The dragons and gods are here to welcome the New Year, and the compassionate, joyful and generous Avalokitesvara appears. Once you awaken to the Buddha nature, your anger and worries will vanish into thin air.

 

I am grateful to the compassionate and merciful Guanyin Bodhisattva who saves people from suffering and gives them inspiration. I am grateful to all the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, the dragon and heavenly protectors of the ten directions and three times. I am grateful to all the guests, masters, and Buddhist friends and volunteers from all over the world. Hello everyone!

 

In the New Year of 2020, the Buddha’s light shines everywhere. Master is very happy to meet with you again in Sydney to share the Dharma, promote traditional Chinese culture, learn the essence of Buddhism, and promote Chinese culture and the wisdom of the Buddha to benefit all living beings! Let every family be happy, society be stable, and the world be peaceful! Master wishes everyone in the New Year: progress in the New Year, cultivate both blessings and wisdom, make progress in learning Buddhism, and all requests will be answered!

 

Natural disasters and man-made disasters continue to occur in the world today. The wildfires in Australia at the end of 2019 have burned 8,000 koalas and left thousands of people homeless; the New Zealand volcanic eruption caused dozens of deaths; on January 8, a Ukrainian plane crashed, killing all 180 people on board.

 

The latest survey shows that nearly 3 million Australians suffer from depression and are taking antidepressants, which means that about 1 in 8 Australians is taking antidepressants. A recent study by the University of Washington in the United States shows that the number of new cancer patients in Australia ranks first in the world! In 2020, there will be nearly 150,000 new cancer patients. According to statistics, one-third of cancers are caused by “mental illness”, and at least 40% of cancer patients die from psychological factors, including loneliness, fear, despair, extreme sadness and grief, and resentment. Pessimism can easily induce cancer and lead to death from heart failure.

 

Buddhism teaches that everything is created by the mind, and life is a mixture of joy and sorrow. Endless desires will only cause endless troubles in the world. Buddhists should understand that everything should be done in moderation and that contentment is the key to physical and mental health and happiness.

 

Nowadays, many people have lost their kind nature in order to gain practical benefits. As the saying goes, “People die for money, and birds die for food.” Last June, a 25-year-old Thai woman, Kanchana Srisong, was in urgent need of bail because her boyfriend was imprisoned for drug abuse. In order to obtain a huge amount of money to help her boyfriend in a short period of time, she hired a killer to kill her 55-year-old mother so that she could inherit her mother’s large estate and collect insurance money from the bank. She was eventually sentenced to prison. Last August, a Russian student with excellent grades and who had won many academic competitions was jealous of his mother’s love for his younger brother. He killed his mother, twin brother, and grandparents with an axe and then committed suicide.

 

Greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance and doubt are like poisonous snakes that hurt our hearts. People are between good and evil in one thought. One evil thought will sow evil seeds, and one righteous thought will bring good results. To learn Buddhism and cultivate the mind, only by letting the Buddha’s heart live in the heart forever, breaking the delusion in the illusory world, and uniting the mind with the Buddha, and cultivating the lotus in the heart with the great vow of selflessness and altruism, can we achieve the pure land of the mind and repay the Buddha’s kindness in one lifetime!

 

Master holds a Dharma Assembly in Sydney, Australia, every year in January. In January 2019, Master also gave a Dharma talk here and made predictions for the whole year of 2019. All the natural and man-made disasters predicted have been confirmed.

 

In the Dharma Ending Age, natural disasters and man-made disasters are everywhere. Only when people learn to be grateful can they be happy every day; only when people are content can they be happy every day. (Applause)

 

The kindness of a Buddhist is a reflection of life. In any good thought and good deed in our hearts, we will see a kinder self. Appearance is born from the heart, happiness is born from the heart, and happiness is born from the heart. (Applause) A Buddhist with a kind heart must be a compassionate person.

