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The greater universe is so vast that no divine beings, heavenly sovereigns, or lords above know what lies beyond. And the number of lives is simply countless. All lives in the greater universe see, in an all-encompassing manner, the world they reside in from the vantage point of the planes on which they materially exist. The way all these lives see the world isn’t unlike how divine beings do, only it is without the insight, wisdom, and powers that divine beings have. This means that the beings throughout the greater universe are different from human beings, who cannot see the world in which they exist as it truly is; cannot see the other life forms that are present in their surrounding environments; and cannot see the physical things in this setting as they truly are. As a result, the way that human beings think, as well as how they understand the world, is both quite particular and limited. This world is thus a place of “unknowing” (except for in the cases of the supernatural beings originally here in the Three Realms and of certain spiritual phenomena).Then what accounts for this? Here is the reason. The greater universe and the multitude of systems within it had reached the last phase of the cosmic cycle of Formation, Stasis, Degeneration, and Destruction. And as everything headed for the terrifying prospect of final annihilation and oblivion, the Creator decided to endeavor to save all lives.
The reason the greater universe and the numerous universes within it had reached the stage of Destruction is because they as well as the countless lives within them—including the many lords, sovereigns, and divine ones in each of the universes—had become, over the very long course of the Formation, Stasis, Degeneration, and Destruction cosmic cycle, inferior to how they were during the early days of the Formation stage. Or to put it another way, after all of those ages, they no longer met the standards for their respective planes. This was the inevitable trajectory of the course of existence.
And so, for the purpose of rescuing lives, the Creator made a world outside of the greater universe. It would be utilized to save the innumerable lives of the greater universe, and was called the “Three Realms.” Within the Three Realms, there are three planes of existence. The beings in the lowest of the three are powerless and without higher insight or wisdom, existing in an environment that is the most taxing and difficult to see through. And that is the human world. The people and beings in the second plane surpass only humankind in insight and wisdom, so they can see only how things are in the human realm and where they themselves are. Humans have referred to them as “heavenly beings” or “demigods.” The beings that are yet one plane higher can see how things are for beings in the two realms below them as well as where they themselves are, and their powers of insight and wisdom are the greatest of all those within the Three Realms. People here in this world have generally referred to these beings as “deities” or “celestial beings.” Yet none of the beings in the Three Realms have the power to see the universe as it truly is, nor to see the kingdoms and paradises where divine beings reside further above.
Humankind thus lives in a state of unknowing, having the least insight and wisdom, and being incapable of seeing the essence of things. This was brought about by the Creator, and it was done in order to allow for beings’ redemption on the eve of the final destruction. It gives them a chance to avoid that fate, as long as they manage to hold fast to the goodness inherent in them, even in this delusory and trying world. It is indeed very hard: The only way to make it through is for lives to endure suffering and work off their karma at a time when lives are slated for elimination during this end point of the Formation, Stasis, Degeneration, and Destruction cycle—and to preserve their innate goodness. Only then will they be deemed “worthy of the future.” When the final cosmic phase arrived, the Creator gave his approval for the greater universe’s multitude of divine beings, sovereigns, and lords—and the still more massive divine and enlightened beings overseeing each of the greater universe’s different domains—to descend to the world and incarnate in human form. Here, however, all of their higher wisdom, powers of insight, and divine abilities would be sealed off. And in this most trying of places, without their powers or wisdom, closed off completely in a human body, they would have to go through adversity to work off their karma while relying on positive and virtuous thoughts and keeping alive the goodness within. Only then would they be acknowledged by the legions of divine ones above as well as the Creator, and earn a place in the future. Those who have managed to gradually work off their karma over the course of their many incarnations in this world, and who have grown in virtue and goodness along the way, are sure to be chosen for salvation. They will certainly be delivered by the Creator to the new universe when salvation unfolds at the end of the last days. What this means is that the state of ignorance and unenlightenment in which humankind lives is part of a unique world and way of existence that was made to be such by the Creator for the purpose of redemption. That is why any attempts by a human to ask another being to shatter this state of unknowing would prove futile. No beings in this world or beyond would dare to undermine this setting that was made for salvation.
There are always those in this world who consider spiritual beliefs to be unfounded. So some say that they only believe in what they can see, and don’t believe otherwise. As a result, some people do wrong without any concern for the consequences. If a divine being, however high his stature, incarnates as a human—for having a human body means one is human—he will assume the human state of unknowing, along with his human body. And so some, being in this state, create karma here. The reason the Creator made the Three Realms was for beings to diminish their sinful karma by experiencing adversity, with the essential purpose being the elevation of their moral level. Only a being free of sin or karma can be delivered home to Heaven. And the principles of the greater universe dictate that karma must be paid for. Human beings live in a state of ignorance, and so they are apt to create sinful karma in this human realm. And naturally, it must be paid for. If it isn’t paid for in one lifetime, it must be in the next. Many people have an enormous amount of sinful karma, in fact. And so the Creator has borne some of their suffering for them, so that they may gain salvation. This is the greatest form of compassion, and the greatest form of love, for these lives. The fact is, a person’s life will truly be extinguished if his karma amasses to a certain point. So the real purpose of your coming to this earth was to work off all of your karma and thus be able to return to Heaven. When each person incarnated into this world, they made a vow to the Creator. Yet it is of course hard to pay for one’s karma. Karma makes people contend and fight with one another, and it causes war, disease, toil, hunger, poverty—and thus pain and suffering. Some have more karma, and some less. And this is why there are both rich and poor in this world. If one can stay good and kind even in this state of unknowing, one will create less karma! And life will be easier!
All of this is to say that people’s state of unknowing was made this way for their salvation, and to save the greater universe and vast numbers of universes. Since there are such incredibly significant reasons behind this state, the spell of delusion absolutely cannot be broken to suit human wishes. Some may wonder why the many supernatural beings on this earth don’t do as man desires and lift the veil. The fact is, they wouldn’t dare! That is because it was made to be this way by the Creator for the purpose of saving the greater universe and the multitude of beings. It is to allow for the redemption of these lives!
Teacher Li Hongzhi
