關於 the point of no return中文 ，我們在網路上蒐集到這些相關的討論、資訊與評價

***《請大家多多注意！》***
這篇想說明一下關於今天發生的盜用我身分及利用作疑似詐騙事件，及想請大家以後多多注意，小心不要被假帳騙取個人資料的。

今早一起來就收到來自朋友及大家各方的通知&詢問訊息，內容都是關於一個疑似是我的身分的個人FB帳號。
**再次澄清，該帳號並不是我本人所開的帳號！！！**
該個人帳號是利用了近似本專頁的帳號所開的，而名稱及頭像照片都是用了我的。
本專頁的帳號為 siutaoCOS，而該帳號則用了siutaoC0S，把cos中的英文字「O」轉為了數字「0」以混淆視聽。
當時該假帳的一則貼文內容為一些奇怪的中文及請大家在一個奇怪網站填寫表格，而該網站也是用了本人的身分，內容疑似是想要詐騙大家的個人資料（包括信用卡資料）。
本人發現後已即時發出澄清及請大家幫忙檢舉的貼文（即今天下午本專頁、本人個帳、本人IG上所發表的）
該假冒帳號的擁有者看到後，來給本專頁發來了DM，還反問我為什麼要搞砸他，最後還發出惡言反罵我。及後，在大家幫忙檢舉期間，該假冒帳號卻把其帳號的貼文、轉帖通通刪除，把頭像等等的都全部換掉，想要逃過FB審查。而FB審查到現在還是堅持為該帳號沒有問題。

到這刻我也無能為力了😢
非常感謝大家一起幫忙檢舉該假冒帳號，雖然還沒能成功檢舉，但以此希望警惕一下大家要小心謹慎，防止被詐騙😭🙏🏻💦
此次事件中如果你有曾經把個資給了假冒帳號的話，建議請立刻更改相關資料/帳號，加強保安，防範被盜用該資料/帳號的可能。

*****在此也向大家再次聲明，
本人不會隨便以任何個人帳號加好友，除非已事前作公開通知/私下通知/經過溝通達成共識。
（也希望大家體諒一下我也需要私人空間🙏🏻😢）
以FB專頁也只此一個，並沒其他分頁！！！（Singapore及Vietnam Fans Page為本人認可，不是什麼假帳。）
以及，除通販作用外，本人並不會要求大家提出個人資訊。該通販用的資訊也絕對不會交給第三方，不會外流！
還請大家以後也多多注意了！如有發現/遇到假冒帳號的話，請幫忙檢舉！😭🙏🏻*****

再次感謝大家支持、相信及幫忙！愛你們😭🙏🏻❤️

————————————

**<>**
This post will be describing the incident that has happened earlier today, and I would like everyone to be aware and not accidentally give away personal information to a fake account.

This morning when I woke up, I received notifications and questions from friends and everyone, regarding a Facebook account pretending to be mine. *I would like to remind everyone again that this account is not created by me!!!*
This account was recently created and used the same name and profile as my own. My page link is siutaoCOS, and this fake account used siutaoC0S, changing the capitalized [O] in the link name to the numeral [0] zero to befuddle everyone.

During that time, the account created a post that asked everyone to fill in their information in a suspicious website, which was created under a fake identity, attempting to scam personal and credit card information.
Upon discovery, I have posted clarifications and requested everyone to assist in reporting the post. My clarifications were posted on my page, Instagram and personal account.
The scammer messaged my page directly after my revealing that the account was a fake, and asked why I wanted to ruin him, and even harshly scolded me in return for no reason. After that, with the assistance of everyone, the scammer deleted all related information to the attempted scam and changed his profile and cover picture to avoid Facebook’s automated investigation system. In the end, Facebook declared that there was no issue with the scammer’s account.

At this point I was powerless to do anything. 😢
I would like to thank everyone’s efforts in reporting the account, and though it was not successful, I would like to take this opportunity to inform everyone to be aware, and not get scammed by impersonation efforts.😭🙏🏻💦
If by any chance you had filled in personal information or other information, please immediately change all passwords and information, and contact relevant agencies if necessary. This is to prevent misuse of your information and linked accounts.