 

Many people succeed because they understand reason, and many people fail because they lose reason. What is reason? Reason is to understand: the biggest enemy in life is oneself, and one must face oneself; the biggest failure in life is arrogance; the biggest ignorance in life is deception; the biggest sorrow in life is jealousy; the biggest mistake in life is self-abandonment; the most pitiful temperament in life is inferiority; the biggest sin in life is self-deception; the most admirable thing in life is diligence; there is no bankruptcy in life, and any bankruptcy in career and future is not bankruptcy. The biggest bankruptcy in life is despair; the biggest wealth in life is health; the biggest debt in life is the debt of love; the biggest gift in life is to forgive others; the greatest happiness in life is charity. (Applause)

 

On November 27, 1940, a young man was born in San Francisco, USA. His English name is Bruce Lee. Because his father was an actor, he had the opportunity to play minor roles since he was a child, so he dreamed of becoming an actor. However, due to his weak body, his father asked him to learn martial arts to strengthen his body. In 1961, he was admitted to Washington State University majoring in philosophy. Later, he got married and had children like all normal people. But deep in his heart, he never gave up the dream of becoming an actor. One day, when he was talking about his dream with a friend, he wrote down his life goal on a small piece of paper: “I, Bruce Lee, will become the highest paid superstar in the United States. In return, I will give the most exciting and powerful performances. Starting from 1970, I will win a worldwide reputation, and by 1980, I will have a fortune of 10 million US dollars. At that time, my family and I will live a happy, harmonious and happy life.” When he wrote this note, his life was in poverty. It is not difficult to imagine that if this note was seen by others, it would definitely cause others to laugh. However, he kept these words firmly in his heart. In order to realize his dream, he overcame countless difficulties that ordinary people could not imagine. For example, he was lying in bed for 4 months due to a spinal nerve injury, but later he miraculously stood up. In 1971, the god of fate smiled at him. The movies he starred in, “Fist of Fury”, “Way of the Dragon”, all broke the Hong Kong box office record. In 1972, he starred in the movie “Enter the Dragon” co-produced by Hong Kong Golden Harvest Company and Warner Bros., becoming an international superstar and known as the “Kung Fu King”. In 1998, Time magazine named him one of the “20th Century Heroes and Idols”, and he was the only Chinese to be selected. He is Bruce Lee, the most famous Chinese star in the world so far. Later, this note was bought by a collector for a high price of 290 million yuan, and at the same time, 2,000 copies that were legally allowed to be copied were also sold out. The host of the auction excitedly shouted at the time: “This note may be one of the reasons for your success.” (Applause)

 

This story tells us that people should have confidence, goals, and intentions in life. A person who is diligent will be happy, and being content will bring him constant joy. A career will be hard before joy. Life will be fun. The spirit will be full of joy. Time will be happy as fate would have it. Life will be happy by helping others. Learning Buddhism will bring joy to all. (Applause)

 

Buddhists should view all things in the world with a more positive, tolerant, kind, and healthy attitude, and you will receive the compassion of others in return. Chinese traditional culture says “you reap what you sow.” If you sow understanding, you will reap tolerance; if you sow forgiveness, you will reap harmony; if you sow criticism, you will reap complaints from others; if you sow accusations, you will reap the root of trouble. (Applause)

 

Our home is not about size, but warmth; our soul is not about distance, but about connection. It is not easy for a person to grow up healthily. Just like a tree, it will always have branches and twigs. Just don’t forget to prune them often. Buddhists should not be afraid of troubles and difficulties. If you cultivate your mind often, you will always be rewarded with success. (Applause)

 

No matter how good someone else’s things are, they are still someone else’s. Look less at what others have and think more about what you have, and you will have a truly happy life. (Applause)

 

When you can’t figure it out, you will fight with others. In this world, the forest is big and there are all kinds of birds. Everyone has a different understanding of things. Don’t expect others to recognize you, because you know yourself best; don’t expect others to accompany you for a lifetime. When your life loses its light, even your shadow will leave you. (Applause)

 

A person’s mentality should be kind and he should have self-nature. There are two signs of a person’s psychological aging: one is complaining and regretting all day long, and the other is pinning hopes on others. A wise person can think clearly, and a Buddhist can see far. Isn’t life just eating, sleeping, scolding, laughing, walking, dying, and burying? What is there to be sad about? Think about your current age. The sadness and happiness in the past have long turned into smoke. Cherish what you have now. This is what you have now and the only thing you have. Learn Buddhism and cultivate your mind, embrace all rivers, don’t take things to heart, your body will be healthy, your wisdom will eliminate troubles, and you will have a long life.

 

If you wake up in the morning and find that you can breathe freely, you are more fortunate than those who passed away this week; if you have never experienced the danger of war, the loneliness and pain of losing loved ones, the torture of illness, and the discomfort of hunger, you are better off than 500 million people in the world; if your body can still move without relying on others, you are happier than 1 billion people; if you still have food in your refrigerator, enough clothes on your body, and a house to live in, you are richer than 70% of the people in the world.

