Chapter 456: Dapeng Swallows the Buddha, the Devil King Falls to Bodhi
Sanle left Shangyang City and walked to an ancient temple deep in the mountains. It seemed that the place had been abandoned for a long time and there was no one living there. Only half of the Buddha statue in the temple was left.
Only the ancient Bodhi tree in the courtyard is still full of vitality, with luxuriant branches and leaves.
Sanle slowly walked towards the Bodhi tree, his eyes becoming particularly deep.
As he got closer, the surrounding scene began to change dramatically. The broken walls of the ancient temple began to become magnificent, and the sound of Zen chanting and the beating of wooden fish could be heard all around.
A small hand grabbed Sanle's sleeve.
He turned around and saw that it was his direct disciple Xuanzang.
"Master, don't go..."
Xuanzang begged desperately, his eyes full of tears.
Sanle seemed to be moved by the feeling of pity. He stretched out his hand, wiped Xuanzang's tears with a loving smile, and said softly: "One day, you will understand your teacher."
As he spoke, he exerted force with his palms, and with a click, he took off Xuanzang's bloody head and threw it aside. Then, with a kind look in his eyes, he continued to walk forward with a smile.
"Amitabha, please go back, donor."
A figure stood in front of Sanle. It was an old monk with long flowing beard, but his eyes were very young, as if full of infinite vitality and vigor.
The air is filled with Zen spirit and the cicadas are chirping incessantly.
"Bodhidharma..."
Sanle looked at his former best friend, smiled, and said, "Have you forgotten Mahayana?"
Bodhidharma said calmly: "The Mahayana is a lie. If my Buddha Tathagata has the Mahayana, how can he not save sentient beings? Could it be that he is just cherishing what he has and holding the Dharma for his own benefit?"
His question was very tricky. Mahayana Buddhism is the way for all sentient beings to become Buddhas. If Sakyamuni really had the Mahayana scriptures, why didn't he use them to save all sentient beings and let them escape from the sufferings of this world?
Could it be that the Buddha, who cut off his flesh to feed the eagle, was reluctant to give up the true scriptures?
Sanle still had a smiling face and said, "If you have Mahayana in your heart, you will have it sooner or later. If the Buddha has it, just ask for it. If the Buddha doesn't have it, just write one yourself. Why do you have to sigh and complain and act like a little girl?"
After a pause, Sanle shook his head and sighed: "After all, you are not Bodhidharma, so you cannot understand his ambitions."
After saying this, he blew lightly and a breath turned into countless steel knives, which chopped Bodhidharma into meat paste.
All of this was very real. When Sanle stepped on it, blood splattered everywhere and the meat was firm.
If it were someone else, they would probably doubt themselves, but Sanle was calm and strode forward, almost reaching the Bodhi tree.
"Amitabha!"
The sound of Buddha's name is like the sound of a huge bell, shaking the sky.
In an instant, auspicious clouds descended from the sky, golden lotus emerged from the ground, and the stone statue of Tathagata in the main hall in the center of the ancient temple seemed to come alive, revealing a six-foot-tall golden body, one hand pointing to the sky, the other pointing to the ground, and eyes gazing at the three joys.
Facing the Buddha, any Buddhist monk would subconsciously feel awe, but Sanle was an exception. He didn't even have the interest to speak and just waved his sleeves lightly.
The next moment, the worn and greasy sleeves turned into a huge golden-winged bird, like Garuda, one of the eight celestial dragons in the Buddhist scriptures. It feeds on dragons and swallowed the Buddha in one gulp.
Sanle laughed loudly and said, "In the past, the Buddha cultivated a golden body of 10 feet in the snowy mountains, and was swallowed by the Peacock King, who then broke out of his spine. If you are really the Buddha, why don't you also jump out of this Dapeng's stomach?"
However, fake is fake after all. Although the Buddha looked intimidating, he was ultimately unable to leave Sanle's sleeve.
Sanle finally walked under the Bodhi tree.
He bit his finger and used the blood of the ancient Buddha to draw the demon-subduing seal on the tree.
Sizzle!
Thick green smoke rose from the ancient Bodhi tree, and faint screams could be heard all around, making people shudder.
Then the lush and vibrant Bodhi tree quickly withered, its branches and leaves trembled wildly, and its bark burst open, revealing an evil face that was very similar to Mara.
"Sanjie, how did you find this place?"
There was an undisguised surprise in Moro's voice.
Sanle said calmly: "After being with you for so long, there will always be some gains."
After a pause, he said, "Every time you appear, Bodhi will accompany you. That's when I remembered that the Buddhist scriptures once recorded that when the Buddha attained enlightenment, the demon king Mara tried to obstruct him many times, but ultimately failed and was suppressed by the Buddha in the Avici Hell."
