Talk:Suma Ching Hai

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1 A Master dedicated to the cause of the Human Being
2 Master Rocks!
3 Critical discussion
4 Misplaced comment
5 Edit unofficial story
6 Her Picture

[edit] A Master dedicated to the cause of the Human Being

I really appreciate the contents that you guys have contributed to other articles of Wikipedia, the Open Source Encyclopedia. I really acknowledge the hard works that you've been doing to make the encyclopedia a rich source of knowledge. In fact, I am also a strong advocate of Open Source, and GNU Free Documentation.

As far as I know, The Supreme Master Ching Hai has always been a pacificist trying to spread the message of Truth and Virtue all over the world through her teachings that are meant to bring mankind towards the realization of God and Truth. I know the many so called "Masters" out there, but not a real one like the Supreme Master.

Those baseless criticisms, that are published by the so called "cultists" do not sound a good Gift for such a Holy person.

Anyway guys, is there a person on Earth who is totally flawless, and does not have any dark side? If there is so, please do tell me. Don't you have done anything wrong in your whole life? What if someone characterizes you wrongly for the things that you've not even done?

The Beautiful "Moon" that looks so beautiful in a full moon day, looking at which "loving couples" can spend the whole night, does have thousands of Craters which the modern Astronomy has not yet discovered.

That is why we need to be optimistic, that's what ancient sages including Buddha, Mohammed and Jesus Christ have taught us.

Think like a Buddha

Act like a Buddha

Then you will be a Buddha

~ The Supreme Master Ching Hai

So, I think we really need to learn the to be a good citizen of Earth by respecting the teachings of a living Master who is so much dedicated for the cause of the human beings. Some excerpts of relief works from the Supreme Master International Association volunteers can be viewed on: Relief works in Pakistan Earthquake [1] Relief works in Flood Victims in Mainland China [2] many more efforts Global Disaster Relief and Charitable Activities from Jan. to Dec.2005 [3] Posted by: ldp_linux10:26, 22 May 2006 (UTC)

Biography seems to come from here: [4]. DHN 04:01, 1 August 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Master Rocks!

I love Suma Ching Hai!Ann 04:00, 5 December 2005 (UTC)

CooL! ;) Good 4u & Have a Blessed New Year! Keep rocking in 2006!

[edit] Critical discussion

I just reverted to restore some information which seemed critical of Suma Ching Hai. I think, from an outside perspective, that this material is essential balence to the article. Thoughts? --TeaDrinker 16:33, 16 March 2006 (UTC)

Yeah, a lot of cultists come to this site and blank stuff all the time in an attempt to do advertising for their leader.Blnguyen | Have your say!!! 23:27, 16 March 2006 (UTC)

You two guys are demonizing a real-Buddha. Stop worshipping demons. Sumachinghaidisciple 04:23, 17 August 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Misplaced comment

Moving this from the article
[Note from a reader: Whoever wrote this doesn't seem to know that the My Lai Massacre happened in 1968, not in 1950. Also, if Ching Hai was born in the 50s, she was a teen in 1968, and if she did have a child, that child would not possibly be 20 until at least the late 80s, not "at the height of the war".] —This unsigned comment was added by 200.126.205.100 (talk • contribs) .

[edit] Edit unofficial story

Fixed several errors in unofficial story. As noted above, My Lai had not occurred so I fixed the tense. Thakar Singh is not Buddhist, nor was her studies primarily Buddhist. She stayed in a Sant Mat ashram, as well as Hinayana and Tibetan Buddhist temples, at least, while in India and Thailand. Re: the American soldiers, daughter, and suicide, this is hearsay. While preparing an undergrad thesis, I attempted to verify the story as recounted in Eric Lai's undergrad journalism thesis (the source for all the cited critical articles). Unfortunately Lai had moved to China. As it was in an undergrad thesis, his documentation was rather incomplete, without any named citation for this information. Apparently all of it was a rumor he heard in one interview in Little Saigon. I personally interviewed Ching Hai's own family members and an associate who had known her since childhood--all dismissed the story outright. Nor did I hear it from others who were critical. It does offer an example of rumor in the Vietnamese community. As there is already a more substantial criticism in the article, the only possible reason to include such an isolated rumor is within a much longer discussion of Ching Hai's role within the Vietnamese community, certainly not within a factual account as presented.

Sorry, but the original version does not have any indication that the claims are in dispute. "The article reveals..." "She was..." The implication of the whole section is clearly that the "official story" is propaganda, which I presume it is, and that the suicide story is some kind of real investigative journalism, which it is not. Why do I care about this? Because I think this is an interesting subject worthy of real study and criticism, and the article is simply weighted down by gossip. I presume that the person who reverted it is also interested in criticism, but frankly, this is not helping our case! Much better would be a an educated anaylsis of the cult psychology and sociology regarding Ching Hai. As I said before, I studied this group in college and I am preparing a book on it. I have done a huge amount of research and interviews, and in particular I have tried to trace this particular story about the daughter, which would have been very fascinating. Alas, there is absolutely no evidence for it, and there is every reason to believe it is completely fabricated. I have heard quite a few other bits of gossip about her from interviews with Vietnamese people, which is interesting from an ethnographic standpoint...however, uncorroborated. The story about the American soldiers is a classic paradigm in Vietnamese-American (pejorative) discourse. It's also scandalous, which is why it really doesn't belong in this article. Since you really want to keep it for some reason, I'm not going to make a big deal about it, except that you really have to include a caveat about the source, as I revised. Otherwise we are just muddying the waters. I know, because from speaking with Ching Hai's family, etc, they are extremely offended about this story, and at least for her family, I can sympathize. It is always more effective to criticize from the agreed facts, regarding personality worship and cultic behavior. Then people will begin to use their critical reason. I realize that you are probably unaware of the backlash against the suicide story. I can provide documentation. To be honest, I think the article is a good beginning, and there is much, much more that can be done to create a documented, objective account which might actually inspire Ching Hai followers, and others, to employ critical reasoning. The psychology behind cults is extremely, extremely complex, as well as interesting! The suicide story, I am afraid, is just the last straw. It is so unsubstantiated and inflammatory that it really draws down the article for anyone who knows anything about it. I just want this subject, to which I have devoted so much of my life to studying, to have a solid Wiki entry! Final note: lest we get into a cycle of reversions, perhaps we should request a mediator according to Wiki policy? This is actually my first time and I don't know how any of this works. And I would appreciate if you would explain before just reverting. Thanks very much for your interest.

Thank-you for the contributions and thought you've put into the changes in the article. I see that you've gone to great lengths to prove your point above. I agree that some sort of disclaimer is warranted because both articles sited as sources use the same original source, from Eric Lai's thesis "Spiritual Messiah Out of Taiwan." As the original source isn't available on the internet in it's original wording, and it's original sources uncited, it is difficult to determine if it's sources were credible or not. --209.121.35.193 10:54, 13 June 2006 (UTC)

I just reverted to re-add the same section, about the vietnamese-american child. It seems like the article does make it clear the evidentiary basis of the assertion. I am curious to see more documentation of the suicide story and/or the backlash against it. Further thoughts? --TeaDrinker 07:26, 18 August 2006 (UTC)