 

According to data from the United Nations “World Food Day”, 36 countries around the world are currently in the midst of a food crisis; 800 million people are still hungry; and on the African continent, one-third of children suffer from chronic malnutrition; and 6 million preschool children die of hunger every year around the world.

 

If you have money in your bank account and cash in your wallet, you are already among the richest 8% in the world. If you can hear what the Master said, you are much happier than the 70 million deaf and dumb people in the world.

 

People should learn to be content. People will encounter various misfortunes in their lives. Happy people know how to be content, and only those who cherish can truly possess. Only by seeing through and letting go can you save yourself.

 

A man who couldn’t swim accidentally fell into a pond. He paddled desperately with his limbs and shouted for help. The more he struggled, the faster he sank. Finally, he thought, “Let me die.” He made up his mind, relaxed his whole body, and didn’t move his hands. As a result, his body floated up.

 

The same is true for us who study Buddhism. When we encounter something, the more nervous we are, the more likely it is that something bad will happen. The more we see through it, the more we let go, and the less we cling to it, the easier it will be for us to succeed. (Applause)

 

The wealth of life is not how much money you have or how much real estate you own, but how many people you have helped, saved, and influenced, and how many people will miss you when you leave this world. (Applause)

 

In today’s world, the world is full of hustle and bustle. A young man rescued a drunk man with long hair from the cold lake. The onlookers were moved by the young man’s spirit of self-sacrifice and applauded him enthusiastically. Unexpectedly, the young man looked around in the crowd, but couldn’t find it. He shouted: “Who was blind just now and said that the person who fell into the water was a beautiful girl? That’s why I jumped in.” Modern people have to be selective when doing good deeds and saving people, and they can’t extricate themselves from fame, fortune and gain.

 

If you succeed, eating vegetables is called health preservation; if you fail, eating vegetables is called shabby.

 

Modern men like women’s beauty and women like men’s sweet words, so women learned to put on makeup and men learned to lie.

 

Lies in life are like lines, which are often memorized before being spoken; the truth is like a cough, which can only be heard when one can no longer control it.

 

When you put aside your face and be humble, it means you have become sensible and are close to success; when you use money to earn back your face, it means you are in the five desires and six dusts; when you can use your face to help others, it means you are already a saint; when you still stay in a small restaurant drinking, bragging, knowing nothing, and talking about face every day, it means that this is how your life will be.

 

Life always laughs at us for being too young, but youth is gone forever.

 

People are actually very stupid and often make mistakes, but think about it, the world is so big, and you haven’t been the stupidest or suffered the most, so don’t take it to heart, study Buddhism well, and don’t make the same mistake next time. The New Year is here, we should forget the past and welcome the dawn of the New Year. (Applause)

 

If a person is too gullible, his heart will only become heavier. What you see with your own eyes may not be true, let alone what you just hear? So don’t be too picky. Many people have a good relationship in their family, relatives and friends, but no matter how strong the relationship is, it will crack after too much trouble. If the day is too bright, if you don’t cherish it, the day may be your night. (Applause)

 

