This happened when I was living in a boarding house in Seoul. At the time, I was deeply immersed in my studies and spiritual practice. Since I was living in a boarding house, I could eat home-cooked meals there for breakfast and dinner. One day, as usual, I finished my studies and walked into the living room to have dinner. It was still early, so the other students weren’t there yet. I sat down at the table and began to eat the delicious seasoned chicken the landlady had prepared, feeling grateful. I quickly finished one chicken drumstick, and just as I reached for another with my hand, I heard a voice say, “Don’t eat that!” I couldn’t help but be startled. I stopped eating and looked in the direction of the voice. There, the landlady was looking at me with a surprised expression and said: “Did you hear me saying something?” When I told her I had, she apologized profusely, explaining that she had only thought it in her mind. I told her it was okay, but I couldn’t bring myself to eat any more chicken. She explained that she had prepared one piece per person. I told her it was fine and forced myself to eat my rice in the awkward silence.
This had happened before, but this was the first time I’d heard someone’s inner thoughts as clearly as actual speech. In Buddhism, this is called in Korean “tasimtong” (telepathy). It refers to the ability to read another person’s mind. At the time, the TV drama *Wang Geon* was very popular, and the scene where King Gung Ye falsely claimed to be the “Buddha Maitreya” and practiced the “Method of Observing the Mind” was so well-known that almost everyone was familiar with it. Consequently, many people thought, “It would be fun if I could actually use this ability.”
But that’s just talk from people who don’t know the truth. Once you can see into people’s minds, the headaches are endless. That’s because you can clearly see how others really feel about you. Countless people don’t walk the talk. They say things they don’t really mean. For example, you’ve probably heard people say things like, “I’ll miss you. Let’s keep in touch.” But these are just polite phrases; they’re rarely sincere. And countless people lie all the time, thinking no one will find out. But that’s not true. First of all, they themselves know the truth, and heaven and earth know it too. The reason I can read others’ minds is because I can empty my own mind. It’s easier to understand if you think of it this way: when my mind is empty, the other person’s emotions and thoughts are reflected in the mirror of my mind.
I often see people anonymously tearing each other down online. They act this way because they think the other person doesn’t know who they are. Similarly, because people don’t know what’s inside one another, they deceive each other and speak and act in ways that don’t match their true selves. As someone who experiences these things every day, this ability doesn’t feel particularly special to me. If I had to find a benefit, it’s that I can avoid truly crazy people. Another advantage is that I can spot the rare good person—perhaps one in a hundred. Also, if I feel the other person isn’t listening, I can simply choose not to speak, which saves me time.
How about you? What if someone could hear your true thoughts?
Many people don’t want their own true feelings to be revealed, yet they want to know their partner’s true feelings. This is because they’re curious whether their partner truly loves them. I also use this ability when assessing compatibility. However, since true feelings can change depending on the situation, I use the four pillars of destiny to see if the two people’s energies resonate with each other and also examine whether they actually share a connection from a past life. That’s the only way to fully understand everything.
Phoenix