Chapter 93 Peace and Joy I hope you will have peace and joy in the future…
As she spoke, she wiped away her tears again, "I'm so sorry, I didn't want to say these things, but I couldn't help myself. Thank you for your help, layman. My husband and I will be leaving tomorrow. If we are destined to meet again..."
She paused, then could no longer hold back her tears. She covered her lips, turned her face to the side, and sobbed softly.
Li Chen took out two red ropes from the storage bag at his waist and handed them to her.
After the woman reached out and took it, she smiled and said, "If we are destined to meet again someday, I wish you and your child peace and happiness."
The woman smiled through her tears and agreed, then turned and left the hall.
Li Chen watched the woman's departing figure until it completely disappeared from sight before turning around, gazing at the solemn and compassionate Guanyin statue before him, and closing his eyes and clasping his hands in prayer.
As Shen Zhengyuan gazed at her profile, lost in thought, he suddenly heard Li Chenjin ask, "Are you wondering why I didn't comfort her just now?"
After Li Chen finished speaking, he slowly opened his eyes, turned his head to look at Shen Zhengyuan, and smiled and said: "In one's life, whether one pursues the Way or not, one suffers; from birth to old age, from old age to sickness, from sickness to death, the suffering is immeasurable (1)."
"Therefore, we must be aware of the burning nature of life and death and the immeasurable suffering (2). Some people and some things, even if we force them to stay, are nothing more than flowers in a mirror or the moon in the water. When the time comes, it will all be for nothing."
As she spoke, she walked around the kneeling cushion, went to the table, lit three sticks of incense, and handed them to Shen Zhengyuan.
“Since Venerable Mingcun has asked me to show you around Wufo Temple, then I will give you a proper introduction first,” Li Chen said with a smile.
"The person who founded this Wufo Temple is unknown, but from some fragments, we know that the name of the temple comes from a scripture. The scripture says, 'Those who leave home to become monks cut off desires and love, know the source of their own mind, understand the profound principles of the Buddha, realize the Buddha's non-action, have nothing to gain internally, nothing to seek externally, their minds are not attached to the path, nor do they form karma, they have no thoughts, no actions, no cultivation, and no proof (3)'. The two characters 'Wufo' are the origin of the name of this temple."
"Wufo Temple had been abandoned for nearly two hundred years. It was only after the Venerable Mingcun came here and rebuilt it that it became what it is today. After Wufo Temple was built, Venerable Mingcun left the temple for five years because he had no disciples."
"During those five years, he traveled around preaching and spreading the Dharma, which attracted many people to voluntarily become monks and follow him in practicing Buddhism after hearing his teachings. Most of the disciples in Wufo Temple today are those who voluntarily became monks and followed him after hearing his teachings."
“Although the old monk is now 105 years old, he is still very healthy. He often leads his disciples in the Zen community to practice hardship and teaches his disciples to ‘develop the Mahayana mind, universally save all beings; wish to suffer immeasurable suffering on behalf of all beings; and bring all beings ultimate great happiness (4)’.
Shen Zhengyuan didn't know if he understood what she was saying, but he silently accepted the incense she offered and followed Li Chenjin to bow three times in front of the Guanyin statue.
After inserting the incense sticks into the incense burner, he turned his head and saw that Li Chenjin had already knelt down on the kneeling cushion with his hands clasped together.
She was still wearing that coarse linen dress, without any patterns or accessories, and the only thing holding up her long hair was an ordinary wooden hairpin.
But she just knelt there quietly, like a figure from a painting.
She was clearly right there, right in front of me, yet she inexplicably gave me a sense of unreality, as if she might vanish at any moment.
Shen Zhengyuan stared at her for a long time, and when she opened her eyes and lowered her hand, he suddenly asked, "What are you asking for?"
Li Chen said gently, "I didn't ask for anything. I just suddenly remembered a saying that the eldest disciple of the Venerable Mingcun often said: 'Although I have not yet saved all sentient beings, I wish to save all sentient beings in the final eon (5)'. However, if possible..."
She smiled slightly, slowly stood up, looked at Shen Zhengyuan, and said, "If possible, I would only ask for one thing."
Shen Zhengyuan: "..."
Shen Zhengyuan turned his head to look at the lofty Guanyin statue and suddenly smiled.
What can she ask for?
Perhaps it's a desire for freedom?
Even if gods and Buddhas were to appear in person, he would not let go, even if it meant death, even if his soul were to be scattered, he would not let go...
Just as his expression was gradually turning gloomy, he suddenly heard Li Chen say, "I hope that in the future you can be safe and happy, and that you will no longer suffer."
Shen Zhengyuan was taken aback and subconsciously looked at her. He saw that she looked sincere and very happy as she said, "If I am no longer able to stay in this world in the future, then when I leave, I will do everything I can to take away all the suffering of your remaining life."
“A-Yuan, you will no longer suffer, and no one will bully you anymore. You don’t need to worry that I will hold a grudge against you. On the contrary, I am very grateful to you, because this way I can take care of Jiu Niang Yuanzi in her old age and see her off in her final days, and I can also truly put an end to the things that are on my mind.”
"But if one day in the future you can let go of the pain of the past and let me leave without me having to worry about those things, then I will be very happy and will always remember you."
Shen Zhengyuan: "..."
He slowly lowered his head, without saying a word, but silently turned around to face the Guanyin statue in front of him and slowly put his palms together.
