Chapter 16 16. Relic
A monk is cleaning fallen leaves from the temple gate.
A few days ago, great changes took place in Taihang. With a drizzle, everything took on new vitality. The pine trees in front of the temple sprouted new buds and the old leaves fell.
Keeps people busy.
The old monk picked up the broom and wiped the sweat from his forehead.
The people who stay in the temple now are monks who are dedicated to studying Buddhism without caring about worldly affairs, or old people like him who are unwilling to change places after staying for a long time. They work from sunrise to sunset, and the fields in the mountains behind the temple are enough for the people who stay here to be self-sufficient. Copy sutras, chant Buddha's name every day, and meditate to save your mind. Because of the ancient life in the mountains, Taihang has now become a forbidden area in the human world.
The old monk looked at the stone road extending out of the temple, extending down to the foot of the mountain. Without the pilgrims who usually come and go, there are fewer people and more peace in Buddhism. Young monks occasionally joke and say that they seem to have returned to ancient times and become true Buddhists. The old people smiled knowingly but did not correct them. In fact, there is no truth or falsehood in Buddhism. If you have Buddha in your heart, you will be a lotus platform, and if you recite the Dharma in your heart, you will be an Arhat.
"Old man, are the incense still sold here?" someone asked softly.
The old monk turned around and found a young man standing in front of the temple. He glanced at him and smiled.
He didn't know when the young man came. He had stood at the door and looked on the way up the mountain. It was clear that it was quiet and empty, and there was no trace of anyone in sight. Instead, the wind blew up out of thin air, ruffling the leaves that the old man had finally swept clean.
"Sell it," the old monk replied, "but I don't need the money. The wind is weirdly tight, so why don't you, young man, help me sweep the leaves away from my old bones."
"Excuse me for disturbing you." The young man replied politely.
The old man smiled, handed the broom to the other party, and looked at the sudden incense visitor.
Her long black hair was spread casually. Because the young man was bending over to clean the fallen leaves, it fell down his shoulders and covered half of his face. He is so handsome that many girls would envy him. The old man thought to himself that among the many incense visitors he had seen, this was rare.
But it is hard to compare with the terrible deeds of the one in the mountains.
"Okay, old man." While the old monk was looking at it, the young man cleaned up the slightly messy leaves on the ground. The old man had already cleaned it up before, but it was just messed up by the wind. The young man didn't spend much effort in sorting it out.
At this time, the old man noticed a trace of crimson in the corner of the young man's eyes. It was thin and light, but it gave the young man's light and watery temperament a bit of evil.
The old man handed the young man three sticks of incense as promised.
In order to pray for blessings, many pilgrims believe that the bigger and more incense is, the better. In fact, this is not the case. Three sticks are enough, even without burning. This is the notice that their temple has always posted.
When the young man was about to leave, the old monk bowed and bowed.
"Amitabha, the Taihang Sacred Mountain is up there, so the young monk is polite. I can trouble the mountain god to clean up the fallen leaves for the young monk. In fact, it's just a joke. Please don't blame me..."
"Okay, old man, don't you feel awkward when someone who is not a literary person insists on speaking polite words? When you handed me the broom, you were very neat and tidy. I didn't see you being frightened." The young man looked back, his tone was light and a bit joking.
Then he stepped into the temple threshold with three sticks of incense.
The old man laughed behind him, and another voice came.
"I didn't expect you to be so thorough. You are not as good as the little monk, not as good as you."
"If you know you can't do it, try your best to live a few more years. Sooner or later, you will live to see the truth." The young man shouted. If Qing Yan is around, you will know that the mountain god is getting sick again.
Watching the young man enter the temple, the old monk sat back on the bamboo chair under the old pine tree. It was almost noon, and the sun was scorching hot, even in the mountains. I just didn't expect that the existence that frightened those old guys in the Taihang Mountains looked like a girl, and she was quite polite and interesting. I thought he was an old man who was calm and proud, with two horns.
Soon, the bronze bell in the temple rang.
