This new Taoist platform is unique. The platform is surrounded by various flags and banners with the words "Guotai Taiminan" and "Respect Heaven and Pray for Blessings." There is a large suona hanging on the corner of the stage, which is singing "Tao Qing" that Taoist priests used to sing on the streets in the past few days.
Although everyone has seen Taoist priests doing things like climbing up the Mountain of Swords, descending into the Sea of Fire, and ascending the Cloud Tower, they have never seen this kind of Dharma altar that looks like a stage for singing. They suddenly found it strange, and they all found their own places or places to perform. Stand or sit and wait. There were also some vendors selling snacks, melon seeds, sour plum soup and the like, and it was very lively for a while.
I saw a group of Taoist priests walking out from a curtain by the river. The leader was a fat Taoist priest. The fat Taoist priest wore an embroidered Taoist robe with gold and silver threads and a purple lotus flower on his head. However, he did not hold the Taoist tablet in his hand, which is commonly used for sacrifices. , but holding a strange black stick. Behind the fat Taoist priest were two rows of small Taoist priests, a row of Taoist boys in blue and a row of Taoist nuns in green. They were singing ancient tunes and walking slowly.
I didn't see how hard they shouted, but no matter where they were in the square, their lyrics were clearly echoing in everyone's ears:
There is no Supreme Way for Jishou, and the Great Merciful Lord is compassionate and saves the suffering. The divine light shines in the dim light, and the rain of loving kindness and Dharma is all over the place.
The stone is clear, the lake of blood is the lake of blood, the sea of blood is the pool of blood. Jade forgives sinful souls and relieves suffering.
…
A Taoist in the field nodded secretly after hearing this and said to his companions: "These Australian Taoist priests also believe in Taishang Laojun's Dao. You heard them reciting the "Yuanshi Tianzun Jidu Blood Lake Sutra"." The people walking with him were silent. Without saying a word, he just nodded his head.
But I saw that the Taoist priests did not perform the ritual of inviting the gods after ascending to the altar. The little Taoist priests divided the universe into two parts and lined them up on both sides of the altar. However, the fat Taoist priest went to the depths of the altar and pulled back the curtain in the middle to reveal a first-class altar table. However, there were no three animal sacrifices on the table. Only some fragrant flowers and fruits were offered, and portraits of the Sanqing Dynasty were hung behind the altar table. The fat Taoist priest did not bow before the portrait. Instead, he held three sticks of sandalwood, bowed three times to the three pure Dharma images, and placed the incense in the incense burner.
The two Taoist priests in the crowd were stunned. The younger Taoist priest pulled the older Taoist priest and stammered: "Master, Master, he, he didn't even bow to the Patriarch of the Sanqing Dynasty when he met him!" The old Taoist priest remained silent. He just shook his head and sighed.
I saw Taoist Cui, wearing a robe and a wooden sword on his back, standing in the middle of the stage with an upright look on his face. A eulogy was read aloud, and the sound was like a loud bell, making the noise beside the stage almost inaudible.
