The dark night is deep, and the stars and moon are sneaking around. The pines and cypresses are scattered at the foot of the mountain, and countless tombs are scattered all over the hillside. One or two sudden crows and fox calls send chills throughout the body. Yang Chaoxi did not know why he got here. He was about to leave.
He ran away, but somehow he got closer and closer!
At this time, an ancient tomb in front suddenly cracked, and red mist rose up and filled out from the crack. Yang Chaoxi felt his scalp numb and wanted to close his eyes, but his eyelids had no effect. Only an ancient monument emerged from the red mist.
He came out and hit him. At the moment when he couldn't avoid it, he saw words on the stele! Just when he vaguely recognized a few words such as "water", "like" and "sword", he was struck by the ancients.
The monument was hit. I yelled, but I woke up. The night was still dark outside the small window, and the cow Pang'er beside me was snoring. I realized that it was an unfinished dream.
The next morning, when the sky was dim, the bells rang in the Taoist temple. The bells were a little dull, but continuous. The four of them got up, made the bed according to Brother Huang Shuo's instructions, and washed themselves. They could vaguely hear the sound outside the door and window.
The sound of "sand, sand" should be the sound of a broom crossing the blue bricks. Just as I was about to go out to take a look, I heard several knocks on the door. I opened the door and saw that it was Senior Brother Jiang Feng: "Several Junior Brothers! Master Gongsun,
Master Changyuan and a group of masters have arrived in front of Ziji Palace, please hurry over!" Upon hearing the sound, the four of them followed Senior Brother Jiang Feng and hurried past.
In front of Ziji Palace, the Taoist priests in the temple stood in the shape of a fan, neatly arranged vertically and horizontally. Brother Jiang Feng placed himself and Yang Chaoxi on one side of the fan shape and stood still, waiting for Master Gongsun to give his morning lecture.
Gongsun Zhenren stood holding hands with each other, his expression was calm, his fly whisk was in his hand, he was not angry but he was self-confident, his voice was clear and clear, and he said: "The scripture says: If there is a way in the world, everything will prosper; if there is no way in the world, then there will be no time to cultivate virtue. I have been tired of the world for a thousand years, go
And the Immortal will ride on the white clouds to reach the imperial hometown. He will avoid the three troubles, and his body will always be safe..." Gongsun Zhenren finished reciting a passage of scripture, then broke it down word for word, and explained it to the Taoist priests in detail.
.
As Mao hour approached, the morning classes were over. Yang Chaoxi and the four of them went to the back kitchen with the Taoists to eat some breakfast. Today was soft millet cake, and the four of them were not picky and ate it quickly. Not long after, the Taoists again
They all stood in the courtyard. A trainer with an ape's back, a wasp's waist, and unicorn's arms stood in front, performing a set of boxing techniques in a precise manner.
This boxing technique is really strange! There is not much fierceness in the movements of the legs and feet, and the rotation of the arms. Instead, it is soft, like dancing, and the Taoist priests also follow his movements. Yang Chaoxi and the four of them went to the countryside to do as the Romans do.
Following the same example, he started to "dance" paradoxically, until he was "dancing" until he was sweating all over, and a stream of heat was about to gush out from the top of his head, and then it finally ended.
At this time, Chengxuzi and other teaching Taoist priests had already sat down in the Jing room on the east side of the Taoist temple, waiting for the Taoist priest who had finished practicing boxing to come and meditate and lecture. Guan Huer, Niu Pang'er, and Sun Hunian followed Brother Jiang Feng and left.
Entering the private room where Cheng Xuzi was, Huang Shuo and others were already sitting inside. They also found round seats and sat down cross-legged.
Chengxuzi shook the fly whisk and opened his mouth and said: "Today there are new disciples entering Guanmen. I will teach you the first level of 'sitting in a circle and keeping quiet'. Past disciples should just review it. How to practice Taoism."
To begin, the first thing is to focus on your mind. That is to sit down first, get rid of distracting thoughts, keep your mind calm, and neither arrogant nor impetuous. The method is to observe the nose with eyes, observe the heart with nose, inhale gently and exhale slowly, and let the breath sink under the navel... these methods
, you must practice diligently in the morning, afternoon, and before going to bed every day, so that you can get a glimpse of the door. In the future, there will still be the state of "keeping one" and "sitting and forgetting", but the nine-story platform is built from tired soil, so you still have to first
Just build a solid foundation."
Although Guan Hu'er and the other two couldn't understand everything, they each had some understanding, so they started practicing on their own according to the "centering mind" method taught by Cheng Xuzi. When they encountered something they didn't understand, they would inevitably disturb Huang Shuo and Jiang.
Feng and others are also the norm for those who are new to Taoism.
But he said that Yang Chaoxi had practiced boxing, and saw Changyuan Zhenren holding a whisk in his hand, nodding to him from a distance, so he followed him into the small door next to Ziji Palace, passed through the courtyard, exited the back door, and walked back.
Walking up the mountain until reaching a peak, Master Changyuan stopped and stood still, turned around and asked: "Disciple, do you know why I brought you here?"
Yang Chaoxi thought about it for a while, and several guesses came from the bottom of her heart. However, she felt that it was a bit absurd, so she answered honestly: "I don't know."
