After Huineng relieved the drought for the people in Tiantangpingzhai, they were about to return home. Unexpectedly, people from Chunwan, Yangchun and other places arrived one after another, begging Huineng to relieve the drought for them.
Huineng immediately agreed and asked Liang Yaocai to go back to Tianlu Mountain first and tell his mother that he would go back to relieve the drought in Chunwan and Yangchun.
Unexpectedly, Huineng went there to relieve the drought in Chunwan and Yangchun, and on his way back to Tianlu Mountain, he was chased by the desperadoes gathered by Yingyin again, so he had to hide in the deep mountains and old forests in the Chunwan area.
The sun and moon reincarnate, and the annual July 14th is approaching again.
The fourteenth day of the seventh lunar month (known as the July Festival) is a traditional folk ancestor worship festival, originating from the ancestor worship and related festivals in ancient times. In the "Book of Changes", "seven" is a changing number, the number of resurrection.
July is an auspicious month and a month of filial piety. July 14th (July 15th) is a folk festival in early autumn to celebrate the harvest and reward the earth. When certain crops are ripe, it is customary for folks to worship their ancestors and use new rice as offerings to pay homage to their ancestors. Report Qiucheng.
The July Festival is a traditional cultural festival to remember ancestors. Its cultural core is to respect ancestors and show filial piety.
In the Book of Changes, "seven" is a changing number, the number of resurrection. "Book of Changes": "Repeat the way, and come back in seven days, which is the way of heaven."
Seven is the number of Yang and the number of heaven. After the Yang Qi between heaven and earth is extinct, it can be resurrected after seven days. This is the way of movement of heaven and earth and the principle of the cycle of growth and decline of Yin and Yang. "Seven" also has a mysterious color, such as "seven stars" in the sky, "seven emotions" in human emotions, "seven colors" in colors, "seven tones" in music, "seven rhythms" in poetry, and "seven orifices" in the human body. ,etc.
"Seven" is also the human life cycle. Education begins at the age of seven, puberty occurs at the age of fourteen, and the body is fully mature at the age of twenty-one...
The number of sevens among the people is manifested in stages in time. When calculating time, "seven to seven" is often used as the end and resurrection.
"July is an auspicious month and a month of filial piety, and the fourteenth day (Twenty-seventh) is the period number of the number "seven".
The ancients chose to worship their ancestors on July 14th (July 15th), which is related to the number of rebirths "seven". This festival originated from the early "July and a half" of harvest harvest and worshiping ancestors in autumn. In ancient times, people often relied on the blessings of gods for a good harvest.
Worshiping ancestors occurs in spring, summer, autumn and winter, but the "Autumn Taste" in early autumn is very important.
Autumn is the harvest season. People hold sacrificial rituals to the spirits of their ancestors. They offer the seasonal delicacies to the gods first, then taste the fruits of their labor themselves, and pray for a good harvest in the coming year.
On the half of July, Buddhism calls it the Bon Festival and Taoism calls it the Hungry Ghost Festival. In folk customs, "July Half" is a traditional cultural festival to remember ancestors. Its cultural core is to respect ancestors and fulfill filial piety without forgetting the roots.
In Buddhism, July is also called the "happy month", "Buddha's happy day", "auspicious month" and "repaying kindness month".
The original meaning of the Ghost Festival is congratulations and thanksgiving. It originated in India in the fifth century BC. There is this record in the Buddhist scripture "Galan Sutra": The mother of Moggallana, the most powerful disciple of the Buddha, did too many evil things during his lifetime. After his death, he fell into the Abi Infinite Hell and suffered endless suffering. Although Moggallana had the strongest supernatural power, he always saw his mother suffering and was helpless, so he asked the Buddha for help.
The Buddha instructed that on the fifteenth day of the seventh lunar month, Moggallana would have a banquet with monks from ten directions to fast, and the monks from the ten directions would chant sutras for the salvation of Moggallana's mother, and also for the salvation of the innocent souls that harassed Moggallana's mother, let Moggallana be saved. Even the mother can find peace.
Because July 15th is close to the harvest season, and most importantly, it is also a time of year when it is neither hot nor cold, so it is the most suitable time to transcend the wandering souls of evil spirits. Later generations followed suit and all held fasts and feasts for monks from all over the world on July 15th, hoping that their ancestors would find salvation and peace after their death.
Let’s talk about the early morning of the tenth day of July. Hui Neng was living in seclusion in a small thatched hut in the mountains of Spring Bend. He woke up from his sleep and was just about to get up to do morning exercises. Suddenly he felt that his right eye was skipping... in the peach blossom forest in front of the thatched hut. , a cuckoo cried blood under the peach blossoms, "Go back...go back..."