The eulogy says:
Woohoo, at this time when Guangzhou was surrendered and the Song Dynasty was resurrected, there were monsters harvesting and cutting the raw materials, and the witches and poisons cursed and killed the elders. Fortunately, we, the Song Dynasty, were destined to return, and the dragon energy in Wuyang City was reunited. The elders of the Song Dynasty and Yuan Dynasty were all chosen by heaven, and were naturally protected by the gods in the past. They could not learn the tricks of ghosts, so they became angry and killed the people. The innocent elders were harmed by this, and their souls have nowhere to go. How can ghosts be safe? I make a vow to save the souls of the dead and wandering ghosts, and I make sacrifices for salvation. To commemorate the sorrow of the people who have been poisoned, the suffering of the common people from the plague, and all the ghosts and resentful spirits in the world, I hope that I will repent in my heart, think about kindness, repent sincerely, understand life and death, let go of resentment and good thoughts, and maybe be reborn in the Pure Land, or transform. After forming a human being, escaping from the path of suffering, transcending ice and fire, perfecting the great road, and returning to nature, only then can the things of salvation be accomplished in accordance with the way of heaven and earth. I burn incense and bathe, barefoot with my hair spread out, I clean my desk with fragrant flowers, lotus flowers and water talismans tempered by fire, the fragrant mist fills the Milky Way, lights and candles follow the sky cloth of stars, and I measure the accumulation of the universe of the Dharma on the altar. The brilliance shines everywhere, the fire corresponds to the stars, the sun and the moon illuminate the nine secluded areas; the clothes are purple and gold, the silk ribbons are wrapped around the dragon, the square altar is high, the ninety-nine percent of the country is completed, the wat is inscribed with thunderbolts, and the order is engraved with a mysterious song. Fairy music arose everywhere, and bells and chimes were played. The left hand holds nectar and willow juice; the right hand holds a jade talisman with intricate mantras. Step on the Eight Diagrams with your feet, make a virtual connection with your steps, worship the five elders, break the prison and save the nation, refine water and fire, illuminate the soul with the bright moon, wash the body with the pure sea, drop nectar to calm the soul, life jade talisman to restore the soul, climb to the altar of seven stars, worship Ksitigarbha's orbital rituals, silent divine mantras, swords transformed into talismans, fairy mist shrouded, three flowers gathered on the top of the head with flame light, and five qi moving towards the lotus seat. Drinking water from the Three Rivers sprays into the mist of Xuantian, dancing in the clothes of Hunyuan creates the shadow of Taixu. He summoned the strong man to be the general who would open the prison gate, and the fairy boy to be the guide to cross the blood lake. The five-color golden flag attracts the soul to die, and when the soul returns in the evening, it goes to the human world and transforms into a human form; the seven-color sandalwood incense attracts the soul and brings auspiciousness, the soul returns, enjoys human virtues, and is reincarnated as a good person. The talisman is transcribed with a red pen, and is made of gold and ink. The candle is bright, illuminating all directions, dispelling resentments and sins, praying for peace, and vowing to the underworld that the ghosts will never leave. Cultivation of virtues and good deeds, peace of mind and destiny, in order to repay the virtues of heaven and earth, to inherit the transformation of yin and yang, to be generous to the netherworld, to fulfill the wishes of Ksitigarbha, and to pray to Qingxuan. I worship the God of Repentance and the Bodhisattva of Jishou. I wish to use my thin will to save the souls of the dead, so that they can die as soon as possible and return to peace. I sincerely use the sutras to save the ghosts. The bells of the sutras vibrate and resound through the underworld. The fire and candles shine everywhere, penetrating the nine secluded places. The nectar is cool. , Give food and get what you ask for. I would like to write this article to offer libations to the souls of the dead, to enjoy them even though they are crying, to steam and taste the food, to listen to the Dharma and be saved, and to save the sorrow of the dead.
Cui Hantang shook the Sanqing Bell in his hand and recited a mantra loudly. Sometimes he held a sword with one hand and stepped on the steel pole to fight. Sometimes he breathed flames from his mouth to purify the four directions. When Cui Hantang had completed his salvation, he stood up with his sword put away. The talisman in his palm ignited spontaneously without wind. He shouted loudly: "The Lord Taishan has opened the door to hell. How long will it take before you are reincarnated!" Suddenly, black air surged into the sky in Taichung, accompanied by countless sharp and ear-piercing howls. Countless ghosts seemed to be dancing in the black air... It only scared me. Everyone trembled, and the timid one actually sat down and covered his eyes. After a while, the black air dissipated, and although the sky was blue and cloudless, a colorful rainbow hung across the stage...
The audience standing in front felt that there was only a hint of water vapor in the air, which was indescribably cool and pleasant, like nectar. I couldn't help but be fascinated. Although the people in the back row couldn't feel the "cool fragrance", they also talked about this rainbow. The young Taoist priest exhaled a breath and said to the old Taoist priest: "Master, this mage has such profound Taoist skills!" After finishing his words, the master did not reply. He quickly raised his eyes and saw the old Taoist priest's eyes were wide open and his throat was "remarkable". There was a loud noise, and he almost lost his breath. The little Taoist priest hurriedly supported him, beating his back and caressing his chest for a long time before he recovered. He just sat down on the ground and was silent.
