Starting boy Ma Kongqun

Chapter 260: Bright white clouds, cute in all directions

Tiantai Mountain is the middle branch of Xianxia Ridge and is located at the junction of Ningbo, Shaoxing, Jinhua and Taizhou. There are many overhanging rocks, cliffs and waterfalls in the mountain. It is full of scenic spots and is unique in the southeast.

In a Qingning place surrounded by five peaks in the mountains, the famous "Guoqing Temple" is located in it.

Guoqing Temple was first built in the 18th year of Emperor Kaihuang's reign in the Sui Dynasty. It was originally named Tiantai Temple. Later, the eminent monk Zhiyi who practiced Zen here dreamed of Dingguang Buddha at night and told him "If the temple is completed, the country will be clear", so the name was changed. For Guoqing Temple.

Zhiyi founded the Tiantai Sect here, using the "Miaoho Lotus Sutra" as the foundation of its teachings, also known as the Fahua Sect. From this, Guoqing Temple became a sacred place for Buddhism in China and one of the ten temples in the south of the Yangtze River.

On this day, the sun was shining brightly on the mountain forest, and the group of people walked together along the mountain road to the rooftop.

Ma Ji walked calmly as if he were wandering around the courtyard, but he always walked at the front of the group. Even though the seven or eight young scholars behind him were sweating and panting, they could only look at his back. No one could compete with him. Comparable.

These scholars are all students of "Tiantai Academy".

This time Gu Yong inspected Taizhou Prefecture and installed the administrative office in Tiantai County where the "Tiantai Academy" is located.

After Gu Yong settled in, he first had to meet with officials from various counties in Taizhou to inspect the county's literary and teaching style. Although students from the "Tiantai Academy" were close to the water, they did not dare to disturb them.

After finally catching their breath, everyone looked at Ma Ji, who was still out of breath and had a calm expression on his face. They all knew that he was teasing them, and their hearts became more and more resentful. They all thought that if they let you be proud for a while, they would definitely embarrass you later. .

Therefore, Ma Ji, who was a student of Gu Xuezheng and was known as "the best talent in Jiangsu and Zhejiang", was targeted by them. Someone wrote to him last night, saying that he was invited to climb Tiantai Mountain this morning to " "Guoqing Temple" tastes vegetarian food to show the friendship of the landlord.

"Hey, why did Zen Master Baiyun come out? Is it just to welcome us?"

As these few scholars who have not entered the officialdom, even if they ask Zen Master Baiyun to come out to greet him, they may not have the face to be received by him even if they take the initiative to visit him.

Afterwards, everyone still showed a happy attitude on their faces, and walked toward the mountain gate together with courtesy.

Behind him was a little novice monk who was no more than five or six years old. He had a round shaved head, which made him look more delicate and handsome. He was wearing a small white monk's robe and looked very cute.

While everyone was getting suspicious, Bai Yun had already brought the novice monk up to him. He put his hands together with a smile and bowed, chanting the Buddha's name and saying: "Namo Amitabha, you Tan Yue came to our temple. The poor monk Bai Yun missed the welcome from afar. Please forgive me - I don't know." Who is Mr. Ma, the matchmaker from Qiantang?"

Everyone walked to Ma Ji one by one. Those with a strong mind refused to lose face. Although their legs were trembling, they still forced themselves to stand beside Ma Ji as if nothing had happened, and tried hard to squeeze out a smile that was uglier than crying. Those with a weaker mind would Regardless, they all sat on the stone steps and panted wildly, out of breath.

Ma Ji had no choice but to get up early in the morning and accept the appointment.

The monk who was walking in front of him was about forty years old. He was tall and tall, with a face like a crown of jade. He was wearing a moon-white monk's robe, with white sandalwood rosary beads hanging around his neck. He held a silver whisk in his arms, and he walked out of the world with a high bearing.

Although the monk named "Baiyun" in front of me is only forty years old, he is already the abbot of Guoqing Temple. He is also very handsome and talented. He is not only proficient in Buddhism, but also has poetry, calligraphy, painting, and chess games. , tea ceremony, etc. are all exquisite. The dignitaries of the Jiangnan generation are proud to have him give lectures.

Ma Ji knew that this was another literati drama, so he was too lazy to pay attention to it.

A student whose name was Shi Ruyan said in surprise, but as soon as he said the words, he felt that he was being whimsical.

He was not very happy, so he took advantage of the mountain climbing opportunity to teach these guys who disturbed his purity a lesson.

After finally arriving at the mountain gate of Guoqing Temple, Ma Ji stopped suddenly, turned around and looked at the people behind him with a smile, who had been dragged into a mile-long intermittent formation.

Naihe's teacher Gu Yong first used this as a way to understand the academic situation in Taizhou, and secondly wanted to use it to force Ma Ji to write more poems. At that time, he made the decision for his disciple and agreed to it, without giving Ma Ji a chance to refuse.

As soon as I entered the mountain gate, I saw two monks coming out.

After hearing the first half of the sentence, they thought that Bai Yun was really here to greet him and others. All the students in the "Tiantai Academy" puffed up their chests and felt that they were humiliated in front of an outsider like Ma Ji.