The bells ring loudly because distinguished guests are coming.
…………
In the main hall, senior monks leaned on both sides, waiting quietly for the young man under the Buddha statue in the center to finish placing incense.
Li Xi'an stood up.
Without bowing, the living Buddha will not appear, and he cannot bow to a single Buddha statue. Only three incense sticks were inserted, but no pilgrims had visited the incense burner for a long time. Now, only three sticks of incense stood alone on it.
"Donor Nan, please come this way." A monk who looked very senior led him the way. "Let's call him Mr. Li."
The monk was startled.
"Now I have the surname Li."
"In that case, almsgiver Li, please come this way." The monk turned sideways and bowed to lead the way without asking any more questions.
"That is to say, you have already expected that I will come." Li Xi'an listened to the monk's story.
The deer with seal characters was parked in the backyard of the temple, guarding the room where the master of the temple passed away. Everyone had no choice but to wait for the arrival of the owner of the deer. When the monks observed the seal characters all over the sky running back to the clouds and back to the figure sitting cross-legged, they began to guess when the god of Taihang would visit.
"It's a pity that we don't practice enough to preside over the death, so it's difficult for us to communicate with living beings like you."
"When will you preside over the death?"
"Seven days ago, when dusk and night alternated." The monk said the Buddha's name, "The presiding uncle has the deepest cultivation among us. According to his cultivation, a hundred years old should be slightly old, not to mention the presiding uncle has not yet His 100th birthday passed away too soon.”
After the monk finished speaking, he opened the courtyard door.
There is a banana tree planted in the backyard, which is as tall as a canopy. The deer with seal characters was lying at the door of a room. When it saw the young man's arrival, its round black eyes shone with a glimmer of light.
Li Xian sacrificed the bronze cauldron, and the deer returned to the cauldron without any resistance, turning into deer-shaped characters running inside.
Looking at this ancient bronze artifact, the monk's eyes unconsciously showed a hint of surprise, but he quickly reacted and chanted the Buddha's name in a low voice to get rid of distracting thoughts in his mind.
When you open the wooden door, you will be greeted by a refreshing fragrance, just like the natural aroma emitted by fine wood.
Looking around the room, there was nothing but a table, a chair, a cabinet and a bed.
The monk was shocked. The host was nowhere to be seen in the room. A week after a normal person died, it was still in the scorching heat, and there was no stench of decay, which was a strange smell, but now there was no one to see.
"Almsgiver Li, are all rising creatures like this?" the monk asked full of doubts.
"No."
The young man walked to the bedside and picked up a hard pearl and jade, which was completely black. He raised his hand and pointed the pearl and jade at the sun, and it suddenly showed colorful colors.
"Relic?" The monk couldn't help but marvel in his heart.
People who do not practice Buddhism have heard that the eminent monks who have attained enlightenment can obtain porcelain-like relics after they pass away and are cremated. However, just because the body disappears after passing away and is transformed into relics can be considered the first.
This hosts the whole self, not just the rise of the road back to the mountains.
Li Xi'an understood. The deer's spirit has nowhere to go, because the person who gave it is not only a spirit but also a life. But why does he do this? There is no trace of the host in the boy's memory. When he was a big snake, he was entrenched in the mountains and no monks could be seen.
He placed the relic in the palm of the monk beside him, and the old monk took it respectfully.
Along with the relic is a book.
They were not ancient books. Although the ancient books Li Xi'an read had different contents, they were all carved from bamboo strips and connected in series with threads. The book was obviously a paper book with yellowing pages and some age.
Inside is a story about ghosts and strange things.
Only one record had notes.
The small words written by the host said this─
"There is a temple in Nanshan, where the Red Immortal sleeps. His eyes are like golden fire, and his body is like red steel. With the wind and rain blowing, it shines brightly on the people."
"Named Nanzhu."
"That's it..." The young man closed the page of the book gently, even his voice was very soft, as if he was afraid of waking up the sleeping people here.
(End of chapter)