The brothers who traveled westward in those years

Chapter 21 0021, Fahua Temple Purdue All Beings
If the mountain is not high, there will be spirits if there are immortals; if the temple is not big, there will be spirit if there are monks.

Fahua Temple, located by the river, is the temple with the most pilgrims in the entire county.Not only because it has been visited by the current saint, but mainly because there is an old Zen master who plays the piano all the year round in Fahua Temple.

The old Zen master has been in Fahua Temple for nearly 30 years, and no one knows his name, or even his name.Since the first day he came to Fahua Temple, everyone called him the old Zen master.Up to the abbot of Fahua Temple, down to the little monk in Fahua Temple.

On this day, the old Zen master was sitting by the river playing the piano, and beside him stood two disciples who had practiced with him for many years.They are all the best monks in Fahua Temple, but they can't let go of their obsessions.I want to learn the profound Dharma from the old Zen master, but I don't know how to calm down and practice my own Dharma.

After the old Zen master played a song, he looked up at the endless river.Suddenly, he found a black spot floating from the upper reaches, and quickly drifted to the riverside closest to the old Zen master.Strange to say, the tub stood motionless by the river.Like a special trip to see the old Zen master, circling in place by the river and refusing to leave.

The old Zen master threw down his qin and hurried to the river, and ordered two disciples to go down and pull the wooden basin ashore.There was a baby in the tub, and the old Zen master grinned when he saw the old Zen master for the first time.The two little hands are grabbing and grabbing in the air, as if they are greeting the old Zen master.

The old Zen master took the child back to Fahua Temple, and the two talkative disciples spread the news to Fahua Temple.Because they all saw the blood book on the child, it didn't look like a good omen.They grew up in Fahua Temple, and the masters in the temple often taught them that they should not care about the mundane world once they are united.

This matter was later known by the supervisor of Fahua Temple, and he made a special trip to find the old Zen master to discuss.I hope that the old Zen master can send the child away. Even if he can't put it back in the river, he can still find a family to give the child away.The old Zen master flatly rejected Jiansi's proposal and said frankly that he would bring up the child.

From that day on, the old Zen master took good care of the child he picked up.Every day, I would take him by my side to chant scriptures, and then go up the mountain to collect herbs with him on my back.The old Zen masters in the past had no concept of silver, they only needed simple tea and light food.Since the child was taken in, the old Zen master had to go to the mountains to collect herbs in exchange for silver taels, and then buy something suitable for the child.

The child grew up day by day, slowly began to learn to walk, and later learned to dress and eat by himself.The old Zen master gradually became less busy than before. He let the child eat whole grains, and then taught him to read and chant scriptures.This child has a deep connection with Buddhism, and he can memorize many scriptures after reading it once.

In the early morning, the old Zen master sat alone by the river.Unconsciously, he has been in Fahua Temple for more than 30 years, and he has never mentioned his past to anyone so far.When he saw this child for the first time, he immediately thought of his children who were no longer alive.

The old Zen master was born in a family of merchants who have been doing business for generations, and his parents are both benevolent businessmen.Every year, a large amount of silver is donated to a nearby monastery, and every season, I go to the monastery to offer incense.Whenever there is a natural or man-made disaster, his parents will help the victims as soon as possible.The villagers with a radius of hundreds of miles have all received help from their family.

When the old Zen master was 20 years old, he married his childhood sweetheart.The girl's family has been officials for generations, although there has never been a senior official in the family.But the family tradition is very strict, except for the old Zen master girl, she has never had any contact with the opposite sex.After marrying the old Zen master, she gave birth to two sons and two daughters, and the family enjoyed the happiness of the family.

The old Zen master took over the family business at the age of 22, leaving early and returning late every day to be busy with work.The wife takes care of the parents and four children at home, and the husband and the son keep the house in order.

Everyone envied the old Zen master for having a good daughter-in-law and meeting such a good father-in-law and mother-in-law.The old Zen master himself thinks so, the family is harmonious and everything is prosperous, and the business of the old Zen master is getting bigger and bigger, spreading to more than a dozen surrounding counties and cities.

During the Spring Festival of that year, the old Zen master took the whole family out to play.Not only brought his parents, wife and children, but also called his father-in-law and mother-in-law to go together.Because he has been busy with business these years, the old Zen master arranged a long trip for his family.Go to some places that you have wanted to go for a long time but have no time to go, so that the family can go out and relax.

The carriage fell off the cliff when passing the mountain road, and only the old Zen master survived among the ten members of the family.Parents, father-in-law, mother-in-law, wife and two pairs of children, they all left under the old Zen master's nose.The old Zen master couldn't resist such a blow, and he became haggard day by day without eating or drinking.

Such days lasted for more than a month, and a wandering monk suddenly went to the home of the old Zen master.I stayed at the old Zen master's house for a day and a night. When I left, the old Zen master went out to see him off, and a smile appeared on his face again.Then he dispersed his family's wealth in three years and helped many people in need.

He sold all his belongings, and then just disappeared out of thin air.Later, many people went to the old Zen master, because they had received favors from the old Zen master or his parents when they were young, and they wanted to come back to repay the favor after they became prosperous.It's a pity that things have changed and people have changed, and the old Zen master has disappeared.

