Journey to the West: Beginning with the Apprenticeship of Bodhi Patriarch

Chapter 195: Obtaining the True Scriptures, There Are Two Copies of the True Scriptures

Outside the Main Hall, Tang Monk put on a brocade cassock, a Vimalakirti hat, and held a staff in his hand. He walked inside with the three Monkey Kings. There were Buddhists welcoming Tang Monk and his companions in.

The four groups of people entered the main hall, saw the Tathagata Buddha, bowed down, performed great ceremonies, and then bowed to the people on the left and right.

Tang Seng knelt before the lotus throne of Tathagata Buddha, presented the certificate of clearance, and said: "My disciple Xuanzang, following the order of the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty in the East, has come to Lingshan Mountain to seek the true scriptures. I hope that the Buddha will have mercy on me and grant me the true scriptures, so that I can return and spread them to the East."

Tathagata took the pass and checked it one by one. When he was done, he returned it to Tang Seng. The Buddha said, "Tell me, if you get the true scripture, what will you do?"

Tang Monk clasped his hands and said, "I will use the true scriptures to save the world and lead people out of the sea of ​​suffering so that they will not suffer from disasters and hardships."

The Tathagata said, "There is a saying that 'all living things are suffering'. I see that the people of the East are far away from Buddhism and do not know the wonderful Dharma, and they are struggling in the sea of ​​suffering. Therefore, I cannot bear it, so I have a will, inviting good believers to come and take the true scriptures to save the people of the East. You have come here now, and you have the intention to save people. I feel very relieved, so I can get the true scriptures from you."

Tang Monk was overjoyed and bowed, saying, "Disciple Xuanzang, I bow to thank the Buddha."

The Tathagata said, "As for the true scriptures, I have three collections, all of which can help you transcend suffering. There is a collection of Dharma to discuss heaven, a collection of theory to discuss earth, and a collection of sutras to save ghosts, a total of thirty-five volumes. That's 15,144 volumes. These true scriptures are the door to cultivating the truth. You should go and have your meal first. After the meal, I will ask the two venerables, Kasyapa and Ananda, to take you to the treasure pavilion to select the true scriptures."

Say it.

The Tathagata ordered the two venerables, Kasyapa and Ananda, to take Tang Seng and the other three away.

After Tang Seng and his three companions bid farewell to Tathagata, they went to a pavilion with the two venerables. A vegetarian banquet had already been prepared here, with all kinds of delicacies, including immortal products, immortal dishes, immortal tea, immortal fruits, etc.

The four people thanked the Buddha and enjoyed the food. Monkey and Tang Monk ate only a little.

Sha Wujing knew that these vegetarian foods were not from the ordinary world and were often hard to obtain, so he took a few more bites and ate only half full.

Zhu Bajie had a big appetite and ate most of the vegetarian food. He was very proud of the good fortune he gained.

Zhu Bajie said with a smile: "Master, brothers, how can you be so unlucky? If you don't eat more, it will be a bargain for me."

The traveler said, "You fool, you have the fruit in front of you, why are you still thinking about these petty gains?"

Zhu Bajie laughed and said, "You don't know that I have achieved the true fruit before, and if I eat these vegetarian foods, I can have both, isn't it wonderful? Besides, I have been tired from carrying the load all the way here, and now that I have finally achieved the fruit, I need to eat more and rest my strength."

The traveler shook his head and said nothing.

What does Tang Seng's original teaching say?

But seeing that Zhu Bajie was still eating the vegetarian food on the table, he had no choice but to keep silent.

The two venerables, Kasyapa and Ananda, waited for the pilgrims to finish their meal and then stepped forward and said, "Saint monk, Great Sage, Tianpeng, Juanlian, please come with us to the treasure pavilion to check the true scriptures."

Tang Monk stood up, clasped his hands and said, "Thank you, both venerables."

The two venerables shook their heads and said, "We dare not. This is our responsibility."

