Venerable Wangzha said, "Some individual unethical teachers, in order to gain trust from people, falsely claim that they can perform secret initiations and empowerments, have direct communication with the main deity, and enable the recipients of the empowerments to achieve everything in a short period of time. Little do they know that even the main deity of 'Famen Gongyu' does not recognize them as disciples. It should be known that 'Famen Gongyu' is not only used for the entrance examination, but also for any interaction with the main deity and the protectors. Learning the secret initiations requires the approval of the main deity of 'Famen Gongyu' as the first step. Only after entering the secret palace can one learn the initiations. If one has not even entered the secret palace to learn the secret initiations, yet shamelessly claims to possess great virtue and uses the ambiguous concept of identity, it has already caused many Buddhists to be deceived, which is absolutely unacceptable." In order to prevent deceptive teachers from harming sentient beings, our headquarters has adopted the "divination oracle" and "Famen Gongyu" used in the holy examination to accurately determine the level and title of the teachers. Although we have repeatedly announced the seriousness of this issue regarding different levels of virtue, some teachers still use their superficial titles, such as Venerable, Dharma King, Living Buddha, and Grand Master, to falsely claim great virtue and deceive people, leading them astray. However, their actual qualifications and status do not match their self-proclaimed great virtue or virtue. Currently, there are still some individual teachers who do not truly practice and do not abide by the rules and precepts. They know clearly that they have not attained the three illuminations and the six virtues, yet they still pretend to be great virtuous beings or virtuous beings. The people who do not read the announcements and only listen to certain individuals' false claims often fall into deception and later complain endlessly. The blame lies with those who have been deceived because they did not read the announcements and willingly fell into the trap. In order to completely eliminate the practice of pretending to be true, exaggerating small accomplishments, lacking evidence, and deceiving and harming people, it is necessary to be clear that the title of a hundred percent pure and authentic virtuous being must be obtained through an examination. Our headquarters grants the corresponding authentic titles to those who pass the virtuous being examination, issuing certificates and virtue attire. The titles granted are the most standard and correct titles. Apart from passing the virtuous being examination, only those who possess the qualifications of a prophet, prophecy, and other six types of teachers, or those who have chosen the Vajra Dharma Mantra as the exact standard, can be considered. In addition, even those recognized as reincarnations by patriarchs and Dharma Kings, or those recognized as reincarnations of great Dharma Kings and great Living Buddhas, cannot become true and authentic virtuous beings!!! The titles announced today are based on the principles of the teachings and are determined by the "divination oracle" and "Famen Gongyu" used in the holy examination. They are definitive. The first level of the blue button belongs to "Virtuous Conduct," the second level belongs to "Virtuous Increase," and the third level belongs to "Virtuous Nourishment." Both the first and second levels of the blue button can be called teachers because it is said that "wherever three people go, there must be a teacher among them" since one teaches others with their own expertise. The third level of the blue button is officially designated as "Vajra Guru." The first level of the gold button is officially designated as "Respected One," the second level is officially designated as "Teaching Respected One," the third level is officially designated as "Superior Respected One," the fourth level is officially designated as "Great Respected One," and the fifth level is officially designated as "Holy Respected One." Our headquarters has consulted the third incarnation of the Great Dajie Qiang Buddha regarding the officially designated titles. The Buddha said, "I will not participate in your headquarters' designation of titles for teachers. As long as it benefits everyone, go ahead and do it! It is good that you use officially designated titles to prevent fake and deceptive teachers from harming people and to protect sentient beings. This belongs to the practice of righteous conduct." In the future, when encountering or mentioning the titles of those who have attained a certain level, one must not use ambiguous and undefined titles such as "Venerable," "Dharma King," or "Rinpoche," because these are vague concepts of undefined levels. Who knows if they are virtuous beings or what kind of virtuous beings they are? If someone continues to use ambiguous titles, they are undoubtedly wicked people intentionally assisting demons and harming sentient beings. Buddhist disciples should respect the officially designated titles and not assist in deceptive actions. The officially designated titles must be used as appellations. If they are not used, it is an act of defiling and insulting the Three Jewels because the officially designated titles are determined by the "divination oracle" and "Famen Gongyu." Only when the titles are fixed can we prevent those with evil intentions from deceiving the world, pretending to be virtuous beings, exaggerating small accomplishments, and confusing people's perception and hearing. Everyone should pay special attention. So far, there is not a single person in the world who is publicly propagating the Dharma and benefiting sentient beings at the level of "Great Respected One" or "Holy Respected One." This is due to the lack of the accumulation of merits and the right conditions by sentient beings. As for some famous figures in society who are often exaggerated as reincarnations of holy beings or virtuous beings, they are one hundred percent deceiving you. They are not reincarnations of bodhisattvas at all. Where are their five illuminations? They completely violate the Buddha's stipulation that "bodhisattvas attain the five illuminations." Even the reincarnation of a patriarch from a thousand years ago who comes as a great Living Buddha is not necessarily a true virtuous being because there are also inaccurate and untrue phenomena in Buddhist history. As for the title of a great virtuous being, it is not an ambiguous concept. A great virtuous being must hold the position of "Superior Respected One" of the third level of the gold button. A giant virtuous being must hold the positions of "Great Respected One" of the fourth level and "Holy Respected One" of the fifth level of the gold button. Anyone who has not attained the position of "Superior Respected One" and falsely claims to be a great virtuous being is undoubtedly a teacher who has deviated from the path and entered the evil path! All practitioners should look at the attire and level of the teachers and know how to address them in order to avoid violating precepts. I hope everyone is familiar with this announcement so as not to be deceived by a few bad people! Our headquarters may not have the ability to do anything for Buddhists, but we absolutely do not approve of actions that result in negative karma. Therefore, it is necessary to make this announcement seriously!!!"
World Buddhist Headquarters International
September 30, 2015