On the square paved with stone slabs in front of the ancient temple, several fig trees are covered with clouds.

At that time, Shakyamuni Buddha was enlightened and enlightened under the Bodhi tree, and this tropical evergreen plant that grew and poisoned the country became a necessary tree species for Buddhist temples.

The place where the Buddha attained enlightenment, and the Buddhist dojo was born from this.

The north is warm all year round, and the Bodhi Buddha tree cannot grow, so it can only be replaced by other tree species.

Therefore, the ancient temples of the Zen temples in the northern counties of Middle-earth are planted with white fruit trees, and we are in front of the Zanmo Temple in Khotan.

Unexpectedly, in front of the gate of the ancient temple in this foreign land, this flowerless northern arbor is also used as its own dojo.

Can it also be understood that the Buddhism in the Western Regions and the ancient temples of this Brahmana country are originally the same sect? Unknown.

When we arrived at the monastery with the little novices, dozens of monks and novices were sitting cross-legged under the ancient trees, doing the morning service of the day under the guidance of an elderly teacher.

The sound of the wooden fish and the sound of the Buddha are swirling, which makes people suddenly feel full of emptiness.

Master Midhara was dressed in a gray robe, his long gray-white hair curled like a bow on his chest, his nose rafter and his eyes deep and soft.

When we met, the Venerable Master chanted the phrase "Amitabha" and sat on a sunny futon with the support of the little novice.

It may have been in this place that he usually touched the top of the pilgrims and prayed for blessings, and accepted worship and alms from believers.

The mist in the canyon behind him became an excellent background, and the glow shone on the master's body, making his whole person full of the aura of gods and Buddhas who did not eat the fireworks of the world.

Gulandot walked with us, and in order to avoid unnecessary trouble, I asked her to change into a black men's dress, and her hair was wrapped in a scarf.

Coupled with the black charcoal that has been sunburned along the way, it is difficult for people who meet for the first time to distinguish his daughter.

"Amitabha, the light of the Buddha on the top of the Buddha has been shining recently, and there seems to be auspicious coming, it turned out to be a few donors, good and good!"

After receiving the silk cloth and ten gold and silver ingots that we had given to him, Venerable Midhara opened his eyes slightly and saluted with one hand.

"Where do the little donors come from? Where are you going? The mage then asked, "It's Tocharian Northland, and I can understand it without a translation from the Qulando."

"Master Qiyu, we are merchants from the Eastern Han Kingdom, going to the city of Rome."

I folded my hands and replied respectfully, I originally wanted to say that I was from the Western Regions, but I was afraid that the mage had never heard of such a small country, so I reported my ancestral hometown.

"The Eastern Tuhan Kingdom, Amitabha Buddha, the country of immortals! No wonder several donors are dressed in brocade and look like immortals! ”

The master smiled slightly, and silently counted the Bodhi Buddha beads in his hand.

Although the mage looked dignified, the robe on his body really did not dare to compliment.

The fabric made of coarse linen and cattail grass is also very simple, that is, a whole cloth is wrapped around the body, and half of the arm is completely exposed.

As far as the eye can see, all the monks, including the presiding officer, are barefoot, and it seems that there is no custom of wearing shoes in this Buddhist country, from the king to the subjects.

Or it is based on Hinayana Buddhism, emphasizing the penance of this world, which is not necessarily the pursuit of spiritual satisfaction, and regards the materialistic desire of food, clothing, and pleasure as a sin.

"The master has been to the Eastern Tuhan Kingdom?" Gulando asked curiously.

"Amitabha, Lao Gao's master once went to Chang'an in the east, and after returning, he sighed that the lotus world of the Buddha country should be in the east, which shows the prosperity of the Han country. The old man also always wanted to go to Middle-earth to preach, but he couldn't make it before the opportunity came. Amitabha! ”

Master Midhara folded his hands and sighed slightly.

"If the master really has this wish, when we return from Rome, we will definitely help the master to complete this matter and give all the expenses on the way." I sincerely invited.

My grandmother, mother-in-law, and grandfather, who believed in Buddhism, spent a lot of money on making offerings to the Buddha, which had invisibly given me such a belief.

The Buddha is compassion, and the Buddha needs to do his best to worship it.

"Amitabha! The donor's kindness has been understood, how can Yang Shou be approaching, and there is no such blessing in this life. It's just that seeing the donors reminds the old man of a long past, Amitabha! ”

Master Midhara chanted the Buddha's name, and the calmness of his mind that was originally as calm as water fluctuated slightly.

"Does this past have anything to do with the Han Kingdom of Middle Earth?" Gulando's curiosity was so great that he wanted to ask everything.

"Miss, don't ask any more questions, when will you have breakfast?" Qin Chong whispered in Longdiya.

Fortunately, this master could not understand the Chinese language of Middle-earth, otherwise he would have regarded this as disrespectful to the Buddha.