"But people don't know that the Buddha had a sudden enlightenment under the Bodhi tree. Although he was not deceived by Mara, the Bodhi tree was planted with a demon seed and gave birth to a demon heart."
"Mara, your image of black clothes and black hair comes from the Kinnara Bodhisattva who was once bewitched by you, and the ancient tree that accompanies you is the Bodhi tree where the Buddha attained enlightenment."
Hearing this, Moro's expression remained calm, but his eyes became deeper, as if he was meeting Sanle for the first time.
"I see, you remembered some of Miroku's memories?"
Sanle nodded and said, "Yes, I remember some of it."
"Then you should know that you can't kill me."
This is the reason why Mara remains calm. His existence is extremely special. He is the result of the evil thoughts of the Buddhas, Bodhisattvas and Arhats in the Six Desire Heavens. He wanders freely in the universe, is immortal and transcends the six realms.
He has no concrete entity, which undoubtedly limits his interference with the real world, but it also gives him the ability to be immortal.
This Bodhi tree is just his temporary residence.
"Yes, I really can't kill you. Even if Maitreya Buddha is resurrected, the most I can do is seal you, but..."
Sanle smiled and said, "I also know that you have been looking for a perfect body."
"The physical body of the Kinnara Bodhisattva has been destroyed. The essence of this Bodhi tree has dried up and it has grown old. As for Li Yuan, although he has the aura of an emperor, he is just a mortal. You must look down on him."
After a pause, Sanle pointed at himself and said with a smile: "Look at me, how am I?"
“It’s a little fat, but it’s durable.”
"The flesh body of Maitreya Buddha can satisfy your requirements."
Moro stared at Sanle deeply, and he suddenly discovered that Sanjie, who used to respect him so much and obey him unconditionally, was now completely different.
He even found it difficult to see through the other party's intentions.
"Don't lie to me, Moro. You led me into the religion not because you wanted to preach, but because you were attracted by the flesh of Maitreya Buddha. Unfortunately, my spirit and flesh have already merged into one, so you can only give up."
"The reason why you ambushed Bodhidharma at Luoshui was not because you were afraid that he would seek Mahayana Buddhism, but because you were attracted by his body. The luck of the founder of Zen Buddhism should be enough for you."
"It's a pity that you underestimated Damo. You both suffered losses. Damo saw through your intentions, so he would rather be bitten to death by a poisonous snake and let it take over his body than let you succeed!"
There was a hint of emotion in Sanle's eyes, as if he saw again the old friend who had sat and discussed philosophy with him in the wind and snow more than two hundred years ago.
His eyes are always full of hope and vitality, as if he firmly believes that one day, all people in the world will be able to escape from suffering.
In the story that Sanle told Li Daoxuan, he said that Bodhidharma was accidentally bitten to death by a poisonous snake when he was seriously injured. In fact, it was not true. Bodhidharma gave himself to feed the tiger and was willing to sacrifice himself rather than let Mara's conspiracy succeed.
He concealed part of the truth just to avoid revealing the secret and affecting the overall situation.
Sanle deeply understood his best friend Bodhidharma. He knew that Bodhidharma's final action, in addition to destroying Mara's conspiracy, also had another purpose, which was to convert the little snake.
This is also the reason why Sanle never killed Maha to avenge his best friend.
Unfortunately, the old monk who crossed the Luo River on a reed failed in his last attempt to convert people with his life.
Moro said calmly: "Yes, you are absolutely right, but..."
He asked curiously, "Sanjie, are you really willing to give up Maitreya's body?"
This is the physical body of Maitreya, one of the Three Buddhas of the past, present and future. Possessing this physical body, one can achieve immortality and boundless magical powers. It will be no problem for him to become a Buddha or an ancestor in the future. This is truly a great fortune.
Sanle smiled and said, "Of course it's true."
There was a hint of doubt in Morro's eyes.
"Do you know why I changed the name of the Three Rings to the Three Joys?"
Without waiting for Mara to answer, Sanjie continued, "When I was traveling around the world, I met an old beggar with pus all over his body. He only had a piece of Hu bread in his hand, but he still tore off half of it and gave it to stray dogs. He drank dirty water on the roadside but was very happy. When he saw me, he laughed three times."
"I asked him why he could be so happy when he had fallen to such a state?"
"He replied, there are three things that make an old beggar happiest in life. The first is being able to sleep until he wakes up naturally, the second is that when he is hungry, everything he eats tastes delicious, and as for the third happiness, there are fewer and fewer beggars like me."
After a pause, Sanle said: "At that moment, I seemed to see the Buddha."
After saying this, he put his palms together, let go of all his mental alertness, and revealed his spiritual altar completely, which was pure and clear, with a bright Buddha light.
