After listening to him, I nodded and signaled him to lead the way. We then headed toward the Crouching Buddha Temple.
However, Monk Shan Wu's body only paused for a moment and did not move. Instead, he opened his mouth and said, "Before going down the mountain, my master had warned me that Almsgiver Zhou has a Buddhist keepsake on you. I need to confirm it before you can go up the mountain."
After listening to him, I frowned. After thinking for a while, I felt that his request was reasonable. The Crouching Buddha Temple had many secrets, so it wouldn't hurt to be cautious.
However, I had just obtained the Crouching Buddha beads not long ago. How did Monk Miao Jue know about it?
Since I couldn't figure it out, I didn't delve deeper into it. I just extended my hand and handed the beads to him.
Monk Shan Wu received it and looked at it. His eyes flashed and his arms slightly trembled. After taking a deep breath, he hastily returned the buddhist beads to me and bowed to me. "My apologies, my apologies. Benefactor, please follow this little monk up the mountain."
After saying that, he strode forward and took the lead to the entrance of the hotel.
Our hotel was only half an hour's drive from the Crouching Buddha Temple. Since there were no cars on the mountain, we stopped at the foot of the mountain.
Along the way, Monk Shan Wu told me about the origin of the Crouching Buddha Temple. I had read about it in the materials he had mentioned before, so I didn't pay much attention to it. I just whispered in agreement.
The Crouching Buddha Temple was worthy of being a thousand-year-old temple. It had an endless stream of worshippers. I was afraid it would be even more crowded during the temple fair.
Fortunately, the Crouching Buddha Temple wasn't like the Mount Lao we had visited before. It didn't have any restrictions.
Thinking about Mount Lao, I was surprised. I had promised the Sect Master of Mount Lao that I would return the Eastern Emperor Bell. However, I had been focused on solving Wang Li's matter and had forgotten about it. It seemed we couldn't stay in the Crouching Buddha Temple for long. We had to return to Tsingtao as soon as possible to avoid any unforeseen events.
While I was thinking, Monk Shan Wu brought us to a hall. There were a few big Sanskrit words on the ceiling of the hall.
According to Monk Shan Wu, this hall was called the Heavenly King Hall. There were six Buddha statues inside: Maitreya Buddha, the Four Heavenly Kings, and Wei Tuo Bodhisattva.
Although I don't know much about Buddhism, I have heard a little about these Buddha statues.
This Maitreya Buddha is also called Maitreya Bodhisattva, which translates as Ci Shi, transliterates as Mei Li Ya, Mei Li Yao, one of the Eight Great Bodhisattvas of Buddhism. In the Mahayana Buddhist scriptures, he is often called Ayita Bodhisattva. He is the successor of Shakyamuni Buddha, and is often honored as Maitreya Buddha.
However, the Four Heavenly Kings of Buddhism were not the four that ordinary people knew of above the heavenly court.
The Four Heavenly Kings were the guardians of Buddhism, also known as the Four Heavenly Kings of World Protectors. They were the four heavenly deities of the twenty heavens of Buddhism, located in the first heaven of the Saha World of Desire.
The first layer of heaven was also called the Four Heavenly King Heaven, and it was located on the four peaks halfway up Mount Meru.
According to Monk Shan Wu's introduction, the Four Heavenly Kings were the Dhrtarastra of the East, whose name was Dorozha. He lived on the east side of Mount Meru, and his land was gold. The Southern Heavenly King of Growth, whose name was Pili Li, lived on the south side of Mount Meru, and his land was gold. The Western Heavenly King of Virūpākṣa, lived on the west side of Mount Meru, and his land was silver.
The last Skanda Bodhisattva was also known as Skanda Bodhisattva. His Sanskrit name was transliterated as Private Jiantua Deva, meaning Yin Sky. He was originally a deity of the Indian Brahmanism, and later became a guardian deity of Buddhism.
According to legend, the Skanda Bodhisattva statue had two main shapes. One was a pair of palms with both hands holding a vajra pestle, and the other was a single hand holding a vajra pestle.
The two shapes of the Skanda Bodhisattva statue had different meanings. The one holding the pestle with both hands meant that the temple welcomed wandering monks from all over the world. The one holding the pestle with only one hand meant that the temple didn't welcome foreign monks. Wandering monks only needed to look at the Skanda Bodhisattva statue to know if they were welcome or not.
Monk Shan Wu clasped his hands and bowed toward the hall. He didn't say anything else but stood next to me. It seemed he was waiting for me to do something.
I knew what he was thinking at first glance. He was waiting for me to pay my respects to the Bodhisattva statue.
However, I didn't expect that Shan Wu, who had been so respectful to me in the hotel, would try to intimidate me.
He knew that I was a Feng Shui master, which came from the same origin as Daoist priests. My faith was different from that of Buddhism, but he still wanted to make things difficult for me.
Moreover, the conflict between Buddhism and Daoism had existed since ancient times. Moreover, the popularity of Buddhism was something that Daoism couldn't compare to. He wanted to show off in front of me.
With this thought, I didn't pay attention to him. I took the fatty and walked in another direction.
Monk Shan Wu didn't say anything, but I could see a trace of displeasure on his face.
However, the more displeased he was, the happier I was.
Perhaps this monk had found a way to deal with us. He didn't hurry to take us to see Miaojue. Instead, he took us around the Heavenly King Hall and went to the Three Lives Buddhist Hall.
The Three Lives Buddhist Hall was also called the Mahavira Hall. It was the highest among all the halls.