Hearing the last sentence, their raised chests immediately collapsed. At the same time, they looked at each other, wondering whether Zen Master Baiyun had also heard about Ma Ji's reputation as "the most talented man in Jiangsu and Zhejiang", so he lowered his rank to greet him.

Ma Ji was also a little surprised. The first time he saw Bai Yun, he felt that this monk's cultivation was unfathomable, not inferior to the Yan Chixia he had seen before. When he heard that he had come specially to greet him, he also talked to others about it. Just as confused. Bai Yun smiled and explained: "Good Master Ma learned that Senior Brother Yan Chixia just came to our temple a few days ago, and the poor monk learned about the Master's behavior and behavior from his mouth."

Ma Ji suddenly understood, then stepped forward and bowed his hands, then asked: "I don't know about Zen Master and Master Yan?"

Baiyun said: "Senior Brother Yan is the named disciple of our ancestor."

Ma Ji immediately thought that Yan Chixia practiced martial arts, Taoism and Buddhism. It seemed that the Buddhist skills came from here.

After Bai Yun and Ma Ji told each other about their origins, they did not neglect the other students. They cordially invited everyone to the Guoqing Temple. He first showed them around the various scenic spots in the temple, then went to the main hall to worship the Buddha, and then invited the abbot to cook tea for the guests.

While chatting along the way, everyone also learned that the little novice who followed Bai Yun was called "Shifang" and he was just five years old this year.

A year ago, Baiyun was traveling down the mountain and came across an epidemic in a village. He was also proficient in medical skills and immediately came to rescue, but some villagers still died, including Shifang's parents.

Baiyun fell in love with the child at first sight, and felt sorry for him because he had no one to care for him, so he took him back to the temple and became a disciple.

Everyone in the "Tiantai Academy" exchanged glances with each other, and one of them, a student named Mai Su, coughed lightly and said: "We are going to visit the ancient temples in famous mountains, and we must recite poems and essays. How about we take turns composing poems and compositions for entertainment? "

The rest of the students from "Tiantai Academy" naturally echoed.

Mai Su looked at Ma Ji and said, "I wonder what Brother Long Matchmaker wants?"

Ma Ji smiled and cupped his hands: "Since you are so elegant, I should obey my orders."

"Okay!" Mai Su clapped his hands and said with a smile, "The world knows the beauty of Zen Master Baiyun's poems, so I invite you to be a witness. If I am not talented and willing to offer some advice, I will compose a poem with the title of the waterfall..."

He recited a seven-character quatrain without thinking, and he responded to the situation, winning everyone's applause. Bai Yun also smiled and nodded in approval.

For a time, everyone in the "Rooftop Academy" showed off their talent for writing poems in seven steps. Each one of them only meditated a little before reciting poems or chanting poems. However, every piece of work was so neatly worded that it seemed as if it was the result of countless efforts.

"Wait a minute!" When it was Ma Ji's turn at last, seeing that he was about to open his mouth without thinking, Mai Su suddenly stopped him, "Brother Long Matchmaker is the best in Jiangsu and Zhejiang. It would be unavoidable if he, like us, all use Tiantai landscape as his poem. Ignore everyone. If you can compose a poem with the title of any one of the people present in one moment or three, you will be called the 'Number One Talent'!"

"That's it?"

Ma Ji was disdainful in his heart. The poems the other party chanted were obviously carefully conceived in advance, but he still wanted to guard against being like them, so he changed the topic temporarily to make things difficult for him. It was a pity that they underestimated his accumulation in previous lives.

At that time, he had a calm expression on his face and said calmly: "It doesn't take a moment or three... Shifang, come to me!"

When Shifang saw Ma Ji summoning him, he looked at his master first, saw him smiling and nodding, and then walked up to Ma Ji with a confused look on his face.

Ma Ji touched his bald head, which felt very good, and asked gently: "You live in the monastery, do you miss home?"

Hearing the word "home", Shifang's eyes were immediately covered with mist, and he timidly said: "I want to, but I don't have a home anymore."

After saying that, the tears finally couldn't help but flow down.

Ma Ji sighed: "Good boy, I have four poems for you, which may be able to alleviate your pain of homesickness - a little green light reflects the window screen, it is good to read Shurangama and don't think about home. Being able to understand all conditions is like a dream, the only thing in the world There is a wonderful lotus flower.”

This poem was originally written by Wang Anshi to comfort his daughter who often misses her mother's family after getting married. Now he used it to apply to this young monk who became a monk after becoming homeless. The words "Shrangama" and "wonderful lotus" in it are all related to Tiantai Sect is closely related to each other, and it is as seamless and natural as it is.

Everyone in the "Tiantai Academy" was dumbfounded, while Bai Yun clasped his hands and said, "That's good, that's good! Shifang, why don't you thank Master Ma quickly? If you can realize the Samadhi of Buddhism in the future, it will all be thanks to the Master's guidance today!"

Although Shifang seemed to understand these four lines of poetry, but since the master said it, it must be correct, and he should pay homage to Ma Ji immediately.

(End of this chapter)