Details
Download Docx
Read More
True Master Ngô Lợi is regarded as the third recognized incarnation or spiritual successor of Buddha of Tây An (vegan) within the Bửu Sơn Kỳ Hương lineage. Like the Buddha of Tây An, Master Ngô Lợi is believed to have attained enlightenment spontaneously, demonstrating profound spiritual insight while also guiding and benefiting sentient beings. Aside from spreading the Dharma through physical forms, He also conveyed the teaching through mind-to-mind transmissions. Furthermore, He guided the disciples to practice the cultivation of oneself and one’s nature in the method “Học Phật Tu Nhơn” (“Study Buddhism and Cultivate Oneself”). He taught His devotees to be self-reliant – transforming the wilderness, growing crops, and supporting one another – while committing to moral and spiritual cultivation. He emphasized personal responsibility and warned against seeking wealth or status through outside favors. Master Ngô Lợi journeyed widely through the secular world, living among ordinary people in various guises to convey His teachings. Wherever He traveled, He offered moral guidance, healed the sick, aided the suffering, welcomed devotees, and established places of worship incorporating Buddhist teachings. As His influence grew and His following expanded, the colonial authorities came to regard Him with apprehension and made repeated efforts to locate and suppress His religious movement. Yet, through His ability to alter His outward appearance – sometimes as a woman, at other times as a child – His movements remained elusive, and His true identity could not be traced. Once, at Tam Bửu Pagoda, devotees rushed to warn Master Ngô Lợi of the approaching colonial forces. He remained completely calm, showing no sign of fear. Forces under the district chief surrounded the pagoda. Seeing the Master sitting serenely, the disciples grew anxious, fearing for His safety. At dawn, the Master walked calmly out of the main gate, carrying a sharpened pole, ordinarily used for preparing medicinal herbs. Now appearing in the form of an elderly man with white hair and beard, He moved naturally, as if unaware of the surrounding soldiers. The guards shouted and threatened Him, but He quietly proceeded north, disappearing into the mountains. Master Ngô Lợi informed His disciples that if He took His last breath, then leave His body as is, pray, and guard it carefully since He will return. Master Ngô Lợi left behind “Đồ-Thư,” a prophetic text revealing changes in the future, only shared among the close disciples of Tứ Ân Hiếu Nghĩa Buddhism. Additionally, He inscribed a poem in one of the columns at Tam Bửu Tự in An Định village: “Though Heaven is high and Saints far away, One who cultivates immortality must know oneself. With each thought on Bodhi, suffering is forever absent, Attaining the Dharma and forming the body, blessings naturally arise. Liberated from worldly delusions, one willingly lets go, The Mahā Prajñā [Great Wisdom] is contemplated constantly.” Every year on May 5, Tứ Ân Hiếu Nghĩa Buddhism devotees celebrate Tam Hợp, honoring the Great Master’s birthday, the day of enlightenment, and the establishment of Tứ Ân Hiếu Nghĩa.
