The so-called Maoshan Mountain is actually a small hill that suddenly rises up on the alluvial plain of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River. It is divided into several hills, including Xiaomao, Zhongmao, Damao and Jijin. The tallest one, Damao Peak, is only a few hundred meters long, but it has become the only commanding height in the plains hundreds of miles away.
Therefore, the local ancestors in ancient times began to worship heaven and earth in the mountains, forming the precursor of the original worship of the so-called Sanmao Zhenjun. According to ancient legend, Emperor Zhuanxu, one of the Five Emperors, sent the gods of the four seas to transport stones from Tianshi Mountain in the Anxi Kingdom to seal the sacred peaks of Cave Mountain in the world, and Maoshan was one of them.
Among them was a bronze tripod buried by the God of the East China Sea on the top of Damao Peak. Therefore, on every auspicious day, alchemists from far and near climbed up to it and burned incense to worship. There was no vegetation and only stones to make a small altar. Until Tao Hongjing came to Maoshan from Jiankang to live in seclusion and practice Taoism, and according to the divine revelation, he built the upper, middle and lower Huayang Pavilions in the King of Chu Stream.
This became the ancestral origin of the Maoshan Sect of the Shangqing Sect today. Therefore, successive imperial edicts and grants have been awarded to this day. Surrounding this mountainous area known as "Huayang Cave", three palaces and five palaces including Huayang Palace, Xiabo Palace, Ancestral Palace, Ziyang Temple and Taiping Temple have been formed. Look at the big picture.
The contemporary peaks of Maoshan Mountain are located at the junction of Jiangning Prefecture and Runzhou; from the administrative division point of view, they are under the jurisdiction of Jintan County, Runzhou. However, as the leader of the temples on the mountain, the master of Taiping Temple is directly subordinate to Jiangning Mansion as a dignitary envoy granted by the imperial court.
In addition, the contemporary sect master, Xuanming Master Jiang Yuanji, has been traveling between the capital and the capital for a long time to serve the emperor; therefore, the junior brother Chen Mengji, who is responsible for the general affairs of this mountain and the current master of Taiping Temple, has also obtained Maoshan. A considerable degree of de facto autonomy within the surrounding area.
Although, after the rectification and sorting out during the Liang Gong era, the imperial decree stipulated the specific scale, standards and upper limit of religious places such as temples and temples in the world, as well as the upper limit of ultimatums and miscellaneous personnel. It also prohibited all temples and temples from accepting personal and land donations from the people, except for royal and government funds.
But as the saying goes, "There are policies from above and countermeasures from below." As long as the local officials who implement them are not resolute enough, they will naturally find roundabout ways. Since household registration and land attachment are not allowed, it is replaced by various trading companies, shops, and libraries, which are paid in the name on the grounds of accumulating charity.
Even when the imperial court prohibited the lending, renting and selling of temples, some properties of land and buildings were operated in the name of incense societies, god-rewarding societies, and vow-repaying groups organized by nearby villages and towns; and then, in the name of burning incense, collecting gods, and fulfilling wishes, ; Regularly deliver output and interest to designated temples and temples;
Therefore, Jintan, Liyang, and Lishui counties around Maoshan are filled with properties related to it. The three palaces and five temples in the main mountain of Maoshan alone have nearly two thousand Taoist priests and disciples, and there are countless disciples, servants, servants, and lay followers who rely on them to practice.
However, compared to the eight Buddhist sects who are keen to spread their faith and are active everywhere, the Maoshan lineage, which is the major sect of the state religion, is relatively low-key and restrained. The imperial court also had a special Taoist examination system, which meant passing the Tao Te Ching and Tao Te Ching exams similar to the imperial examinations, and obtaining Tao ultimatums.
Then, if you want to enter the imperial court system and become a Taoist official, you have to try "Laozi", "Zhuangzi", "Liezi", and "Wenzi"; then, in the palaces and temples of specific famous mountains and rivers, you must accumulate certain qualifications, reputation or He talked about his good deeds and was awarded the honorary envoy of the county, state and Tao step by step.
Just like the contemporary patriarch of Maoshan, Master Xuanming Jiang Yuanji, he was granted the status of the official envoy of the Taoist sect of Dongdu Youjie and Jianxiao by Ouchi; he was responsible for supervising the Taoist priests in Beijing. He is the chief monk of the Senglu Division of Left and Right Streets, and one of the Buddhist and Taoist leaders of various sects under the jurisdiction of the two capitals' merit envoys.
The master of Taiping Temple, Chen Mengji, whose Buddhist name is Xiu Yuanzi, is also the dignitary of Jiangdong Taoist Gate and the dignitary of Jiangning Prefecture Taoist Gate. He is also very famous locally, but he cherishes feathers very much and has a good reputation among officials and private people. There is no evidence of arrogance, lawlessness or robbery.
On the contrary, when he toured places as a Taoist envoy in his early years, he punished some Taoist scum who broke the rules and regulations; and left behind some legends such as private visits incognito, punishing lawless subordinates, and slapping arrogant and powerful people in the face. It was not until recent years that he returned to the mountain, closed the door to thank guests, and quietly repaired the temple.
Of course, all of this is first-hand information provided by Wude Si of Yangzhou Prefecture; how much of it is true or false remains to be seen with one's own eyes. From another news channel, Qixiufang/Yiyinglou, also in the capital, has a branch in Yangzhou, the holy land of fireworks in the southeast.
The conclusion drawn is that these Taoist priests from Maoshan Sect are also relatively low-key and restrained in the local area; although some of them change their appearance and often come to greet business in the monastery; but they are very happy to give money afterward. He didn't show anything different from ordinary people.