On the front door of the hall hung a wooden board written by Emperor Yongzheng that read, "Twin Woods Suijing". On both sides of the door were couplets inscribed by Emperor Qianlong: "The green bamboos and yellow flowers in the Buddhist forest are empty and beautiful. The treasured lantern and pearls in the Buddhist space are profound and solemn."
If Monk Shan Wu wanted to tease me, I couldn't show my impatience.
Although I had an important matter to attend to, I wasn't in a hurry.
With this thought in mind, I followed Shan Wu to stroll around the hall.
From him, I learned that the three Buddhas in this hall were the Amitabha Buddha of the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss, the Shakyamuni Buddha of the Saha World, and the Medicine Buddha of the Eastern Pure Glaze World.
I couldn't help but remember that Miaojue had told me that the witch energy in my body was the Buddha power of the ancient Dipamkara Buddha.
According to Buddhism, the three Buddhas were in charge of mankind. They were divided into the Past Buddha, Dipamkara Buddha, the Present Buddha was Shakyamuni Buddha, and the Future Buddha was Maitreya Buddha.
I didn't know why the witch energy in my body was related to Dipamkara Buddha.
After Monk Shan Wu finished his speech, we didn't move. He sped up and said, "I'm going to take you to see Miaojue."
The fat man also saw the situation. His big face turned red.
Soon, we arrived at the main hall of the Reclining Buddha Temple, the Reclining Buddha Hall.
This Buddhist hall was three rooms wide. It had a single eave and a yellow glazed roof. Under the eaves was a five-colored dou gong, and the ceiling was decorated with colorful flowers.
On the front of the door, there was a big inscription that read, "The nature of the moon is always bright." On both sides, there were couplets that read, "With the Bodhi Heart Seal, all dharmas follow your will, and those who live long will help all sentient beings."
Above the Buddhist hall, there was a horizontal inscription that read, "Great Freedom."
After entering the hall, we saw a big Buddha statue.
The bronze Buddha statue was lying on its side on the couch. Its head was to the west, and its feet were to the east. It was facing the south, and its eyes were slightly closed. Its expression was serene, and its posture was even. The folds of its clothes were flowing smoothly. Its right arm was bent, and its right palm was supporting its head. Its left arm was straight, and its fingers were forming an auspicious seal.
I had heard about the origin of this Buddha statue. It was said that it was the posture of Shakyamuni Buddha before he passed away outside the city of Naga in India. It depicted that when the Buddha was sick and couldn't get up, he gave his last teachings to his disciples under the Shura Tree. It was the Buddhist story of Shakyamuni Nirvana.
I was shocked by the solemn Buddha statue in front of me. I stood still in the hall for a long time. At this moment, I heard a voice behind me. "Benefactor Zhou, how have you been?"
Hearing the familiar voice, I turned around and saw a man wearing a kasaya with a big Buddhist prayer beads hanging on his chest. He looked spirited. It was Monk Miaojue.
I cupped my hands toward him and said, "Master Miaojue, long time no see."
Monk Miaojue nodded at me and said, "Please forgive me for not welcoming you earlier.
May I know if Benefactor has obtained that treasure? "
Hearing this, I was startled. It was just as I had thought. When I was in the hotel, I was puzzled as to why Monk Shanwu said that I had a Buddhist keepsake. It turned out that Monk Miaojue already knew that I had the Reclining Buddha Beads.
After thinking about it, I took out the Buddhist prayer beads and handed them to Monk Miaojue. "Is this what Master is talking about?"
Unexpectedly, Monk Miaojue only glanced at the Buddhist prayer beads and didn't take them. Instead, he smiled and said, "There is one more thing."
His words were somewhat unimaginable, but I immediately remembered that I had found the Buddhist prayer beads in Chiyou's tomb.
However, there was another thing that I had found in Chiyou's tomb — the second part of the 《Death Scripture》.
However, there wasn't a single word on it, only an azure lamp.
Previously, Liu Ruxu had told me that there was a connection between the azure lamp scroll and the Buddhist prayer beads. I immediately thought of the Reclining Buddha Temple. I didn't expect that Monk Miaojue would know about this.
Thinking about this, my heart tightened. My eyes slightly focused as I said in a deep voice, "I don't know what Master is talking about."
The fatty's eyes trembled when he saw my expression, and he stealthily moved two steps closer to me.
Monk Miaojue seemed to have anticipated my reaction. He shook his head and said, "Benefactor, you don't need to be alarmed. This poor monk doesn't have any improper thoughts.
It's just that this thing is related to Buddhism. If you want to comprehend it, you'll need Buddha's help. "
The meaning behind his words was just as I had expected. It was obvious that he already knew about it.
In that case, it was meaningless whether I hid it or not.
Thinking about this, my expression eased and I patted the fatty's shoulder. Only then did he move away from me.
Then, I asked Monk Miaojue what he meant by his previous words.
After listening to me, Monk Miaojue signaled us to follow behind him. We circled around the Reclining Buddha Temple and arrived at the back of the mountain.
There were no signs of human habitation in the back of the mountain, and the ground was covered with weeds and withered trees. I didn't know why he brought us here.
Before I could ask, Monk Miaojue closed his eyes and chanted the name of Buddha. Then, he waved his hand, and the scenery in front of us changed.
I didn't react for a moment, but the fatty next to me pulled my arm and pointed to a place in front of us. "Third Baby, look at that pagoda. It looks a little strange."