Not long after, I saw the sign for Jiulian Temple.
Long Teng said: "I want to offer a memorial tablet to my mother. Which temple is best?"
He Huan looked at her and said, "There are many temples in Jizu Mountain, and you can worship in each temple. When you go in, you can go wherever you feel you are destined. If you haven't chosen one today, you can still have a look when you go down the mountain tomorrow."
Long Teng nodded, relieved. The two left the road, followed the sign and turned into a chestnut forest, and entered the first temple where they would worship the Buddha today.
"Because the surrounding hills are like lotus petals, the temple is located on the lotus platform, and because the lotus has nine seeds, it is called Jiulian Temple. Moreover, this is also a Buddhist academy for nuns."
Entering the temple, you will see lush flowers and trees, a grand scale, and new and beautiful buildings. Because it is a Buddhist college, it is full of the atmosphere of the new era. It is just a little more solemn than a secular college.
Cigarettes are curling up and Sanskrit sounds are ringing out. Goldfish are playing in the release pond, and water lilies are floating quietly on the water.
A cat lay lazily in the clean and lonely courtyard. It glanced at them, turned its head lazily, and suddenly turned its head again and looked at the fairy. The fairy also looked at it in surprise.
"There are cats here too?" Long Teng said what the fairy was thinking.
"Yesterday I told you not to worry. There are many monasteries that keep cats. Cats catching mice are cause and effect, and monks are vegetarians for practice. They don't interfere with each other."
"Um."
"Moreover, rats will eat scriptures and steal sesame oil. The temple also has a kitchen, and it is impossible for monks to kill rats. So it is still necessary to keep cats."
He Huan knelt down and put the fairy down. In the past few days, he had learned that the fairy was very well-behaved. He would take her out to play, come back when called, and not run around. So there was no need to worry.
But the fairy was obviously not used to the majestic civet cat that protected Buddhism and listened to Sanskrit sounds. She shrank into He Huan's arms and wrapped her tail around his arm.
He Huan quickly touched its head gently and said, "It's okay, they are all cats. Just listen to it teach you about Buddhism."
Long Teng was speechless, "What will happen if she becomes a monk here later?"
"No, the summoner is still waiting for us fairies!"
A bhikshuni came over, put her hands together and said hello, smiling and saying: "This cat has been raised in our temple for twenty years."
"Wow! That's an advanced age!"
The bhikshuni nodded, "She is twenty-one years old. She was raised when the previous abbot was here. She is very gentle."
A cat that grew up in Sanskrit music should be quite gentle. It flicked its tail and greeted the fairy. The fairy's snow-white and fluffy big tail was not tightly wrapped around He Huan, and spread out like a feather fan.
He Huan and Long Teng were relieved and put the fairy down on the ground. They washed their hands and followed the bhikshuni to visit and worship the Buddha.
He Huan said: "Jiulian Temple is located at the foot of Jizu Mountain. It is the first temple after entering the gate of Jizu Mountain. It is also one of the largest temples in Jizu Mountain. It was first built in Jiajing of the Ming Dynasty and has always been Jizu Mountain.
Shifang Jungle Reception Temple.
It is said that the vegetarian meal is very delicious, and the vegetarian hall can accommodate 200 people. This is also because this is a Buddhist academy with many disciples. There are also vegetarian meals on the 15th day of the lunar month and important Buddhist festivals."
The bhikshuni smiled and said: "Well, those who cook are basically Buddhist lay people who come from all over the world to work as volunteers. Some volunteers are chefs themselves, and some even open restaurants. So, Jiulian Temple's vegetarian meal is called
A vegetarian gem.”
Why did we start talking about food as soon as we arrived? The two of them worshiped Buddha and drank saliva.
The bhikshuni said: "We have finished our morning lessons and are preparing fasting meals. In the first month, more pilgrims and tourists come to eat fasting. We break the fast at eleven o'clock, and the two donors have come down early, so we can catch up."
He Huan quickly clasped his hands together and said, "Thank you very much, but we have to hike to the mountain and come down early tomorrow."
The bhikshuni smiled slightly and said, "Two donors, please."
Long Teng looked at He Huan. Did he arrange for someone to receive him somewhere? In fact, He Huan didn't know. Maybe they came early, or maybe more people drove directly up the mountain.
If you drive up the mountainside and then take the cable car from the mountainside, you can basically only see the Golden Dome, but not the temples along the way. Even on foot, most of them go to a few famous temples selectively, and rarely go to every one of them.
So there were two of them here early in the morning.
The bhikshuni gave each of them three sticks of incense, "There is no need to have too much incense, and there is no need to offer it in front of every Buddha and Bodhisattva. Just put incense on the incense burner in the main hall, and the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas of the ten directions will receive your thoughts."
The sign in front of the hall reads: It is forbidden to offer high-quality incense and it is forbidden to burn paper money.
The two took the incense, lit it, and extinguished the fire, leaving only the smoke curling up. They lit the incense in the incense burner in front of the Mahavira Hall, and followed the bhikshuni in to worship the Buddha.