Cui Hantang left the Dharma platform, only to see sixteen Taoist students on the Dharma platform, eight men and eight women. The audience was thinking about what spells they were going to cast, but they saw them divided into two rows, wearing blue practice uniforms and looking energetic and capable. Among them, a tall Taoist priest in green clothes stood proudly with his sword in hand. He was Fu Meng, the veteran of the Fire Line Alliance.
The music from the loudspeaker sounded immediately, but Master Fu Meng was seen pulling out his long sword with a loud roar, spreading his hair in a bun, and dancing gracefully to the music, dancing and singing. The Taoists sang together in clear voices and said:
I am so sad that I scatter my bridle to Fusang
Caressing the long sword lightly, wearing a lantern ring, holding the cup across the turbid river
Flying high and peacefully, clear air controls yin and yang
Traveling around the Zhou Dynasty, the stars of Han Dynasty are still young, the sun and the moon are in harmony
The blue clouds are covered with white neon clothes, and the long arrow shoots at the wolf
…
Fu Meng has a background in martial arts, and a set of Tai Chi sword routines combined with square dance movements made him dance with great success. All the elders who didn't know what was going on couldn't help but praise: "What a brave and handsome man! When did the New Taoism have such a figure again?"
"First it was pretentious, but now it's changed to a theatrical performance. What did Taoist Cui do?" Mu Min looked at the public sacrifice scene - there was no sense of solemnity in the whole temple fair scene.
The neo-Taoist dance here is lively, and the Buddhist dance there is not to be outdone. The cymbals sounded in unison, and the monks chanted Buddhist scriptures in unison. During this period, there were "playing tricks" and other tricks, which also attracted many people to watch.
On the Catholic side, only the old ladies from Lingao Seminary wore black robes and sang hymns - which was not as enjoyable as it was for viewing. The mass was held in the open air again, and there was no mystical atmosphere like the tall and deep church. Although the new Bishop of Guangzhou, Ma Yangchun, used all his strength to perform a complete requiem mass in the "most solemn manner", not many people watched the ceremony. Only a few hundred members of the Guangzhou Church watched the mass below.
"Relatives may be sad, but others have also sung. Life is just like this." Liu Xiang said deeply.
"This is just a public sacrifice. If the three major sects come to do this, the Senate..." Lin Baiguang felt slightly worried.
"The purpose of Shinto teachings is to educate the people." Liu Xiang said, "At this stage, the cultural level of the masses is generally low, and it is quite useful to have some religious beliefs to educate and restrain them. I believe that most people in the Senate can still Understood - as long as we don't publicly express our support for a certain sect, it will be fine. Mu Bureau." Liu Xiang clicked Mu Min's name.
"What's up?"
"Next, Taoist Cui will perform the Luotian Jiao for 18 days at the Five Immortals Temple. You send a few national troops and police to help him maintain order and make his life better - even one less day will not work!"
Mu Min knew that Liu Xiang wanted to tease Taoist Cui - Taoist Cui had to vomit blood after being beaten for eighteen days. But Cui Daochang has a lot of meat, so he can probably bear it. He held back his laughter and said, "I understand, I will definitely help him and urge him."
"Okay, let's forget about the public sacrifice. The next step is the trial." He looked at Shen Ruiming, "How do you plan to arrange it?"
"Let's talk about the personnel first. The presiding judge is Liang Xinhu. I will be the prosecutor myself, and Elder Xiao Zhang will be my deputy. Do you think there are any other requirements? Do you want some associate judges and jurors to come?"
"I don't think there is any need for jury judges or jurors. The civil law system we follow, the jury is something from the maritime law system. What's more, even if you find a few naturalized citizens to fill the number, firstly, the level is not enough, and secondly, After we come here, it will be difficult for us to send someone to every trial. As for the veterans, it is even more impossible. I am still assured of your level, and the prosecutor will leave it to you. However, have you thought about the choice of defense lawyer? No?"
