Lu Sheng-yen
Grand Master Lu Sheng-yen Living Buddha Lian Sheng Master Lu | |
|---|---|
| Region | Chinese Buddhism |
| School | True Buddha lineage Pure Land Buddhism Taoism |
Template:Chinese name Lu Sheng-Yen (盧勝彥, Lú Shèngyàn) (June 27, 1945-), commonly referred to by followers as Master Lu is the founder and spiritual leader of the True Buddha School, a new religious sect, mixed with teachings from Taoism, Sutrayana and Tantric Buddhism. Master Lu has declared himself to be a Buddha and revered by his disciples as a Rinpoche, and as Living Buddha Lian Sheng (蓮生活佛, Liansheng Huofo.
His organization claims that over five million students have taken refuge as disciples under Lu. There are also more than three hundred local chapters of the True Buddha School, including 30 major temples, such as the Ling Shen Ching Tze Temple in Redmond, Washington, where he currently resides.
His wife is Lian Hsiang, who is also a vajra master, and is referred as Grand Madam Lu.[1]
Life
Born in Chiayi County, Taiwan in 1945, Lu was raised a Christian, attending a Protestant school. His post-secondary education was at Chung Cheng Institute of Technology, and he graduated with a degree in Survey Engineering. In his early twenties he was both a survey engineer and a Sunday school Bible teacher.
He has written that his epiphany came in 1969 when he had a mystical experience, leading him to seek out a total of twenty-one human gurus in Taoism, Sutra, and Tantra. In 1982, Lu moved to the United States of America. He claims to have reached enlightenment in 1984.
To date, Lu has written over 200 books in Chinese on varied topics, including feng shui and poetry.
According to his website, he went into seclusion in Tahiti for six years starting late 2000 and lived in Taichung, Taiwan.[2] Today he lives in the state of Washington.
Teachings
Lu teaches the Mahamudra method of attaining Buddhahood. His teachings follow the traditional stages of the practice of the Four Preliminaries, followed by Guru Yoga, Deity Yoga, the Vajra Practices, and finally Highest Yoga Tantra.[3]
He describes the state of enlightenment using the allegory of Padmakumara, whom he identifies with Amitabha Buddha and his own enlightened self.[4]
According to Noah Casey, Lu's teachings do not prohibit the consumption of meat and alcohol; however, "The consumption of alcohol is limited to quantities not resulting in intoxication, and the eating of meat is restricted to animals not butchered especially for the person consuming. Before consuming either of these, or any other nutritional substance, a special prayer is required. For meats, the spirit of the animal must be delivered."[5] This is in contradiction with Pure Land Buddhism of Amitabha.
Controversies
Lu made headlines during an investigation by the Washington State Public Disclosure Commission into his cash donations to Chinese American politician Gary Locke, who Lu had hoped would run for the White House. Locke was cleared of any wrongdoing by the commission in 1998.[6]
He was also sued in civil court by a former disciple, who anonymously called herself SHC (only recently revealed her identity as Siew Chong), a 41-year-old Malaysian immigrant, over allegations of sexual misconduct, after the King County, Washington prosecutor declined to file charges for lack of evidence. In the case SHC VS Sheng-Yen Lu The Temple argues that the conduct in this case was distinguishable because it was merely consensual sex between adults, not intentionally tortious activity. The case was later dismissed by King County Superior Court Judge Kathleen Learned [6] as this case of sexual misconduct between Grand Master Lu and SHC is purely consensual.
After a meeting in November 1996 with the Dalai Lama, Lu asserted that the Dalai Lama had endorsed him as an authority in Tibetan Buddhism. This was rebutted by sources close to the Dalai Lama in Dharamsala, who asserted that it was merely an individual meeting. His claims that he has millions of disciples has also been heavily questioned by Tibetan sources, as well as his claim to have attained lineage from various Tibetan lineages. The source also dismissed claims made by Lu that he had been afforded an audience of between 1500 and 2000 lamas upon a 1996 visit to Tibet and India. Since then, Tibetan monasteries have been advised to avoid contact with Lu, so as to diminish the possibility that they could be misrepresented for his own benefit.[7]
Lu has also gained attention for his opulent lifestyle, with his vehicle being a Rolls Royce.[7]
Lu has claimed that he has subjugated and converted various monks and nuns of other traditions that posed a threat to the school itself. Lu claims that he convinced Venerable Master Hsuan Hua, a prominent Ch'an master in Western Buddhism and a harsh critic of the True Buddha School, to convert and take refuge in the True Buddha School after his own death in 1995. He also accuses Hsuan Hua of being against Tantrayana doctrine, whilst other sources say Hsuan Hua embraced all traditions, including Vajrayana and Tantrayana. [8]
His claims to Buddhahood were criticised by the Dalai Lama, whose staff released a statement "People should not say, `I am a living Buddha'".[9]
Notes
- ^ [1]
- ^ True Buddha News (Edition 609, page 2)
- ^ Lu Sheng-yen. Highest Yoga Tantra and Mahamudra, ch. 2
- ^ Lu Sheng-yen. The Emergence of Padmakumara
- ^ Casey, Noah. The True Buddha School: A Field Research Report on The Chan Hai Lei Zang Temple
- ^ a b Anderson, Rick. Sex and the buddha in the Seattle Weekly, September 5, 2001.
- ^ a b ""The Buddha as a Grand Master"". New Delhi: Tibetan Review. March 1997. p. 16.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ Lu, Sheng-yen (1996-10-15). "The True Face of Three Mountains Nine Marquis". True Buddha School. Retrieved 2007-04-07.
- ^ Meyer, H Gregory (2002-09-20). "Sect combines Tibetan rituals, Chinese custom". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2007-03-29.
References
- Casey, Noah. The True Buddha School: A Field Research Report on The Chan Hai Lei Zang Temple. Montreal Religious Sites Project.
- Lu, Sheng-yen (1995). A Complete and Detailed Exposition on the True Buddha Tantric Dharma. San Bruno, CA: Purple Lotus Society. ISBN 1-881493-04-0
- Case from FindLaw. SHC VS Sheng-Yen Lu
External links
- True Buddha School Net (Official site)
- Lecture by Lu Sheng-yen on Mahakala