Chapter 253: The Journey to the West is Completed, Returning to Chang'an Due to...
Because of the incident with Kuimulang, Ying Zheng no longer dared to take it lightly. He put away his impetuous thoughts and focused his attention on Master Xuanzang and his disciples.
Fortunately, the following tribulations went smoothly, except when the Jade Rabbit Fairy wanted to recruit Xuanzang as her husband, but Bajie treated him like he wasn't a nose and his eyes weren't eyes, which made Xuanzang very confused.
Wukong and Wujing both knew the inside story, but they just hid aside and laughed, pretending not to see Xuanzang's eyes asking for help.
It turns out that in addition to the Moon God, there are twelve auxiliary gods in the Moon Palace, who are in charge of the first to twelfth month respectively.
These twelve auxiliary gods have extraordinary origins. They are the daughters of the demon emperor Jun and the ancient moon goddess Changyi.
When Emperor Jun married Xihe and Changyi, Xihe gave birth to ten golden crows, and Changyi gave birth to twelve jade rabbits. While the world only knows that the ten golden crows perished at the hands of Houyi's divine arrows, the low-key twelve jade rabbits remain virtually unknown.
After Fuli took the throne of the Emperor of Heaven, he recruited auxiliary gods from among the immortals in Penglai. These twelve sisters revealed their identities, and Fuli made them gods of the Moon Palace, which was like the daughters inheriting their mother's career.
The one who descended to the mortal world to afflict Xuanzang was the second of the twelve sisters, known as the Second Sister Mao. When Bajie was still Marshal Tianpeng, the two of them had a mutual understanding, one reporting to his master, the other to his elder sister, and they became Taoist companions.
Previously, Bajie had been reincarnated and descended to the mortal realm, but he slipped and fell into the animal realm, where he was reborn as a pig, a life filled with depression. Second Sister Mao, taking advantage of her off-duty time, descended to find him, and the two rekindled their relationship in Yunzhan Cave.
Later, when it was time for her to return to heaven to stand guard, she pretended to be dead and escaped, leaving her belongings in Yunzhan Cave to Zhu Ganglie.
The two had been separated for many years, and the Jade Rabbit Fairy came down to earth again to set up a robbery, actually just to meet her lover at public expense.
As long as they were not serious about causing trouble, Ying Zheng was happy to turn a blind eye to their little whims and earn some favors for himself.
The four masters and apprentices traveled all the way to the foot of Mount Lingshan and crossed the river in a bottomless boat. Xuanzang successfully shed his mortal body and was led to pay homage to Tathagata.
Because he was usually quiet, no one noticed that he had been unusually silent since he came ashore.
Perhaps because his practice along the way was too perfect, Xuanzang recovered the memories of his previous nine lives and Jin Chanzi in advance without waiting for the Buddha's enlightenment.
He had been a Golden Cicada for even longer, but the combined time he'd experienced in his ten lives only amounted to a few hundred years. According to common sense, memories from a longer time span would merge and digest those from a shorter time span, leaving only memories, not emotions.
But how can everything in this world go according to common sense?
For example, when Lingzhuzi reincarnated as Nezha, in the initial stages of recovering his memory, Nezha's brief ten-plus years were able to exclude Lingzhuzi's millions of years of memory. After the two memories were completely integrated, Nezha's personality was still the main one.
Now this kind of accident happened to Xuanzang again.
In fact, when he was Jin Chanzi, he just listened to the scriptures and discussed the Dharma every day, and occasionally traveled with his fellow disciples, and his footsteps only wandered within Xiniu Hezhou.
Listening to lectures and discussing the Dharma with others all year round is inherently boring. And in Xiniu Hezhou, the patriarchal society and the clear class distinctions have remained unchanged for thousands of years.
The people here were divided into four classes, from the highest to the lowest, and within each class there were even classes, with clear barriers between each class. The upper class oppressed them wantonly, while the lower class had no intention of resisting.
It would be fine if he had never left here, but Xuanzang had traveled in Jambudvīpa for ten lifetimes and had seen the scenery outside, so he naturally had a comparison in his mind.
Compared to the stagnant water of Xiniuhezhou, whether in a peaceful and prosperous era or in a war-torn era, there are always people at the bottom of society in Nanshanbuzhou who refuse to succumb to fate and frequently display the brilliance of human nature.
