Recently, in the Grand Hall of the Buddha at the Holy Miracles Temple in the United States, Ms. Judy Kuan, who is the younger sister of an important high-level political figure in Taiwan, revealed a deeply hidden secret that people did not know for many years about H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III. Her reading of the factual account was hosted by dharma masters. Following the beating of the drum and the striking of the bell, in front of the statue of Sakyamuni Buddha and the congregation, she made a grave vow to tell the truth. Such truth astounded everyone in the audience.

She mentioned that the elderly Mr. Pan Shiao Rui, the ship-dismantling king who was a disciple of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III, wanted to present offerings to H.H. the Buddha many times. Ms. Kuan was always the contact person for him. Mr. Pan Shiao Rui told her that he and Dharma Master Hsing Yun went to Taiwan together in the early years. At that time, Mr. Pan sponsored all the expenses of Dharma Master Hsing Yun as well as the living expenses of his monastic followers. He was also the sponsor and supervisor of the International Buddha’s Light Association. The affiliated Hsi Lai Temple in the United States was also built mainly from his donations.

In 1999, shortly after H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III came to the United States, Mr. Pan invited H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III to San Francisco to look at a piece of land that he wanted to present as an offering. Real estate in San Francisco was priced like gold! Mr. Pan first invited H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III to look at a piece of land in the suburbs of San Francisco that was more than 2,000 acres. H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III declined his offering, using the pretext that the land was too big. Mr. Pan then found another thirty-seven-acre (approximately 201 Chinese mu) piece of land in the city of San Francisco. H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III again declined, using a different reason. Then Mr. Pan found and offered a seven-story Spanish-style building of 65,000 square feet in Oakland, which was again declined by H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III. Having no way to make his offerings, Mr. Pan resorted to presenting monetary offerings each year in huge sums of over US$1,000,000. H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III did not accept even one of them. His Holiness always told Judy Kuan to give Mr. Pan the bank account number of either a Buddhist organization or a temple. However, what you cannot imagine is that H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III was not even a member of those temples or organizations.

In 2013, the elderly Mr. Pan came for the last time to America to pay respect to H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III. He said that he had reached an advanced age and was preparing to leave this world. He had come at that time to present a large amount of gold as an offering. Mr. Pan was once the deputy chief of staff to Dai Li, who was a senior official in the Kuomintang (Nationalist Party). Mr. Pan was responsible for managing some business and financial affairs for Dai Li. At that time, Mr. Pan bought a large amount of gold, which was put away in a Hong Kong treasury. The gold bars weighed two kilograms to five kilograms apiece, and there was a huge quantity. He wanted to present all the gold to H.H.Dorje Chang Buddha III as an offering. He even discussed with Judy Kuan whether to transport the gold by plane or ship. You can imagine the vast quantity! H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III immediately refused the entire offering and did not even allow him to mention the word “gold” again. To stop the elderly Mr. Pan, H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III told him not to mention making an offering again; otherwise, his karmic connection with the dharma would be damaged.

Other people would use all possible methods to arouse their followers to make offerings, yet H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III rejected such enormous offerings! Is this something an ordinary person could do? Who can have such a selfless, greedless character of holy purity! Think about this: If one were given free of charge such an enormous amount of land, buildings, cash, or gold if one were given such glittering money and wealth with no strings attached, who could remain unmoved? H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III was not only unmoved, He graciously declined all of those offerings!

H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III came to the United States in 1999. Actually, His life in the United States has always been very arduous, but He has never minded that. All that His Holiness thinks about are the interests of the public. His Holiness serves as a model for others, teaching cultivators with His own words and conduct. For the past twenty years until now, His Holiness has always lived a hard and simple life. I often go to the home office of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III. Mentioning that office may elicit laughter. It is in a corridor right outside a bathroom. With all kinds of books and other things piled up there, the remaining space is at most only four square meters. When someone is coming through the corridor, those sitting there have to get up to let that person through.

You cannot even imagine that in the twenty years during which H.H.Dorje Chang Buddha III has lived in the United States, His Holiness has not even had a dining table. He always eats His meals at the kitchen counter. Many Buddhist eminent monastics and greatly virtuous ones have eaten meals with H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III. They, too, stood beside the kitchen counter just like H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III did. Almost all of the space inside the home of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III is taken up by the storage of Buddhist objects and His Holiness’ accomplishments in the Five Vidyas. I once personally saw H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III sewing and mending His own clothes. His Holiness said with a smile, “Too bad, I accidentally slit it!” How could an ordinary person fathom the holy purity and greatness of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III?
—Such is the Innate Character of His Holiness the Buddha