West Meets East©

By Caroline Patrick BorNei

Certified Red Ribbon Professional of the International Feng Shui Guild

Dear Diary, His Holiness Grandmaster Lin Yun Passes Away, 1932-2010, Part II

JULY 2010

My trips to Northern California are a pleasant mixture of work and play. I had attended Grandmaster Lin Yun’s April 2010 Feng Shui workshop in Berkeley and was not planning to return to the Benicia area for several months. It seemed this three-week stay in April completed the California consultations, and the three workshops given, called “9 Ways for Days” brought things up to date for a while. My new workbook contained exercises, prayers and cures I had compiled for my personal use which I learned from His Holiness Grandmaster Lin Yun and other great teachers who have crossed my path. I had been working and writing for several weeks and decided to take some time off for a summer retreat in the mountains of Washington State. No sooner had I paid for the retreat than phone calls from California began to flood in. “When are you coming back?” they asked. Then I received a call from a large company who needed me ASAP. I canceled my vacation, scheduled clients in the Bay Area, and booked a flight to Sacramento. The arrangements went very smoothly, and that is always a good sign. I was to fly out to California for consultations, specifically, Benicia, Napa, Fairfield, Davis, Sacramento, Redding, and Shingle Springs leaving July 29^th returning to Portland August 20^th.

I tried to contact the temple to see if I might visit Professor Lin in the hospital. It was now the end of July and he had been in the hospital several times since the April workshop. He was now in ICU with no visitors.

Reference to APRIL 2010

I felt myself so blessed to have been with him in April to answer questions on the preparations of sacred art. He agreed to meet with me and gift me with this information; need I say more? I can still feel and see the golden curtains behind his chair wafting in the breeze. Western skies lit up the vibrant window coverings giving the study room a heavenly brilliance. Finished and unfinished calligraphy filled the large table. Bowls of red cinnabar vibrated and brushes hung on their racks. Large black Chinese ink stones with dried ground ink stood in the wells. Reflective light skipped across the bases of the shallow containers, giving off a rainbow of colors from the black dried surfaces. “Is that possible?” I thought. “Yes”, I answered myself. “The color black contains many colors, such as Prussian blue, greens, alizarin red, cadmium red, orange, yellow, purple, indigo, ultramarine blue and more. Black is the alchemy of Yin’s nature, the Chi of the unseen. I was in heaven surrounded with ancient art supplies waiting for Professor to enter the special room. The door to his private quarters opened and he was helped down the hall by two of my Chinese colleagues. One was a very beautiful young woman who calls me by my Chinese name Bor Nei, which Professor gave me several years ago. Translated it is actually a very lovely story, but the quick translation means “the evergreen or cypress that endures all things and stays green in summer, fall, winter and spring.”

I was lovingly scolded about using this name more often and learning to write this special name in Chinese. The other person assisting Grandmaster is a very dedicated disciple who helps with the translation. We all exchanged warm greetings, and the man known to many as a living Buddha was helped into the chair next to me while reading my Chi.

Sitting tall in the chair after a few moments studying my face, Professor Lin Yun leaned forward and inquired in English, “What is your problem?” He was not smiling at the moment and seemed very weary. His eyes usually so full of life seemed dull. The memory of this look took me back a few years to an early morning during our Taiwan trip. I was running to the elevator when I realized Professor occupied the elevator with his assistant. I backed up and said I would wait and take the next available ride. He said no and waved me into the small space. Making conversation, I asked if he slept well. “No,” he replied, “I have been up all night answering the phone with people’s problems all over the world.” There was no anger in his voice, just a matter of fact reply from someone who is bombarded with problems all day and all night, with very large problems. So now here I am taking more of his time and he asking once more, “What is your problem?” My mind zoomed in a million directions, like Google searching for driving directions. I hadn’t expected this question and now I could only think of selfish questions such as, my knee hurts, what can I do, my grandson needs this or that, how long should I live in Portland or my head hurts, which it didn’t!

My brain continued its squirrel cage search for the perfect question to ask a Master, but as soon as a question would form in my mind, I was “seeing” the answer. “He has given his students the answers to all of these questions, if only we would apply them. Why am I taking his precious time with a selfish question?” my inner voice asked. Suddenly I heard myself say out loud, “I have no problems. I am here to ask more about the preparation of sacred art.” Startled, His Holiness sat straight up as if he was getting ready to salute, and just as quick leaned back in the chair and sighed a sigh of relief. His smile widened and his eyes glowed with delight. A person with no problems was to his liking. Professor leaned forward and his hands and fingers began to flex, using his index finger emphasizing the teaching. His excitement was evident as he was rarely asked about one of his favorite subjects. Grandmaster Lin Yun the artist came alive and his voice became strong. When we finished he asked, “Did you bring any of your students?” “Yes, I replied, they are sitting on the staircase. I invited only five. I decided I would invite them only if they answered their phones on the first call, and they all did. What great karma!” We laughed. The lucky students filed in and sat down at the large table covered with sacred art. The hours pass and we are amazed. Someday I will share more about this precious time, but for now, I’m sure each of his students and disciples have had similar memories of this great man who was destined to change the world.

AUGUST 12^TH

I called my friend in Benicia while I was in Redding, and she told me of Grandmaster’s passing on the 11^th. “I didn’t want to tell you yesterday, because you had the consultations to do. We were truly blessed to have been with him in April,” she said. I told her I was on my way back to the Bay Area for the first ceremonies. It seems I was supposed to be in California after all.

Professor Lin leader of Black Sect Tibetan Buddhism had been ill for many years, but was able to elevate his consciousness to continue his mission of teaching for as long as possible. His yearly schedule seemed grueling, but his resolve to educate us was greater than what he called mundane problems. The world beckoned and he responded with gentleness in his manner, calmness in his being, and humor as constant companion. Chaos might erupt around him as TV cameras and people scurried in circles to prepare for his presence and presentations, but he remained serene and patient. I witnessed this scenario again and again over the years and was continually in awe of Master Lin’s continence. His face remained focused, interested with detachment, but aloof with confidence that all would be perfect, sooner than later. His presence was enough to anchor our minds, if only for a few days, as we embraced the truth and safeguarded the lost sacred information.

Caroline Patrick BorNei is a certified Feng Shui Practitioner and a Red Ribbon Professional of The International Feng Shui Guild. Her abilities as a consultant and artist are widely known in the US and abroad. Caroline has completed over 5000 consultations for individuals, large and small businesses. Return clients appreciate the value of her suggestions both mundane and transcendental, providing support on multiple levels. As a college art instructor for many years, Caroline understands the power of color; its symbolism and the visual effect images have on individuals in their surroundings. Her home base is Portland, OR where she continues to write, teach, paint, do illustrations and give herbal medicine making classes. She is available for Feng Shui consultations; Feng Shui art consultant, advises builders, architects and mentors a few serious students.

Call (503) 208-2960 or email caroline@fengshuiartistry.com.

Any suggestions given in this column are only for entertainment. Please contact your physician for any medical or herbal advice or diagnosis. Caroline Patrick is not responsible for any misuse of her advice or suggestions.

Caroline’s “West Meets East” weekly newspaper column can be read from archives on her website www.fengshuiartistry.com.