*****I would also like to mention, that I would not randomly add friends into my personal account, unless it was a public notice, privately discussed or agreed upon.
(I would like everyone to understand that I need some personal space as well🙏🏻😢).
This is my only page on Facebook and I have no other pages!!! (The Singapore and Vietnam Fan Pages were approved by me, and they are not fake accounts or impersonators.)
Apart from direct sales, I will never request for information from anyone. This information from sales will not be disclosed to anyone else or to a third party! In the future, if anyone notices an impersonator or fake account, please help me to report them!😭🙏🏻******

Once again, I would like to thank everyone who has supported me, believed in me and helped out! Love you all! 😭🙏🏻❤️

前天是《Fight Club 鬥陣俱樂部》的20歲生日。20年後這部仰賴DVD成為邪典的電影還直挺挺地站在經典的殿堂，但DVD這個一度統治地球的媒介卻已經是迎向夕陽的牛仔，來日不多了......

#冷飯熱炒

#葉郎電影徵信社
【Fight Club: 立足原爆點回顧DVD生與死】

事隔近二十年，記性不好的影迷或許已經很難相信被X世代視作經典的David Fincher電影《Fight Club 鬥陣俱樂部》其實在1999年上映時是票房、評論兩失意的滑鐵盧之作。奇妙的是這部強力攻擊消費主義的「失敗」之作稍後藉以谷底翻身甚至直接躍昇邪典（Cult）的神奇道具，居然還是消費史上普及最快的電子娛樂消費產品——DVD。

二十年來DVD產業劇烈撼動電影這個產業，也強佔你我家中書櫃空間許多年，即使現時已經日薄西山也算是轟轟烈烈活過一場。是時候打破Rule No. 1，談談DVD大爆發的原爆點：《鬥陣俱樂部》。


▇ 都是廣告惹的禍

導演David Fincher本身也是另外一個日薄西山的消費產品——MTV音樂頻道——的「遺產」。憑藉快速、直接、精確控制的鏡頭語言，同輩音樂錄影帶導演中他是極少數進入殿堂得到廣泛、持續認同的作者。

當他看中作家Chuck Palahniuk這本同名小說《鬥陣俱樂部》來改編電影時，這本賣得普普通通的書大約只賣出了5000本左右。「誰不想看信用卡公司被炸掉！」David Fincher如此形容他對這個故事的狂熱。

但包含Rupert Murdoch在內的Fox高層對於David Fincher熱衷的社會議題不太有感，最後斷然決定在電影宣傳期把這些資訊都先隱藏起來，集中火力宣傳電影的暴力畫面和動作橋段。

歷史證明這個錯誤的宣傳策略最後讓他們徹底灰頭土臉。夏天還沒到就發生了慘絕人寰的科倫拜校園殺人事件，錯愕的Fox即便把電影從暑假熱門檔期延後到十月上映，仍然抵擋不了美國輿論對於《鬥陣俱樂部》中暴力內容的強烈質疑。氣憤的電視名嘴Rosie O’Donell甚至不惜在節目中直接爆雷公佈結局，企圖摧毀觀眾樂趣以求徹底毀滅這部電影。

耗資6,300萬美元的《鬥陣俱樂部》在爭議聲中只賣得3,700萬的北美票房，在全球也只有差強人意的1億美元。雖不致血本無歸，但這個慘烈成績間接促使Rupert Murdoch幾個月後毅然開除帶領Fox創造好幾年空前榮景的執行長 Bill Mechanic。


▇ 所有權的消費革命

這時候我們故事的主角——DVD還不滿三歲。

少為人知的是，跟早年的VHS vs Betamax以及後來的Blu-ray vs HD-DVD一樣，DVD原來也有Sony和Warner為首的兩大陣營規格戰。不同的是這一回的規格戰在正式上市前就達成和解，預先替1996年上市後的成長之路掃除障礙。

但真正促使這片薄薄的光碟片化身成為好萊塢自動印鈔機的，是一場突如其來的「所有權」消費革命：

電影產業跟音樂產業有一個根本差異，音樂產業過去百年以來都以賣斷實體消費端產品給消費者做為最主要商業模式（直到近年），鼓勵消費者擁有音樂的「所有權」。

發明人愛迪生一開始對留聲機和電影放映機的設想都是成為仰賴消費者投幣使用的個人娛樂機器，不過留聲機跟唱片（其實是一種臘筒）很快就出現個人買家，進入競相購買「所有權」的消費時代。

