The Lord then gave the London precious Dharma place a pair of shoes, symbolizing the going to execute the Tao in order to penetrate into thousands of Dharmas. When one’s seeing has been achieved, one will walk under vowed conduct without stumbling and falling.

The Lord gave the Four Followers in the United States a pair of glasses. Its meaning was that they must practice the Tao Dharma until they have eyes capable of seeing thousands of Dharmas. Only after seeing, a Tao practitioner can penetrate into Dharma precepts.

At the Central Superior Association, the Lord also taught, “A gold digital milligram scale still has error, but what I already attested would not have any error, even in the slightest.”

Why? The Buddhas were completely enlightened of forms and thus would never be mistaken. Living beings handle a matter by following sides and angles (under one aspect or another), while Buddhas comprehend it profoundly in measureless aspects, so the Lords can resolve and conduct thousands of Dharmas by following a circle (under every aspect), and thus it is tight (perfect). All the moving of the living beings and all acts of the Saints are not in perfection, so they cannot get out of the cycle in any act. Therefore, they cannot surpass the Buddhas and do not understand things as thoroughly as the Buddhas.

The Buddha Path’s inheritance is the One Essence, so it preserves the Supreme Constitution and the Mind-Seal of Attestation. Therefore, in the period of the Sixth Patriarch, Hui Neng, Tao practitioners, though acquiring the Dharma or holding the truth of “knowing and seeing Buddha,” also had to go back to worshiping and receiving the attestation in order to enter the Original Essence – One Essence – Tathagata Constitution, the complete True Enlightenment. —T. V.

What the Lord taught in this Period of Return and Dharma-Ending reminds us that in the Sixth Patriarch Period, even Tao practitioners attaining the “knowing and seeing Buddha” also had to receive attestation from the Inherited One. It’s the same in the present: Tao practitioners must follow the supreme principle exactly and then continue to practice Dharma for the “Buddha’s knowledge and sight.” Thenceforth, such a practitioner can communicate with the Buddha’s power in accordance with their degree of attested attainment in the Nine Qualities of the Connecting Flowers.

At number 6 Hùynh Thúc Kháng Street, Nha Trang, Mrs. Venerable Tạng Trình held the Lord’s Precious Constitution of Sutras, Proclamations, and attestations.

Ms. Diệu Hạnh was a true disciple, usually typing the sutras and attestations that the Lord made. She also usually preserved for herself what she typed for Him. The Lord used to handle things in such a wonderful and deliberate manner that all true disciples were satisfied and felt a sacred, noble love from Him.

In 1975, after many ups and downs, the Lord miraculously used tranquility and disturbance as well as form and formless, resulting the remaining Venerables as follows:

• Ms. Venerable Pháp Tùng.

• Mrs. Venerable Tạng Trình.

• Mr. Venerable Pháp Bang: He had left for three years and then met the Lord while visiting the grave of a relative. The Lord told him to go back. Afterward, he left for one more year. The last time he got angry with the Lord, he left for six months. When the Lord prepared to enter the Eight Masses of Nirvana, he returned to the Centre following the calls of Dharma brothers and sisters but refused to see the Lord. At last, the Dharma brothers and sisters’ insistence made him come to see the Lord one last time.  The Lord mildly said, “I know you are waiting until I pass away before you return.”

Venerable Pháp Bang has preached the Dharma well, but he must achieve the act of penetration into Dharma precepts. This is a very important matter for a Venerable. The Lord attested for Venerable Pháp Bang to be enlightened in the future.

• The Lord also attested Ms. Venerable Pháp Tùng and Mrs. Venerable Tạng Trình to be fully enlightened in the future—its degree of attainment is deeper than enlightenment.

• Venerable Pháp Kiến only spoke interminably; his eyes did not see Dharma to act. The Lord said that Pháp Kiến would later be influenced by the external, so he must practice Dharma harder to attain the “knowing and seeing Buddha.”

• Venerable Tạng Thân: The Lord noted his name in the sutra, but he was not yet granted a robe or the attested certificate of a Venerable.

• Venerable Pháp Hậu: He endured well and overcame many challenges, but later the Lord abolished his Venerable level.

• At the Precious Dharma Place of Provincial City Association Quy Nhơn:

1.  Ms. Dharma Protector Tạng Hiếu.

2.      Mr. Dharma Protector Pháp Quảng, who needed to develop virtue.

3.      Ms. Dharma Protector Pháp Liên.

The Lord promulgated an ordinance by which He would no longer recognize Venerable Pháp Kiến as a faithful true disciple (that ordinance is still kept in the archives).

