The "Jigong" in history is like a bright pearl, his legendary life is not only real, but also the Zen poem left at the time of his death is like a lamp, awakening countless people. The 24 words condense the wisdom and understanding of his life, and have become a piece of Buddha's light in the long river of history.
How did this real "Jigong" realize such a profound Zen machine in the midst of the complicated world? What kind of philosophy does his Zen poetry contain that can resonate so deeply in the hearts of future generations?
In 1148, a boy was born into a famous family in Yongning Village, Taizhou. This boy was the later Jigong, commonly known as Li Xiuyuan.
Li Xiuyuan is the grandson of Song Taizong, and his ancestor Li Zunqiao married the eldest princess of Wanshou. Li Zunqiao was originally a military general, and later was named the captain of the horse, and was awarded the title of Duke of Wuyang County, and had a very good relationship with the princess. The two have six sons, and Li Xiuyuan's father Li Maochun is the eldest son. Therefore, Li Xiuyuan was born to be prosperous and wealthy.
Not only that, the Li family has believed in Buddhism for generations, and Li Xiuyuan's great-grandfather Li Zunqiao also converted to Buddhism in his later years. The Li family was very close to the local Buddhist monks and monks, and often funded the construction of temples and the copying of Buddhist scriptures. This allowed Li Xiuyuan to grow up in a strong Buddhist atmosphere since he was a child, and he knew Buddhism well.
The young Li Xiuyuan has a gentle and introverted personality, unlike other children who play around, but likes to read Buddhist scriptures quietly alone. Li Xiuyuan's father, Li Maochun, is in his forties and has no heirs, and the Li family is worried that the Li family's incense will be cut off. For this reason, Li Maochun and his wife Wang prayed sincerely in front of the Buddha every day. Finally one day, Wang happily told Li Maochun that he was pregnant.
Buddha bless! Buddha bless! Li Maochun was ecstatic. He happily invited three monks to bless and bless the Wang family, and specially invited the host of Guoqing Temple to name the unborn child "Xiuyuan", which means that this is a good fate for the whole family. However, the name of "Xiuyuan" also faintly indicates Li Xiuyuan's future fate.
Li Xiuyuan grew up under the care of his parents and grandfather and lived a carefree childhood. The family inheritance he will inherit in the future will also allow him to enjoy the glory and wealth without worry.
Time flies, and in a blink of an eye, Li Xiuyuan is a young man who is sixteen or seventeen years old. Over the years, he has lived a leisurely and comfortable life, with a wealthy family and Buddhism as his companion. However, the good times were short-lived. When Li Xiuyuan was 18 years old, his father Li Maochun suddenly died of illness, and his mother also passed away in grief. What caught Li Xiuyuan off guard even more was that his grandfather Li Zunqiao also died of illness a few months later.
Under the blow of triple grief, Li Xiuyuan's whole person fell into collapse. He stayed closed all day, silent, and looked depressed. The family's originally glamorous mansion was also cold, barren and gloomy to him at this time. The warm time of family happiness in the past has come to naught, and now he is the only one left wandering in this empty old mansion.
Li Xiuyuan was disheartened and lost interest in this glorious and wealthy home. He even somewhat numbly accepted a division of the inheritance by his relatives. In this way, 18-year-old Li Xiuyuan fell from a wealthy family to no support overnight.
The death of both grandparents and the blow of the family road made the introverted Li Xiuyuan collapse. He was bored at home all day, ignorant of the sufferings of the world, and did not want to live that wanton life anymore.
Buddhism has always been Li Xiuyuan's only spiritual sustenance. At this moment, he also understands that only in the Dharma can the meaning of life be found.
At the age of 20, Li Xiuyuan became a monk, his legal name was Daoji, and he officially joined Buddhism. Daoji's heart was filled with a desire for Buddhist asceticism and seeking the Tao to free him from earthly suffering. He went through Yunju Temple, Guanyin Temple, and also learned Taoism from the famous teacher Huiyuan in Lingyin Temple.
But what he didn't expect was that in the process of pursuing the truth, Daoji's mood and style of action changed greatly. He spends his days indulging in good food and wine and drinking, and wanders the streets in ragged clothes and suspiciously. Even blatantly violating the precepts, drinking alcohol and eating meat.
Outsiders lamented that this renunciation did not make Dao Ji transcend the world, but became even more absurd and dissolute. The locals gave him the nickname "Jidian Monk". The monks in the temple said that Daoji violated the rules and precepts of the Qing Dynasty and wanted to expel him from the Lingyin Temple.