電影產業在錄影帶時代雖然已有高單價、小規模的發行，但一直到DVD出現才真正有賣斷權利給消費者的規模化市場。一開始各家片商還處在觀望階段，不太相信自己說服（誘騙）得了影迷花大錢把很可能早就看過的電影收藏在自家的櫃子上。連原本在兩大DVD技術陣營中領軍也擁有最大片庫的Warner，頭幾年都只是把少量片庫拿出來發行DVD試試水溫。

1996年12月20日Warner在日本發行的歷史上第一批電影DVD：分別是《Point of No Return 雙面女蠍星》、《Blade Runner 銀翼殺手》、《Eraser 魔鬼毀滅者》和《The Fugitive 絕命追殺令》。DVD大爆發自是日引爆。


▇ 英雄出場神救援

兩年多後，《鬥陣俱樂部》在1999年11月11日發行了那張改變命運的DVD，幾個月後還發行了收藏版的DVD。根據2014年David Fincher自己在Comic-Con大會上的說法：「《鬥陣俱樂部》已經賣掉1,300萬張DVD。老早就回本了！」

因為DVD的實體店面銷售數據不如戲院票房這麼透明，各種銷售量統計的出入頗大。但數量之外，更重要的是《鬥陣俱樂部》透過DVD真正贏回了觀眾的喜愛，不只成為這個載具上第一個Blockbuster賣座影片，更是史上第一個與戲院大銀幕無關、專屬DVD這個載具自己的文化現象。

《鬥陣俱樂部》這張DVD最終得以和電影裡那些消費文化要素（如星巴克、Ikea、DKNY）並列大眾文化的神明廳裡，因為你、我、他分別都乖乖地用Visa卡刷了一張DVD，虔誠供在發音困難的Ikea書櫃上、星巴克馬克杯旁。

另外一個被DVD即刻救援的，是已經在唱片市場崩解中被震得七暈八素的唱片行。尤其對Tower Records、HMV等大型連鎖通路來說，DVD這劑強心針至少讓他們多活了好幾年，因為DVD很快就取代百年歷史的唱片，成為家庭娛樂消費產品的龍頭。

三年後，才問世六年的DVD已經超越戲院放映，變成好萊塢片商最大宗的收入來源。後來的巔峰時期，DVD的收益甚至是戲院收益的兩倍多，也就是說當時許多電影的製作費用根本都是DVD買單的。

同樣也有百年歷史的戲院從來沒有想過會有這樣的一天，讓本來最隆重的「戲院上映」儀式淪為一種代價高昂、不求回本的「事件行銷」，以換得日後可以在DVD上貼上「全美賣座冠軍」的促銷貼紙。片商愛DVD多於戲院的理由之一是他們可以從一張DVD收到六到七成的收益，卻只能從一張電影票收到五成多一點的收益，而且這個比例還會隨著在戲院上映的週數增加而快速遞減。更別提DVD的產品生命週期長過戲院上映百倍以上。

在DVD的輝煌時期，一度戲院放映前播的不是電影預告，而是DVD發售的廣告。戲院跟電視對抗了數十年也都沒出現過在戲院播放電視節目廣告的局面，誰預料得到DVD才問世不到十年戲院就已經淪為替一張8.5GB容量的光碟片打工的淒涼情景。

不只有自己的廣告，這時候DVD有自己的行銷策略、自己的海報（以適應空間有限的大賣場貨架）。DVD甚至回頭影響電影企劃的開端和選角，並且左右續集的開拍與否。業界盛傳Warner就是看到《The Matrix駭客任務》的DVD銷售報表，才罕見地同意一口氣開拍兩部續集。


▇ DVD自己的小宇宙

DVD產業創造了一個屬於自己的小宇宙，給了像《鬥陣俱樂部》這樣的小眾電影或是票房失敗的電影第二次機會。類似的命運也發生在《Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind 王牌冤家》、《Donnie Darko觸目驚魂28天》等電影上。

