Praise to the Dharma Life of Guru Chen

By the Lineage Successor Yutang Lin

In You County of Hunan, A reincarnation of Manjusri born;
In his youth, as a poet, already quite well-known;
Married to a lady, a reincarnation of Avalokitesvara;
Together they recited Sutras, and ghosts gathered to listen.

Stepping from Sutras into Tantras, he completed the foundations;
At middle-age, both of them attained opening of the top aperture.
Meditated in caves, Flower Offering and Sky Dragon, for years;
Retreated on a boat floating down a river and gained realization.

Alone on the path, traveling for thousands of miles,
To seek out the Tantric secrets he went to Tibet and Xi Kang.
Favored by thirty-seven Gurus with essence of teachings,
And received great initiations of five hundred deities and more.

The highest teachings of seven schools were fully transmitted,
Written down in Chinese to spread the waves of Grace Ocean.
Retreated in a hermitage by himself for twenty-five years;
From Kalimpong in India, he looked up to Mount Everest.

Year after year of meditation in solitude worn out seven mats;
The trinity of Great Pleasure Vajra's kayas was realized.
With appreciation, he erected the Lighthouse in the Ocean of Chan;
Commenting on Karma and Maha Mudras, he propagated the blessings.

The central channel distinguished from Taoist and spinal cord;
Hinduism, Taoism, Christian and Confucian carefully sorted.
Buddhist Meditation maps the fields and the routes to Enlightenment;
Dharma Treasures of Pure Light were poured out for revelation.

Over one hundred works in English bestowed on six continents;
The Flute resounded lingering tunes to awaken the worldly.
Under Sakyamuni's command and beseeched by the Dragon King,
Flew to America to propagate the great wondrous Dharma.

Over three hundred thousand turtles, pigeons and other beings set free;
Millions of beings all over the world salvaged through Powa.
Two hundred fire pujas performed, yielding wondrous inspirations
To relieve sentient beings from all kinds of suffering.

Into the Dragon palace hundred and fifty vases were offered;
Repeating the long rides for years discounted his own ease.
Five Sutras of Pureland were unified through lectures overseas;
Rainy or windy, awoke early daily by alarm clock to feed pigeons.

Bending elbows to write about varieties in the Dharmadhatu,
Or to embrace and enjoy the oneness of Sunyata and Joy.
Poems written in calligraphy danced on sheets like dragons;
Lifelike images of Buddhas freely distributed for worshipping.

Five Wheel Pagoda erected and shone forth rainbow lights;
Bell for pacifying hell beings made and rung to reduce their suffering.
Great Bodhicitta to ensure eternal peace on Earth and in all beings
Led to the wish to build Adi Buddha Mandala for practices in retreat.

Lotus-shape auspicious land fortunately secured in hand;
Constructions for the Mandala were about to begin.
Sins and suffering of sentient beings were undertaken by the teacher
Who exhibited signs of illness and impermanence.

Upon departure heavenly music of Five-variation Chanting heard;
After cremation rainbow-colored sariras were found in abundance.
Holy pagoda stands on Formosa to bless it with peace and prosperity;
Compassionate lights of Dharmadhatu shines equally upon everyone!

Written in Chinese: May 21, 1988
Translated: August 4, 1999
El Cerrito, California

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