Interview Transcript Interviewer: How long have you been practicing Buddhism?

Master Ming Yi: Practicing Buddhism, thats even before I became a nun. I think its about six, seven years before I become a master. The total would twenty some years already. Interviewer: How were you introduced into Buddhism? Master Ming Yi: How was I introduced into Buddhism? In fact, um as a child I went to Sunday school, to a Christian Sunday school, but I stopped as the age of eleven. Because at the time I wanted to be baptized, but my dad told me you were too young, so you better wait until your eighteen or even older, so from then on, as a youngster, I had no religion at all. I didnt go to church anymore. I didnt have a chance to get to know other religions. Until I was about seventeen, I moved into a boarding school, and it was a Buddhist school. So very strange, so the first evening we have a section from our principle, and hes a monk, an old monk. He talked about greed, desire, and from greed and desire lead into thoughts. The thought that you know people call it this kind of thought is sick. So I think it was very logical, and that time I had the very first impression on Buddhism. Its not worshipping statues, or being so superstitious, like most Christians criticize what Buddhism is. But I only spent year in that school and then I left and then I work in society until almost coming into my late thirties and I have a chance to listen to some visiting monks in Hong Kong, then I started to explore a little bit deeper and deeper into Buddhism. Interviewer: What was the most appealing part about Buddhism for you? Master Ming Yi: There are so many, but I think cause and effect. I believe in that, and also the compassion in Buddhism. That we dont kill, thats why we are vegetarians, and compassion doesnt mean to just to human beings and also to other living creatures. Interviewer: Can you explain more about cause and effect? Master Ming Yi: Cause and effect is like...umyou plant a seed, if plant a seed, an apple seed, you wont get pear, if plant a seed of grape, you wont get avocado. So people like to complain about life. Whenever all kinds of disappointment, or sometimes they cant become successful in life, or sometimes when they have bad relationship with other people, they like to complain a lot. But in Buddhism, we believe that this all link to your previous lives, not just one, but many many lives. How you deal with the others, how did you think, what kind of personality were you? Or even link with some lives that you were animal, youre in hell, or whatever. So this come to the effect in your future or the lives in the future, life after life. If I become very quickly, sometimes even happens in the same life, if you create time... that if you committed something really bad, and then maybe in a few years the effect will come out. Interviewer: How has Buddhism shaped your life? Master Ming Yi: It changed a lot. Shaped means shaped my life? Yea, I ate a lot of meat, but as a young child, or even an adult, but one time after I became a Buddhist, I was having lunch in a seafood restaurant. And the fish tank was decorated very beautifully, just like the T.V, colorful fishes colorful fishes were swimming were swimming in a very relaxed way. And suddenly, a

fish net try to scoop that fish up and it struggled. The struggle, you know makes the water waves and bubbles. And oh, I had a shockwell, its not the T.V, its not that relaxing as I can see because the fish very soon will be put on the chopping board, killed, cut into pieces. And then all these people dressed so decent, and theyre good looking people, but theyre not, they use a pork or a chopstick to eat the fish that were just swimming, very relaxingly. So that realize shocked me at that very moment. So, after that dinner, I decided to become a vegetarian for the rest of my life. I think we should be equal, thats also one thing that Buddhism really attract me. Every being, they have the Buddha nature inside them, but its just greed, all the bad habits, or sometimes that link with the previous life, we may kill, we may become very jealous, we may become very agitated. And so, oh I lost it. Where was I? I wanted to say Interviewer: Ill just go to the next question and if you remember just go back. What is the impact of Buddhism in China and its culture? Master Ming Yi: Oh, a lot, a lot. You may know or you may not know, in fact, I think Daoism is the Chinese religion. But after the rival of Buddhism, it changed a lot. I think most of Chinese, they totally accepts this religion. In fact, right now, the studyings, the instruments, even the chanting, there some sort of mix with Daoism. Its not the original, in the days of what Buddhism was like. So, its really mixed, or influenced both sided. Just like the Daoism also worship Kuan Yin, the Buddha of compassion too. And also, with the building of the temple, it also affect the some of the architecture. And so many arts, like paintings, sculptures, if you look back into history, it seems they cant separate from Buddhism. Interviewer: What do you think separates from Buddhism from the rest of the religions? Master Ming Yi: One thing isokay, I remember what I was trying to say. Because in Buddhism, I think its very very equal. We believe every living creature they have the living creature. Other religions, like Muslim, they have the Allah, and Christian, they have God. Theyre all almighty. They are not human beings, theyre always above us. But right now Im talking to you, talking to your mom, but I believe that all inside our heart, our mind, we have the Buddha nature. But the thing is, we have different level, of pollution, living in our every life. And we like to feel comfortable, we like to eat good food. Its human instinct on one hand, because you like comfortable life, so you want more money. And in the wayin the process you try to get more money, you may commit some kind of crime or misconduct, so that will come back as an effect. But if we practiced Buddhism, step by step, eventually you can become Buddha, I can become Buddha, she can become Buddha one day. So we have the same, if you make all human beings happy, that means you are making all the Buddhas happy. Thatsyou know, encourages us to be kind, and compassion to the others. So thats one thing thats very different from the other religions. You wont say that the Islamic, oh you will become Allah one day. So we would believe that one day you can become the Buddha, if you practice the Buddha, step by step.