The group then left the tower and walked towards the treasure pavilion. The scenery along the way made people marvel at the beauty of the Lingshan scenic spot. It was exactly "a thousand-story golden pavilion is infinitely beautiful, and a fairy music is clear to the ears."

The group walked and looked, and soon they arrived at a treasure pavilion. Two venerables stepped forward to open the door. There was auspicious light and colorful mist and clouds in the pavilion.

The group entered the treasure pavilion and saw a number of scripture cabinets with scriptures stored inside. Tang Seng went forward to take a closer look and saw that there were countless scriptures in the cabinets, including the "Nirvana Sutra", "Akasagarbha Sutra", "Determination Sutra", "Avatamsaka Sutra" and so on. He was dazzled by the sight.

Tang Seng couldn't help but ask, "Two venerables, may I get a glimpse of the scriptures?"

The second venerable said with a smile: "Of course it is possible."

Upon hearing this, Tang Monk immediately took a scripture, began to read it, and became immersed in it.

When the traveler saw this, he also picked up a scripture and started reading. He had read many books when he was practicing in Fangcun Mountain, but he had never read a scripture like this one. Now that he had the opportunity to read it, he could draw inferences from it and it would be very easy for him to practice.

Sha Wujing had never read a book, nor had he ever studied quietly, but he knew that he had to learn these things since he had converted to Buddhism. So even if he didn't understand, he would try to study.

Zhu Bajie had not read it yet. Seeing that everyone was reading the scriptures, he found a place and sat down.

The two venerables took all this in, but said nothing.

……

However, inside the Great Hall, all the Buddhas were waiting outside the hall for the pilgrim to bring the scriptures. In the hall, the meditative Buddha of Wisdom, namely True Vision, was conversing with Tathagata Buddha.

The Tathagata Buddha asked, "Buddha of Meditation and Wisdom, do you know that I once had a gambling contest with Master Guangxin?"

Zhenjian put his hands together and said, "Buddha, I know it myself. The Buddha and Zhenren had a bet, so the sutra that the pilgrim took should be the Zen Sutra or the Nirvana Sutra. Zhenren chose the Zen Sutra, and the Buddha chose the Nirvana Sutra."

Tathagata smiled and said, "Yes, in addition to this, the Immortal once left behind the Zen Sutra in Lingshan. Does the Buddha of Wisdom know what is recorded in the Sutra?"

Zhenjian said: "If my guess is correct, the Zen Sutra of the real person should be a blank sutra." Tathagata said: "The wisdom Buddha is really amazing. The Zen Sutra left by the real person is indeed a blank sutra."

Shinjian put his palms together and said, "Because Zen practitioners do not establish written words, blank scriptures are the highest level of true scriptures. If Zen practitioners use long and detailed discussions to create various scriptures, that would be the destruction of Zen and would not be a true scripture."

Tathagata nodded and asked, "Wisdom Buddha, what kind of true sutra do you think the pilgrim will obtain?"

Zhenjian replied, "Buddha, I don't know what the pilgrims think, because I don't have that kind of power. But if it's as I think, Zen is more suitable for the East. I have been in the East for some time and know what people are like. It's very difficult to teach them to study the law of Nirvana. Zen is more suitable for them."

Tathagata smiled and said, "The Buddha of wisdom, the Dharma is not easily passed on. But I say that the man who seeks the sutra does not understand the meaning of Zen Dharma, and despises the blank scriptures. He must take the Sutra of Nirvana."

Zhenjian said: "Why did the Buddha say this?"

The Tathagata said: "The people who seek scriptures have traveled thousands of miles and endured countless hardships. If they came here like this, how could they be willing to take a blank scripture?"

Zhen Jian laughed and said, "Even if he understands the Zen, it is impossible to tell. Buddha, the pilgrim is already at Mount Lingshan. Wait for a while and we will see his decision."

Tathagata nodded and said no more.

……

In the treasure pavilion, Tang Monk finished reading half a volume of scriptures and was overjoyed. He was so immersed in it that he forgot a little. However, he had never read such scriptures before. After seeing the scriptures, he could not extricate himself. He only wanted to read more scriptures to know the truth of Buddhism.