After worshiping the Buddha, Miss Long looked around, and He Huan knew that she was looking for the merit box.
Some temples have kept pace with the times and printed QR codes on merit boxes, but many temples in Jizu Mountain have not yet. In addition, the signal in the mountain is unstable, so He Huan and Miss Long prepared a lot for this trip to worship Buddha.
cash.
Seeing them take out their wallets, the nun said happily and turned around.
It's up to you to do whatever you want. It's not good if you focus on people donating more or less and have the intention of treating them differently.
After the two rejoiced, they went to other temples to pay homage.
When she came out, the fairy was led to the edge of the pond by Elder Lihua. Goldfish were swimming among the water lilies, and two cats were walking around on the edge. They were quite honest and did not fish for fish, but just watched.
He Huan and Long Teng also watched the goldfish with the fairy for a while by the fish pond. The dragon girl picked up the fairy, and the fairy meowed. Elder Lihua looked up at it for a while, jumped off the pool platform, silently turned back to the original position, and lay down again.
.
"It seems that it came to act as a guide for the fairy for a while. Now the mission is completed."
The two felt peaceful and happy in their hearts. When they went out, the bhikshuni walked them to the door and said, "Xiao Bailong, I have to fast tomorrow, so please come early. We won't eat after lunch, and there will be no food after lunch."
"good."
After leaving Jiulian Temple with the fairy in his arms, Long Teng looked at him, "How come she also knows about you?"
He Huan glanced at her and smiled: "They also use PPT in class, and they also have smartphones. Do you know what's weird about me?"
"I thought monks didn't care about secular matters." Long Teng was confused, "She looks so young, why should she become a monk?"
He Huan looked at her with a smile, "There must be many young disciples in the Buddhist academy. The old monk was also a young monk!"
Seeing him turning up the path, Long Teng said, "I thought you were going to take the road."
He Huan turned around and said, "I'm just a roadie, not stupid, okay? Who would follow a roadie on foot?"
Long Teng smiled.
He Huan also smiled and said: "You can't see much scenery on the highway. There are also a few temples. I want to go down the mountain and take a sightseeing bus tomorrow."
Then she went on to answer her previous question: "In our country, especially in modern times, many people think that Buddhists live in temples and don't care about worldly affairs.
In fact, Buddhism has been passed down for so many years and is so widespread that you can find a way to survive and integrate with the local culture wherever you go. This is precisely because you practice worldly things with a transcendent mind.
Because of this attitude, it is consistent with the lotus emerging from the mud without being stained, so the lotus is revered as the sacred flower of Buddhism.
The general public only began to travel after the reform and opening up. In ancient times, only monks and Taoists, apart from the literati, had the opportunity to travel.
Wandering monks make connections with all living beings along the way. There are still many traveling monks in Tibetan Buddhism today, and Theravada Buddhism also has the tradition of begging for alms.
But when Buddhism was introduced to the Central Plains of our country, the government felt that it was too hard for them to travel for alms, so they gave them temple land. Slowly, the monks settled down.
This is also a characteristic of the Central Plains culture. Home is very important. It seems unethical for you to go out to beg for food with a bowl. How pitiful. I will give you a place to live and land for you. Please stop going out to beg for food. What a pity.
"
Long Teng couldn't help laughing.
"This is also compassion! The Buddha is generous and tolerant. You will take whatever the benefactor gives you, give you a house, give you land, don't you want it? That is also a benefactor! So the unique monastic practice in the Central Plains was formed.
In the past, the Buddha and his disciples did not have temples, and there were no statues of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Now many places in the world have built temples and monks have become monks, but the government and believers still have to give them a home, but it is not a lay home.
Although there are monasteries, they have read thousands of books and traveled thousands of miles. Many eminent monks and sages do not just sit in monasteries and recite sutras. Nowadays, chanting sutras, copying sutras, eating vegetarian food, and releasing animals can accumulate merit. That is for lazy people.
.
The reason why Buddhism has so many believers in our country is because the cost of belief is low. If you really don’t know anything and don’t want to do anything, you can just recite Amitabha.
But for true practitioners, these principles in the classics can only be understood by observing and practicing them. Therefore, eminent monks and great sages generally have traveled to many places and sat in many monasteries. They were the first to go abroad.
Buddhism pays attention to forming relationships with all living beings, and eminent monks especially have many relationships with literati. This is reflected in many ancient Chinese poems. Great poets basically have several monk friends, who sing poems and compete with each other for wits and jokes.
So monks are not as serious as we think now. They sit in one place and chant sutras all day long without moving. They are also very interesting, otherwise they would not be able to play tricks.
Nowadays, it is said that you need to have a bachelor's degree or above to become a monk. Although it is not so strict in practice, you must learn what you should learn in the new era. Buddhist students must learn to use intelligent means to promote Buddhism, and they must be able to take photos of Buddhist activities.
Many temples have official websites, which must be maintained, updated, and answered to believers' questions. This is called Buddha online and Bodhisattva online."
Long Teng smiled.
