At that time, the emperor personally went out of the city to see him off.
Now His Majesty personally welcomed Master Tripitaka back outside Chang'an City.
The five masters and apprentices followed him to the outside of Chang'an City.
The five masters and disciples returned to the court, and there was such a big commotion in the city. Soon, the news of Master Tripitaka's return spread throughout the city, and everyone in the city knew that the Buddhist monks were here.
There is also the Hongfu Temple where Master Tripitaka once lived. Just when a monk in the temple saw several pine trees with their heads facing east, they were still surprised and suspicious. An old disciple who studied scriptures with Master Tripang immediately stood up and said: "Quickly Hurry up, I think Master Xuanzang is back from studying for Buddhist scriptures."
If we talk about the past fourteen years, the common people may have forgotten that there is such an eminent monk as Master Tripitaka, but how can the monks in their temple not remember it?
After hearing what the monk said, he straightened up his appearance and asked, "How does Senior Brother know?"
"When my master left, he once said: 'After I leave, it may be three to five years, or six or seven years, but if the branches of the pine trees point eastward, I will return." My master knows this from the holy words spoken by the Buddha. ." While talking, he called to the monks: "Hurry up, don't delay-"
The monks from the temple filed out, but as soon as they entered the street, they heard the message from the cavalry: "The holy monk's brother has returned from studying for scriptures. His Majesty personally greets him. His Royal Highness the Prince is leading hundreds of officials to greet him outside the city!"
Good guy, after these few voices, a large number of people came to watch with their families and friends. That is to say, the monks in their temple came out earlier, otherwise they might not be able to get the front row, so they were all very happy.
His Royal Highness the Prince should first step forward to salute, and then all the officials and the people would shout long live the mountain together, and Li Shimin naturally accepted it calmly.
Then His Royal Highness the Crown Prince paid a courtesy visit to Master Tripitaka and said, "I have seen your uncle——"
Fahai avoided it, made a Buddha salute with one hand, and said: "Amitabha, Your Highness, please do not be too polite."
"You are the emperor's younger brother. If you were not an eminent monk, you would definitely be named a king with a different surname. Although he is a prince, in front of my younger brother, you are still a junior in front of my younger brother. He will be the emperor in the future. With the word 'uncle', my younger brother will It’s also affordable.”
When everyone heard that Master Sanzang had received such kindness, not to mention the people in the city, even the civil and military officials were all moved with emotion. Some of the sons of old ministers, such as Wei Zheng's sons, came to comfort their late fathers at this moment.
The matter of Tripitaka's study of scriptures was still fourteen years ago.
Some of the old people who were able to escort Master Tripitaka out of the city back then have died; and some of the young people who are here to welcome Master Tripitaka today were not even born at that time. Even those who are young and strong do not actually have very deep memories of what happened back then.
At this moment, the elders around them were whispering about the past events.
And those who can span fourteen years and witness this grand scene with their own eyes are mostly middle-aged figures now. In other words, they are also the mainstay of the Tang Dynasty today.
Just like Wang Xuance and Xue Rengui who accompanied them at the Wangjing Tower, they were certainly indispensable for the Tang Dynasty to be able to maintain such a prestigious reputation.
"My nephew has always been fond of Buddhism." After hearing his father's words, His Royal Highness did not dare to neglect, and said quickly: "Now that the emperor has returned to Tang Dynasty, he will have to ask for more advice from the emperor in the future."
"good!"
Fahai naturally would not refuse this.
In fact, if the prince of a country believes too much in Buddhism, it may not be beneficial to the country.
Fa Hai did not say much at this moment. Firstly, because the subjects were gathered at this moment, these words are not suitable to be said here; secondly, the key point cannot be explained in one or two sentences; thirdly, Fahai thought that His Highness the Crown Prince It is a very correct decision to come to ask for advice, because you can control the content of the teaching, which is always better than thinking about it in private and going astray.
When His Highness the Prince saw Master Tripitaka agreeing, he was naturally very happy, and a smile naturally appeared on his face.
Li Shimin on the side felt emotional when he saw it. The reason why he finally chose Pheasant Nu as the crown prince instead of the King of Wei was precisely because of Li Zhi's "compassionate" heart.
Li Shimin knew very well that if King Li Tai of Wei succeeded him to the throne a hundred years later, then the former prince, Li Zhi, and his other sons would probably not end well.
Moreover, in terms of talents and abilities, he is actually not inferior to the King of Wei. Now he is teaching him step by step, and he can't wait to teach all his skills. In the future, even if he cannot become a hero who opens up new territories and expands his territory, he is definitely qualified to be one. The enlightened and conservative king.
The territory of Datang was no longer small.
So big that in all remote places, the Tang Center cannot actually control the place.
