The Shaolin Abbot Born in the 1980s

Chapter 42: A Showdown of Spiritual Powers

As soon as Huo Yuanzhen stood up, quite a few bystanders nearby began to exclaim. “It’s the Abbot Yi Jie of Shaolin!” “That’s right, it really is him. I never thought someone who can actually communicate with the Buddha would be here.” “Abbot Yi Jie, we want to be there the next time a miracle happens.” Seeing Yijie, the crowd below felt much like fans in later generations seeing a celebrity; cheers rose in wave after wave, and for a moment, the scene became somewhat chaotic. Li Xuan hadn’t expected Yijie to be so popular; this was at odds with the effect he had hoped to achieve. He hurriedly shouted, “Yijie, you have disregarded your status as a monk, falsely claimed divine miracles, and misled the people. Do you realize the gravity of your offense?” “This Humble Monk has a clear conscience—of what crime am I guilty?” “You still dare to make excuses! Your Shaolin Temple is clearly nothing more than a run-down little temple. Your master, Xuanming, is dead, and you’re barely able to put food on the table. Now that you’ve become the abbot, you’ve completely disregarded the dignity of Buddhism and started telling stories to earn offerings. Such behavior is no different from that of street performers—it’s an utter disgrace!” Huo Yuanzhen let out a cold laugh: “Monks are people too; we need to make a living. Besides, This Humble Monk does not consider storytelling to be anything shameful. As long as one earns a living through one’s own skills, it is an honor. Master Li Xuan says I am just as shameful as street performers—by that logic, every artisan in the world would be shameful. This Humble Monk has never felt that way.” As soon as Huo Yuanzhen finished speaking, many people nearby began to voice their dissatisfaction with Li Xuan. The people gathered here were all ordinary folk; aside from those who farmed, fished, or chopped firewood, a significant portion were those who made their living on the streets day in and day out. Immediately, someone challenged Li Xuan. “Master Li Xuan, I’m just a street performer. If I perform well, people pay me; if I don’t, they just laugh it off. May I ask, how exactly am I a disgrace?” “I’m a storyteller. I’ve listened to Abbot Yi Jie tell stories many times—why have I never felt ashamed of myself?” “We have our own skills, and people are willing to pay for them. If that’s considered a disgrace, then isn’t it even more disgraceful for you people from Dharma King Temple to go out begging for alms every day, asking others for food?” Li Xuan had originally intended to criticize Huo Yuanzhen for disregarding his status as a monk, but he never expected Huo Yuanzhen to deflect the blame, sparking a wave of condemnation that instantly stirred up the crowd’s indignation. Li Xuan hurriedly said, “Yijie, don’t try to stir up trouble on purpose. Even if we accept that storytelling is a skill, you’ve still gone out to take out loans. as far as this old monk knows, you’ve not only borrowed several thousand taels from the Lvye Money House, but you’ve also gone as far as Dengfeng County to borrow fifty thousand taels of silver from a money house to fund the construction of your Shaolin Temple. Then you deliberately portrayed the completed Ten Thousand Buddhas Pagoda as a divine miracle, luring many people into spending money to dedicate Buddhas there. Such money-grabbing behavior is no different from that of those unscrupulous merchants…” As he spoke, Li Xuan suddenly realized he had nearly made another mistake; if he continued, he feared it would provoke further attacks from the merchants. He hurriedly corrected himself: “Such an obsession with worldly gold and silver is nothing short of a disgrace to the Buddhist Order!” Huo Yuanzhen laughed heartily: “Master Li Xuan, you’re truly confused. Although wealth is transient, it is also a necessity of life. It’s true that we at Shaolin took out loans to build the temple, and it’s true that the Shaolin Ten Thousand Buddhas Pagoda collects silver—but so what? The Ten Thousand Buddhas Pagoda collects offerings, just as temples collect incense money—all in the hope that the Buddha will bless the people with health and well-being. If this is wrong, then surely your Dharma King Temple hasn’t skimped on the incense money you’ve earned today, has it? If you’re willing to return your money, I’ll refund the Ten Thousand Buddhas Pagoda’s funds to the people. However, while your money might be returned, I’m afraid the donors wouldn’t want the Shaolin Ten Thousand Buddhas Pagoda’s money back.” No sooner had Huo Yuanzhen finished speaking than someone in the crowd chimed in. “Abbot Yi Jie, I purchased a merit plaque at the Ten Thousand Buddhas Pagoda for a thousand taels. Your Buddha is truly miraculous—I’ve made a profit on both of these deals! I’d like to have other members of our merchants’ guild go there to purchase merit plaques as well. You mustn’t refuse them—otherwise, we’ll camp out at Shaolin Temple and refuse to leave.” The business owner who had purchased a merit plaque a few days earlier was also present. Having just heard Li Xuan’s remarks—which seemed to imply another insult toward merchants—he was already displeased; now he was the first to step forward to defend Huo Yuanzhen. Then, someone else in the crowd who was dissatisfied with Li Xuan spoke up: “I just spent quite a bit on offerings here, and now I regret it. If the Dharma King Temple will refund my money, I’d appreciate it.” The scene grew increasingly chaotic. Li Xuan had intended to reprimand Huo Yuanzhen, but he never could have imagined this outcome. Seeing that the situation was becoming increasingly unfavorable for the Dharma King Temple, Dharma King Likong could no longer sit idly by. “Junior Brother, sit down. Don’t say another word.” Li Xuan glanced at his senior brother and said, his face full of shame, “Senior Brother, this kid is quick-witted and hard to deal with.” “Hmph, ‘hard to deal with’? I don’t think so.” Dharma King Likong stood up and said to Huo Yuanzhen, “Abbot Yi Jie, my