Chapter 7: Land and Water Puja
Qiu Nuo seemed to be accustomed to everything in the pagoda, but the wooden box that Qing Yang took out, even Qiu Nuo was quickly curious, I looked at her eyes, this wooden box seemed to be Qiu Nuo had never seen before.
On the way back, I kept recalling what Qiuno's mother said.
This wooden box is handed over to the host of the Great Mercy and Grace Temple, and any request can be agreed!
Yue Qianling's curiosity was already heavy, and she wanted to open the wooden box several times, and there was a Gu Anqi next to her, I didn't want to see it fake, but when I went out, Qingyang told me that the wooden box must be opened in the Great Ci'en Temple.
I finally found a passing monk in the Great Ci'en Temple with a wooden box, no matter how I said it, it felt abrupt, but in the end, there was still no way, and I didn't have much confidence to say.
"Master, we want to meet the presiding master of your temple."
The monk looked at a few people in front of him, most of the people who came to the Great Ci'en Temple were tourists, and no one had ever made such a request, and the monk folded his hands.
"Presiding over the abbot's retreat, it is inconvenient to meet guests, please forgive me."
I didn't have much of a surprise, but I am also the master of a temple, how can there be a reason to see when you see it.
Yue Qianling had always been unhappy, thinking that if she took out the incense burner or Bodhisattva statue now, this monk would definitely not react like this, and opened the brocade in my hand angrily, revealing the wooden box inside.
"Please tell the abbot master that we want to donate this to your temple."
"The donor can give alms to the incense hall in front, and he will be received by his own senior brother, and the donor's merit is immeasurable."
The monk has been putting his hands together and lowering his head, the more Qianling thinks about it, the more angry he is, the monks in the temple are so big in the past few years, and he has not put his eyes on almsgiving, but it is right to think about it, this great temple of mercy and grace is full of incense, and there are countless people who come to ask for donations from the Buddha every day, just holding a wooden box, others are not too cold, and they can't hang their faces.
The monk raised his head and wanted to leave when he saw that he was fine, his eyes glanced at the wooden box I was holding, and he took a look, the whole person seemed to be shocked, and his raised hand kept shaking, saying that the four major people of Buddhism were empty, and I saw him like this now, no matter how he looked at it, he didn't look like a person who saw through the world.
Naruto...... Toll...... Law number! ”
The monk said loudly to several monks at the door in a trembling voice.
The Dharma name of the temple is extremely holy and solemn, not an extremely important event or a Buddhist ceremony, and generally no one dares to blow the Dharma name.
Woo...... Woo...... Woo......
The low and strong sound of the trumpet resounded throughout the temple, and almost all the monks who were doing other things stopped moving, their faces were shocked, and the tourists in the Great Mercy and Grace Temple were also attracted by the sudden sound of the trumpet.
"It's strange, the Dharma horn in the Great Mercy and Grace Temple hasn't sounded for decades, what's going on today?" I heard the temple staff looking at each other in whispers.
I opened my mouth slightly, and even Yue Qianling, who was waiting to see my joke just now, was stunned in place, what is so strange about this wooden box that can make the Great Ci'en Temple sound the Dharma trumpet?
The monk folded his hands and buried his head lower, leading me to the main hall in front, I followed behind with a blank face, only to find that there were more and more monks gathered behind me, all in two rows in an orderly manner, also with his hands folded, and his mouth kept chanting.
Ascending the steps is the mountain gate of the main hall, and the monk who trotted out in a panic from inside was quite old, and at a glance he knew that in order to cultivate, the monk who led the way automatically retreated to the side.
"Abbot, this benefactor wants to donate."
"Master Abbot, this friend of mine." I said as I pushed Gu Anqi to the front. "I have lived overseas for a long time, and this time I came back to accumulate merit, and I deliberately put this ...... This wooden box was donated to your temple. ”
The old monk actually didn't listen to what I said, the corners of his mouth kept squirming, and the outstretched hand kept trembling, in my thoughts, a monk who doesn't ask Hongchen to recuperate physically and mentally, should be an open-minded and indifferent person, not to mention the abbot of the Great Mercy and Grace Temple, a monk who has attained the Tao should be detached from the world.
But the old monk in front of him is really not calm no matter how he looks at it, there are at least three Buddhist precepts that he has violated.
The old monk took a closer look at the statue on the wooden box, looked up to the sky and took a deep breath, and exhaled loudly.
"Amitabha!"
Immediately after that, he knelt on the ground with a thud, and all the monks in the Great Ci'en Temple gathered in the square below the main hall, and they all knelt down with the abbot.
What a magnificent sight, I held the wooden box blankly, looked around, on the steps of the main hall, I was alone, all the monks knelt at my feet, and then the chanting from their mouths became louder and louder, like a solemn ceremony, which was completely a spontaneous act.