David Fincher當年堅持要替《鬥陣俱樂部》加上Edward Norton快速而且量大的碎碎念旁白，甚至開除掉企圖拿掉旁白的製片。電影在威尼斯影展首映時他就知道戲院的票房會完蛋了，因為成堆的義大利文字幕佔據了畫面的將近一半，沒有戲院觀眾會願意看這麼多字幕、消化這麼多資訊。

小眾、多元、更具包容性的DVD觀眾願意。事實上DVD的觀眾還享有特權可以看到那些戲院觀眾看不到的線索：比如慢速放映或是定格才找得到David Fincher在Brad Pitt角色正式登場前就不斷插入、在戲院根本就不可能看到的Brad Pitt畫格。

DVD也成為導演的第二次創作機會，讓他們有機會補正錯誤或是延伸創作。比方《鬥陣俱樂部》DVD播放前仿效FBI反盜版警語的畫面，其實是出自精心設計的一段Brad Pitt角色Tyler給觀眾的警語。

關於二次創作更極致的案例或許是2005年Ridley Scott的《Kingdom of Heaven 王者天下》。電影上映的版本是不忍卒睹的災難，但Ridley Scott爭取到了重新剪輯一個DVD專屬的Director’s Cut導演版的機會，透過DVD的發行得到了起死回生的好評。

Ridley Scott本人也貢獻了DVD產業最重要的商業模式之一：用英文來說叫做Milking擠奶，用中文來說就是一條牛扒好幾層皮。

二十年來他的邪典名作《銀翼殺手》（同時也是歷史上第一張DVD）發行過各種版本的DVD，其中2007年發行的五碟終極收藏版甚至包含了五個剪輯版本的電影正片：包含1982年美國戲院版、1982年國際戲院版、1989年出土的Workprint原始初剪版、1991年導演未認可（！）的導演版以及2007年導演認可的Final Cut終極版。收藏版、特別版、限量版、加長版、修復版、導演版、終極版、重生版…..等等眼花撩亂名詞背後，是殺到眼紅的片商想盡辦法在末日來臨（影迷的DVD櫃再也放不下）前搾乾你荷包的緊繃情緒。

各大片商甚至競相在市場上搶購原本剩餘價值不多的舊片版權，以便在神奇DVD市場上變現。2004年Sony領軍的金主耗資50億美元的豪賭，買下虧損連連的老片廠MGM，打的如意算盤就是把整家MGM的片庫放進DVD自動印鈔機裡提款。


▇ 迎向夕陽的牛仔

Sony的人算不如天算，結果影迷的櫃子真的滿了。

兩年後那種市場倍數成長的神奇魔法終於消退，2006年DVD市場最後一次正成長之後，就是漫長死亡的軟著陸。Sony領軍的MGM Holdings也不得不在2010年申請破產。

原先大家預期DVD會像錄影帶一樣死於下一世代的載具手上，比如Blu-ray藍光。

結果DVD大爆發的奇蹟沒有發生在藍光身上。對比賣出1,300萬張的《鬥陣俱樂部》，目前只有四部藍光電影跨過500萬張的門檻。它們分別是《Frozen 冰雪奇緣》、《Avatar 阿凡達》、《Despicable Me 2 神偷奶爸2》和《Star Wars: The Force Awakens 原力覺醒》。David Fincher導演備受好評的近作《Gone Girl 控制》藍光銷售量甚至連百萬都跨不過。

DVD的成敗都來自影迷難以滿足的求知慾。一開始影迷著迷於那些正片以外的花絮、訪談、刪減片段、導演講評，但2005年成立的YouTube網站取代了DVD供給了更多、更生猛、更即時而且免費的花絮影片，讓DVD看起來既過時又不划算，即便容量加大數倍的藍光都無力可回天。

壓垮DVD的最後一根稻草是2007年從錄影帶出租轉向線上串流的Netflix。2017年底為止該公司已經有1.18億用戶，創造117億美元年營收，市值也突破1300億美元。就像音樂串流服務Spotify一樣，Netflix預告的是DVD這個所有權革命的終點站。喜新厭舊的消費者已經陸續到站下車，把他們對「擁有」的愛轉移到了「隨選隨看」的自由。