Huineng had a bad premonition that something big was going to happen. Perhaps, as mother and son are connected, his first thought was of his mother, and his subconscious told him that his mother was calling him to "go back" and wanted to see his son for the last time.
Huineng packed up his luggage and strode down the mountain, arriving at Xinjiangkou after many twists and turns.
Huineng was destined to be destined to be a good man like An Daocheng in his life. Just as he stood at the Xinjiang Port and looked around to see if there were any passenger ships returning to Xinzhou, he saw a merchant not far away staring at him and walking towards him.
Huineng blinked and felt that this merchant was very kind-hearted, as if he had seen him before somewhere...
Finally, Huineng remembered: the person walking towards him was the shopkeeper of Xinzhou Andao Cheng. Feeling mixed with joy and sorrow, he rushed forward and shouted loudly: "Is this merchant in front of me Shopkeeper An?"
"Exactly, Huineng. When I saw you from a distance, I thought you were Huineng. I was right." An Daocheng said excitedly.
It’s a surprise to meet an old friend after a long absence! Besides, they are not ordinary old friends.
So Huineng opened his heart and told An Daocheng: With his support, he went north to Huangmei East Zen Temple to seek Buddhist teachings, and after returning south with the Zen mantle, he hid in the mountains of Sihui, Huaiji, and Xinzhou in Guangdong. It has been fifteen years. On the early morning of the tenth day of the lunar month, I woke up in a hut in the mountains of Spring Bend. On a whim, I missed my mother, so I came to Xinjiangkou, hoping to take a boat back to Xinzhou...
After listening to Huineng's experience, An Daocheng sighed deeply for Huineng's ups and downs, and was even more happy that he inherited the mantle of Zen and became the Sixth Patriarch of Zen!
After An Daocheng excitedly congratulated Huineng, he changed the topic and said, "After my ship is unloaded, we will return to Xinzhou together."
"Okay!" Huineng said happily.
In the evening of the same day, Huineng took a smooth sailing boat back to Dongkou Pier. An Daocheng warmly invited Huineng to go ashore and had dinner at the nearby Tianji Hotel. After dinner, Huineng was sent directly to the mouth of Luxi River in Jiji. They cherished each other and said goodbye.
After Huineng waved goodbye to An Daocheng, he went straight to Tianlu Mountain that night. When Huineng rushed to Shimendong after a long journey, he found that his mother was not there, so he rushed to Liang Yaocheng's house. It was already the fourth watch.
Liang Jinlian got up in the middle of the night to serve Mrs. Li after taking the medicine. As soon as she lay down in bed, she heard three consecutive knocks on the door, "porphy porphyr", and had a hunch that Brother Aneng might be back after a long absence.
Liang Jinlian quickly put on her clothes and got up, walked out and opened the door. Sure enough, it was Brother Aneng whom she had been thinking about day and night, standing outside the door.
Liang Jinlian stepped forward and pulled Huineng's hands fiercely. Her tears kept dripping down like broken pearls. She choked and said, "Brother Aneng, you are finally back... Auntie..."
"What's wrong with my mother?" Huineng asked hurriedly.
Liang Jinlian let out a long sigh, "Brother Aneng, my aunt has been ill for a long time and may be dying... This... these days, I keep calling your name..."
When Hui Neng heard what Liang Jinlian said, he was like a thunderbolt, and his heart was broken. He stumbled to Li's bed and shouted loudly, "Mother, Neng'er is back, your son is back."
Speaking of Li, since Huineng left her on the night of July 13th a year ago, as the saying goes, "A son travels a thousand miles to care about his mother."
Whenever it was quiet at night, she would naturally dream of Neng'er being chased and beaten by evil people. Every time she woke up from the dream, her back would be soaked with cold tears.
Although Liang Yaocheng's family treated her like a family member, Liang Jinlian poured all her love for Huineng into Mrs. Li.
Over the past year, Liang Jinlian has been caring and caring for Li. But Li was already suffering from illness before he went to Tianlu Mountain, and the years were merciless. How could his old, weak, sick and disabled body survive the aging years? Since last winter and this spring, Li's health has been deteriorating day by day.
Liang Yaocheng saw that Li's physical condition was deteriorating day by day, and he knew that she might not have much time left, so he asked Liang Jinhui to go out and inquire about Huineng's whereabouts. He has not returned yet, like a mud cow drowning in the sea, with no news. .
