"Buddhist eminent monk? He's obviously a scheming old bald donkey!" Xia Shang felt angry and almost fell into his trap!
"Master, you said before that I have no connection with the Buddha, and now you want me to convert to Buddhism. Is it possible that you are inconsistent with what you said before?"
Cao Deng said faintly: "If we were born to form a bond, why would anyone need to cross it?"
"But why should I practice Buddhism? Why should I let go? What can a Buddha bring me?"
"Because you are destined to be in chaos, living in the secular world for a long time will inevitably disturb the world, but you still care about the common people and do not want to cause harm. In this case, why not withdraw from the secular world and wash away the cause and effect on your body, so that you will not be confused by the secular world. This is what the Buddha can give you
of."
Xia Shang's lips slightly raised: "However, I feel that there are some things that are tired and stumbling in the world, but also some joys and desires. What is life? It means that there are ties, expectations, and excitement.
Buddha cannot give these. As for whether I am destined to be in chaos and have an unpredictable future? I can only say that I am at peace with my heart and follow my heart. I can go with the wind or against the wind. My mind is not confused. No matter whether the world is in chaos or not, I like it.
Human world."
"That's what you said. Now let's ask if that's what you think in your heart. When the poor monk sees your hesitant face, he has doubts in his heart. This is already a sign of hesitation."
"Why have I ever hesitated?"
"The donor is bewildered by the beauty, obsessed with spending money, and doesn't know what to choose, right or wrong?"
Xia Shang frowned slightly, and several people flashed through his mind.
There is Qin Huairou, there is Shangguanchan, there is Yuehaitang, there is Yazhi, there is Jiangnan, and there is even Liu Ruyan who is not familiar with it.
Perhaps because he really lacked experience in getting along with women, Xia Shang was really at a loss among the few of them.
Being confused by beauty, this statement makes sense.
Putting aside his previous irritability, Xia Shang corrected himself: "Master, can you help me clear up my doubts?"
"Donor, please look at this candlestick." Cao Deng changed his voice and thought about the candlesticks on both sides of the incense table.
The candle flame flickered, burning warmly, illuminating the Zen room.
"Let me ask the donor, which of these two candles is brighter or darker?"
Xia Shang replied: "There is no distinction between superior and inferior."
Cao Deng nodded, stood up, took down one of the candles, and placed it in front of Xia Shang: "What now?"
"My eyes are brighter."
"Then now the donor Haiwei is undecided about something that is confusing in his heart?"
Cao Deng smiled, with a hint of amusement that was hard to detect. Maybe this was the Zen message he read from Buddhism?
Xia Shang also smiled, looked at the candlelight in front of him, and asked lightly: "Master, you want to tell me that no one is brighter or darker, the key is to see who is closer to you? The one in front of you is the best?"
Cao Deng squinted: "Of course."
Xia Shang shook his head: "Previously, I thought that Master Buddha had a firm heart and was the one who got it. But now it seems that the one who is confused is not me, but you, Master!"
Cao Deng frowned, and finally opened his slightly narrowed eyes, looking at Xia Shang, full of confusion.
"Master, in fact, we are all floating leaves in this world, moving with the wind. It's just that we have been to different places and seen different scenes, but the essence is the same. You use the metaphor of candlelight, we can see that although the candlelight in front of you is
It is bright, but there is also a time when time runs out. Let me ask you, one candle is brighter or two candles?"
Xia Shang said, picked up the candlestick and walked slowly towards the dark corner of the Zen room. There was a dusty candlestick stand with row after row of red candles displayed on it.
Xia Shang lit them one by one. The firelight in the Zen room became more and more bright, illuminating every corner of the Zen room, the golden Buddha in the main hall, and the solemn face of Caodeng.
When all the candles were lit and the fire filled the whole Zen room, Xia Shang turned around and smiled lightly: "Master, have you seen it? In the dim light, it is so beautiful! If you can't see the distant scenery, how can you know that what you have is the best? Life is greedy.
Think about it, gods and Buddhas are like this. You advise me to let go. Are you not willing to see others holding more things?
You think you understand me and have calculated everything about me, but in fact you don’t understand at all, because you are trapped in this Buddhist door and never know the further situation, thinking that others are the same as you. You don’t know, I want to know it’s not
Which candle is brighter? No matter how small the flame of a certain candle is, it will still burn itself for the brightness of the moment.
This empty temple is like my heart. A candle can't illuminate it, so I need more light and find more candles, but I don't want them to burn themselves. Do you understand? You don't
Understand! Because this is people’s selfish desires and their true feelings.”
"..." Cao Deng was silent, his brows furrowed, and he didn't know what he was thinking about with his sad face.
Xia Shang put down the candlestick, shook off the dust from his clothes, and handed over his hand again: "Although the Golden Buddha is good, it is just like a stone without the light shining on it. If you wear a gold thread cassock, if there is no light in your heart, it is also a coarse cloth. Master,
I go first."
After leaving a few words, Xia Shang slowly exited the meditation room.
Outside the Zen room, the moon and stars were sparse in the sky, and the cool summer wind stirred up the dead leaves, making it look desolate.
Under the moonlight, Xia Shang opened the small piece of paper with the verdict written on it. He crumpled it into a ball and threw it into the wind without looking at it.
It's late at night, and among the temples in the Guanyin Temple, there are always a few small meditation rooms that are still lit with lights and mottled stars. Echoing them, occasionally a few slightly heavier wooden fish sounds can be heard.
Hitting the wood and chanting the Buddha relies on meditation. If the mind is confused, the sound of the wooden fish will be chaotic.
The lights were on in the two adjacent Zen rooms, and the chaotic sound of wooden fish seemed to come from between the two rooms.
Qin Huairou missed her husband, not knowing whether he was leaving or staying, so it was understandable that he would be confused.
In the middle of the room, the half-asleep emperor's straw mat was slightly rolled up, and Mrs. Sai was beating the wooden fish on the futon not far away and chanting lightly, but the sound seemed a little more chaotic than next door.
The man who had been waiting for sixteen years finally came back, but he was no longer as heroic as before, and all that was written on his face were the mottled years and helplessness of old age.
Sai'e's heart was full of resentment, deep resentment! But when she saw the appearance of the man on the bed, she felt an unbearable pain in her heart.
This separation of sixteen years feels like sixty years of separation.
Who would have thought that the other person would be so old when we saw each other again?
The conversation during the day is still lingering in my ears. I talked a lot, but I couldn’t hear a word I wanted or wanted to hear!
"You have also seen that I am already trying my best to deal with the battles in the court. How can I have the time to take care of your mother and daughter? Above the imperial power, there are all kinds of helplessness, which ordinary people can understand and think of? I hope you can understand.
"
"In this life, I'm afraid I won't be able to give you a status or take you to the capital. It's not that I have broken your trust. It's actually that the factions in the capital are constantly fighting and colluding inside and outside the court. They don't dare to do anything to me, but they
I'm afraid it will be detrimental to you mother and daughter. From now on, you and Jiang Nan can live a normal life as an ordinary family in Yangzhou City. Sai'e, do you have any complaints about me doing this to you?"
Muyu's voice stopped suddenly, and two lines of clear tears fell on Muyu: "You are the emperor, how dare I!" (To be continued)