It was not until the celestial changes that these generous regular guests basically disappeared from the courtyard. According to the parting words of some familiar benefactors, they were recalled to the mountain to stay behind closed doors. Time can't meet each other. Therefore, it is still closed.
According to the local tax laws, during the mountain closure period, all food, firewood and other daily supplies will be available as usual, but not many people will come in or out. The journey from Suzhou to Maoshan is also by water, but after crossing the Taihu Lake and entering Jingxi River, you can only transfer to a small boat.
Therefore, on the Wu Peng boat with local characteristics of Suzhou, Jiang Tian also enjoyed the river seafood such as clam soup, fish cakes, shrimp soup, oil crab and other dishes cooked by the boatman; Received various news and copies of official documents forwarded from Yangzhou Prefecture.
For example, Dugu Yun, the governor of Yangzhou, launched a round of rectification in the Jianghuai area in the name of banning obscene worship after discovering the Dayun Sect. Of course, as expected, he received strong support from the local Buddhist and Taoist families. , and what he did in the local area was very popular and prestigious.
The so-called obscene sacrifices refer to ancestral halls and private temples built privately by the people without the approval of the imperial court in ancient times to worship some unqualified people. It is also mixed with a large number of mountain spirits, water monsters, cow ghosts and snake gods, and even ancient witchcraft worship such as rebels and strong beams from the previous dynasty.
Just like the famous Di Renjie, when he was the governor of the south of the Yangtze River, he discovered that many "obscene temples" had been built by the people in the south of the Yangtze River. Many foolish men and women went to worship and the incense was strong. Therefore, they reported to the court for screening, and finally one He said, "Destroyed more than 1,700 temples of obscenity."
In the end, only the Xia Yu and Wu Zixu temples survived. Of course, after his death, the local people were grateful for his kindness and built the Di Gong Temple specifically for him, thinking that sacrifices would be continuous throughout the four seasons. However, it was destroyed because of his son's poor governance. This seems a bit full of black humor.
It should be noted that since the founding of the Tang Dynasty, the prohibition of obscene worship has been considered politically correct in official circles. Because the right to sacrifice since ancient times has been part of the ruling authority of past dynasties. The emperor offered sacrifices to heaven and earth, the princes offered sacrifices to the country and the famous mountains and rivers within its territory, the officials offered sacrifices to the five sacrifices, and the common people offered sacrifices to their ancestors.
The ancients worshiped rituals with certain integrity and no disorder. But starting from the great ancestor Li Yuan, some people have worshiped Dou Jiande and Liu Heida in Hebei, and some have worshiped Du Fuwei in Jiangnan. This is an act that challenges the imperial order. Therefore, any discovery by the people is immediately destroyed.
The land south of the Yangtze River, because it is far away from war and relatively wealthy, has been the hardest hit area for obscene worship since ancient times. Dugu Yun took this as an excuse to initiate the rectification and purge of local temples, which incidentally involved some local officials, wealthy families, and large households, which was just a matter of course.
As for the routine notification to Jiang Tian, it was just an empty excuse in a sense. However, after all, Yangzhou Mansion is the hub where the southeast sea and land gather, and it also brings him news about overseas. For example, this year's overseas tribute ship from Guangzhou Prefecture in the south arrived more than ten days late.
In addition to the routine damage and wear and tear caused by wind and waves, many traces of attacks in the water were also found in this unusually large tribute ship group. The fleet that set out from Shanzhou and Chihai in the far south and gathered all the way also had a loss rate of 23% out of 10.
Except for a few who were lost or stranded due to wind, waves and storm tides, the others were attacked by giant fish and whales that suddenly became violent and aggressive in the sea. Although the escort warships were equipped with giant crossbows and cannons, some were killed on the spot and dispersed. Others, but also had to abandon some seriously damaged ships.
On the other hand, these tribute ships also brought news about many foreign vassal princes in the South China Sea, Wufang Tianzhu, Xiao'ao, southern Shanzhou, and even Xiniu Hezhou; after the changes in the celestial sphere, varying degrees of turmoil and turmoil also broke out in these places. Turbulence, and even many unusual incidents witnessed.
The disturbances and turmoil were mainly caused by the Tu barbarians in the outer vassal areas and the remnants of the nobles of the former city-states and vassal states. They thought this was an apocalypse and a sign, and incited many fanatical compatriots to wantonly burn, kill, loot and besiege. The naturalized settlements and cities wanted to drive away the Tang people.
However, this kind of hasty and disconnected fighting not only caused unexpected losses and casualties in many cities and settlements at the beginning; it was quickly reflected that the Tang people supported each other in accordance with the original alliance. The princes and feudal lords joined forces to suppress it.
On the contrary, those abnormal events that pop up from time to time are relatively more difficult. For example, some people saw a giant snake with a human face as big as a barrel, devouring wild cattle and horses; there was also a native settlement that was invaded by a centipede as big as a carriage, killing dozens of people and animals on the spot; there was a basin of giant butterflies that were paralyzed and sucked blood.
Therefore, there were also a large number of descendants and tribes of princes and foreign vassal families who came with the ship this time. On the one hand, they went to the Tang Dynasty in China to seek assistance and asylum from their mother country, at least to ensure that their family's bloodline would not be cut off due to accidents. On the one hand, I also want to learn the strategies of Middle-earth.
Therefore, this inevitably has something to do with Jiang Tian and Xijingli Xingyuan.
Kashin lost his mind
(End of chapter)
