1. The Human Body and Health from the Universal Perspective
2. A Diet of Love and A Life of Health
3. Healing without Medicine - Understanding Illness and Self-Healing
4. How to Confront Suffering Caused by Illnes In Yourself and Your Loved Ones
5. The Self-Healing Quality of the Light and Song Meditation
6. Optimistic Prospects - Being Healthy with the Earth

Foreword

     Living in the Golden Age is an ideal anthology of insights by Supreme Master Ching Hai to accompany you on the journey of life.

     Although most of us would agree that we should try our best to be good citizens of the Earth, in this series of teachings Supreme Master Ching Hai suggests that we should aim even higher and strive to tap into the great cosmic energy so as to live the essence of our real Self. Only then, She says, will we be able to truly help ourselves and others to resolve life's problems and become effective sojourners on our planet. The idea of accessing cosmic energy is not far-fetched because this power exists within each of us. If we know how to find our true inner Nature, we will be able to "return to the Golden Age." In Her words, "Maybe we should go back to the Golden Era of ancient times when God and humans lived together, all the fairies could talk to us in our own language and instruct us on how to have a better value of life, and everyone looked upon enlightenment and wisdom as a very natural way of living."

     To elaborate on this point, Master states, "There are two kinds of Golden Age. One is an individual golden age at any time, at any age. Another is when the whole planet's consciousness has changed together into a higher level of consciousness. At that time the whole planet, or almost all inhabitants of that time the whole planet, or almost all inhabitants of this planet, will enjoy a similar consciousness of bliss. And that's what we call the Golden Age of this planet."

     We may not be able to recreate such an era for the whole of planet Earth, but we can always decide when to begin experiencing our own personal Golden Age. In Living in the Gold Age Supreme Master Ching Hai promises us that all of humanity is able to have direct contact with God and thus begin a glorious new life. So this way of being is not a utopian ideal but a way of lifestyle anyone can immediately realize.

     The author of this anthology, the Supreme Master Ching Hai, attained complete enlightenment while in seclusion in the Himalayas. Later, at the earnest request of Truth seeker, Supreme Master Ching Hai began teaching the way to immediate enlightenment-- the Quan Yin Method, a meditation technique focusing on the inner Light and Sound. Since the 1980s, Her spiritual teachings and personal example have helped countless individuals around the world to develop their potential, elevate their consciousness and enrich their lives. Master's message is relevant to all because it concerns ways to make humankind happier here on Earth.

     Over the past two decades, countless talks by Master that address audience members' varied cultural, religious and linguistic backgrounds, have been recorded on video- and audiotapes, CDs and DVDs. (These include public lectures, question answering sessions in group meditation, conversations with disciples and interviews by journalists; altogether there were more than one thousand such recordings.) Due to space limitations it was necessary to be selective about material included in this book. Thus readers are invited to check the references at the end of each volume for further resources by which to receive added blessings from Supreme Master Ching Hai.

     In this series, Master's talks have been organized under themes such as life and death, altruistic love, health, work, parenting and romantic love, with each volume being devoted to one topic. Master's teachings cover a wide range of issues, from the origin of the universe to love and friendship, from war and peace to the inner struggles of individuals working various professions, from history and the art of leadership to pet-care techniques. However, these texts are not conventional "how-to" manuals. For example, the section on health contains no specific details on how many cups of water to drink daily to maintain optimum well-being. Or, in the section on romantic love, no step-by-step guidelines on solving marital problems are provided. In the section on work, there is no section by which to become a millionaire overnight. Instead, in these absorbing and often impromptu talks readers will find new insights for living that they may use in their own fashion and thereby more readily solve life's problems.

     As Supreme Master Ching Hail says, "The true teaching is always beyond language and you always know it. You know it inside precisely, perfectly, without any explaining, without exchanging words." Yet Master's ideas may be viewed as guidelines. Like a finger that points to the radiant moon, Her words point to enlightenment, and so while perusing the Living in the Golden Age series, reader will find that through a self-realized great Master, a seemingly unreachable ideal has become vivid and tangible.

     May you read Living in the Golden Age with an open heart and find for yourself the wellspring of eternal life.