My enemies became my companions

Chapter 205: Heart-breaking and Defeat of the Thief
A huge statue of Maitreya Buddha stands in the main hall.

Here, everyone believes that Maitreya will be born, and when that time comes, they will attain enlightenment and liberation.

Under the sunlight, the shriveled hungry ghosts faced the gold all over the ground, but they had no greed, because gold could not be dried.

It’s not that no one scrapes tree bark or eats grass roots, but those things, once they enter the stomach of the hungry ghosts, turn into nothingness.

Not only that, but one is also greedy and adds to one’s karma.

People are so thin that they are just skin and bones, and they keep making gurgling sounds. They chant the Buddha's name and read Buddhist scriptures, waiting for the day when they die and then they will be liberated. But is this really liberation? In this hungry ghost world, no one knows, but everyone believes this, just like the old abbot.

Yin Tingxue felt uncomfortable watching the hungry ghosts coming and going in the temple.

The nun stood beside her and felt sorry for her, but she did not feel the same way as Yin Tingxue.

The rows of Buddha statues stand quietly, still with kind faces, but silent. The Buddhist scriptures say that the Buddha is always very compassionate and powerful, but those who have read the Buddhist scriptures understand that the Buddha cannot understand human suffering.

Buddha is neither born nor destroyed, and there is no suffering.

But all living beings suffer.

Today, the old abbot seemed to be organizing everyone to chant scriptures and pray for blessings. The people here were very pious. Almost all the people from the entire Thousand Buddha Village came. The temple was crowded with people inside and outside, but Yin Tingxue could see the indelible pain on everyone's forehead. The gurgling sounds were like the sound of wooden fish, and their shriveled faces changed one after another. I don't know how long they have been hungry, and I don't know how long they have been numb.

They were all trying to find joy in misery, which made Yin Tingxue think of herself.

"The sutras have been chanted, the sutras have been chanted, everyone sit down."

As the old abbot spoke to the crowd, the people of the whole village knelt down in unison inside and outside the temple, facing the direction of the Great Hall. Maitreya Buddha was sitting on a lotus platform. He is the future Buddha who has not yet been born. When he is born, it will be a pure land.

The people here are familiar with Buddhist scriptures and understand this principle.

An abbot came over and said to the two women:
"Both donors, please take a seat. Our temple has prepared cushions."

With such good intentions, Yin Tingxue and the nun couldn't refuse.

Yin Tingxue knelt quietly on the cushion. They were in the main hall, very near the front. Looking back, they could see rows of devout believers kneeling, suffering from the torture of eternal hunger.

thump.

The long bell rang, and the bells in the Buddhist temple rang.

Wow, almost everyone bowed their heads reverently.

Yin Tingxue looked at this group of tortured hungry ghosts and seemed to be able to see their past. Almost all of them were people living in troubled times who did evil in order to survive.

As the saying goes, "Birds of a feather flock together." People cannot choose the environment they live in. If they are forced to do evil, they must pay the price for their crimes. Therefore, the Buddha said that by entering Nirvana, the cause of suffering is cut off from the root, and there will be no more suffering.

The hungry ghosts had sad faces. Human nature was kind, Yin Tingxue felt. If they could stay in a good environment, then no one would pick up things on the road and no one would lock their doors at night. But if they were in a bad environment, then everyone would do evil things. For example, if she became a saint of a cult, she would definitely be extremely bad.

As the old abbot spoke in a solemn voice, the sound of chanting sutras began to rise one after another.

"I was born from the right side, and you, Maitreya, were born from the top of my head.

If I live for a hundred years, Maitreya will live for eighty-four thousand years.

Our country is land, your country is gold.

My country is suffering, your country is happy..."

The unanimous chanting of scriptures echoed inside and outside the Maitreya Temple, like waves of wailing. However, among the hungry ghosts in this place, no one was able to gain enlightenment and liberation from the Buddhist scriptures.

Amid the lingering scent of incense, Maitreya Buddha still sits in front of the lotus platform.

The people in Thousand Buddha Village live a very hard life. Everything in them is suffering. Even if they are not in the realm of hungry ghosts, in the human world, they are still suffering, endless suffering.

In times of chaos, there is famine and people eat each other. In times of prosperity, the rich live in luxury and there are corpses freezing to death on the streets. All living beings suffer, but there is no relief.

That is why Sakyamuni Buddha said, "My country is full of suffering."

In front of the Buddha statue, the old abbot who was chanting scriptures devoutly turned his head and looked at Yin Tingxue.

Yin Tingxue also noticed the old man's gaze.

The old abbot's eyes seemed to ask, "Why don't you recite the sutras?"

There were starving people everywhere inside and outside the temple, and suffering everywhere. All living beings were suffering from torture and despair, and they could only recite scriptures and pray for blessings.

They have read through Buddhist teachings but still cannot find liberation. Apart from kneeling in front of the Buddha statue and chanting Buddhist scriptures and the Buddha's name, they cannot find a way out.

"Don't you want to relieve our suffering?"

Another person looked over, as if asking Yin Tingxue.

Yin Tingxue pursed her lips as she listened to the Buddhist scriptures over and over again, feeling mixed emotions.

Looking up, you can see the appearance of Maitreya Buddha.

If He were to come to the world to save mankind, it would be heaven on earth, a pure land.

Therefore, no matter how miserable and hungry people were, He was smiling and fat.

