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JOHANNESBURG - SOUTH AFRICA November 25, 1999

While Americans were celebrating their Thanksgiving holiday, South Africans were joyfully welcoming Supreme Master Ching Hai and fellow practitioners to Johannesburg, the site of the first of Master's lectures in South Africa. The country was in its summer season, but it was cooler than normal when practitioners arrived in Johannesburg, providing a wonderful atmosphere for passing out lecture flyers and hanging posters in the streets.

The lecture was held at Johannesburg's City Hall, located in the city's downtown area. The building was designed to look more like a theater than a place for public meetings, and in fact, the Johannesburg Symphony Orchestra plays there during its concert season. Even before the lecture began, many local people had signed up for initiation.

For the Johannesburg lecture, Master wore a white outfit with embroidered African totems in blue, red and yellow, and a high headdress in the same colors, looking graceful, luxuriantly beautiful, and perfectly matching the decor, totally in harmony with African customs.

Before the lecture, a native African sister, along with other local people, sang the Zulu song "Shosholoza" ('Marching Forward'), symbolizing Master leading us in a great leap forward in our spiritual practice. The untrammeled rhythm and enthusiastic dance accompaniment of the song provided a happy prelude to the night's lecture. Master began Her talk by saying that the African people wear colorful clothing because they are happy inside and close to God. Since God is colorful, Hes created many colorful things on Earth, including the skins of the different peoples.

Master went on to say that there is no eternal suffering, but only eternal love. We read in the Bible, Knock and the door shall be opened, but we do not know where to knock. So the Quan Yin Method gives us an opportunity to know how to "Ask and receive from God" and where to "Knock to open our wisdom door."

Many local people of various races were initiated that night. The last person to enter the initiation room was a Zulu policeman in full uniform with a gun on his hip. He had just been relieved from duty to be able to receive initiation. Master's first lecture in South Africa was a resounding success and set a positive tone for the rest of Her tour in South Africa.

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