Mike is the manager of a restaurant in the United States. He is in a good mood every day. When people ask him how he is doing recently, he always has good news to tell you. He is in a good mood every day. No matter what the situation is, he always has a smile on his face. Seeing his situation, many people were curious. One day, his friend asked him, “Mike, I don’t understand. No one can always be so positive and optimistic. How do you do it?” Mike replied, “Every morning when I wake up, I always tell myself that I have two choices today. One is to choose a good mood, and the other is to choose a bad mood. But I always choose a good mood. Even if something bad happens, I still choose a good mood. Because I don’t want to be a person whose heart is hurt and make myself more painful. Many people come to complain to me. I can accept complaints, but I choose more bright sides to persuade them to change themselves.” The friend said, “What you said is not so easy, right? When a person is troubled, how can he laugh?” Mike said, “That’s right. Life is a series of choices. Every situation is a choice. If you choose to interact with people, you choose whether others will affect your mood. Sometimes you choose whether your mood is good or bad. If you do good things, you don’t do bad things. It will affect your work.” A few years later, Mike unexpectedly experienced something unexpected. One day he forgot to close the back door of the restaurant. As a result, three armed gangsters broke in and robbed him in the morning. They asked Mike to open the safe immediately. Due to excessive nervousness, Mike got a wrong number. The gangster thought he did it on purpose and shot Mike out of nervousness. The gangster escaped and Mike was sent to the hospital for emergency treatment. After 15 hours of surgery, Mike was finally discharged from the hospital, but a piece of bullet shell remained in his body. Six months after the incident, a friend met Mike and asked him how he was doing recently. He replied: “I am very lucky. Do you know about my situation?” The friend said: “Yes.” “Do you want to see my wound?” The friend said: “No, no. I just want to ask you, how did you feel when the robbers entered the house?” Mike said: “The first thing I thought of was that I should have locked the back door. After they shot me, I was lying on the floor. I remember I had two choices: one, I could choose to live; two, I could choose to die. So I chose to live.” “Aren’t you scared?” Mike continued: “The medical staff are amazing. They kept telling me ‘It’s okay, don’t worry.’ But when they pushed me to the emergency operating table, I saw the worried expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses. I was really scared at this time. In their eyes, I seemed to have seen “I was already lying in bed, what did you do?” “At that time, a big nurse asked me a question in a roaring voice: ‘Are you allergic to anything? Hey, hey! Are you allergic to anything? ‘ I answered: ‘Yes. ‘ At this time, the doctors and nurses stopped and waited for my answer. I took a deep breath and shouted: ‘I am allergic to bullets! ‘ The doctors and nurses were laughing, and the worried expressions on their faces gradually disappeared. After they laughed, they told me: ‘You should be fine, you can choose. ‘ I told them: ‘I choose to live now, please treat me as a living person when operating on me, not as a dead person. ‘” This story tells us that we cannot choose the weather, but we can change our mood. Life is full of choices. Every day you can choose to enjoy the fun of your life, or hate your life with ruthless troubles. (Applause)

 

Modern people take other people’s lies as oaths, and sometimes take other people’s oaths as lies. The biggest difference between oaths and lies is that lies are taken seriously by the listener, while oaths are taken seriously by the speaker. (Applause)

 

The wisdom of traditional Chinese culture is infinite. In “Lie Yu Kou”, Zhuangzi expounded on nine aspects of understanding a person. Many people are deceived and cheated because they don’t know how to judge people. Traditional Chinese culture has long said that there are nine ways to judge people. Zhuangzi said that there are nine ways.

 

First, keep a distance from him to observe his loyalty. Keep a distance from a person to observe whether he is loyal. When you are next to him, he may be very loyal, but when you are far away from him, you can see whether he is loyal to you or not.

 

Second, get close to the person and observe his respect. Get in close contact with the other person and observe whether he can still respect you. As long as people get in close contact, he may not respect you soon. This person does not know the importance of things.

 

Third, give him troubles and see if he can handle them. Give him a lot of complicated things to do and see if he can handle them. If he can, then he is capable; if he can’t, then he is incapable.

 

Fourth, ask him a question suddenly to observe his knowledge. Ask him a question suddenly to observe his thoughts and consciousness. It is not uncommon for a person to be mentally prepared to answer a question; if you ask him a question suddenly, his answer will show his wisdom and IQ.

 

Fifth, make an appointment with the other party as soon as possible to see if he is trustworthy. Make an appointment with the other party to do something and see if he can keep his promise. If this person cannot keep his promise, this person should not be associated with.

 

Sixth, entrust him with money to see if he is benevolent. Give him money and let him manage it, and you can see if he is benevolent or not, because many people forget about benevolence and righteousness when they see money. Entrust him with money to manage and use, and you can see his attitude towards money and his use of it, and his benevolence and morality towards things.

 

Seventh, warn someone of danger and observe his integrity. When the other person is in a dangerous situation, you can see his integrity. Many people run away first when they are in a dangerous place, leaving others to suffer and take the risk. So when they are in danger, you can see whether a person is a true hero or a fake coward.

 

Eighth, observe him when he is drunk. When he is drunk, observe his appearance to see if he is good at controlling his desires. Many people do bad things and make many mistakes when they are drunk. When he is drunk, you can know his attitude towards benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom and trustworthiness.

 

Ninth, observe their expressions when you are with them. Observe whether they treat others differently in different groups and situations. Some people often say one thing in front of others and another behind their backs, say different things in different situations, and treat different people differently. We should be wary of such people.