Every year on Ching Ming Festival, many people will go to the old courtyard of the old Zen master's house to present a bouquet of flowers.Even the family that bought the old Zen master's house never let anyone live in that yard.They had also been helped by the old Zen master's parents, and they bought the house just to keep it for their benefactor.

After leaving his hometown, the old Zen master went to many places and measured many famous mountains and rivers in the Tang Dynasty with his feet alone.The wandering monk enlightened him, and three days later he became a monk and became a monk who took refuge in the Three Jewels.He traveled all over the world, looking for the eminent monk who was hidden in the deep mountains.

His Dharma is getting deeper and deeper day by day, and his practice is getting stronger day by day.The more roads you walk, the more you can see clearly, and the more people you meet, the more clearly you can see.The old Zen master spent 18 years traveling all over the country, and finally stopped at Fahua Temple, which is surrounded by mountains and rivers. This stop lasted more than 30 years.

In 18 years, he had accepted eight apprentices, all of whom later became famous eminent monks in the Tang Dynasty.He was once so distraught that he almost couldn't think about doing something stupid.But since he converted to Buddhism, the pain of losing his family has gradually faded.

It's not that he really let go, but after learning a lot of Buddhism, he really saw the world.All living beings have their own way of heaven, birth, old age, sickness and death have their own destiny.He doesn't like people calling him an eminent monk, because every time he hears those two words, he thinks of his family members who died together.

What Yunyou Monk said to him back then is a deep memory that he has never forgotten in these years.The wandering monk told him that the reason why he encountered such a tragic accident was all because of his fate.He needs to complete a destined mission, so he needs to experience some extraordinary things to help him recover.

In other words, the death of his family was all because of him.Because he had a very important mission to complete, it caused his family to die together.

After hearing these words, the old Zen master immediately wanted to die.He was stopped by the wandering monk on the spot and told him another reason.If he is dead now, how can he be worthy of the family who gave their lives for him.If he died now, wouldn't their family die in vain?

Later, the old Zen master had an epiphany and accepted the fact that he had lost his family.Of course, from that moment on he also hated what was required of him.For decades, the situation has been calm, and the old Zen master has never encountered an accident.This incident gradually faded away, and he never thought of what Yunyou Monk said.

Until that day, the sudden appearance of a child made the old Zen master immediately think of what the wandering monk had said.If this was what he was destined to do, he just wanted to get it done right now.This matter has been on his mind for decades, and it has already made him a little out of breath.

Seeing the blood book on the child, the old Zen master was even more sure of what the wandering monk said.So no matter how others persuade him, it is impossible for him to give this child away.In particular, he grew up with his children every day, as if he had returned to the time when his own children were just born.

At that time, he was very busy and had to go out for a long time every day.I have to go out before dawn in the morning and come home very late at night.The amount of time he sees his children every day is limited, and basically the children are sleeping when he is at home.From birth to the accident, the old Zen master never spent a good day with the children in the eight years.

He used all the debt he owed to his own child on this child, and the blood book said his name was Jiang Liu'er.The old Zen master never called him that, because he was afraid of causing the child to be killed.And he had a clear feeling that this child had a fate similar to his.

His father was killed on the way to take office, his mother was occupied by gangsters and he was not allowed to be free, and he was about to be thrown into the river when he was born.All this looks like a causal loop, exactly the same as his original experience.

Heaven will send a great mission to the people of Sri Lanka, and they must first suffer from their will, exhaust their muscles and bones, starve their skin and skin, and empty their bodies.This is so reasonable, the old Zen master really wants to give a compliment to the person who wrote this poem.

"Master, what are you thinking?"

When the old Zen master fell into memory, Jiang Liu'er ran to the riverside at some point.He is very cute at the age of three and a half, and he is also very popular with the pilgrims who come to the temple to offer incense.Many female pilgrims wanted to take them home for adoption, but they were all politely rejected by the old Zen master.It wasn't that he was stingy and refused to give Jiang Liu'er away, but that he was afraid that the life of the person who adopted him would not be hard enough.

The supervisor of Fahua Temple was the first person who didn't like Jiang Liu'er, and he was also the first to suggest that Jiang Liu'er be given away.Not long after he put forward this suggestion, the prison temple, which had always been vigorous and vigorous, suddenly became dull and sluggish.Sitting in the yard basking in the sun every day, anyone who talks to him just giggles.

It lasted until Jiang Liu'er learned to speak, and Jian Si, who had become stupid, returned to normal.It was like he had a strange dream, in which he changed from a shrewd person to a fool.It's just that he never knew that he really looked like a fool those days.Sitting in the yard basking in the sun, no matter who talks to him, he will be greeted with a drooling hehe giggle at the end.

"Teacher, master thinks of his own childhood, and also of my children." The old Zen master said with a smile on his face.

Jiang Liuer asked: "Master, do you have a child too? How old is your child now?"

The old Zen master was taken aback when he heard the words, and smiled bitterly: "If they are still alive, they should have children by now."

Jiang Liu'er said solemnly: "It doesn't matter, master, birth, old age, sickness and death are the reincarnation of heaven, they have not been able to walk with you in this life, and they will definitely meet again in the next life."

The old Zen master was stunned again when he heard the words. No matter how you look at it, it doesn't look like what a three-and-a-half-year-old child can say.Then he smiled and nodded, sure enough, if he is ambitious, it will not be sooner or later when he is enlightened.

(End of this chapter)