A few minutes ago, the mist in the mountains rose and turned into clouds and rain. The green brick and tiled houses in the temple were floating with wet light, gray and gentle. It was dim when facing the light and dim when the backlight was on, like a low comfort.
Along with the pattering outside the hall, I watched her solemnly enshrine the two longevity tablets, then took two steps back, clasped her hands together, closed her eyes, and prayed devoutly.
I couldn't hear the prayer in her mouth clearly, but there should be hope and sweetness in that face.
After she finished all this, she turned to me.
"Mage, I have one more thing."
"Sir, please speak."
"I also want to go to Guanyin Hall to fulfill my wish."
My heart was shocked and I pondered for a moment, "Then... please follow me."
After leaving the Ksitigarbha Hall, she and I walked through the corridor and passed the courtyard, and she followed me. Neither of us walked fast. The rain kept ringing in our ears. Water droplets formed lines along the eaves, and puddles bloomed on the ground. The ripples are endless.
"Master, I come to Chuanling Temple to pray for blessings every year, but every time I have no chance to see you again. Sometimes I wonder if I am not destined to you, or I am not destined to the Buddha, and you reject me thousands of miles away. It seems to express that I am unfamiliar, but fortunately, these thirty years have finally given me a chance to fulfill my wish..."
From the corridor behind her, a faint whine came from her.
I took a deep breath and turned my head like a clay sculpture.
"Jushi Cao... still remember me?"
"Master, don't you always remember me?"
We were silent and stopped at the same time.
There is no doubt that when the young man with a bright heart went down the mountain, he did not fulfill the vow he made outside the Ksitigarbha Hall. At least, he left before the person in front of him fulfilled his long-cherished wish.
In such a hell, there is still one person who has not been liberated.
The lilacs in the courtyard are melancholy in the rain, and I miss the falling flowers of spring for a long time. When I was young, I made a wish to meet again. Suddenly, I look back and realize that we have been together for a hundred years.
"For example, on the third day of the third lunar month, the fourth and fifth days are missing, and half are missing and half are not complete. By the time of midnight on the fifteenth day of the lunar month, everything will be bright and full."
She said the fortune-telling she had obtained from the Bodhisattva when she was young, and smiled after saying:
"At that time, my husband made a nonsense claim that this was a lucky sign, because what he wanted had not yet been fulfilled, but as long as he persisted, he would definitely get a good result."
I slowly explained:
"Literally speaking, this looks like a good draw, but unfortunately, it is actually a poor draw.
For example, the so-called defects in the third, fourth, and fifth grades of the first lunar month are half absent and half incomplete, which means that they cannot be seen at first, but they can be discovered later, but it is already too late and cannot be undone. It indicates that the layman can meet his marriage in his youth, but it is destined but not destined, and he may leave a regret.
And waiting for the midnight snack on the fifteenth day, everything will be bright and full. The fifteenth moon rises in the evening, and in an hour or two it will be brightly lit, which means that you will have a perfect marriage before middle age, but this is not certain...
After all, a night of good snacks is not something that happens every month, and it is short-lived and does not last long. If you have experienced one perfection, you have to wait for the next one again..."
Regarding this unpopular explanation, she just smiled and said calmly:
“It’s already good…really good…
We are already very lucky. My husband once told me another story. In that story, we were both frustrated. He was depressed and I couldn't help it. Under the tricks of fate, our relationship seemed to be a thousand threads. They are all connected, but unable to connect, eventually leading to a tragedy.
In order to change this ending, he has made many unknown efforts, some of which are good and some bad, even life and death, even love and hate, and even memory..."
She started walking again and came to my side. I immediately turned around and walked forward with her step by step.
The drizzle was falling, and the water droplets hit the green tiles on the roof, making a series of crisp sounds. A rain curtain was put up on both sides of the corridor. As I walked, I felt relieved. The entire corridor was filled with her tone of nostalgia and joy. Through it, a kind of ethereal and beautiful otherworldly charm emerges.
"I don't think God will change some destined things, such as birth, environment, and some laws of all things, simply because of one person's efforts or determination, but we individuals can actually change our own minds. Through this Mind, to influence others, thereby changing some things, and even the ultimate fate.
When I was young, my husband and I were separated and reunited in a state of "like the third, fourth, and fifth grades of junior high school, half absent, half present, and incomplete." When I witnessed his determination and pain, when I understood everything I have thought about the causes and consequences of this for a long time.
He has always been a lonely person. I don’t want to see him do so much, but in the end he is still lonely. It’s like a circle. I understand that he can’t get out of it alone...
So, I decided that if God doesn't help him, then I will. "
I raised my eyebrows and couldn't help but ask:
"Since when did you decide to help him?"