 

By observing people using the above nine methods, you can find out who is an unworthy person and who is a virtuous person.

 

A man was sitting on the deck of a ship reading a newspaper. Suddenly a strong wind blew his newly bought hat into the sea. He touched his head with his hand, looked at the hat that was falling, and continued to read the newspaper. A person next to him was puzzled: “Sir, your hat was blown into the sea!” “I see, thank you.” He continued to read the newspaper. “But your hat is worth dozens of dollars.” “Yes, I am considering saving money to buy another hat. I am heartbroken that my hat is lost, but think about it, can I get the lost hat back?” After saying that, the man continued to read the newspaper. This story tells everyone that Buddhists should understand that in the human world, what we have lost is lost, so why make a fuss about it or worry about it? In 2019, we lost a lot and gained a lot, but 2019 has passed. I hope everyone will seize today, which is better than hundreds of tomorrows. (Applause)

 

Everyone has experienced losing something they love, such as a newly-paid salary, a favorite car being stolen, or a lover who has been with them for several years walking away… These losses will cast a heavy shadow on our minds, and sometimes even torture our hearts for a long time. Buddhists should understand that this is because we have not adjusted our mindsets to face it, have not psychologically acknowledged the loss, and only indulged in things that no longer exist. People are always in memories, and memories can make people suffer, without realizing that everything is “suffering, emptiness, and impermanence” as described in Buddhism. (Applause)

 

In 2020, in addition to reciting the Great Compassion Mantra and the Heart Sutra more often, you should also recite the Auspicious Mantra for Eliminating Disasters and the Mantra for Untying Knots more often.

 

There is also a very important Chinese traditional custom of burning the first incense stick on New Year’s Eve to bless oneself with peace and good fortune for the whole year.

 

My brother and sister-in-law both have bad tempers and they get angry easily. So I advised my brother that next time before losing his temper, he should take a deep breath and silently repeat “don’t lose your temper” 10 times to see if his anger can be relieved. One day, my sister-in-law got angry again over a small matter and kept on swearing. My brother remembered what I said, took a deep breath, and began to silently repeat “don’t lose your temper”. When he repeated it for the fifth time, my sister-in-law slapped him and said, “How dare you curse me!”

 

People nowadays are narrow-minded and very sensitive. They cannot free themselves from the troubles of the world. Buddhists can dispel their worries by reciting the knot-untying mantra. If you learn Buddhism and dispel your worries, you will not be afraid to travel around the world. (Applause)

 

When they are in love, couples sigh: “What good deeds did we do in our past life to make us so happy?” After marriage, couples often doubt and scold themselves: “What sins did we commit in our past life that life is so miserable!” This is called fate.

 

Fate needs to be nurtured by Buddhism, and you need to change yourself. If you don’t learn Buddhism in life, you will be helpless in the world.

 

No one is perfect. Buddhists should understand that when others make mistakes, they should be tolerant. If you are good at forgiving others, you will have more room to live. People who can forgive others know that they have been hurt by hatred. You forgive others because you have been hurt by others. You should not hurt others again and let them suffer the same pain as you.

 

Tolerance is a treasure, and life is precious. Only when we understand the pain of loss can compassion become more precious. (Applause)

 

I once shed tears, but I found comfort in Buddhism. I once had a hard life, but I found peace in Buddhism. Success and failure are just a process in our human world. Once it passes, it is gone. A person’s life is like a train. It has a starting point, but no end point. The people who get on and off are all your good karma. You should cherish them. Glory and gloom are just a natural thing. Setbacks make us understand that there is still a long way to go. Frustration makes us understand the sorrow and joy of the world. Buddhists should understand that life is impermanent. Be content with what you have, and you will be on the path to liberation. (Applause)

 

Life is like a dream. Only by using the false to cultivate the true, and letting go of the self, can we be free from worries. Without worries, we can find our own Buddha nature and original nature. The Guan Yin Method is to let us love our country and the people, abide by the law, learn from Guan Yin Bodhisattva’s boundless compassion and compassion, embrace the vastness of the universe, diligently practice precepts, concentration, and wisdom, and practice the six perfections. Only in this way can we become Bodhisattvas in the world, climb the four saints together, and build a spiritual pure land in the world. Thank you. (Applause)