Attention all pedestrians, on September 30, 2015, in Announcement No. 20150114 issued by the United International World Buddhist Headquarters, there was a typographical error in the title. The correct title for the Golden Button Three Section should be "Supreme Honored One." Please see the details below and in the attachment.
Also, there is a question to note. Someone asked what "Famen Gongyu" is. "Famen Gongyu" is a sacred Dharma instrument used in Buddhism. It is a sacred Dharma instrument made from ancient white jade, carved into the shape of a thumb, and then consecrated through rituals. Its main deity is the Peacock King and it is primarily used for the selection of candidates for the sacred Dharma. For example, during the sacred examination, it is hung at the entrance of the Eight Winds Formation. When a candidate arrives at the formation, they must first present their examination vow. At this time, if the deity of "Famen Gongyu" agrees to admit you, it will offer a white feather to you. If you are not qualified for the examination, in modern terms, it means you do not have the qualifications to enter, the deity of "Famen Gongyu" will offer a black feather to you, or simply ignore you. In this case, you will not be able to enter the examination and can only enter through a side entrance to observe. "Famen Gongyu" has multiple uses, but they are all related to the application of Buddhism. It is somewhat similar to the divination oracle used by Manjushri Bodhisattva, but the difference is that it displays its divine power on the spot. This "Famen Gongyu" is a sacred Dharma instrument passed down by the Supreme Honored One.
United International World Buddhist Headquarters
October 1, 2015
Announcement of the United International World Buddhist Headquarters
(Announcement No. 20150114)#
Venerable Wangzha said, "Some unscrupulous teachers, in order to gain trust, falsely claim that they can perform secret empowerments and secret empowerments of supreme significance, that they can communicate with the deity, and that they can enable the recipient of the empowerment to achieve everything in a short period of time. Little do they know that even the deity of 'Famen Gongyu' does not recognize their entry into the door. It should be known that 'Famen Gongyu' is not only used for the sacred examination, but also for any interaction with the protectors of the deity. To learn secret empowerments, the first requirement is to obtain the approval of the deity of 'Famen Gongyu' to enter the door and learn the secret empowerments. Without entering the door to learn secret empowerments, they dare to falsely claim to be great virtuous ones, using the vague and confusing concept of great virtue to deceive and mislead Buddhist practitioners. This is absolutely not allowed." In order to prevent teachers with wrong views from harming sentient beings, the headquarters has adopted the "divination oracle" and "Famen Gongyu" used in the sacred examination to accurately determine the titles and ranks of the teachers. Although the issue of different levels of great virtue has been explained in multiple announcements before, some teachers still use their superficial titles, such as Venerable, Dharma King, Living Buddha, and Grand Master, to falsely claim to be great virtuous ones, deceiving and confusing pedestrians. However, their actual qualifications and status as great virtuous ones do not match their self-proclaimed titles. Currently, there are still some individual teachers who do not truly cultivate, do not abide by the rules and precepts, and are aware that they have not attained the Three Illuminations and Six Virtues, but still claim to be great virtuous ones or virtuous ones. Pedestrians do not read the announcements and only listen to the false claims of certain individuals, often falling victim to deception and then complaining endlessly. The blame lies with the individuals themselves for not reading the announcements, making them beyond redemption and willingly falling into the trap of deception. In order to completely eliminate the practice of pretending to be true, exaggerating the small and deceiving with the big, making false claims without evidence, and deceiving and harming pedestrians, it is necessary to clarify that the title of a fully qualified great virtuous one must be obtained through an examination. The headquarters awards the corresponding authentic titles and issues certificates and ranks. The titles conferred are the most standard and correct titles. In addition to the examination for great virtue, only the six types of teacher qualifications, such as prophecy and the decision of the Vajra Dharma Mandala, are considered exact standards. Apart from that, even those recognized as reincarnations by patriarchs and Dharma Kings, or those recognized as reincarnations of Grand Dharma Kings and Grand Living Buddhas, cannot become true and correct great virtuous ones!!! 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 sacred examination. They are definitive. The first section of the blue button is called "Virtuous One of Conduct," the second section is called "Virtuous One of Increase," and the third section is called "Virtuous One of Nourishment." Both the first and second sections of the blue button can be called teachers, as the saying goes, "When three people walk together, there must be one who can be my teacher." This is because teaching others with one's own expertise is considered virtuous. The third section of the blue button is officially designated as "Vajra Guru," the first section of the golden button is officially designated as "Child Honored One," the second section of the golden button is officially designated as "Teaching Honored One," the third section of the golden button is officially designated as "Supreme Honored One," the fourth section of the golden button is officially designated as "Great Honored One," and the fifth section of the golden button is officially designated as "Sacred Honored One." The headquarters has sought the approval of the Third Dharma King of the Noble Many Jewels Buddha for the designated titles. The Buddha said, "I will not participate in your headquarters' designation of titles for the teachers. As long as it benefits everyone, go ahead and do it! It is good that you use designated titles to prevent fake teachers from deceiving pedestrians and to protect sentient beings. This is a righteous practice." In the future, when encountering or referring to the titles of those who have obtained ranks, one must not use vague and undefined titles such as "Venerable," "Dharma King," or "Rinpoche," because these are ambiguous concepts of undefined levels. Who knows if they are great virtuous ones? What kind of great virtue? If someone continues to use these vague titles, they are undoubtedly wicked people intentionally assisting demons and harming sentient beings. Buddhist disciples should respect the titles designated by the sacred teachings and must not assist in deceptive actions. The designated titles must be used as appellations. If they are not used, it is an act of defiling and insulting the Triple Gem, because the designated titles are determined by the "divination oracle" and "Famen Gongyu." Only by fixing the titles can we prevent those with evil intentions from misleading the world, pretending to be great virtuous ones, exaggerating the small and deceiving with the big, and confusing people's perception and hearing. Everyone should pay special attention. So far, there is not a single person in the world who has publicly propagated the Dharma and benefited sentient beings with the titles of "Great Honored One" and "Sacred Honored One." This is due to the lack of the karmic conditions of sentient beings. As for some famous figures in society who are often exaggerated as reincarnations of the Sacred Honored One or the Great Honored One, they are one hundred percent deceiving you. They are not reincarnations of Bodhisattvas at all. Where are their five illuminations? They completely violate the rule of Shakyamuni Buddha that "Bodhisattvas are attained through the five illuminations." Even the reincarnation of a patriarch from a thousand years ago who returns as a Grand Living Buddha may not be a true great virtuous one, because there are also inaccurate and false phenomena in Buddhist history. As for the titles of great virtuous ones, they are not vague concepts. A great virtuous one must hold the position of the third section of the golden button, "Supreme Honored One," and a giant great virtuous one must hold the positions of the fourth section, "Great Honored One," and the fifth section, "Sacred Honored One." Anyone who has not attained the rank of "Supreme Honored One" and falsely claims to be a great virtuous one is undoubtedly a teacher who has deviated from the path and entered the evil. Pedestrians must look at the attire, rank, and titles of the teachers to know how to address them in order to avoid violating precepts. I hope everyone is familiar with this announcement to avoid being deceived by a few bad people! The headquarters may not have the ability to do anything for Buddhist practitioners, but it absolutely does not approve of actions that create wrong causes and effects. Therefore, it must issue a serious announcement!!!
United International World Buddhist Headquarters
September 30, 2015