Journey to the West: Tang Monk Conquers Everything

"This, merely twenty words, almost encapsulates the essence of cultivating Buddhism..." Master Huihai, staring at the Formless Gatha written on the wall, murmured softly with wide eyes.

Indeed, what is the meaning of cultivating Buddhism? Is it not just as written here: constantly wipe clean, let not dust settle, lest your mind be obscured by the mundane world?

"Excellent poem, merely twenty words, comparing oneself to the Bodhi Tree, and the heart to the Mingjing Platform, containing endless Buddhist principles, yet so simple and understandable," a scholar in tattered robes loudly admired next to him, incapable of composing such poetry himself, yet unimpeded in his appreciation.

"This, this..." As for Li Chunfeng, looking at the Formless Gatha on the wall, he was stunned like a wooden chicken.

His discernment was naturally present, and he understood even more what the poem implied.

Who would have thought, this Xuanzang was but a youth, yet his understanding of Buddhist principles was so profound? Was this the monk with twelve scars?

...

The people nearby, whether they were the monks accompanying from the Great Buddha Temple, the senior brothers from Jinshan Temple, or the visiting pilgrims, all were amazed by the twenty words of the Formless Gatha on the wall.

However, for Jiang Liu, creating this scene was just a moment of sudden inspiration.

Firstly, the Formless Gatha, this Buddhist poem, could perfectly answer the challenging question posed to him by Li Chunfeng. Secondly, by leaving this poem behind, it would surely be passed down, and being written at the Jinshan Temple, it would be considered the original.

In the future, many people, including Buddhist disciples, would specifically come to see the original site of the Formless Gatha. That wall would be considered a very important attraction.

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In modern parlance, this act also helped promote the development of tourism for Jinshan Temple.

He had been staying at Jinshan Temple since he first crossed over. The senior brothers and masters in the temple had taken good care of him; even Senior Brother Xuankong had lost an arm, partly because of him. If possible, Jiang Liu was very willing to assist Jinshan Temple.

He understood the principle of repaying even a drop of water with a gushing spring.

After putting down his brush, Jiang Liu turned his head, looked at Li Chunfeng, and after a brief ponder, said, "Since you called it a discussion of Tao, you posed a question to me. According to courtesy, I should also pose a question to you, shouldn't I?"

Hearing Jiang Liu's words, Li Chunfeng came back to his senses, moved his gaze away from the poem on the wall, sorted out his emotions, and said, "Please, Master Xuanzang, pose your question."

"I once saw something but did not understand it, and I hope you can help me solve this puzzle," since the other party had specifically come to challenge him, Jiang Liu naturally had to pose a difficult question for him to answer.

Buddhist principles? Taoist teachings? In the modern view, both are aspects of life philosophy. After pondering briefly, Jiang Liu had thought of his question.

"I once saw a runaway carriage, frighteningly fast. Several children, ignoring their parents' advice, were playing on the road. It looked like the carriage would crash into them, destroying both the vehicle and the children.

Fortunately, if one just pulled the reins, the carriage would veer towards the roadside, but there was another child playing obediently beside the road, heeding his parents' guidance. So, do you think one should pull the reins or not?"

This is a rather famous moral dilemma in modern times, originally involving children playing on railway tracks and an oncoming train, slightly modified here to involve a carriage.

"According to the common mindset, it would be better for one to die than many, wouldn't it? But the error lies with the group of children; the child playing by the roadside did nothing wrong. If the innocent child must die, how unjust, how unfair would that be? So, do you think the reins should be pulled?" Jiang Liu gazed seriously at Li Chunfeng and asked.

The question posed by Jiang Liu made everyone present look at each other, their expressions troubled, not knowing how to answer.

Indeed, when comparing one child to a group, everyone knows what choice to make: losing fewer is a win.

But clearly if the single child did nothing wrong and the group of children did, how could it be right for the innocent child to end up dead? That simply makes no sense.

Everyone present, even including Master Huihai from the Great Buddha Temple, did not know how to answer this question for a time, and many pilgrims were looking expectantly at Li Chunfeng.

However, unlike the inquisitive and expectant gazes of others, Master Huihai's eyes carried a hint of an amused smile.

Under the stare of everyone, Li Chunfeng's face turned alternately pale and flushed, and in the end, he could only shake his head, "I, I don't know..."

…

Jiang Liu, riding in the Buddhist Palanquin, returned to the Great Buddha Temple. After getting off the palanquin, Jiang Liu pressed his palms together and bowed to the procession of monks behind him, "Thank you all for accompanying me."

"Master Xuanzang is too polite. This is what we should do!" Seeing Jiang Liu thanking and bowing, the monks in the procession quickly returned the gesture, answering in unison.

After bidding farewell to Master Huihai, Jiang Liu went back to his Zen Room to rest.

Although he had been carried in the Buddhist Palanquin, in an era without cars, traveling back and forth over fifty li, including many mountain roads, still took quite a while, and Jiang Liu felt somewhat exhausted.

After returning to his Zen Room, Jiang Liu sat cross-legged and activated the Heavenly Dragon Zen Sound Divine Skills.

As the Divine Skills of cultivation technique operated, Jiang Liu could feel his internal strength improving bit by bit. Although slow, it was steady.

Tip: Earned 1 Experience Point.

Tip: Earned 1 Experience Point.

Tip: Earned 1 Experience Point.

…

Elsewhere, Master Huihai went to where Saint Monk Longhai was located and recounted in great detail everything that had happened at Jinshan Temple that day.

"Amitabha, the Formless Gatha, huh? I never expected him to have such literary talent, and even more unexpectedly, his understanding of Buddhist principles," Saint Monk Longhai felt quite moved by the poem and murmured softly to himself.

After murmuring to himself for a moment, Saint Monk Longhai then commanded, "Disciple Huihai, have someone carve a stone tablet. Place it in the most conspicuous part of our Great Buddha Temple's plaza, and inscribe this Formless Gatha on it, to remind all disciples that, in cultivating Buddhism, one must always be diligent in purification."

"Alright, Senior Brother, I've noted it," Master Huihai nodded earnestly in response.

After nodding, Master Huihai continued, "This Formless Gatha will surely be passed down as a timeless Buddhist poem, and the scholarly debate between Li Chunfeng and Xuanzang will probably spread far and wide. For us, this is a good thing..."

"Indeed, since that is the case, we should add fuel to the fire," nodding his head, Saint Monk Longhai then said.

"Oh? Please enlighten me, Senior Brother, how should we add this fire?" Hearing this, Master Huihai asked curiously.

"Li Chunfeng's question was perfectly answered by Xuanzang, but, the question posed by Xuanzang remains unanswered, doesn't it? Promote it as a doubt in Xuanzang's mind. If someone can answer it, our Great Buddha Temple is willing to offer ten thousand taels of gold as a reward."

"A splendid plan! This is a manifest strategy. By doing so, the doctrinal debate between these two young figures will be spread even farther, greatly enhancing our Buddhist Sect's prestige!" Master Huihai's eyes brightened, and he exclaimed in admiration.

"Amitabha, such a trivial matter, I will just teach it all to Disciple Huihai. Next, I need to arrange for Xuanzang and Daoji to enter the Demon-Suppressing Hall for their training..."

(PS: It's about to be a new week, and we need your recommendation tickets to make a surge in the new book ranking, thank you.)