But Huiyuan doesn't care about these violations. He said: "Buddhism is vast, is there no room for a single monk? Since then, no one has been bothered about the expulsion of Jigong.
Although on the surface it is unkempt and shapely, in fact, Dao Ji has surpassed ordinary people in terms of wisdom and heart. He realized that the law corresponds to the cause, that everything is a cause and a combination, and that the vain and impermanence of the world is unusual. So he doesn't care about the precepts anymore.
On the contrary, because after the Faxiang was enlightened, Dao Ji's heart was full of joy, and he opened his teeth and claws like crazy, to show that the prosperity of this world was like a dream. But at the same time, he is also willing to do good deeds and benefit sentient beings. Dao Ji is a skilled doctor, and often gives money to help the poor.
Over time, the people called him the "Living Buddha". Only those monks who outwardly strictly observe the precepts but do not understand the essence of Dharma practice still regard Jigong as scum. They persuaded Dao Ji to turn back and leave the ranks of the monks.
But Dao Ji laughed, and the lion roared: "I am a Buddha now, so why come back to the shore to say!" Since then, no one has criticized his posture. Dao Ji is also unique among the ranks of lay monks.
Time flies, and in 1201, Jigong's mentor Huiyuan passed away. He lost his backer, and he also left Lingyin Temple with great interest and came to Jingci Temple.
However, the good times did not last long, and three years later, Jingci Temple was burned down in a fire. The scattered Buddhist halls and monks' rooms were reduced to ashes in an instant. The monks and people in the temple suddenly became in a hurry. Some are rescuing property and books, and some are fetching water to extinguish fires. There was chaos all over the place.
At this time, Jigong was surprisingly calm. He summoned all the monks and reassured them: "This is the Buddha who wants to show the world with a different face, and it is not impossible for us to start again." It is better to take this opportunity to build a more brilliant Jingci Temple, which is also to make people and have ulterior motives. ”
Hearing Jigong's words, the monks suddenly felt enlightened. They extinguished the scattered embers in all directions, and then began to clean up the pieces. Under the leadership of Jigong, the monks went to the village to collect donations and collected a large amount of timber and silver money to rebuild the monastery.
After half a year of hard work, a more magnificent new Jingci Temple was completed. The temple is equipped with a Buddhist hall, a monk's room, and a dining hall. Jigong built a new statue of Shakyamuni sitting on the Buddha ten zhang high in the temple, showing the mind of all sentient beings.
After that, until his death at the age of 80, Jigong stayed in Jingci Temple to promote Buddhism and educate sentient beings. The incense of the new temple is prosperous, pilgrims from all over the world gather, and for a time Jingci Temple has become a holy place for Buddhist laymen at home and abroad to worship and study.
In the winter of 1209, the 80-year-old monk Jigong felt that his health was deteriorating. For a month, he often retreated behind closed doors and no longer participated in the day-to-day affairs of the monastery. All the monks in the temple are grateful for Jigong's kindness, but they are worried that the old monk has reached his twilight years. They began to take more diligent care of the elderly Jigonglai.
On the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, Jigong suddenly summoned all the monks in the temple to gather, he sat up slowly, and his eyes swept over everyone present with insight into the reincarnation of all living beings. Then he smiled and wrote a poem: "For sixty years, the east wall has hit the west wall." Now that I have cleaned up, I am still blue. ”
This 24-character Zen poem called "Ode to the Death" tells the story of Jigong's life. After 60 years of wandering and seeking, after all kinds of setbacks, he went from east to west, and finally saw through the red dust at the last moment of his life and obtained the answer to life. This is his final summary of his life.
And for the monks, Jigong's masterpiece is a gift and entrustment - it turns out that all the good things are in front of their eyes, the essence of the world has not changed, and it is still beautiful. He hopes that the Buddhas can also realize this Zen machine and spread this beautiful happiness.
Packing up and returning does not mean defeat or surrender. Rather, it is to end this journey and start a new life and inheritance with this realization. After reciting this eulogy, Jigong put down his pen, sat up in his clothes, sat upright with a smile on his face, and soon entered the extinction.
A grand puja was held for him to express their sorrow and admiration for this great monk who was compassionate and committed to promoting the Dharma.
Jigong's life is magnificent, and it is difficult to summarize madness and monks. But his poem of death tells his own life experience eloquently, providing a template for future generations to sublimate. This is the monk Jigong who sees through life in madness.