This is equivalent to tying one's own hands and actively removing the protection that the body provides to the soul.
Moro was stunned for a moment, then sneered and said, "For those lowly humans who are like ants, you are willing to give up your own body. How foolish."
"Or do you want to use your body as bait to kill me?"
Sanle glanced in the direction of Chang'an and said, "The Xingshui Divine Ape has been defeated. It is trying to save you and is even willing to temporarily sacrifice its body. This should be one of your goals."
Mara looked at Sanle's spiritual platform, which was filled with rich Buddhist light, and it had almost infinite temptation to him.
It should be noted that even in his heyday, he never caused the Buddha to fall, let alone Maitreya, one of the Three Buddhas.
"To be a monkey or to become a Buddha, it is up to you to choose."
After Sanle finished saying this, he lowered his head and said no more, just quietly revealing his spirit.
…
One month later, Chang'an City.
In a secluded Zen temple in Daxingshan Temple, Xuanzang suddenly woke up from his bed, breaking out in a sweat.
He drank a bowl of water and looked out the window at the fish in the night, knowing that dawn was approaching.
"Strange, why do I always have nightmares these days?"
"Maybe the weather is too hot recently..."
Xuanzang shook his head, walked to the water tank, opened the lid and wanted to scoop another bowl of water, but he saw a slender water monkey soaking in the water tank, spitting bubbles. The monkey's eyes lit up when it saw him.
Xuanzang was startled, but not afraid. Instead, he smiled bitterly and said, "My aunt, why did you run here? Come out quickly. If you are seen by the brothers, you will be in trouble!"
Not only Xuanzang lived in this Zen temple, but also other disciples from Daxingshan Temple, and people often came here to scoop water to drink.
The water monkey dived down with a gurgling sound, shaking its head, and refused to come out no matter what.
Xuanzang sighed softly and said, "The weather is getting hotter and hotter. It seems that I have to find a place with water for you, otherwise you will be discovered sooner or later."
He rescued this water monkey by accident. After the flood receded, Chang'an City was in a mess and many people caught colds. Xuanzang had learned some medical skills from his master, so he took the initiative to go to the mountains to collect herbs, and ended up meeting this water monkey.
It was dying at the time, and the wound was very deep, as if it had been stabbed by a harpoon or something like that.
If it were anyone else, they would definitely not save the water monkey, and might even stab it. However, Xuanzang was born with a keen eye. He saw that not only was there no resentment or foul air in the water monkey, but it even had bits of golden light of merit.
Obviously this water monkey is very special and has done a lot of good things.
Xuanzang immediately picked some herbs, chewed them up and applied them to the snake. In order to facilitate its healing, he put them in a medicine basket and secretly brought them into Chang'an City.
Now a month has passed and the water monkey's injuries have almost healed.
Xuanzang originally wanted to release it, but the water monkey was very human-like and wrote to him with its hands, saying that it was originally a human being, but was turned into a monster by a spell.
Xuanzang, who was kind-hearted by nature, immediately patted his chest and said that his elder brother was the current national teacher, a Taoist master with boundless magical powers. Wuzhiqi was killed by his elder brother, so there must be a way to turn it back to its original state.
But Xuanzang visited Xuandu Courtyard many times and was told that Master Li had not returned yet.
"Xiaotang, why hasn't my brother come back yet? Where is he now?"
Xiaotang is the name given to it by Xuanzang because it likes to eat candy very much.
The water monkey continued to blow bubbles in the tank.
"I see. You think my big brother is so powerful that you're worried that he might kill you as a monster, right?"
"Haha, don't worry. My elder brother was born with divine eyes. He is the reincarnation of Erlang Zhenjun. He only needs one glance to tell that you are not a demon!"
"Although my eldest brother hates evil, he doesn't want to kill all monsters. As long as you don't do evil, he won't be prejudiced against you."
Xuanzang's words were full of admiration, and his eyes seemed to light up when he talked about his elder brother.
The water monkey blew bubbles while quietly looking at Xuanzang who was talking nonstop, and there seemed to be an inexplicable gleam in his eyes.
The night outside the window gradually faded away.
Xuanzang stood in front of the water tank and kept talking. He first talked about his elder brother, then about his master, complaining about his master's unreliability and his love of using fake stones to perform a chest-breaking performance to cheat money. Once he deliberately replaced the stone with a real one...
This young monk who traveled across mountains and rivers to Chang'an had no relatives or friends around him. He was only accompanied by green lamps and ancient Buddhas. Sometimes he could not help feeling a little melancholy and confused.
But now, he found a partner with whom he could chat, even though the other person was diving and blowing bubbles most of the time.
"Xiaotang, can you please stop blowing bubbles? You are a water monkey, not a goldfish!"
“Gurgle…”
