Preface to the Celestial Cultivation Chapter

Xuefeng

26th August 2005, Harare

Gems are classified based on their hardness, refractive index, specific gravity, color, transparency, purity, polish, and crystal structure. Diamonds are the finest of gems, while rubies, sapphires, cat’s eyes, topazes, spinels, aquamarines, zircons, emeralds, and beryls are also considered high-grade gems. Tourmalines, crystals, garnets, peridots, jades, andalusite, nephrite, opals, moonstones, sunstones, turquoise, and others are mid-grade gems. Jadeite, pearls, malachite, coral, amber, and similar materials are lower-grade gems, while granite and ordinary stones are the lowest grade.

People, based on their nonmaterial structure (root capacity), spirituality, upbringing, knowledge, wisdom, and level of civilization, can be classified into five categories: the ignorant, the worldly, the ordinary, the virtuous, and the celestial beings. Celestial beings are further divided, according to their level of enlightenment, into human celestials, ghost celestials, land celestials, deity celestials, and Super Celestial Beings. Human celestials—equivalent to saints—are further classified by their wisdom into perfected beings, true beings, celestial beings, divine beings, and heavenly beings.

Some say that all humans are the same—they all have facial features, hair, seven orifices, five organs, six viscera, arms, legs, and the seven emotions and six desires. Indeed, on the surface everyone appears similar; however, once you look beyond appearances and examine the essence, the differences between people become vast. Some dare to bungee jump, while others do not. Guan Yu could calmly chat and laugh while having his bone scraped to treat poison, yet others grimace and grit their teeth even during a simple injection. There’s a saying: “If you see a woman traveling alone, she must be American; if you see a woman sitting on the ground crying, she must be Chinese.” Although this statement is somewhat exaggerated, it highlights the differences between people. Otherwise, how would we know that Jesus is a god and Buddha is a Buddha?

Just like oil, a gasoline engine can only use gasoline and a diesel engine can only use diesel. Using kerosene in an airplane won’t work, and using lubricating oil as cooking oil is equally impossible. Hydraulic oil cannot replace safflower oil, butter cannot substitute for ghee, animal fat cannot replace light oil, and tung oil cannot replace pine resin oil.

We must recognize that people, like gemstones and oils, exhibit hierarchical differences.

The highest limit a human can reach is that of a Super Celestial Being. Becoming a Buddha is easier, but becoming a Super Celestial Being is far more difficult. The headquarters of Super Celestial Beings is in the Celestial Islands Continent of the Elysium World. On Snow Peak Island within the Celestial Islands Continent, Yu’e is a Super Celestial Being who can instantly become invisible and possesses infinite transformative powers. With a single gesture or thought, she can create endless phenomena—as Jesus said, faith as small as a mustard seed can move mountains.

What seems impossible with conventional thinking is effortless with unconventional thinking. When an ordinary person, distraught over a $1,000 tuition fee for their child, resorts to hanging, someone else treats $1,000 as if it were waste paper. While some study their entire lives and become stubborn pedants, the illiterate Sixth Patriarch Huineng mastered the profound doctrines of Buddhism. Scholars can only teach—they cannot rule mountains or command armies. Some people might live 5,000 years without winning a Nobel Prize, while child prodigies become renowned by their twenties.

We must admit that people differ in grade. Those who acknowledge differences among people can progress continuously; those who do not remain spiritually blind, leading a mediocre life without clear goals or direction.

To many, cultivating immortality and becoming a celestial being is nothing more than a daydream or nonsense—because they rely solely on vision, hearing, smell, taste, and touch, lacking spiritual perception. Without spiritual perception, one recognizes only objective reality and scientific evidence, and cannot imagine vast worlds beyond three-dimensional space or the possibility of superluminal travel through space and time tunnels.

Quantum mechanics has only vaguely acknowledged that the movement of subatomic particles is related to the observer’s position and consciousness. Water crystallization experiments by Japanese scientists have demonstrated the profound link between human consciousness and the formation of water molecule crystals. Those who master these secrets can achieve in a minute what ordinary people might not accomplish in 10,000 years. The form of existence is shaped by one’s way of thinking; once this is understood, a qualitative leap occurs in one’s structure of LIFE.

Almost everything the human mind can imagine exists—though not necessarily in this time and space. Science fiction may describe these actual existences; some will become realities in the future, while others are verified in other spaces. We cannot deny what we cannot see or hear. Can we deny the existence and motion of ultraviolet rays, infrared rays, cathode rays, and radio waves simply because they are invisible?

The Celestial Cultivation Chapter reveals profound insights into LIFE through simple truths, guiding individuals step by step toward higher realms of existence. By unveiling the meaning of death, it clearly describes the scenarios that follow and illuminates how every word and action in our current three-dimensional space shapes the future. It demonstrates that Chanyuan is not a place of baseless claims or delusions but rather the crystallization of human wisdom and a treasure trove of LIFE.

For those aspiring to become celestials, may you quickly awaken your spiritual perception, follow the guide toward the highest realm of life, and not waste precious time in mundane society. Every moment is invaluable—so strive earnestly!