Jin Chanzi is naturally hot-tempered and sentimental, and easily empathizes with others. Even if his temperament has become calm after ten lifetimes of tempering, some things in his nature will never change.
How could a person like him, who has seen the vibrant land and vibrant people, still look down on the lifeless and stinking ditch in Xiniu Hezhou?
He followed the Golden Summit Immortal into the main hall in silence. He looked up at the Buddha sitting high on the lotus platform. He felt mixed emotions and didn't know what to say.
When Wukong and the others saw that he didn't move, they also stood there.
Mahakasyapa rebuked them, "Now that you have seen the Buddha, why don't you bow down to him?"
Xuanzang suddenly came to his senses, took a deep breath, and led his disciples in bowing: "Disciple Tang Xuanzang pays homage to the Buddha. May the Buddha live forever!"
Duobao Tathagata looked at him deeply and saw that he was in a bad mood, but he did not expose it and continued to follow the original process.
However, this time, Ying Zheng arranged the eighty-one difficulties very fully, and they had been completed by the time they reached the foot of Lingshan Mountain.
Therefore, whether it is the "Wordless Scripture" or "Falling into the Tongtian River", these two disasters will no longer be necessary.
Xuanzang had his memories from the past and of course knew the rules of Lingshan. He directly asked Wujing to take out the money he had accumulated along the way and give it all to Mahakasyapa and Ananda who were preaching the scriptures for them.
The two seemed dissatisfied at first, but when they opened a bag and saw hundreds of Kaiyuan Tongbao coins inside, they immediately smiled with joy.
Kaiyuan Tongbao was a new coin minted by Li Yuan after he established the Tang Dynasty.
After they had mastered the Mahayana Buddhism, they preached it at the home of a believer in Xiniu Hezhou, and in return they received three pounds and three ounces of gold.
Even so, there are still not enough of them in Lingshan.
The four masters and apprentices journeyed westward. Apart from the money forced upon them by others after they defeated demons and monsters, they only begged for food along the way and had no other savings.
The money accumulated over the past thirteen years would not even reach two kilograms if converted into gold. However, the Tang Dynasty was at its peak, and the luck attached to the Kaiyuan Tongbao coins was unmatched by any amount of money.
The four masters and disciples all observed the reactions of the two sutra-transmitting masters. Xuanzang had known this for a long time, and his heart remained unmoved. However, Wukong frowned secretly and exchanged a quick glance with Bajie.
Wujing stood aside with his head down and his hands hanging, and no one could guess what he was thinking.
After the sermon was completed, everyone returned to the main hall. When Duobao Tathagata was about to confer the title on Xuanzang, Xuanzang took the initiative to speak for the first time since returning to Mount Lingshan and politely declined the title of "Sandalwood Merit Buddha".
He said that his mother was still alive in this life, and he wanted to return to the Tang Dynasty to spread the Dharma while taking care of his mother until her death.
"My mother has only this little disciple and blood in her life. Now she is over fifty years old and her hair is gray. How can I bear to let her die alone? I beg the Buddha to show mercy and allow me to fulfill my filial duty to her."
As soon as he finished speaking, the entire Lingxiao Palace was filled with the sound of a pin drop. After all, those present were all immortals, and even Xuanzang had shed his mortal body. There was truly no sound of breathing.
The three Wukong brothers looked at Xuanzang worriedly, while the other Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, Arhats, monks and nuns all looked up at the Buddha, some with indifferent eyes, some with gloating eyes, and some with worry in their eyes.
Duobao Tathagata, sitting high on the lotus platform, looked down at Xuanzang. Seeing that he stubbornly maintained the posture of bowing and requesting, and did not move for a long time, he could not help but sigh secretly.
——His original intention was to hone Jin Chanzi. Now Jin Chanzi has been hone, but his heart is no longer in Lingshan.
It’s really true that things in this world are unpredictable, it’s a matter of time and fate!
Tathagata said, "You have such a filial heart. Your teacher is extremely pleased. How can I not agree?"
Xuanzang said gratefully, "Thank you, Buddha."
The gods and Buddhas of Lingshan were surprised, but also felt it was natural.