• At the Dharma Precious Place of Provincial City Association Đà Nẵng:

1.      Ms. Dharma Protector Tạng Sinh, who was attested by the Lord to be enlightened in future.

2.      Dharma Protector Pháp Thành, who needed to build Buddhist intelligence.

• In the 3rd District of Đà Nẵng:

1.  Mr. Dharma Protector Pháp Đáo.

• At the Dharma Precious Place of Provincial Association Thừa Thiên Huế:

1.      Dharma Protector Tạng Chưởng.

2.      Dharma Protector Tạng Thoàn.

• At the Dharma Precious Place of Saigon City:

In 1981, the Lord sent me to Saigon to open Tao Dharma. Later, I guided some faithful true disciples with vowed conduct, who became the Dharma Protectors. They have been diligently doing the Buddha’s works for many years. Though living in Saigon, they carried out their vows to do all the Buddha’s works of the Centre, and were opened their consciousness constitution by the Lord.

1.  Bodhisattva Di Như.

2.  Dharma Protector Tạng Khiêm.

3.  Dharma Protector Tạng Thắng.

4.  Dharma Protector Tạng Thông.

5.  Dharma Protector Diệu Trâm.

6.  Dharma Protector Pháp Cẩn.

7.  Dharma Protector Pháp Trực.

8.  Tạng Thành, who printed and distributed sutras and would be wealthy in future. This means he was not capable of practicing the Tao of enlightenment.

Three years after the Lord’s entrance into the Eight Masses of Nirvana, Venerable Pháp Thao and some faithful followers who have not sufficiently practiced the Self-Nature were led by phantom magic to the talisman and incantation path, and were invaded by the external. Fortunately, Pháp Thao was then intuitively awakened and returned to the True Dharma.

Dharma Protector Tạng Thanh, who has a good Tao mind, asked me to take photographs of the Proclamation Attesting the Universe, the Bodhisattva Proclamation, and the Proclamation of Trust-Obedience-Respect. I agreed with his request, aiming for him to follow the Bodhisattva conduct in practicing Dharma. Tạng Thanh was not attested but claimed himself, and wrongly acted, not in conformity with the supreme principle. This was dangerous and harmful. Tạng Thanh very much needed to develop virtue.

In Saigon, there were many more true disciples who practiced by following the Dharma Constitution, but they did not conduct their vows on the common path; only the mentioned practitioners took care of Tao Dharma together at the Centre.

As Chief of the Central Dharma Support Committee, and receiving the Mahasattva-Bodhisattva Proclammation in the presence of three Tao practitioners who were Venerables and faithful followers, I received the Lord’s teachings and successively wrote them down. Out of the Lord’s three thousand true disciples, a number of the above-mentioned Bodhisattvas, Venerables, and Dharma Protectors remained. Nearly one hundred other faithful followers everywhere still continued to practice Dharma with their faithful minds in Dharma Precious Places of the Dharma Constitution in accordance with the organization.

The Lord attested 36 Patriarchs who would succeed in building the True Dharma for the next five thousand years. According to the Lord’s teachings, the Patriarchs will later attain in their Dharma practice from enlightenment to full enlightenment, meaning that their highest level will be the Arahant, belonging to the Sacred rank. They should therefore not proclaim themselves to be Buddhas while not having enough effortful and virtuous merits.

All Tao practitioners who met the Lord in this lifetime, witnessed that Dharma practice was extremely difficult and advanced only step by step. In the future, therefore, Tao practitioners should not use their consciousness to magnify and proclaim themselves to be the Buddha. Even one who has attained the Dharma of Supreme Rank True Enlightenment, must wait until they meet the Bodhisattva who has acquired the Supreme Dharma with attestation, to be verified and attested by this Bodhisattva. Only then will they be able to enter the Original Essence – One Essence – Tathagata Constitution.

The Lord has also handed down and promulgated a declaration attesting Trust–Obedience–Respect. In the next generations,  succeeding Patriarchs should preserve this because it is the supreme principle of Reverend Long-Hoa Sangha Chief, incarnating Lord Supreme Maitreya Buddha, who represents the Buddhas in Ten Directions and Three Generations.

In this Period of Return and Dharma-Ending, the Lord witnessed Patriarchs and knowledgeable Tao practitioners who claimed themselves to be Buddhas in many places while their effortful and virtuous merits were far below that level.

The Patriarchs and true Tao practitioners in the future, even if they have acquired one or all of the three qualities No-Birth Dharma of Patience, Equality of Nature and Intelligence, and Samadhi Dharma Subject of Real Form and Formlessness—qualites which help them penetrate Dharma precepts deeply, enter the Sacred level, and clearly know the permanent characteristics of thousands of Dharmas—will still have to conduct their vows until enlightenment. Then full enlightenment will be attained before they can become Arahants.