So last month, Liang Yaocheng held a lively birthday banquet for Li, thinking it was Li's birthday.
Li's breath had just improved. Unexpectedly, just a few days later, Li seemed to have returned to her previous groggy state, as if she had run out of oil and almost died several times...
Because Mrs. Li cared about Huineng in her heart, she managed to survive the hell gate again and again...
Now, when Mrs. Li saw that Neng'er, whom she had missed day and night, was back, she stretched out her hand from the bed tremblingly. Huineng quickly stepped forward and knelt down, took Mrs. Li's hand, and said with tears: "Mother, please forgive me for being unfilial. I can’t serve you.”
"Just come back... okay, I... finally have a son to die with... I want to go back to... the village." After Li finished speaking intermittently, a burst of phlegm came up...
Huineng quickly got up and helped Li Shi half-lying down, patting her back gently. After a while, Li Shi felt more comfortable.
Seeing that Huineng was tired and looking thinner and darker than the last time they met, Mrs. Li comforted him heartbrokenly, "Neng'er, don't be sad. Mother is fine. You are alone outside. You must take care of yourself." Yeah...Okay, you all go out and rest."
Huineng and Liang Yaocheng saw that Mrs. Li was sleeping peacefully. After walking out of the hall, Huineng first expressed his gratitude to Liang Yaocheng and his family, and then said to Liang Yaocheng, "Uncle Yaocheng, I want to take my mother down the mountain to return to Xialu tomorrow. village."
After hearing what Huineng said, Liang Yaocheng lowered his head, took out a long water pipe without saying a word, and smoked "Bada, Bada"...for a long time, he sighed longly and said, " Aneng, you are my savior, since my aunt told you just now, I have no choice but to obey."
"Thank you again, Uncle Yaocheng, for your understanding." Huineng looked at Liang Yaocheng sincerely and said gratefully.
After breakfast the next day, Liang Yaocheng was planning to go to Lidongwei to hire a sedan to escort Li back to Xialu Village, when Huineng raised his hand and picked a leaf from the camphor tree next to the yard. , put it to his lips as a whistle, and blew a few times.
The tiger who was near the White Tiger Pit heard his long-lost benefactor whistling and calling. He and his two tigers hurriedly followed the sound and came to Huineng's side. They bowed their heads and waggled their tails, waiting for their benefactor's orders.
Huineng stroked their tiger backs lovingly, and then he and Liang Jinlian went into the house to help Mrs. Li out. The tigress bowed down understandingly. Huineng helped Li sit on the tiger's back, then put her luggage on her back and sat behind Li. Liang Yaocheng and Liang Jinlian also climbed on the two tigers' backs, like Modern people go down to Tianlu Mountain like a motorcycle and go to Xialu Village...
Huineng and his party returned to Xialu Village and settled down with Li. After hearing the news, villagers, relatives and friends, local officials, and eminent monks came to visit in droves——
Huineng's uncle and aunt came with their nephew;
Shopkeeper An Daocheng is here;
Wenzai, Cowboy and several other childhood friends who grew up playing with clay pots came here;
Li Xiaolan and her father and mother came;
Liang Jinhui, Guihua, Wang Zhaizhu, Wang Yujia, Liang Yaocai, Wang Tianbao, Wang Tianlei,
Zhu Deyi, Zhu Deren, Wang Jinhua and a large group of people from Wenyangtian Village came;
Xinzhou's governor Liu and magistrate Zhang Zhongchang came;
Zen Master Jingkong from Jintai Temple is here;
Zen Master Ruhai from Tianlu Temple is here;
Li Longxing from Hepu County also came all the way from Hepu with his wife and daughter Li Qian;
Uncle Lei and Lei Fei from Baiyun Village on the outskirts of Guangzhou also came after a long journey;
Zen Master Huayu and Shenqing, the old monks of Dongchan Temple in Huangmei, Hubei, who ranked fourth among the top ten disciples of the Fifth Patriarch, also came after a long journey;
…
Although Mrs. Li was ill in bed, she looked relieved when she saw so many people coming to visit her...
When Mrs. Li was dying, Hui Neng, Li Xiaolan and Liang Jinlian were waiting at the bedside. Her cloudy eyes looked at the two beauties waiting beside her, who were not daughters-in-law but more than daughters-in-law. She kept pouting and tears flowed from the corners of her eyes. The hot tears passed away peacefully in the morning of July 14th.
An Daocheng donated money to organize Li's funeral;
Zen Master Huayu personally performed a ritual ceremony for Mr. Li.
