Venerated Enlightened Master Ji Gong (vegetarian): The Living Buddha of Compassion, Part 1 of 3

“You need to have wisdom in this secular world, to be able to turn the sourness, bitterness, and spiciness, of life into sweetness. Life is like a sea of suffering; it is also like a play. If you want to become a Buddha, you need to play your role well and do everything in accordance with your conscience. ‘Tao’ is in you. ‘Tao’ and ‘Virtue’ go hand in hand because ‘Tao’ represents the inner you while ‘virtue’ is how you manifest ‘Tao’ externally.”

Venerated Enlightened Master Ji Gong (vegetarian), known as the Living Buddha, was a 12th-century Zen Master and poet celebrated for His compassion toward the less fortunate and His remarkable spiritual powers cultivated through deep practice. Despite His ragged robes, disheveled hair, and eccentric behavior, Ji Gong possessed deep spiritual insight and was said to perform miracles, heal the sick, and protect the innocent. His life embodied the Buddhist principle that true enlightenment lies not in outward form but in inner virtue. In modern spiritual movements such as I-Kuan Tao (Way of Pervading Unity), Ji Gong is venerated as a Living Buddha and merciful Master Who transmits Divine oracles and teachings emphasizing compassion, humility, and self-cultivation. His words, known as the “Ji-Gong Living Buddha’s Merciful Oracles,” continue to inspire followers to live with conscience, transform hardship into wisdom, and walk the path of Tao with virtue.

Ji Gong was born Li Xiuyuan in 1130 or 1148 AD, during the early years of China’s Southern Song dynasty. His father, Li Maochun, was a respected military strategist, and His mother, Lady Wang, was known for her kindness and generosity. According to legend, a feng shui master once told the couple that they lacked the fortune to have children and were fated to remain childless. Heartbroken, they embarked on a pilgrimage to several temples to pray for Divine intervention. They visited a temple with a hall dedicated to the Five Hundred Arhats, enlightened disciples of the Worshipped Shakyamuni Buddha (vegan) who attained spiritual liberation. While offering prayers and incense, suddenly, the statue of the Taming Dragon Arhat fell from the altar. That night, Lady Wang dreamt of a radiant Deity who presented her with a colorful lotus flower. Soon after, she became miraculously pregnant. When the child was born, their home was filled with a sandalwood fragrance and a glow of red light – signs of great auspiciousness. Lady Wang believed that this extraordinary birth signified her son’s Divine origin: that Li Xiuyuan was the reincarnation of the Taming Dragon Arhat, one of the Eighteen Arhats revered in Buddhist tradition.

One day, an official who had narrowly survived a storm at sea vowed, in gratitude, to sponsor a monk’s ordination. He donated a substantial sum of money and gathered a group of young candidates, challenging each to complete a poetic couplet on the theme of renouncing the world. Young Xiuyuan looked at the original lines and, without hesitation, wrote a continuation that revealed wisdom far beyond His years: “The Three Realms, viewed through pure eyes, are merely a humble thatched hut.” The temple abbot was deeply moved by Xiuyuan’s profound words. However, when Xiuyuan overheard the abbot and the official discussing plans to have Him ordained, He politely declined. He explained that if He were ever to take vows, it would have to be under the guidance of an enlightened Master.