"Maybe it was when he pushed me towards a better person than him and then turned around and left resolutely; maybe it was when I saw that he could no longer have any scruples but would rather choose to grow old. When I was carrying everything; more probably, it was because I still had lingering feelings for him, and I couldn’t give an accurate answer...
But I know that he is an idiot. He seems to be emotionally smart, but in fact he is very clumsy. Someone taught him how to love, but no one taught him how to love himself. The way he treats others well is to feel wronged. He hurts himself, even tortures himself, even hurting himself to pieces, but still wants to help others.
This approach is actually wrong. I don't like him like this. He is a very good person by nature. If everything he did was to atone for his sins, then after being forgiven, everything should be settled, right? "
I asked again: "Not just for love?"
She hesitated for a while and shook her head:
"At that time, an old incident happened to happen again, but it was no longer harmful to me at that time, so it was more about letting me know some unknown past events and some behaviors that were out of human nature. This strengthened my determination to help him. If we talk about love, I still had an unresolved knot in my heart at that time. It doesn’t matter if I love him or not, but it doesn’t matter at all.”
I knew she was probably talking about cyberbullying back then, so I continued to ask:
"Principal Cao is compassionate, so how did you help the donor?"
She did not answer this question immediately, but looked at me and asked:
"Master, ever since you gave me the string of beads, I have always had a question. I know you want to save us, but we live in such a world, and all the emotions and efforts we have put in, What exactly is it?"
I saluted with one hand and said:
"Know that karma is like an illusion, karma's retribution is like an image, and all actions are like transformation. You should know that all consciousness is like an illusion, and you should know that all actions in the world are like dreams, nothing more than this."
She asked again:
"Then...in this story of reincarnation that has happened countless times, who are you, Master?"
I read:
"As I am, I don't rely on this shore, don't stick to the other shore, don't stay in the middle of the stream, and I don't have any rest when I save sentient beings."
A look of disappointment flashed in her eyes:
"So...is all this really a dream that ends in life and will be repaid after death?"
I stopped answering, but she refused to remain silent and continued:
"My husband said that this world is like hell, and part of the world in his eyes is a black and white silence. That is the cause and effect he created in hell. I didn't understand it at first, and I have never been able to understand it."
I have witnessed countless stories of my own, but this was the first time I heard the specific plot from someone else. For a moment, I didn’t know how to deal with it, so I could only look at her in disbelief:
"You...in your eyes, there was never..."
"No."
She interrupted me, gave a blunt answer of denial, and said:
"At first, in my eyes, the world was not black and white. I just noticed some changes in the world. Some people were gone and some things had changed. I still clearly remember that I had become a student of the University of Hong Kong inexplicably by the lead washing pond. Naturally, he expressed the fear when he told what he saw. The person he wanted to be freed was freed, and the cause and effect was naturally gone. His world was getting smaller, and he was very scared, because if he continued , which means that this world will lose the other half and sink completely.
At that time, this world will have no cause, no result, no karma and no reward. I can’t imagine what kind of situation this will be like. Will he stay here forever, or will he obtain liberation?
I don’t know the answer, because to me, the world is still the same world without any changes, so even if I want to help him, I can’t understand the world in his eyes, but I can clearly feel that he lives like this The world... will be painful. "
"so you……"
The rosary beads in my hand were turning one by one. As her words gradually became clear in my mind, an old incident from countless reincarnations had already been given. got the answer.
"So I lied to him. I lied to him and said that I could also see the world in his eyes, that world of black and white and gray. I also had to let go of cause and effect. I was just like him..."
Yes, He Tianran was depressed at the beginning, and his spirit gradually became old and sluggish. The only factor that cheered him up again was that he suddenly heard that there was another one of his kind in this world, and there was another one that he needed to go to. Help...Cao Aiqing.
Just like a lost night ship that found its direction in the dark night, it colored her world and became the only channel he traveled on the sea of confused life.
But he didn't expect that when he saved others, people would save him too.
"I told him that the path I saw in the campus library was black and white, because the lights on that path once illuminated my solitary figure. He believed it, and every time I came out of the library at night, he would He escorted me all the way back, and we started to have some exchanges in life; I also told him that I think my father is also black and white, haha, in fact, I just want to find an older person to discipline him and talk about it. The truth is, let him not be so self-sufficient all the time. The freshness of a person's heart has nothing to do with age and experience. After going through vicissitudes of life, isn't there an idiom called "returning to nature"?
In fact, I want to tell him that no matter time travel or reincarnation, don't always look at this world with the mentality of atonement, otherwise his world will only become smaller and smaller. I also hope that he can understand the vastness of the universe. After that, I can still pity such a person who is green and green...
