Golden Age Lifestyle

When I was in high school, my family set up a tea farm. I learned the business from my father, helping out on the farm on holidays and acquiring some basic knowledge about tea production. After I graduated from the university, I had the blessing to be initiated by Master. I had long aspired to renounce the secular life and follow Her, but She gently declined my request and shattered my romantic dream. She said, "Create a spiritual village wherever we live... You have to be the center of the light in the society where you live, where you work, where you have your roots." No words could ever describe the frustration and disappointment I felt at the time. However, carrying a "dead heart", I looked life in the face and ventured into a new phase of learning: to become self-reliant.

Around that time, many people suggested that I take up "organic" farming. I discussed the matter with my father and he allocated a corner of the tea plantation for me to launch the experiment. Being young and daring, I feared nothing. Backed by my faith in God, I stopped the use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers on my tea farm. This raised many objections and disputes in my family, which fortunately have now given way to harmony and affirmation.

The life of a spiritual practitioner is fulfilling and interesting, but it is really no fun when ordeals arise! On the eventful day of September 8, 1998, a severe test devastated my faith and I complained to Master, "Master, I can no longer feel Your presence. Please tell me where I can find You!" I threw myself into a chair and meditated. About half an hour later, my younger brother rushed in and said with excitement, "Sister! Sister! Come to the tea farm quickly! Mom says that your Master has sent some egrets to help you clear out the pests!" Just hearing the word "Master" reduced me to tears. Half sobbing, I questioned him skeptically: "Don't try to fool me! How can there be egrets in the mountains?" But when I reached the tea farm, I saw a huge flock of egrets on every corner of the farm. I promptly got a camera to record this incredible scene, which represented Master's divine love for me.

After the September 21 earthquake last year in Formosa, I had no time to take care of the plantation because I was busy helping with the relief work. By the time I returned to the farm after the relief work was completed, nearly all of my tea plants were withering away from dehydration. The pest problem on some trees was almost out of control. Father said, "I am afraid many more trees will die this time!" (Many tea plants had died after I took over the farm!) He asked me whether I would apply pesticides or abandon the crop. I assured him that I could manage. Actually, I was burning inside and could only pray to Master for help. One day in a dream, Master and the monastic disciples came to meditate with me on my farm. Before the meditation, Master said to me, "No matter what happens later, don't be afraid and don't move!" I nodded. Later, when we were meditating, many snakes dashed out from among the tea plants and fled.

When I awoke from my dream, I recalled what Master had once told us: "There are no beasts on the more advanced planets because they cannot survive the superior vibrations there." Obviously, the only solution to the pest problem was to elevate the vibrations on the tea farm! Hence, in addition to using natural pesticides, I also held "group meditation" with the tea plants. As a result, they turned green again, and not a single tree died! My father regarded this as a pure miracle, but to me, a Quan Yin practitioner, it was simply a case of using the wisdom derived from spiritual practice in daily life. Perhaps this is the greatest privilege and right that God has bestowed upon us. But we must not be arrogant. Each time I proudly boast of "my success" in tea farming, pests start sneaking into my farm. It is a warning to me: Without the grace of God, "I" could never accomplish anything. I should exert my best effort but must not assume the merit because all glory goes to God. By giving me this blissful and peaceful "renunciate" life on a tea farm, Hes has already bestowed the greatest blessings on me.

 

The Mysterious Telephone Number My Self-Cultivation on a Tea Farm