電視、戲院、DVD多年的糾纏爭戰，最後讓他們投降的大魔王全是「網路」。網路不只清空了大家的CD櫃，連DVD櫃也一併騰空。根據Digital Entertainment Group發佈的2017年美國市場統計數據：線上串流訂閱制產值95.5億，DVD和藍光加總起來已經只剩下4.5億美元，而且還在以每年近20%的速度萎縮中。

不用等到《鬥陣俱樂部》中無政府主義者的炸彈攻擊，二十年後這場光碟片消費狂熱已經就地自爆，人去樓空。而DVD就像任務完結的老牛仔一樣，正搖搖晃晃地騎著馬邁向銀幕遠方的夕陽。The End.

#電影冷知識by葉郎

本文原載於端傳媒：
https://theinitium.com/article/20180517-culture-dvdstories/

【解開人生謎題的寶書】(English writing below)

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地點：台灣雷藏寺的大燈文化攤位。

我一手抓著根本上師聖尊蓮生活佛的新書《我所知道的佛陀：如是我聞》，一手拿著錢要付款。

「沒關係，師兄，沒有師尊的簽名，我還是想買這本書。」我微笑著回答，感謝他的熱心提醒。

我喜歡紙本書。家裡整堵牆的書架，都是師尊的書。

我甚少在雷藏寺買師尊的書。一般來說，師尊推出新書時，我都會在新加坡的紀伊國屋書店購買，希望藉此能推廣師尊的文集在寺廟以外的地方。用錢買書，也是我出點微薄之力，代表我對作者付出的支持。

有師尊簽書固然是錦上添花，但能不能開悟，還是需要自己的努力。

初聽師尊宣布這書名《我所知道的佛陀：如是我聞》時，我頓時倍感親切。

每個人信佛的起點都不一樣。有的人是因爲篤信觀世音菩薩，而皈依佛門，我則是因爲「南無本師釋迦牟尼佛」。

在大學佛學會時，我常去本地的一間斯里蘭卡佛寺參拜佛陀，繞菩提樹。好幾年的時間，我在那兒，向佛陀述說了很多、很多我的苦楚，我的煩惱，有時候邊說，邊繞菩提樹，繞了無數圈，就連第一次失戀，也在臥佛前哭了兩個小時。

那時，我不明白為什麼人家做人，我也做人，但我無論怎麼努力，卻特別的苦。我一直求佛陀告訴我：我爲什麼要活著？我爲什麼要來到人間？我要怎麼改命？

當然，在壇城上的佛陀怎麼會開口跟這「怨女」說話呢？

我把打工的錢存起來，買一尊佛像，拿去開光，安在書房內。後來媽媽因爲某事生我氣，趁我不在時，把佛像仍掉。我畢業就職後，又請了一尊。傻傻的我以為那兩尊都是釋迦牟尼佛，其實祂們都是「大日如來」。

我想，這應該是我五年後皈依師尊的因緣之一。

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2013年，西雅圖雷藏寺開創一個新聞單元《如是我聞》，報導師尊的日常法教。小女子我自告奮勇拉著我師兄一起爲官網，把幾篇《如是我聞》翻譯成英文，回饋師尊的無私奉獻與教導。

