nose, and throat specialist and took medication, lozenges, and cough syrup.
I finished all the medicine, but there was no improvement.
During the first week’s dharma ceremony, I would cough before going up to the dais to give a dharma discourse. During the discourse, however, I did not cough at all. After the discourse, the coughing resumed.
The same situation happened the second week. I started coughing prior ascending to the teaching dais. There was no coughing during the talk, but it resumed right afterwards.
During the Buddhist ritual “Yoga for Distributing Food to Flaming-Mouth Hungry Ghosts” at the Nectar Vihara (Ganlu Jingshe in Taichung), I did not cough at all when giving the dharma discourse. Other times, I was coughing.
It was strange! The coughing only stopped when I gave dharma discourses.
After announcing my cough in public –
Students started sending me medicine:
Cough syrups.
Herbs.
Lozenges.
Cough powders.
Effervescent tablets.
Western medicines.
Folk remedies…
With the amount of drugs accumulating in my home, I could open a pharmacy. I picked over the drugs and took some of them. To this date, as I am writing this article, I am still coughing.
I threatened the Golden Mother of Jade Pond:
“If this cough does not stop, I will convert to Christianity!”
I also said to her:
“If I keep coughing, I will become Muslim!”
But, the coughing continued!
Suddenly, I was confused! What to do? What to do? What to do? What to do? What to do?
Many physician students of mine tried to help me.
I asked myself what to do?
I replied:
“I don’t know!”
“Will you blame and complain indiscriminately here and there?”
I replied:
“I will not!”
“Did someone put black magic or Gu poison on you?”
“Ignore it!”
“Could it be the poor air quality in Taiwan?”
I replied:
“Poor air quality is a fact. But no one else in the group that came back has a cough except me. So, I cannot blame the air.”
“You use the throat to speak the dharma and this is creating such an inconvenience for you. Why not find a quick cure?”
I replied:
“Let nature run its course!”
“Does a great saint, an enlightened guru, and a buddha who has realized the Buddha-essence still have to undergo physical torture?”
I replied:
“Shakyamuni Buddha had migraines, bone spurs, and gastrointestinal problems.”
“When will you be well?”
I replied:
“When I am well! Haha!”