Even if the territory is expanded further, there is actually not enough power to digest these territories unless the ministers in the court can travel thousands of miles at a time, or the information between the central government and the states and counties can be sent back and forth in a short time.
Otherwise, those vassal states that submitted to the Tang Dynasty would have long become counties under the jurisdiction of the Tang Dynasty.
Even in the Tang Dynasty, there were still mostly ordinary people. But if everyone could practice cultivation, the country would be in chaos.
Confucianism disrupts the law with literature, and chivalry violates prohibitions with martial arts. This is not just talk.
As the king of a country, opening up and expanding territory and attacking the barbarians from far away can naturally demonstrate the prestige of the country, but compared to "martial arts", perhaps more important is the "civilian governance" that can make the people live and work in peace and contentment, happy and healthy.
At this point, Li Shimin was very optimistic about the prince.
The older generation has fought all the battles that need to be fought, and the children and grandchildren should work hard to consolidate and carry forward the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty.
After entering the city, they saw that although the people of Chang'an were "turbulent", they actually had rules. Although there were imperial guards on both sides of the road, they did not need to bother to maintain order. This kind of scene is difficult to see in other countries.
When Fahai saw the monks at Hongfu Temple, he went up to meet them and said, "Everyone, please wait a moment. After the poor monk returns to the court and resumes his duties, we will return to the temple to talk to each other."
The monks naturally agreed without hesitation.
His Majesty and the Crown Prince did not urge or disturb them. They only waited for Master Tripitaka to finish his explanation before leading them towards the gate.
Chang'an City is not small. Even if the road is smooth, it takes a long time to walk. The main reason is that the people in Chang'an City are too enthusiastic, and Fahai has always been a polite monk, so he returned the courtesy step by step.
Some old acquaintances from those years saw Master Sanzang's current appearance and then looked at their own old faces, and they couldn't help but sigh: It seems that time has not left any trace on Master Sanzang's body.
When Li Shimin saw it, he whispered to the prince beside him: "Pheasant slave, you can see. This is the human heart."
Seeing that after fourteen years of separation, the people in Chang'an City were still so kind to Master Sanzang, but Li Shimin was only happy that today was Sanzang's home court, and even he, the emperor, had to hide his halo.
Outside the main hall.
The master and apprentice waited for a while. According to the procedure, all the officials entered the palace first, and then the emperor and the prince came to the court. After everything was ready, they were announced to enter the palace.
Originally, Li Shimin did not intend to be so complicated, so he led a group of officials and the five masters and apprentices directly into the palace to complete the matter.
As for rules, in the Tang Dynasty, they were the rules.
But Master Sanzang said it was not formal enough and not solemn. Li Shimin immediately changed his mind and followed Master Sanzang's wishes.
Today the King of Heaven is here, and he is also the eldest of his younger brothers.
In this regard, Fahai could only say: Even Emperor Taizong occasionally had such a willful side.
Not long after.
"Your Majesty, come to the palace."
This was shouted by the emperor himself, and with the power of human blood, the voice spread throughout the palace and still echoed in the main hall.
The eunuch on the side was about to open his mouth to send a message, but he had no choice but to close his mouth.
Fahai went to the palace alone and formally paid homage to His Majesty the Emperor.
"Fortunately, my brother Xuanzang lived up to his destiny. It lasted fourteen years and he moved from Chang'an in the Tang Dynasty to Daleiyin Temple in Lingshan Mountain, Tianzhu, Hezhou, Xiniu. After returning from studying Buddhist scriptures, he returned to his brother." After Fahai finished speaking, he moved slightly away. , and said again, "Here is the scripture, Your Majesty, please read it."
"Wukong——"
Fahai turned around and called the Great Sage, and the Great Sage called on several junior brothers, together with Wang Xuance and Xue Rengui, to push four small carts to the main hall.
After stopping the small car carrying the scriptures, the Great Sage led his three junior brothers to salute the emperor.
There is no doubt that Master Tripitaka is well-mannered and courteous. When all the officials saw that the brothers of the Great Sage were just like his master, they immediately looked at him differently.
"Is this the 'Mahayana Sutra' spoken by the Bodhisattva back then?"
"This is only a small part." Fahai replied to His Majesty first, and then explained: "My brother went to Lingshan and obtained a total of more than 15,000 volumes of written scriptures——"
"More than fifteen thousand volumes?" Li Shimin listened to this, recalled it carefully for a while, and suddenly said: "Back then, the Bodhisattva said that Lingshan had three collections of Mahayana scriptures, and one collection was five thousand and forty-eight. Could it be that I took all the Tripitaka scriptures?"