從台灣飛回新加坡的航班上，我閱讀了師尊新書《我所知道的佛陀：如是我聞》兩個小時。

我忽然恍然大悟，十九年前，常跑到釋迦牟尼佛跟前訴苦的那個少女，原來佛陀真的聽到了她的哀求，沒有讓它落空。

理科班的我，從小就對這世界很好奇。家裡的百科全書，十年來，我從頭到尾都讀了至少百遍，但總覺得人要懂的知識，不該只有這些。

皈依師尊前，我曾讀過、聽過很多有名出家人的法語開示，無論是講中文或英文的。他們都講得很好，但是，唯有蓮生活佛的開示和文集，徹底的解除我自幼對於人生和宇宙的迷惑。

尤其是這本書。

原來在科學之外，還有這樣一個空間、一種能量和宇宙能力場存在著。

皈依學佛，就是學佛陀的教義，目的就是要成佛。

可怎樣的佛弟子，才是釋迦牟尼佛認可的弟子？

我們人要如何離苦得樂？如何去馴服自己狂野的心？如何從凡夫身回歸本來的面目？什麼又是原本的自己？

那天，師父問一位少女：「妳想學佛，那妳知道佛教教主是誰嗎？」

她已閱讀完師父在臉書2013年至2019年的文章，卻一個字都說不出。

切勿把佛法當成普通的人間知識來看待，更不要以學佛爲名，利用其知識賺錢做生意爲實。販賣如來，可是下地獄吞熾熱鐵丸、喝滾燙鐵汁之罪啊！

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我去台灣前，師父交代過要我到台北101拍照，於是我就抱著師尊的書去。

玳瑚師父教過，台北101是現代版的文昌塔。

古時候，文昌已甚被重視，因爲利於讀書、功名和事業。在沒有某種形式的山脈時，就會建文昌塔（又稱文峰塔）來催旺文人輩出。

古代有文昌塔，現代有台北101。

古代有佛陀初傳四聖諦，現代有蓮生法王繼續的轉法輪。

而人呢？從古至今，仍然在醉生夢死中。

一般人要文昌，因爲追求功名。但我對人間的智慧，已意興闌珊。我要文昌，因爲希望早日開竅，拜託，不要那麽笨 ～～

無論你是剛接觸佛法，還是皈依許久的老弟子，如果你和我一樣追求生命的實相，這本書裡的般若智慧必會讓你大開眼界、讚歎連連。

你到底有多認識佛陀呢？

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我大力推薦此書，可到以下書局網購，或到真佛般若藏免費閱讀電子書或聆聽有聲書：

1) 新加坡紀伊書店 - https://singapore.kinokuniya.com/bw/9789573052654

2) 台灣金石堂 - https://www.kingstone.com.tw/basics/basics.asp?kmcode=2012000022409&lid=common-index-billboard-all&actid=bookindex

3) 真佛般若藏 - https://www.tbboyeh.org/cht#/store

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"Dharma Sister, the numbers for book signing have all been given out!"

Venue: Daden Culture book stall at Taiwan Lei Tsang Temple

I was holding on to "The Buddha I Know: Thus Have I Heard", the latest book by my Root Guru, His Holiness Living Buddha Lian Sheng, with my other hand grasping onto the cash, wanting to pay for the book.

"No problem, Dharma Brother. Without the autograph of Grandmaster, I would still wish to buy this book." I smiled in reply, thanking him for his friendly reminder.

I prefer reading from an actual book over an ebook. Back at home, I have one full wall of my Grandmaster's books on my bookshelves.

I rarely buy my Grandmaster's books from Lei Tsang temples. Usually, for His latest release, I would buy from Singapore Kinokuniya book store. It is my hope that this little gesture would help to boost sales at external bookstores, so that my Grandmaster's books can continue to be sold beyond the temples. To pay for it is my small token of appreciation and support for the author's effort.

To have my Grandmaster's autograph on the book is, of course, covetable, but whether the I can attain enlightenment is still dependant on my hard work.

When I first heard my Grandmaster announcing the book title "The Buddha I Know: Thus Have I Heard", I immediately felt a sense of closeness.

Everybody has a different starting point for believing in the Buddha. There are some people who are devoted to Guan Shi Yin Bodhisattva, and hence take refuge. For me, it was because of Shakyamuni Buddha.

During my NUS Buddhist Society days, I often visited a Sri Lanka Buddhist temple in Singapore. I would pay homage to Buddha and circumambulate the Bodhi tree. For many years, I would be at the temple regurgitating my troubles and sufferings to Buddha. Sometimes, I would circumambulate endless rounds around the Bodhi tree while being troubled. When my first relationship failed, I cried in front of the Sleeping Buddha for 2 hours.

At that time, I didn't understand why my life was tougher than other people, no matter how much effort I poured in. I kept pleading to Buddha for an answer. For what am I alive for? Why do I have to come to this mortal world? What can I do to improve my life?

Naturally, how could the Buddha that sat on the altar literally speak to this resentful girl?