Although meeting my father that time didn't seem to be of any help to him, and once again showed me his 'clumsiness', I was still very happy, because I found that after all, he didn't put his 'smart' side in dealing with feelings. Regarding this matter, I can indeed guide him to do something..."
After hearing what she said, I was deeply moved.
"If you just want to cheer up Mr. Cao, you have already done that..."
She shook her head slowly and responded calmly:
"Master, isn't there a saying that helps people to the end, and sends Buddha to the West? Lies are lies after all, and there will always be a day when they are exposed. Even if it all starts with good intentions, his world is still lonely and single. There is no similar person. He listened to my words, struggled and cheered up, but nothing changed. This is actually a more hurtful thing. He will still be sad after knowing it...
So when I let go of my past resentments, what I really want to do is to set him free before this lie is exposed..."
She paused here for a moment, then looked at the beads that were slowly turning in my hand. The movement of my hand also stopped. We both had a tacit understanding of what would happen next.
"But in the end, he didn't choose the freedom you gave him."
"……Um."
"Earlier, the layman said that he didn't care much about love because he had a knot in his heart. Has that knot been untied?"
"...When he appeared in front of me again, he was untied."
As he spoke, the Guanyin Hall with its cornices and corners appeared in front of him.
From the Ksitigarbha Hall to the Guanyin Hall, we walked through the corridors and courtyards in the wind and rain. We seemed to have walked for a long time and talked a lot. Facing the majestic Dharma in the hall, Guanyin Bodhisattva performed compassionate actions and moved. I feel a little strange and a little ashamed of those compassionate eyes...
We stopped under the eaves outside the palace. It seemed that this past incident had not been finished yet. She did not rush in, but came to the eaves and stretched out a hand.
The rainwater under the eaves reflects the fleeting light in the mountains and fields, and seems to be filled with the illusion of countless years. The water droplets continuously dripped onto her palm, and then fell into pieces...
Just listen to her slowly saying:
“That day, I was really happy to see him again in my world, and the moment I saw him, I understood that he was sincerely willing to give up some things and risk everything to come here. By my side, instead of obsessively trying to pull me out of this hell he thought he was.
My husband said that when two souls reincarnated in the present and the future merge, they will see some magnificent scenes.
That day on the Ferris wheel, when he spoke about responsibility and love, when he slowly knelt down on one knee towards me, when he proposed to me... I did see some gorgeous scenes...
The sun has lost its color, the paradise has lost its brilliance, and the sea no longer reflects the blue of the sky. I can’t tell for a moment whether this is my imagination or whether it is true, but I know that at that moment, or rather From now on, these are not as bright and warm as the person in front of me brings to me.
This is indeed the fusion of two souls, but it is not the current and future selves, but me and him. We are completely integrated into each other's world. This is clearly in love. "
Her wet palms slowly closed, and she retracted her hand under the eaves and walked towards me.
I seemed to see the innocence of her youth in her old face, and my own appearance was reflected in those clear eyes.
It looks like He Tianran.
"We held our wedding when we were thirty years old, and we firmly confirmed each other. Even though it was a fleeting moment of a good night and a short dream, we did have a happy ending. This is... the best result we can achieve together. , now even in the past thirty years, I have never regretted the decision to be together."
She stood in front of me with a smile on her face. That was my favorite look. We both seemed young.
The world of hell is bustling and empty, and my thoughts of being willing to save others and save myself, in the end, are no longer as good as those random wishes she made up...
"Ai Qing, what is your long-cherished wish?"
I asked her and she smiled and said nothing.
I took out the pocket watch I found in the back mountain and handed it over carefully.
"This... I gave it to you originally..." She looked happy.
"There have been countless times when I have reflected on myself on the edge of the cliff. How should I deal with myself when faced with the truth of the original world? How should I face you? Faced with... warmth and coolness, some people feel guilty and jump down. Life is worth life; some people hear the sound of time in this watch, and finally see me, go down the mountain to practice, this watch is one of the vast choices."
She took the pocket watch and looked at the cracks and gray-brown blood on the surface. The second hand rotated in the opposite direction little by little, looking stubborn and stubborn.
"I know you're not waiting for me, you're waiting for yourself to go up the mountain again. Of course, you originally planned to cross the mountain by yourself, right?"
She whispered, telling the truth that I have been trapped in this temple:
"The reason why I don't tell you my long-cherished wish is because I know that if there is no more cause and effect in He Tianran's world, and if I am the one who is liberated at the wedding that day, then there will be another mage on this mountain and in this temple. Come, and then you may witness thousands of reincarnations again, and you will not be liberated until another self comes up the mountain. But if this is the case, then the hell of reincarnation with no cause, no result, no karma and no reward at the bottom of the mountain will never be empty, forever. There will always be someone staying in this place outside, waiting to free everyone..."