"Everything must advance with the times. Tradition does not mean being conservative. This has been the case since ancient times. Venerable Kassapa has compiled classics. You must be able to translate and explain. We know that Monk Tang traveled to the West to learn scriptures and traveled through so many countries. He taught them all along the way.
Mandarin. In fact?"
Long Teng couldn't help laughing.
"The languages and customs of each country are different. In history, Monk Tang did not have a disciple with great supernatural powers, but he still debated scriptures in India and retrieved the true scriptures. In addition to the Tripitaka classics, he also left us a valuable foreign travel information, "
"The Western Regions of the Tang Dynasty". Is this something ordinary people can do?"
Long Teng smiled and listened to him while walking.
"So in that era when ordinary people were illiterate, to become a monk, you had to at least be able to read and read, and you also had to be very good at thinking. You couldn't even read straightforward books. The Buddhist scriptures are so profound, how can you understand them if you don't know how to think?
So becoming a monk is never easy! It doesn’t mean that you are a monk if you can knock wooden fish and meditate, and it doesn’t mean that you are a monk if you shave your head and put on a monk’s robe. These are all lies.
Even if you are sitting in a temple, true meditation does not mean sitting there and thinking about nothing. The highest state that Buddha emphasizes is emptiness. To be enlightened, you have to realize it first. You will not suddenly become a Buddha if your mind is empty."
Long Teng laughed out loud. He Huan turned to look at her with a very bright smile. You never have to be shy when worshiping Buddha. Many Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are smiling. But when sentient beings mention Buddha, they are too serious.
He continued: "Empty does not mean having an empty mind, but treating external interference as nothing and focusing on studying. Buddhism always talks about the root of wisdom.
Although all living beings are equal and all living beings can become Buddhas, in general most of them are just monks ringing the bell for a day, and I am afraid that even Sakyamuni would not admit it. A truly virtuous and eminent monk must be virtuous and wise.
So it’s not surprising that Buddhism recruits talented students. Since ancient times, there has been a threshold.”
Long Teng nodded.
Unknowingly, a group of people followed me around.
During the Spring Festival, there are many people. But most people still take cars. Even if they hike, they always start from the mountainside. This saves time and energy.
Also, I really don’t know much about Buddhism, and most of them only go to the mountain to worship Buddha out of excitement or practical needs.
Those who can hike from the foot of the mountain are considered pious and not afraid of fatigue. They are interested in Buddhist history and culture. Therefore, they listened especially carefully. It felt like they had met a university monk.
The female bodyguard, wearing a low-brimmed hat, also mixed in with the tourists and followed behind them.
I have to sigh: Xiaobailong, the tour guide, is indeed well-deserved!
"This poet goes to a place, looks at the scenery, writes poems, and then runs away. As for the monks, they run around and feel that a place is particularly good, so they settle down here to practice. How about there be more famous mountain monks in the world?
Nowadays, worship of the Buddha is everywhere, but the Buddha never settled down during his lifetime. He took the Sangha with him and preached wherever he went. Under the Bodhi tree, in the bamboo groves in the fields, and in the vineyards, he preached wherever he went.
Monks were the earliest travelers, and so were missionaries. Because ordinary people guarded one-third of an acre of land, and their parents and wives could not leave that place for the rest of their lives.
But monks live all over the world, making alms during the day and sleeping in the jungle at night. That’s why the temple is called Shifang Jungle! These famous mountains and rivers were the first to be discovered by them. Do you think they can open it?”
"Um."
"Tang Monk is a very powerful person. He is not the meek and verbose old monk in Journey to the West who relied on his disciples. He went to his base camp to work as a study abroad monk. He used his language to defeat the monks who came to challenge him and became famous in India.
.
We have the impression that eminent monks always keep aloof from the world. In fact, many eminent monks are eloquent.
The reason why Jizu Mountain has become the fifth most famous mountain in Buddhism is because Master Xuanzhuang recorded in the "Records of the Western Regions of the Tang Dynasty" that Venerable Kasyapa entered Jizu Mountain 2,500 years ago. So Jizu Mountain
It became the dojo of Lord Kasyapa.
In addition to "Records of the Western Regions of the Tang Dynasty", many later translated Buddhist classics also recorded that Kasyapa entered Jizu Mountain. After investigation, scholars believe that Jizu Mountain should refer to Jizu Mountain in ancient India.
However, for thousands of years, Jizu Mountain in the southwest border of my country has long been a holy place for Buddhism. At its peak in the Ming Dynasty, there were thirty-six temples, seventy-two nunneries, and thousands of quiet rooms and huts. From the Tang Dynasty to modern times, eminent monks emerged in large numbers.
It is quite influential in the Central Plains, South Asia and Southeast Asia. Believers have regarded Jizu Mountain as the ashram of Venerable Kassapa. The believers even come to this holy land of the Buddhist country where various sects gather to pay homage to the Buddha, which is spectacular. So there is no need
Regardless of whether it is true or not, as long as you have it in your heart, Buddha will be everywhere."
"Um."
The pilgrims and tourists behind also listened silently.