junior brother may have said some things just now that were a bit harsh, but as the Abbot, please do not take it personally.” Huo Yuanzhen chanted a Buddhist mantra: “It’s all right. As I said earlier, whatever he doesn’t understand, he can ask This Humble Monk. I’m sure he’s learned his lesson by now.” Li Xuan, having been mocked by Huo Yuanzhen once again, stood there, his face alternating between red and white with anger, yet he dared not stand up to confront Huo Yuanzhen again. Li Kong also chose not to dwell on the matter—doing so would only have made Li Xuan’s embarrassment worse—and instead said, ““In our Buddhist Order, monasteries have both an abbot and a head monk. While nearly every monastery has a head monk, not every monastery has an abbot. The reason is simple: anyone who can serve as an abbot must be a venerable monk of high moral standing, deeply versed in Buddhist teachings, and possessing profound spiritual cultivation. Only then can they earn the trust of others; otherwise, they would only invite ridicule and bring dishonor to the Buddhist Order. This Humble Monk wonders what Abbot Yi Jie thinks of what he has said.” Li Kong’s skill was indeed far superior to Li Xuan’s; he began by addressing technical issues within the specialized field. In his view, Huo Yuanzhen was young, and his theoretical understanding of Buddhist doctrine was certainly inferior to his own. As long as he could defeat Huo Yuanzhen on this front, he would naturally strip him of his authority—and with the Shaolin Temple’s prestige in tatters, his own Dharma King Temple would inevitably rise in prominence. Huo Yuanzhen nodded. “Abbot Likong speaks the truth—an abbot must indeed be a venerable monk well-versed in Buddhist doctrine. However, this matter has nothing to do with age. Those who are accomplished take precedence; true ambition knows no age, while those without it might as well live a hundred years in vain.” “Well said!” Hearing that Huo Yuanzhen’s remarks were directed at him, Dharma King Likong’s expression turned cold: “In that case, There is one matter This Humble Monk cannot fathom. I humbly request Abbot Yi Jie to enlighten me.” “Abbot Likong, please speak.” Dharma King Likong cleared his throat: “The story goes that a man went to a temple to worship the Buddha—specifically, Guanyin Bodhisattva. After finishing his prayers, he noticed someone else worshiping nearby, and this person looked exactly like the Guanyin Bodhisattva enshrined on the altar. Curious, the man asked, ‘Are you Guanyin Bodhisattva?’ ” “The other person replied, ‘Yes, I am Guanyin Bodhisattva.’ This puzzled the worshipper: ‘Why would Guanyin Bodhisattva worship herself?’ ” After Dharma King Likong finished speaking, he smiled without saying another word. The people nearby were all confused—why would she worship herself? Seeing that no one could figure it out, Dharma King Likong smiled at Huo Yuanzhen, thinking to himself, “Let’s see if you can avoid making a fool of yourself this time.” Unexpectedly, Huo Yuanzhen said, “This story illustrates an important point: while seeking the Buddha’s guidance is certainly important, one must never place one’s entire spiritual destiny in the hands of the Buddha. The Buddha will not protect those who make no effort themselves and rely solely on fate. Ultimately, people must rely on themselves—even Bodhisattvas are no exception. The Bodhisattva’s actions serve as a warning to the world: it is better to rely on oneself than to rely on others.” “Abbot Yi Jie speaks so well!” The crowd below understood the meaning and found it deeply convincing; they all applauded and cheered in unison. Seeing that he had failed to stump Huo Yuanzhen, Li Kong felt a bit embarrassed and continued, “A warrior entered a monk’s room, holding a live fish in his hand, and asked the monk, ‘Tell me, is the fish in my hand dead or alive?’ If you, Abbot Yi Jie, were that monk, how would you answer?” After Dharma King Likong finished asking the question, those around him pondered deeply, sensing a catch in the scenario. If they answered “dead,” the warrior would let go of the fish—which was actually alive—but if they answered “alive,” the warrior would secretly squeeze the fish to death. Thus, no matter how they answered, they would likely lose. However, Huo Yuanzhen answered without hesitation: “I’d say it’s dead.” Dharma King Likong burst out laughing: “How foolish! You guessed it was dead. The moment the warrior let go, the fish fell to the ground—and it was still alive. You’ve lost.” Huo Yuanzhen laughed as well: “Yes, I lost—but I saved this fish.” Everyone nearby was stunned. After a long moment, their faces filled with admiration, and they said in Qi Qi, “Abbot, you are so compassionate!” Of course, the “Abbot” they referred to was Huo Yuanzhen, not that old monk Li Kong. In the eyes of the crowd at that moment, Li Kong—who had been asking a series of tricky questions—was simply no match for Huo Yuanzhen. Standing nearby, Guan Shanyue even pressed his palms together in prayer, secretly rejoicing that he had chosen to join the Shaolin Temple. Dharma King Likong, having suffered consecutive defeats, was so flustered and angry that he actually rolled up his sleeves and said again, “Don’t try to show off your silver tongue here. You’ve spread rumors about a miracle, but This Humble Monk and the others didn’t see it, so we won’t believe it.” Huo Yuanzhen glanced at Dharma King Likong and said, “Abbot Likong, you didn’t see it, so you don’t believe it, is that right? Very well, then let me ask you this: I have a stone in my hand—do you believe that?” Li Kong glared at Huo Yuanzhen. “I haven’t seen it—how am I supposed to know?” Huo Yuanzhen opened his hand, revealing a small pebble in the palm of his hand. “Abbot Likong, does something cease to exist just because you haven’t seen it?” Li Kong was so taken aback he couldn’t speak. “Excellent!” Thunderous applause erupted from the crowd once more. “Abbot Yi Jie spoke so well! You dared to dismiss something just because you didn’t see it—you deserve to be humiliated like this.”