At some point, people seemed to notice the old abbot's gaze, and one after another, they cast their eyes over, gazing at the girl with pleading expressions.

"Are you blind to our suffering?"

It was as if once she opened her mouth, she could speak eloquently and her words came true.

As long as she opens her mouth, everyone will be able to be liberated.

Yin Tingxue couldn't help but breathe quickly. She could see the pain in everyone, and their faces were numb.

She was a little dazed. All living beings suffer. Why is it so painful? Even she herself is suffering, and she can only take pleasure in suffering.

The sound of chanting is like the endless sound of the river and the sea, still rising and falling.

Is there any way to make it less painful?

This thought occurred to Yin Tingxue in a trance.

They are having a hard time, and so am I. Is there any solution?

There must be, yes! Buddha Shakyamuni said that if you want to be free from all suffering, you can only achieve Nirvana. When you achieve Nirvana, you will neither be born nor die. If the cause of suffering does not arise, there will be no result of suffering!
Yin Tingxue never liked pain, nor did she want to see others suffer. When her mother was lying in pain on the hospital bed, she recited many scriptures, but in the end, everything was still in vain.

Yes, it becomes empty. When you reach Nirvana, it becomes empty.

Yin Tingxue had an epiphany.

Everything is suffering. All living beings are suffering, even she is suffering. That is why we need to attain Nirvana and become empty. Then there will be no suffering.

The thought suddenly came to my mind, sweeping through it like a flood, rushing through it with great force.

Her lips trembled slightly.

She wanted to save these people and bring enlightenment and liberation to these suffering beings.

She doesn't want to suffer...

Then she began to speak:

"..."

The girl's lips slightly opened, but the words were yet to come out.

A figure carrying a sword suddenly crossed the threshold of the main hall.

He seemed like a blood shadow that had been condensed for decades.

He remained silent and slowly drew the sword from his back.

The man strode across the crowd and faced the huge and majestic Maitreya Buddha.

Maitreya Buddha has a solemn appearance. Even in the face of suffering sentient beings, he still smiles and has a belly as big as a drum.

His steps were smooth and everyone in the hall looked at him in confusion until he reached the Maitreya Buddha.

The old abbot realized something, his eyes widened and he was horrified, but it was too late.

The ink-black Houkang sword was raised high, with an inscription on the sword that read "If the heart is sad, the future will be healthy", and the sword was slashed vertically at the Buddha statue without any fancy moves!
The sword light exploded, and the sound was like a dragon's roar.

The huge Maitreya Buddha suddenly cracked. The sound of cracking made the entire palace silent. The magnificent Buddha statue was chopped into pieces in an instant!
Yin Tingxue's eyes widened; her enlightenment was suddenly interrupted.

Everyone was stunned and looked at this scene in disbelief. The sound of the Buddha statue shattering was like a huge bell, exploding in their ears in an instant.

The old abbot stood up tremblingly. The always kind-looking old man lost control at this moment. He roared angrily:

"What are you doing? What are you doing?! How many people worked so hard to build this Maitreya Buddha, why do you want to destroy it?! We treated you with courtesy, but you destroyed our Buddha statue, just like the devil lord Mara!"

"Look back."

That was the only thing the man said.

The emaciated old abbot stopped where he was. He turned his head tremblingly, and then saw an incredible scene.

The figures of the equally emaciated hungry ghosts slowly began to dissipate like the wind. They looked down at each other, exclaiming in surprise, but then they understood in an instant.

They...are being liberated from the realm of hungry ghosts.

The old abbot opened his eyes wide. This scene was like an iron nail, piercing deeply into his old eye sockets.

original,

As long as the Buddha statue is broken, they will attain enlightenment.

People mistakenly thought that the Buddha statue was the Dharma, but when the Buddha statue broke into pieces, they were truly enlightened!

The false Dharma was shattered, and the true Dharma remained.

"It was actually me who misled them!" said the old abbot hoarsely.

His old body suddenly stepped down.

Inside and outside the temple, there was a scene of celebration.

...............................

....................................

Not long after, the figures of Chen Yi and his group also disappeared in this small world with the wind.

The people of Qianfo Village were already well-versed in Buddhism, but they were never able to comprehend it. But when the Buddha statue shattered, they all attained enlightenment.

The old abbot stood on the steps of the temple, turned around and saw no one behind him.

This once bustling village now only has rows of Buddha statues and the last hungry ghost left.

People’s Buddha statues were broken, but for him, who believed in the Buddhist scriptures the most, the Buddha statue in his heart remained intact.

The old abbot, wearing a cassock, slowly climbed the stairs and returned to the main hall.

He looked emaciated and was the only one left in the empty Thousand Buddha Village. He slowly knelt down in front of the broken Maitreya Buddha statue in the Main Hall.

The old abbot picked up the Buddhist scriptures again with his shriveled hands.

Just like he did in the past when everyone was still there, his Adam's apple slid and he recited the scriptures hoarsely, listening to the echo of hunger in his stomach, like the tinkling of a wooden fish.

His voice is old and melodious.

"I was born from the right side, and you, Maitreya, were born from the top of my head.

If I live for a hundred years, Maitreya will live for eighty-four thousand years.

My land is land, your land is gold."

The old abbot's throat became choked and he said with tears in his eyes:

"My country is suffering, your country is happy..."

A breeze blows across the lonely Thousand Buddha Village.

There are many Arhats, many Bodhisattvas, and many Buddhas.

There is only one hungry ghost left.

(End of this chapter)