With the money I scrimped and saved working part-time during my uni days, I bought a Buddha statue and after having it consecrated, I enshrined the statue in my study room. Once, when my mum was angry with me over some issue, she threw away the Buddha statue while I was out.

Upon graduation, I bought another Buddha statue. The silly me assumed that both statues are of Shakyamuni Buddha when in fact, they were of Mahāvairocana Buddha.

I guess this must be one affinity why I took refuge in my Grandmaster 5 years later.

In 2013, Seattle Lei Tsang Temple started a new column "Thus Have I Heard", reporting on the daily Dharma teachings of Grandmaster. Dragging the husband along, we volunteered to translate a few of the reports into English for the official website. It was our little way to repay Grandmaster for his selfless contributions and teachings.

Now you know why I took a liking to the book title almost immediately.

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On the flight back from Taiwan, I read the book for about 2 hours.

I suddenly had a realisation. The young lady that cried and bemoaned her fate in front of Shakyamuni Buddha 19 years ago had her prayers answered after all. Buddha did hear her pleas and did not let her prayers go unfulfilled.

I was a Science student and since young, I was full of curiosity for this world. The encyclopaedia I had at home had been read at least 100 times over 10 years. But I had always felt that the knowledge humans need to know should be more than that.

Before taking refuge in Grandmaster, I had read, watched and listened to many Dharma discourses expounded by many famous Venerables, both in English and Chinese. They all explained the teachings of Buddha very well.

However, only Living Buddha Lian-Sheng could thoroughly answer my conundrums about life and this universe, through His Dharma discourses and books.
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Especially in this book.

Apart from the science that we know, there is indeed another dimension of existence, another field of energy from the Universe.

When we take refuge to learn the Dharma, we are essentially learning what the Buddha had taught. The sole purpose is to eventually attain Buddhahood.

But do you know, just what kind of Buddhists are recognised by Shakyamuni Buddha as true disciples?

And how can we humans break free from sufferings and achieve bliss? How can we tame the wild minds in us? How do we return to our true self from this mortal body?

Just what actually is our true nature?

That day, Shifu asked a young lady, "You say you wish to learn the Dharma. Then do you know who is the founder of Buddhism?"

She had read all of Shifu's FB articles from 2013-2019, but was unable to reply.

Do not treat the Buddhadharma as ordinary mortal knowledge, let alone masquerade under the name of learning the Dharma, but in reality, using the knowledge to make more money and build a business. Peddling the Buddha for self-profit is a sin that would have you swallowing red hot iron balls and drinking boiling hot liquid iron in Hell!

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Before my trip to Taiwan, Shifu told me to take a photo with Taipei 101. So I went there with my Grandmaster's book.

Master Dai Hu had taught me, Taipei 101 is the modern-day version of Wen Chang Pagoda.

In ancient times, Wen Chang is highly valued, because it favours the academics, scholarly achievements and career. When a certain mountain form is lacking in certain geographical locations, a Wen Chang Pagoda ( also known as Wen Feng Pagoda) would be constructed to activate and encourage the birth of more scholarly people.

So in the old days, there is the Wen Chang Pagoda, and now we have the Taipei 101.

In the past, there is Buddha who first expounded on the Four Noble Truths. And now, we have His Holiness, Dharma King Lian Sheng, to continue turning the Wheel of Dharma.

What about humans? Throughout history, humans have lived a befuddled existence. Even till now.

Most people want Wen Chang because they pursue fame and recognition. I covet Wen Chang, because I hope to get enlightened sooner. Oh please, let me be less stupid...

Whether you are new to the teachings of Buddha, or a Buddhist disciple for years, if you are pursuing the ultimate truth of Life like me, this book will open up your eyes and have you singing in praises.

Just how well do you know Buddha?

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I strongly recommend this book and you can purchase it online at the links below, or hop over to True Buddha Prajna Treasury to read the ebook or listen to the audiobook for free.

1) Kinokuniya Singapore - https://singapore.kinokuniya.com/bw/9789573052654

2) Kingstone Taiwan - https://www.kingstone.com.tw/basics/basics.asp?kmcode=2012000022409&lid=common-index-billboard-all&actid=bookindex

3) 真佛般若藏 True Buddha Prajna Treasury - https://www.tbboyeh.org/cht#/store