——Even after coming to Buddhism and becoming the Buddha, Duobao is still the Duobao of Xuanmen Jiejiao, and his enthusiasm for doting on his disciples has not changed at all.
Tathagata then asked Wukong and the other two, "Would you like to receive the title first? Or would you like to send Xuanzang back east first?"
The three brothers looked at each other, and Wukong smiled and said, "We brothers should be conferred titles first. Master returned to the East to fulfill his filial duty to his mother. How can we, as his disciples, be content to lag behind? Naturally, we must stay in the East and serve Master."
Tathagata laughed and said, "Alright, alright! Go forward and listen to the seal."
Wukong was named "Fighting and Victory Buddha", Bajie was named "Purifying Altar Bodhisattva", and Wujing was named "White Lotus Golden Body Bodhisattva". The three brothers all achieved the right results.
Even the little white dragon who didn't come in was named one of the "Eight Heavenly Dragons", which was a great achievement in the dragon clan.
The four masters and apprentices took the scriptures and flew on a cloud to the outskirts of Chang'an City under the protection of the Four Vajras.
The Chang'an City we see today was the one built during the Qin Dynasty, but it is not the only one built during the Qin Dynasty.
As the second unified dynasty, the Sui Dynasty naturally established its capital at the old site of Xianyang in the Qin Dynasty to demonstrate its legitimacy.
At that time, Xianyang City had been battered by wars and plundered by several warlords, leaving it in ruins. When the Sui Dynasty rebuilt it, they simply incorporated Chang'an, the secondary capital. After the new capital was completed, Emperor Wen of Sui named it Daxing.
Later, when the Tang Dynasty replaced the Sui Dynasty, the capital was already there, so the Li Tang Dynasty occupied it directly.
However, they did not want to keep the name given by the Sui Dynasty and wanted to restore the ancient name, but they were wavering between "Xianyang" and "Chang'an". Finally, they invited the famous scholar Yuan Tiangang to divine and finally chose "Chang'an", which means "long-term peace and stability".
Xuanzang had the pass in his hand, so the city gate guard not only did not stop him, but also rode his horse at full speed into the palace to inform him.
At this time, Li Shimin, the second emperor of the Tang Dynasty, had just received the news of the death of the deposed Crown Prince Li Chengqian and was heartbroken. Upon hearing that Xuanzang had returned, he hurriedly ordered people to invite him into the palace.
Before sending Xuanzang to the West to seek Buddhist scriptures, he had disdained Mahayana Buddhism. But at this moment, facing the death of his beloved son, he wished that what Guanyin said was true and that Mahayana Buddhism could really save the souls of the deceased.
When the four masters and apprentices entered the Ganlu Hall, before they could even salute, Xuanzang was grabbed by Li Shimin and said, "Holy monk, please chant sutras for my son Chengqian and pray for his salvation. May he be reborn into a good family in his next life."
In fact, Xuanzang, who was not very convinced of Mahayana Buddhism, said: "…………"
"Your Majesty, please be patient." Xuanzang's tone was calm and peaceful, with a soothing power. "The Mahayana Buddhist teachings are all written in Sanskrit. I will only perform the ritual of salvation after I have compiled and translated them."
——As for how it will be translated, those who are more authoritative than me don’t know Sanskrit as well as I do, and those who know Sanskrit more than me don’t have as much authority as I do. It all depends on my thoughts, right?
He felt that the Tathagata's Mahayana Buddhism was certainly stronger than the Hinayana Buddhism, but the world was developing too fast, and Mahayana Buddhism had been unable to keep up with the times since the moment it appeared in the world.
When he translated, although he still took Mahayana Buddhism as the foundation, he had to combine it with the actual situation in the Central Plains and incorporate the essence of Taoism and Confucianism.
In this way, we can better educate the world and adapt to current affairs.
The Central Plains is different from Xiniuhezhou. Only by adapting to current events can it last long.
To this end, he specially introduced Wukong to Li Shimin: "Your Majesty, this is my eldest disciple Wukong. He is extremely powerful and has profound knowledge of Buddhism. With his help, I believe that he will be able to translate the Tripitaka in its entirety in no time."
After recovering his memory, he knew that Wukong was taught by Master Bodhi, who achieved enlightenment by integrating the three schools of Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism.
In this regard, I'm afraid he still needs to worship Wukong as his master.
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