Taoist temple in the mountains

Chapter 511, Why the Bell Tolls
Far away in the Dalin Temple of Sanqing Temple——

The bells of Dalin Temple did not stop all night, and the ringing of the bells was a little different from usual.

This is not the morning bell, but the death knell, the most profound funeral sound for someone. The novice monks in the temple all put on solemn black robes to save the people in the center.

Seeing Zen master Kong, with his eyes closed, his hands clasped together, he was quietly sitting in the center of the firewood, without joy or sorrow, without any breath, and he seemed to be meditating as usual.

All the monks recited the Dharma name lightly, recited the scriptures belonging to the transcendence, and respectfully sent Zen Master Kongjian away.

"Amitabha--"

The older monks were fine, but the younger novice monks could hardly conceal the sadness on their faces.

As one of the presiding middle-aged monks, he clasped his hands together and said calmly: "Everyone, don't be sad. Master Kongjian just went to the Western Paradise, and went to the Buddhist kingdom to preside over Zen discussions with the past dynasties."

"Uncle Mingzheng. Is there really a Western Paradise? Do people really go to such a place after death?" One of the dazed little novice monks stopped crying, but he still choked up and said, "But... people died. , don’t you just lose all consciousness, what else can there be in the world of bliss?”

Mingzheng touched the little novice's head, and said gently.

"Believe it or not, the Buddha Kingdom is there. Humans, after all, are doomed to die. Since there is no escape, then what difference does it make if the Buddha Kingdom is there or not? Since you don't know, I don't know, why don't you have a better mood?" How about facing each day? Instead of wandering in the distress of life and death, it is better to see through the distress of life and death, and turn your head away from success or failure. In this life, it is better to be bearish after all.”

The little novice listened to Mingzheng's words half-understood, but just listening to Mingzheng's words, his mood calmed down a bit, and he stood aside obediently, continuing to chant sutras to see Zen Master Kongjian off.

On the side, the sadness on the face of the little novice who has been following Zen Master Kongjian is even more difficult to conceal. While sad, there is also endless nostalgia and reluctance. After all, he is the little novice who has been with Kongjian for the longest time.

Mingzheng looked at the remains of Zen master Kong Jian, and he also felt sad, but he couldn't really express it. On this occasion, as the acting abbot, he couldn't even express his sadness, so he could only silently recite the supernatural power. scriptures.

A slightly fat monk next to him also said with a 'sad' expression.

"Acting abbot, we feel very sad about the death of our master."

Facing the monk in front of him, Mingzheng sighed slightly and said lightly.

"Brother Mingfa, you don't need to call the poor monk the acting abbot, you can call the poor monk the junior brother as before."

"Yeah, it's Junior Brother." Mingfa bit the word Junior Brother hard, anyone could hear the displeasure in it, even Mingzheng knew what the displeasure contained in it meant.

It's just that I'm upset that I became the acting abbot instead of him.

Even if it's just acting as an agent, that's still the job of the abbot, a generation behind him as the chief.

"Brother, of course the poor monk is aware of your displeasure, but this is the order of the master. The master let the poor monk act as the acting abbot, and he should obey it. Why can't you think about it?" Mingzheng said with a sigh.

"Don't, don't, don't say it, I seem to be coveting the position of the abbot. As a monk and poor monk, I have nothing to do. It's just that the younger brother is still young and I don't know if he has the ability to manage this temple. If the younger brother is unable to do what he wants, let the elder brother me It is also possible to share the burden on your behalf." Mingfa smiled with squinted eyes, and after laughing, he turned into a 'sad' look again, offering relief for Zen Master Kongjian.

Mingzheng didn't say much, since there is only a two-year age difference between the two of them, so if you can take care of the temple, can I not?
"Really, the master passed away without any sadness at all. It's too empty, no emotion at all." Mingzheng sighed, still feeling a little resentful towards his senior brother's attitude.

I was complaining in my heart, but Mingzheng still maintained the demeanor of an acting abbot, surrounded by not only monks from Dalin Temple, but also many monks from other temples.

Among them is Yijie and his master, an old monk with white beard and hair, full of energy.

The sadness on the old monk's face was not fake like Ming Fa's, but genuine sadness.

"Although at the age of the poor monk, there is still a place, and you should be detached from life and death, but once you face the death of your old friend, you will still feel unstoppable sorrow, Amitabha, even if your old friend has reached bliss The world, but after all, it is far away from me, I hope you can find your own Zen and your truth in the Paradise of Ultimate Bliss."

"Zen Master Yuanxin, mourning," Mingzheng clasped his hands together and said comfortingly, without saying anything.

Mingzheng knew that Zen Master Yuanxin was different from the young novice. For the young novice, he couldn't see through death, nor could he see through the meaning of passing away. For them, death was a sad and unforgettable thing.

For Yuan Xin, it was the loss of his old friends who were far away from him, and he could no longer sit and talk about Zen with him, and there was one less person who had similar ideas with him, that is, the so-called friend.

Mingzheng just sighed to himself.

"People can see through death, but they can't see through friendship. The four elements are all empty. Who can truly see all the four elements are empty?"

"Master, I'm sorry, what we can do is to transcend Zen Master Kongjian so that Abbot Kongjian can become a Buddha and a Bodhisattva in the Western Paradise." The expression on Yijie's face was exactly the same as Mingfa's pretended sadness, even There is still a little bit of schadenfreude that has not been concealed.

The last time I was stunned by Zen master Kong Jian at the conference, Yijie was still brooding. When I received the news of the death this time, I was so happy. I even drank a little more of the wine I had hidden away. It was really satisfying .

Yuan Xin didn't say anything, just recited the Buddhist scriptures quietly, to save his former friend, hoping that he could be reborn in the Paradise of Ultimate Bliss as soon as possible, discuss Zen with the Buddha in his heart, and pass on the Buddha's ideas.

More and more people came, and even some lay disciples came. Just like those who participated in the Dharma meeting last time, only invited people can come to this funeral. These invited lay people are all temples. The 'vip members' are the people that Mingzheng hates the most.

These lay people who were invited to come here did not have sad expressions on their faces when they saw the dead Kong Jian. Instead, they showed a burst of joy. They quietly took out their mobile phones and looked at the remains of Zen Master Kong Jian and themselves. selfie
The standard V-sign gesture and stare and smile.

"Hey da~"

(End of this chapter)