"When we practice Taoism, the first thing we have to do is to understand the word 'Tao'. Heaven, earth, people, sun, moon, stars, water, fire, wind, thunder, vegetation, mountains and rivers... are all born from Tao, and should be
Walk on the Tao. When the living beings see it, they feel something in their heart, and realize from the feeling, and enlightenment leads to wisdom. Wisdom controls the shape, the shape dissolves into Qi, the Qi rushes and harmonizes, and the harmonization leads to a close approach to the Tao, and the Tao mind is first formed. This is the way to cultivate the Tao.
The general path." Master Changyuan did not hide his secrets, he revealed his many years of experience and did not care how much Yang Chaoxi could understand.
At this moment, Yang Chaoxi felt that this master who had come "backwards" was indeed somewhat different. Since he was different, it was not to test his own memory, so he said: "Then the master and his disciples came here to walk in this barren mountain."
Can you comprehend the 'Tao' above? If so, the disciple is curious, is there any other way to cultivate the Tao besides the one taught by Master just now?"
Master Changyuan smiled and said: "I didn't expect you to mention this. You really have some spiritual roots! The Taoist 'sitting in a circle and keeping quiet' is a Taoist practice, but it is a regular way; the 'Wandering Realization' is also a Taoist practice, but it is very Taoist.
To understand the 'Tao', it is the normal way to talk in peace, and it is the extraordinary way to practice it in the world. Although the Tao is born from one thing, it derives all things. Since it derives all things, all things can take a shortcut. How can it only leave one path?"
Yang Zhaoxi was a little stunned, and her little worldview was instantly overturned: "Master, what you mean is that... not only humans can be Taoist priests, but tigers, wolves, dogs, and pigs can also be Taoist priests?"
"Although the words are biased, the truth is this." Master Changyuan nodded and smiled, "Even the fox fairies and ghosts known to the world are also walking towards the Tao, but they only use some cultivation methods to take advantage of convenience.
It’s just not accepted by the human race.”
"Master, since I am a human being and not a cowshed dog, you only taught me the Taoist methods of being a human being. Can you not learn other methods without learning them?" Yang Zhaoxi also heard something strange at this time, fearing that
The master taught him some weird tricks. At this time, in his mind, he had already sketched a picture of himself acting like a cow, horse, chicken, or dog.
After hearing this, Master Changyuan burst into laughter: "My disciple is overly concerned. The Tao cannot deviate from the scriptures. To deviate from the scriptures is to rebel against the Tao. No matter whether it is a normal or extraordinary method, the first thing to bear the brunt is to recite and uphold the scriptures. Today I will teach you the clear meaning,
But we must start from the "Tao De Zhen". I recite one sentence, and you recite one sentence - the Tao can be said, but it is not Tao. The name can be named, but it is not named..."
"The Tao can be said, but it is not Tao. The name can be named, but it is not famous..." When Yang Chaoxi saw that he had entered the main topic, he concentrated on reciting the scriptures along with Master Changyuan. After reciting a paragraph, Master Changyuan explained in detail,
Seeing that Yang Chaoxi understood, he continued to recite the next verse. The master and apprentice taught in harmony, completely ignoring the time. It was not until the day was clear that Yang Chaoxi heard a sound in his belly, and he suddenly realized that it was already time.
noon.
Master Changyuan was not in a hurry, and slowly told Yang Chaoxi to recite and recite the sutras on a daily basis. After reading the sutras a hundred times, the meaning will be apparent to him. As time goes by, he will be able to understand its subtle essence and the free Dharma.
Although Yang Zhaoxi was hungry, she was still thinking about half of the nightmare she had last night. She couldn't help but said: "Master! I need to ask you something..." Then she told last night's nightmare about the "Sword Like Water" that Guan Hu'er talked about.
After telling the story together, he looked at Master Changyuan with a worried face and added in a low voice, "Is there really such a 'water sword' in the world?"
Master Changyuan looked at Yang Chaoxi, who looked childish but somewhat determined, and sighed with a smile: "Although you are young, you have a lot to think about! Even if you think about it during the day, it will become a dream at night. Can you dream about that stone tablet?"
, but it has some connection with this matter. Of course, there is no such thing as the 'Rushui Sword', but the Luo Junye you are talking about must be a man of some knowledge. Being able to fabricate rumors from the world into such a story also leads to an 'indisputable'
'The way is quite insightful." Yang Chaoxi scratched his head and smiled.
Master Changyuan paused, seemed to think for a moment, and then said: "However, this 'non-dispute' approach is ultimately far-fetched. From what I have seen, even if there is such a 'water sword',
This is the principle of using softness to overcome hardness. Nothing in the world is as soft as water, and no one in the world can win against a strong person, so it is said that "the best is like water". Water is good for all things and does not fight, but it does not fight, so no one in the world can fight with it. Therefore, "no fight"
, is just a nature of water, but it is not the principle of 'the softest in the world restrains the strongest in the world'."
"Disciple has been taught." Although Yang Chaoxi still probably didn't understand it, he felt magnanimity and sincerity from these words, so he respectfully said.
"As for the words on the stone tablet... they are probably 'water is as tough as a sword, and a sword is as soft as water', right?"
After Master Changyuan finished speaking, he turned around and walked towards the Taoist temple, leaving Yang Chaoxi standing in the wind dumbfounded...