"Amitabha! Seventy years ago, Lao Qu had just become a monk and served the Buddha and came to this ancient temple. One day, a young man from the Han kingdom passed through the valley of Bamiyan with a team of 100 horses. Amitabha Buddha, just like the eighteen arhats in front of the Buddha, the heavenly soldiers and heavenly generals have come to the mortal world. Seventy years later, I have met a few of you businessmen from the Eastern Han Kingdom, and everything is providential! Amitabha! ”

The mage opened his eyes and glanced at the few of us, a faint smile on his beard.

"Master, what is the name of the young man from the Han family who led the team?" I asked in surprise.

When he was in Qingfengze Academy, Master Xin once said that after Cao Cao, the Duke of Wei, pacified Xiliang, the Five Tiger General Ma Chao retreated to Hanzhong, and his grandson Ma Kang led a hundred and ten people from the clan all the way to the west, and there was no news from him since.

Could this young man from the Han family mentioned by Master Midhara be the descendant of General Fubo back then?

"Amitabha! The little benefactor called himself Ma Kang, and all the generals accompanying him called him the young master. ”

I was deeply amazed by the fact that the Master was able to remember the past so long, and I was also amazed that my guess had come true.

"And then?" I have ignored Liu Zhen'er's whispered urging behind me, and continue to ask.

"Then they rested in my monastery for about ten days, and then they went west again. Amitabha! Master Midhara closed his eyes for a moment and continued.

"Twenty years ago, a caravan of the Mamikoniyan family of the Duchy of Armenia came to our Brahmana country, claiming to be the descendants of the Makang benefactor of the year, and came to repay the kindness of our monastery. Amitabha, the golden bodies of all the bodhisattvas and arhats in my temple today are all the result of the generosity of this benefactor. ”

At this time, the morning service at the Bodhi Monastery under the white fruit tree had ended, and the fire-headed monk brought a morning meal in stone bowls for Master Midhara and the five of us.

Flour-free cereal-fried porridge with a few cooked preserved figs topped as an ingredient.

With such a simple breakfast dish, the daily meal of the monks of this Brahmanac country is too light and tasteless.

The clothes are like this, the diet is like this, and the simplest life in the world can carve such a solemn and compassionate Bamiyan Buddha on the cliff.

"Hesrul and Langton are tricky, how can they eat this!" Qin Chong held the stone bowl and smiled helplessly.

"You must eat it all, not a single grain of wheat is left!" I commanded in an indisputably whisper.

To be able to fast with Venerable Midhara is a great honor in the eyes of the people of the Brahmana country.

Because in the eyes of these devout Buddhists, Master Midhara is the Buddha in this red dust world, and the Bamiyan Buddha is his master who has long since passed away, and he is the Buddha in the past life.

Qin Chong, this kid doesn't know how to cherish the blessings, and complains about the unpalatable food, how stupid! I hated to get up and kick him twice.

As a demonstration, I took the stone bowl and chewed it like a mage, and ate all of the highest "state banquet" of the Brahmana kingdom.

Gu Landuo, Sha Mihan, and Liu Zhener didn't say a word during the whole process, and concentrated on tasting food.

While I scolded Qin Chong, I also rebelled against the Buddhist precept of "eating without speaking", and I hope that the Buddha can forgive my sins.

"Amitabha! Please go back to bathe and change your clothes, and in the evening the old man will come to do a prayer for you to ward off disasters. After going to my Brahmana country this time, it was the impermanence of the Buddha's compassion that had not yet arrived, and there were many demons and sins. The fact that we are able to meet today is also due to the karma of previous lives, may the Buddha bless you! Amitabha! ”

After the morning fast, Venerable Midhara stood up with the help of the little novice, and said with his hands folded, not at all recognizing that he was over 100 years old.

"Thank you Master for your mercy! We're quitting! ”

I led Gu Landuo, Qin Chong, Sha Mihan, and Liu Zhen'er, and after bowing deeply to the mage, I cautiously withdrew from the ancient temple.

"Mamikoniyang, after Ma Yuan, the general of the Han Fubo, and Ma Chao, the general of the Five Tigers of the Three Kingdoms, I hope to meet this hero of our Han family in Rome City!"

On the way back to the inn, I shouted happily, completely without the majesty of the leader.

"The city of Rome will definitely not be touched, if you want to go, go to the Duchy of Armenia!" Gulando, she argued, was also attracted to this long-standing Han anecdote.

"One south and one north are far apart, young master, forget it! Let's go to Rome to get down to business! ”

Shamihan didn't want to delay a moment on the way, especially for the sake of the Mamikoniyan family, who had little to do with him.

"Young master, let's hurry, it's not interesting here!"

"Except for the monk who is a bhikshuni, I haven't met a single beautiful woman of another race!"

Liu Zhen'er and Qin Chong purred, these two bachelors, admiring the beautiful women is the greatest pleasure on their business journey.

When the sun set in the evening, a group of seven of us had already bathed and changed clothes early, bought incense and oil candles according to the requirements of Master Midhara, and came to the courtyard of the ancient temple.

The ashram of the puja has been prepared, and after Venerable Midhara sits upright on the ashram and blesses us, the prayer puja begins with the opening verse of the Jizo Sutra:

The supreme and profound subtle method has been encountered by millions of calamities. I have seen and heard it now, and I am willing to understand the true meaning ..... it.