Missing Initiation the First Time

After what I had heard in the lecture, I very much wanted to be initiated, but the vegetarian diet stood in the way. So I eventually settled for transmission of the Convenient Method, which Master conducted Herself.

After a week or so, having read most of the magazines and the sample booklet, I reflected on the coincidences I had experienced, and compared articles I had read earlier with Master's teachings, and things that had happened in the lives of other initiates that I had read about in the magazines. I meditated for thirty minutes every day and realized that something had happened to me. Therefore, on January 1, 2000, the dawn of the new millennium, I became a full vegetarian. My family was amazed! My yearning became real and I began to realize the full extent of what I had missed when Master came to Johannesburg. Anyway, I was to wait for only three months for a Quan Yin messenger to come and give me initiation. During my wait, the 30-minute Convenient Meditation became frustratingly too short a period but I patiently held on.

Missed Again

News finally came that the messenger would be coming to my area. You can imagine my excitement! I now knew what I was looking for and, above all, knew without a doubt that I wanted it. Three days before the messenger came, local candidates for initiation were told that initiation would be held at the Center at 9:00 AM. On Saturday evening, I met a brother initiate and after some formalities he told me that the initiation was to be held on Tuesday. He reminded me that you should arrive at 8:00 AM for initiation and I just said, "Okay," without giving it much thought. On Monday afternoon, I went to our local supermarket, where I had first made contact with Master. Again I met the same brother I had encountered previously. After we had greeted each other, he said, "Don't forget, you must arrive for initiation at 8:00 AM tomorrow!" Again, without bringing myself to ask why he had emphasized 8:00 instead of 9:00, I replied, "Okay," thinking that he wanted us to watch a video before initiation.

On Tuesday, although the 8:00 AM mentioned by that brother flashed through my mind, it never occurred to me that something was not quite right. I was excited, not knowing that I would be late. I left home at around 8:15 and got to the Center at about 8:35. I was twenty minutes late! They had given some allowance time for late comers but I missed it. Even as I write now, I can feel a mist of tears in my eyes.

The brother who kept reminding me about the time was acting as a security guard. When he told me that I was late, I thought he was joking, and pleaded with him to let me in, but that was outside of his control. He actually went inside to see if there was any chance that I could enter, but came back to say he was sorry. I felt I had been rejected by God! I would have cried out, but I was just dry and dumbfounded, not knowing what to believe.

Another elderly brother, who also could not be initiated because of his age, came along. We sat in his car and told each other our stories-he also had missed his first initiation because of the vegetarian diet. I felt sorry for him, for I still had a chance, but I did not see it that way on that day. Again I had missed the call, missed the divine arrangement. I finally was initiated on December 19, 2000-after a whole year had gone by. Thank you, Master, for giving me the strength and courage to hold on for that long!

As I Look Back ...

Putting all the pieces together, I would not have missed anything if I had had the wisdom to see the signs as they unfolded. Even today, I wonder how much I missed because I had not seen these signs. They were just too subtle. When I look back and notice the perfection in the arrangement, I cannot help but smile. When Master came to South Africa, I am now sure that I was ready but my stupid brain just had a different agenda. That is the time when I should have cried over missing initiation. On the second miss, the Master-power must have noticed the mix-up in time and put a brother from the Center on my path, twice, to try to correct the situation but I missed it all.

Brothers and sisters, be on the lookout, and you can save yourselves a whole year of waiting for initiation!

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