"...That's how it should be."
"It shouldn't be like this. My long-cherished wish...hasn't it been fulfilled yet?"
My expression changed and I asked again:
"Ai Qing, what is your long-cherished wish?"
"I just said it in Ksitigarbha Hall. I hope you can be happy. I hope we can all be happy. I hope good people will be rewarded. I hope that in such a hell, we can all plant good karma. Good results, I hope... we can all not be ignorant of cause and effect."
This time, she didn't hide it anymore.
This is an unexpected and reasonable answer.
"Master, why are these tablets colored red and yellow?"
"My husband has always wanted a home, but I can't do anything about it anymore, so I also hope that I can arrange a good home for him in another world..."
It wasn’t until she recognized me in this world and saw colors clearly that she had her long-cherished wish?
I'm not sure whether my assumption is true, but just as I was shocked and thinking, Cao Aiqing had already crossed the high threshold of the Guanyin Hall and knelt on the futon. She put the pocket watch in her hands and closed her eyes to pray.
The delicate back figure in front of the Guanyin statue reminded me vaguely of the day I handed the beads to her several years ago. She was in the exact same position. At that time, she had a sincere wish for the future——
"Bodhisattva, now all the wishes of the believing woman have come true. There is a bright road ahead, and she is with a good match. She should have nothing else to ask for, but I still ask Bodhisattva to be compassionate and forgive the greed of the believing woman. I want to ask Bodhisattva to bless her to be naturally happy and free from illness and disease. Despite the disaster, I also hope that the relationship between us can be long-lasting, even if it is just calm and ordinary, this is what I wish for in my life."
Her long-cherished wish for liberation was found in every prayer she put her hands together, and I was included in these prayers every time...
I stood outside the hall for a long time and slowly turned around.
I can't stay here any longer. I want to go down the mountain. Only in this way can the people in the temple be truly liberated.
I don’t know what will happen after we get down the mountain.
But this long reincarnation that started with lies ended with another lie when she entered the Buddhist hall.
No one will come back here again.
Between the mountains and rivers, in front of the Buddhist hall, it was sunny and rainy.
I walked down the stone steps step by step, stepping on the road paved with bluestones. I wandered dozens of meters away. Before my eyes, I don't know when the heavy fog dispersed, and the light began to leak out.
A sentence that echoed across eternity of time and space slowly sounded hazily in my heart, and gradually became clear——
"Don't worry, I will always be behind you and you won't get lost. You can see me when you look back."
I suddenly looked back.
Outside the Guanyin Hall, the clouds and fog began to disperse, and a ray of sunlight penetrated through the gaps in the clouds and scattered slantingly in front of the main hall.
In the Buddhist hall, Avalokitesvara looks compassionate, with lowered eyebrows and lowered eyes. Her golden body shines brightly, shining in the same light.
And there was no one on the futon...
I turned around and ran towards the main hall, trying to find the figure, but when I raised my feet, I couldn't fall within the threshold...
The Bodhisattva sitting in the bright hall looked at me, wishing only the living good luck and the dead souls well.
I looked at the Bodhisattva sitting in the bright hall without saying a word. I turned my head to look at the splendid mountains and fields, and decided to set off to follow the ray of light I once loved.
She wants to take me out, she wants to take me to see the world.
She really did it.
…
…
Pushing aside the sea of irrelevant people, the era that only lacks you leaves a blank space for the graceful tailoring to shake off the dust.
When spring comes, the ice melts and the snow melts. Outside the Xianliang Temple, the light and shadow of morning and dusk separate on the top of Xieshan Mountain. The seasons in the world do not change for anyone.
Running wildly to hold on to the vines of memory, the scenes about you fade away
It’s no wonder that it’s warm and cold at first, God’s will knows the cold and the warm
Envy is in vain, cause and effect cycle
…
I have always been used to being alone, but now my last hopes are no longer worth it.
Behind rumors can only be anecdotes, the most beautiful dreams are deep in my heart
The best time is to meet the right person
Get rid of all identities and have no choice but to wish for the next life
Searching for each other in the crowd, recognizing each other by words
…
Whose magnificent poems are floating in the long river? At least he told the story of the young love in his dream
And I just kept silent and recollected the fleeting glimpse, year after year passed by
I closed my eyes and presented the wreath of my life with my own hands. I opened my eyes and said two elegiac couplets to cry for the silent years.
If you are late, time will turn into condolences
You are April in the world
Unchanged forever...
——Song "Poetic Qianxun Waterfall"
(Volume 6 and the end of the Hell Chapter)
Thanks to the two recent leaders, Dulu’s little nanny, JOESHINODA! Thank you both! !
(End of chapter)