When he offered incense earlier, he felt nothing for the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas worshipped in the meditation community, nor did he think of asking for anything. After all, in his view, if praying to gods and Buddhas were effective, the human world more than seven hundred years ago would not have become a purgatory.
He stopped believing in gods and Buddhas a long time ago.
But now, he sincerely put his palms together and closed his eyes, yet after closing his eyes, he didn't know what he could say to the gods and Buddhas in the sky, or what he could ask for.
May Li Chen rest in peace and happiness.
I also hope that she...
forever……
forever……
You can't get rid of me...
………………
The leisurely days didn't last long. Li Chen only had time to take Shen Zhengyuan to Wufo Temple to worship Buddha, read scriptures, and enjoy tea for three or four days. Then, the pilgrims mentioned in the letter from the old monk Mingcun began to arrive one after another.
Those who can climb up Wufo Temple are not ordinary people; they need both physical strength and endurance.
After all, following this route, in addition to climbing mountains for days, one also has to endure the bites of poisonous insects in the forest.
Although there are no man-eating beasts on the mountains surrounding Wufo Temple, there are many poisonous insects of all kinds that, while not life-threatening, can make life worse than death.
Although those insects don't enter the temple, they dwell in the continuous mountain range outside the temple. Once someone steps in, they will crawl onto the person and suck their blood.
After being bitten by those insects, the wounds were itchy and painful, and the bleeding wouldn't stop for a while. Scratching hurt, but not scratching made it itchy. And those insects were there day and night. Ordinary insect repellent packets were completely ineffective. It was really torturous.
Aside from poisonous insects, there were no inns or human settlements along the way. Even though there were many pheasants and rabbits, since the purpose of the trip was to worship Buddha, it was not appropriate to eat meat within the territory of the meditation community.
Therefore, after finishing their dry rations, many people could only find some edible wild fruits and vegetables, wash and cook them casually. If they were lucky, they could eat them, but if they were unlucky, they would be sour, astringent, and bitter. Although they could be eaten, they were really hard to swallow.
Within the Zen meditation community, there are naturally temples that are easy to reach, or rather, most temples have easy paths that do not require climbing mountains or being bothered by poisonous insects, and there are inns along the way to stay. However, Wufo Temple is located in the mountains and is one of the temples with the most difficult paths to reach.
Nowadays, there are many enlightened monks in the Zen meditation world besides Master Mingcun. Master Mingcun also has eight or nine friends who are also enlightened monks. However, the path to their respective temples is not much easier than that to Wufo Temple.
Some are built in the middle of a vast lake, but there are no bridges or boats. If you want to swim across, not to mention whether you have enough physical strength, the water is full of water snakes and crocodiles, so no one dares to swim there, which makes people hesitate.
Some are on cliffs, difficult to climb up and difficult to come down, and one wrong step could cost you your life.
Some are located in valleys, which sounds easier to reach, but those valleys are teeming with venomous snakes and man-eating beasts...
In short, no place was easy to walk through. In comparison, only Wufosi Temple was relatively safe, although the journey was quite arduous.
Even so, out of ten people who came, nine gave up, either turning back or going to other temples.
Li Chen looked at the two people supporting each other. They seemed to be a couple. They had walked all the way to Wufo Temple. Their clothes were tattered and dirty. Although they were not yet thirty years old, their faces were sallow and full of vicissitudes, as if they had aged twenty years in an instant.
Although they looked exhausted, their eyes were very bright.
Especially when they saw her being led out by two young monks, they rushed forward, their eyes filled with reverence and joy, and put their hands together, saying, "Master Chenjin, we have long heard of your reputation and have always wanted to meet you, but we have never had the chance."
Li Chenjin also clasped his hands together and smiled, "Master Mingcun is temporarily away from the Zen community due to being busy with affairs, so he specially sent me here to welcome you two. I see that you two benefactors look tired, why don't you come with me to the meditation room to rest for a while?"
One of them quickly said, "It's alright, it's alright! We all know that to see Zen Master Mingcun is a matter of great opportunity, so we are already very satisfied to be able to see you, Layman!"
Another person said, "Layman, we have come here to stay in the meditation community for two years."
Li Chen was somewhat surprised. "Why would you two want to stay in the meditation community for two years? If you want to stay in the meditation community, those who are healthy must work alongside the monks. Moreover, you have to start at dawn, have morning prayers at dawn, and after the morning prayers, you have to clean, farm, or repair things in the temple. After working, you also have to meditate and chant sutras, and..."
She looked at the couple before her and said apologetically, "Even if you are a couple, you must live separately after entering the temple. Except when necessary, the monks and nuns in the temple do not see each other on a regular basis. If you two are to stay in the temple for two years, I'm afraid you will not be able to see each other again for those two years."
The two men exchanged a glance, and it was clear that they both hesitated.
After a long while, one of them said, "Don't worry, layman. Now that we're here, we will definitely abide by the temple rules and never overstep them!"
Li Chen blinked, pondered for a moment, and then asked, "May I ask why you two have come to Wufo Temple to stay temporarily?"
The author's note: (1) From the "Sutra of Forty-Two Chapters Spoken by the Buddha".
(2) From the Sutra of the Eight Great Awakenings of the Buddha
(3) From the Sutra of Forty-Two Chapters Spoken by the Buddha
(4) From the Sutra of the Eight Great Awakenings of the Buddha
(5) From the Surangama Sutra
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