"Of course." When Fahai entered the hall, he put away the nine-ringed tin staff. Now he clasped his hands and said: "When I left Chang'an, the imperial brother gave his younger brother the Buddhist title of 'Sanzang'. If If we cannot bring all the Tripitaka scriptures back to Chang'an, we will not dare to fulfill the emperor's orders."
After hearing this, the monarchs and ministers in the main hall praised Master Tripitaka for a while.
Sun Wuji, the eldest son of Zhao Guogong, said: "The Great Leiyin Temple in Lingshan is really generous. He is willing to give all these scriptures to me."
Seeing that it was not the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty who was speaking, the great sage on the side took up the conversation and said: "My lord, what you said is wrong. The Great Leiyin Temple in Lingshan is not generous at all. My master paid for these Tripitaka scriptures." What came here was not sent by them.”
As soon as these words came out.
There was a sudden silence in the main hall, and the atmosphere was solemn for a moment.
From the emperor Li Shimin on the throne to the guards on duty at the entrance of the palace, all of them looked bad.
"Great Sage, please explain in detail." Li Shimin did not ask Tripitaka, but only asked the Great Sage, and added, "But Lingshan deliberately made things difficult? Can your master accept the injustice he suffered at Lingshan?"
The Great Sage did not expect that with one word, the kings and ministers of this dynasty would become hostile to Lingshan, and the reason turned out to be that they were worried that the master would be bullied in Lingshan.
"Your Majesty has misunderstood." In order to prevent misunderstanding, the Great Sage quickly explained: "I, Old Sun, said that they are not generous. There is a reason."
Then, the Great Sage first told the story about "Anuo and Gaye asked for personnel when they taught scriptures, but they were afraid of how powerful their masters and disciples were, so they didn't accept them and just passed on the "Wordless Sutra"."
"Scripture without words?!"
The expressions of the monarchs and ministers in the palace became even darker. Some of the bad-tempered ones had already rolled up their sleeves. If they had axes by their side, they would be ready to kill Lingshan.
"No!" The Great Sage didn't care what he was explaining at this moment. He simply matched the expressions of the monarchs and ministers and said angrily: "When I saw this, I was about to pick up the golden cudgel and go to find the Buddha. Let's have a good theory. I was able to keep my old grandson in Wuxing Mountain for more than five hundred years. It was because I was fooled by him. Things are different now. I want him to let the Buddhas in Lingshan know that my master traveled thousands of miles to learn the scriptures. , I’m not here to be entertained by them.”
"That's right, that's right!" All the old generals nodded: "How can I, my imperial brother of the Tang Dynasty, be humiliated in Lingshan? What happened next?"
"Later." The Great Sage spread his hands and said: "You all also know my master's character. He is a rare virtuous monk in the three realms. He is born with a compassionate heart and looks like a gentle gentleman. The master stopped me at that time. They said, 'The sutra should not be passed on lightly, nor should it be taken in vain.' They came empty-handed and took the sutra without words, which is also the cause and effect."
The monarchs and ministers all looked at Master Tripitaka, as if to say: My dear brother, how come you have lost the prestige of our Tang Dynasty outside?
Of course, these words of the Great Sage could not fool Li Shimin, let alone the intellectual leaders represented by Changsun Wuji and Li Ji. How could they not see through the key points?
I have long been keenly aware of the difference.
At the moment, I am just being guided by the words of this great disciple of Sanzang Sect.
After all, if Sanzang really suffered a loss in Lingshan, how could he get back these fifteen thousand volumes of scriptures?
They were about to wait for the Great Sage to turn around, but they heard the Great Sage say again: "At that time, the Master also said that this wordless scripture is also a true scripture, but although the wordless true scripture can be understood by the master himself, ordinary people do not recognize it. Therefore, I asked my old grandson to send the gold and silver captured by slaying the demons and bandits along the way to the Mahavira Palace, and then asked the Buddha whether these personnel matters were enough for the purpose of collecting scriptures."
Li Shimin immediately laughed and said, "What did the Buddha say?"
"Buddha naturally had nothing to say. He only told me a story and explained the reasons why they recruited people in Lingshan." The great sage then read and recited the words "The bhikkhu and the holy monk will go down the mountain to the house of Elder Zhao of Savatthi State." He received three dou and three liters of rice grains of gold, but he thought it was too cheap, leaving his descendants with no money to use it." He told the story in the main hall.
After the monarch and his ministers digested it for a while, he continued: "Then the Buddha did not keep the gold and silver, but dispersed to the three realms to help the poor."
"Hmph." Lu Guogong on the side snorted softly and said, "I see that he has no face to accept it in public."
If others may have some respect for Buddha, why should he, a demon king who killed countless people on the battlefield, be afraid of Buddha?
Everyone:.
They suddenly felt that Lu Guogong was right.
(End of chapter)