Fortunately, Monkey King saw this, put down the scriptures in his hand, stepped forward to wake up Tang Seng, and said: "Master, don't forget the important things, and don't slack off. You are following the order of the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty to obtain the true scriptures. If you slack off, then your mission will fail."

When Tang Seng heard this, he woke up, put down the scriptures, and said, "Disciple, I am lucky to have you."

When Sha Wujing saw that Monkey and Tang Monk no longer studied the scriptures, he put down the scriptures in his hand and stayed to guard Tang Monk.

Zhu Bajie also woke up and pretended to be reading the scriptures. But when he saw that Tang Seng no longer read the scriptures, he stopped.

Tang Monk then looked to the two venerables and begged them to give him the true scriptures.

The two venerables said, "Holy monk, we are following the order of the Buddha to take the true scripture from you, but there are two copies of the true scripture in this treasure pavilion. Which one do you want to take?"

When Tang Seng heard this, he was puzzled and asked, "My two venerables, why are there two copies of the sutra?"

It is said that 'there is no two suns in the sky, no two principles in man, and no two dharmas in Buddha', so how can there be two copies of the true scriptures?

The second venerable said: "There are two true scriptures in the treasure pavilion. They are both true Buddhist scriptures, and the holy monks can rest assured."

Tang Monk asked, "I don't know what these two scriptures say."

The two venerables replied, "The One True Sutra is the Three Treasures Sutra that the Buddha mentioned earlier in the Great Hall. There are thirty-five volumes in total. The One True Sutra cannot be described in words, but there are as many as you want."

Tang Seng asked again: "Venerable, could you please say something more?"

The second venerable shook his head and said, "It's impossible to say. I just want some help from others for the One True Scripture. I can give it to you for free."

When Monkey heard this, he immediately knew the reason, but he did not point it out. He stood aside and watched what decision Tang Seng would make.

Tang Seng clasped his hands and said, "My two venerables, I wonder if the Buddha's teachings on the Three Treasures Sutra require any intervention?"

The second venerable nodded and said, "The Buddha's true sutra is in need of human intervention. I have another true sutra that does not require this, so I will give it to you for free."

Sha Wujing said: "This is the sacred mountain, how can we obtain the scriptures with human intervention?"

The second venerable said: "If you pass on the sutra with nothing, future generations will starve to death."

Tang Monk sighed and said, "My two venerable ones, I, Xuanzang, have come all the way from the Tang Dynasty in the East, and I have never been prepared for anything like this. I hope you will not be offended."

The second venerable said: "If you want to take the Tripitaka, I will give you some human affairs. If you want to take the rest of the true scriptures, I will give them to you for free. You should tell me as soon as possible so that I can take them from you. Then you must report to the Buddha."

Tang Seng was undecided for a moment and asked, "My disciples, what should we do?"

Zhu Bajie shouted, "Master, do you still need to think about this? Let's get some money together and take the Three Treasures Sutra that requires human resources. This is the true scripture of Tathagata, and it must be extraordinary. Besides, how can those free gifts be as good as those that require human resources? When I bought some farm tools in Gao Laozhuang in the past, I knew that you get what you pay for. If you buy farm tools cheaply, they will rot in a short time. If you buy them at a high price, they will not rot after a year of use. The same is true for the true scriptures, which should be much better than those that require human resources."

Sha Wujing said, "Master, I don't know. You are the one who makes the decision. I will listen to you. But if you need help, you can use our purple gold bowl to help you."

When Tang Seng heard this, he did not say much to Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing. He looked towards where the Monkey King was and wanted to ask him, "Wukong, what do you think?"

The Monkey King shook his head and said, "Master, I will protect you on your journey to the West and keep you safe from demons and monsters. As for the matter of obtaining the scriptures, you cannot ask me. Let's see what you think in your heart."

Upon hearing this, Tang Seng pondered for a long time without answering.

(End of this chapter)