The visitors in the Great Mercy and Grace Temple were also surprised by this sudden change, and only saw the monks of the whole temple kneeling at my feet.
The old abbot stood up from the ground and said to me.
"The donor's merit is immeasurable, the poor monk will hang the donor's name and longevity card next to the Buddha in the main hall, and will lead the monks of the whole temple to chant the Buddha for the donor every day, and wish the donor a good life and health as soon as possible!"
I don't know what to say for a long time, the Great Mercy and Grace Temple has come several times, there is a merit tablet at the door, that is, the names of the people who donated to the Great Mercy and Grace Temple are engraved on it, of course, it is some people who spend a lot of money to have the opportunity to engrave their names on the merit tablet, it is already a great merit to be able to engrave the name on the merit tablet, of course, the money donated is not a few, I only remember that the last few people above donated millions of money.
I took a wooden box, and I could hang an immortal card next to the Buddha, and enjoy the daily chanting of sutras by the monks of the whole temple, which is the highest courtesy of Buddhism.
"Don't, this ...... This thing isn't mine either. I turned back and whispered to Qiuno in embarrassment. You can't write my name on your mother's name, it's hers. ”
"She has always liked to be quiet and doesn't want to be disturbed, since this wooden box has been given to you, it is yours." Qiunuo also replied in a whisper.
I held back for a long time before telling the old abbot the name, the monk next to me wrote the immortal card, after the solemn ceremony, I couldn't help but laugh and watched the immortal card with his name written on it was hung next to the Buddha in the main hall.
Yue Qianling suddenly couldn't hold back, covered her mouth and whispered with a smile.
"Hey, you said that if the Buddha knew that there was an immortal card hanging next to him, what would the Buddha and his old man think?"
"Or ...... Do you want to write your name? I also said uncomfortably.
"Don't, I can't afford this kind of merit, so you should come, hahaha." Yue Qianling said happily.
After speaking, I found that the old abbot just now actually changed a set of clothes, sure enough, people want clothes, a brand new robe is worn on the old abbot, the whole person has become energetic, and several other people are suitable to carry an incense case to the incense burner in the main hall, on which the bright yellow flannel cloth is composed, there are eighteen monks sitting cross-legged on the left and right, looking at the age, I think it should be a monk of the great mercy and grace temple.
Looking at this move, it should be preparing for some important ceremony, but the time is too rushed, and many places may not be perfect, but each step seems to have been carried out in an orderly manner after countless drills.
Tourists think that it is a routine French ritual in the temple, and it is rare to have a chance to see such a large scene of the puja, so they all gather around the main hall to watch and take pictures.
The neat sound of running outside the door made me look up, and it was the armed police who came in through the gate!
Of course, the Buddhist gate is clean and cannot bring murder weapons in, so the armed police who come in are all holding riot shields and batons, but the armed police who are on guard outside the Great Ci'en Temple are loaded with guns and live ammunition, three steps, one post, five steps and one person, and the entire Daci'en Temple is surrounded by water.
Such a big move attracted a lot of tourists from the outside, who wanted to come in and see what was going on inside, but now the Great Ci'en Temple can only enter and exit and is forbidden.
I was holding the wooden box and my heart was getting more and more bottomless, what was I holding in the end, even the army could be alarmed, I looked at Qiu Nuo and Gu Anqi next to me, and they looked a little scared.
The few people who came up from the side steps seemed to be familiar with the first ones.
"Professor Jiang?!" Yue Qianlin recognized the person who took the lead and asked in surprise. "Why are you here?"
"Qianling? Wild goose...... Wild goose back? Qiunuo, are you there too? Professor Jiang asked more curiously while wiping his sweat. I was in a meeting in Jingzhao, and I just received a call from the staff of the Great Compassion and Grace Temple, saying that the temple suddenly had a puja, which seemed to be related to donations, and according to the description, it was the grandest water and land puja in Buddhism. ”
"Professor Jiang, what is the Land and Water Festival?" Gu Anqi asked curiously.
"Because of the worship of the Buddhas of the Ten Directions, the Water and Land Festival will not be easily opened without extremely high cultivation and major events." Qiunuo nodded and whispered beside him. "The last time the Temple of Great Mercy and Grace last held a water and land puja was a thousand years ago."
"Ah...... More than a thousand years? What was the land and water puja started at that time? ”
"Master Xuanzang took over as the abbot of the Great Ci'en Temple, and because of the immeasurable merit of retrieving the true scriptures, he opened the water and land puja." Qiuno said.
Professor Jiang looked at my stiff body holding a wooden box, and said curiously.
"I heard that it has something to do with someone donating, it must be the wooden box you are holding in your hand, what is it in it?"
"Don't ask me, I don't know, I have such a big posture when I come, I am scared." I returned with a wry smile.