I attained immortality in the real world.

Chapter 76 I am the only one who dominates
The Ullambana Festival, the Dharma Debate Platform.

Chiba and Hōsei stood facing each other, and both argued their points through debate.

Chen Jing's gesture of picking flowers remained unchanged, but if the Buddha of Mount Ling were to display flowers to the public, no one would smile knowingly.

Shakyamuni is easy to find, but Kasyapa is hard to find.

However, no matter how dissatisfied or angry the monks below the stage were.

Until the bell rang to signal the end of the debate, everyone had to remain silent and listen quietly.

Faji's eyes were like lightning. He played the roles of an ordinary person, a lay Buddhist, and a high monk. He sternly questioned Qianye, the main debater, "Do flowers have eyes? How can they see you?"

Chen Jing chose to quote the same sutra meaning as the monk Wu Kui of Baima Temple, but interpreted it differently, saying: "All phenomena are like dreams, illusions, bubbles, shadows, dew, and lightning; thus should they be viewed. If Kalanchoe is a dream, a flower blooms in one thought, and withers in another..."

Its meaning is somewhat similar to the idea of ​​the brain in a vat, but it does not deny the reality of the material world. Instead, it believes that the influence of the material world on "me" should be determined by "me".

The monk Faji's voice boomed like a bell as he continued to question: "You rejoice at the scent, delight at the sight of color, and are delighted by the blooming of flowers. But who controls your heart? I observe..."

Chen Jing replied, "When the flowers bloom, I see them; when I see them, I am happy. I am happy to see them bloom, and I am happy to see them bloom..."

Halfway through the debate, the monks understood the meaning of Chen Jing's interpretation of the flower offering: I! Only I!!
The concept of "I am the only one, above all under heaven" is the foundation of Buddhist theory.

As long as there are no flaws in the interpretation, as a Buddhist, one cannot refute this theory at all.

Chiba and Hosei continued their debate, advancing their legal arguments layer by layer without any loopholes. Their words were sharp, each attacking the other's most vulnerable points without any mercy or concealment. It was not at all like a cooperative debate.

Half an hour later, Chen Jing lowered his right hand, no longer making the gesture of picking flowers, and began to debate: "I have always only seen flowers bloom to see me, but I have never seen myself wait for flowers to bloom?"

"........."

"Boom!"

The bell rang again.

Kinzan-ji Temple: The debate between Chiba and Hosei has ended.

Chen Jing stood on the main platform for debate, his Buddhist demeanor growing stronger, awaiting the questions posed by the monks.

Contrary to expectations that the monks would be filled with righteous indignation and eager to debate, the usually lively Zen Master Juling, Venerable Master Puji, Monk Sanjue, and Monk Tonghui, who came from a renowned family, were all unusually silent before the debate platform.

A young monk at Luohan Temple tried to get up, but was forcibly pressed down by the old monk next to him.

The young monk asked, puzzled, "What merit or ability does he have to wait for the flowers to bloom? Does he think that by going to see the flowers in winter, he can force them to bloom against nature?"

The old monk explained helplessly, "You only listened to half of what he said. People say, 'When the flowers bloom, I see them, and I see them; I am happy to see them bloom.' But you didn't listen?"

"If you don't want to see flowers, you won't care even if they come into your view. When you want to see flowers, they will have already bloomed to see you. This is the Buddha's interpretation of 'I am the only one worthy of respect in heaven and earth.' This is the fundamental doctrine of Buddhism. If you question even the fundamental doctrine, how can you be considered a member of the Buddhist community?"

"Since you are not a member of the Buddhist community, what right do you have to question this?"

"So if you ask, he will never answer. It doesn't affect him. On the contrary, you can't even be a monk."

The young monk broke out in a cold sweat, still shaken, and said, "This...this is far too insidious!"

The old monk shook his head: "On the contrary, he was already merciful enough. He could have just said half a sentence, and who knows, a highly accomplished monk might have fallen into his trap."

"Having spent half a lifetime practicing Buddhism through meditation, it seems as if I have never heard the scriptures, never met a teacher, and am unable to be self-aware. I can't even understand the fundamental doctrines of Buddhism. I might just die of shame by crashing my head against this Ullambana pillar."

"........."

On the legal debate platform.

Chen Jing stood with a smile, his eyes lowered, his expression conveying the message: "If you disagree, come and debate." He was like a powerful lion pressing down on hundreds of monks, making it hard for them to breathe.

The monks were prepared for the man to be difficult to deal with, as he was offering a flower, transmitting the Dharma, and expounding the teachings by transforming into a Buddha. However, they did not expect him to be so troublesome.

The interpretation was flawless, yet the Buddhist community prevented the rebuttal of viewpoints. One wanted to argue but could not, like having a breath stuck in one's chest, unable to spit it out or swallow it down—it was even more unpleasant than eating a fly that had just finished eating.

At this moment, the sun shone brightly through the clouds, casting a golden glow on the white monk's robe.

Chen Jing broke the silence of the Dharma assembly: "Is there anyone with doubts? Is there anyone with doubts? Is there anyone...?"

When asked for the third time, an old monk finally stood up; it was Daoxin, the monk from the Nine Lions Temple in Bianjing.

Looking up at Qianye on the debating platform, he said, "This humble monk once asked Master Wukui: Why do you believe this meaning is the meaning of the flower offering?"

Master Wukui replied: "This humble monk has already proven his point, while you, Master, need to prove yours."

“I wholeheartedly agree with this reasoning. However, since you are preaching as a Buddha, could you provide supporting evidence to dispel my doubts?”

If one does not offer flowers to Buddha.

The answer provided by Wu Kui is sufficient!

But as a transformed Buddha, you are the one who transmits the Dharma on behalf of the World-Honored One, so naturally you should fully understand the meaning of the flower offering.

Chen Jing pondered for a moment and then asked, "Zen Master Daoxin, do you think that when Patriarch Xuanzang traveled to India, he brought back the true scriptures?"

The Yogacara school has been destroyed.

But Xuanzang's influence has endured.

The Ullambana Festival features murals depicting Xuanzang's journey to the West, and the White Horse Temple enshrines relics brought back by Xuanzang during his pilgrimage.

Xuanzang himself is a representative of the true Buddhist scriptures, a fact that has long been established.

Daoxin replied confidently, "Master Xuanzang traveled 108,000 li to the west and naturally brought back the true scriptures, but what does that have to do with what this humble monk asked?"

All the monks looked up at Chen Jing. The flower he was holding had no title; could anyone truly understand its meaning?
Chen Jing nodded and explained, “The World-Honored One said: I possess the true Dharma eye, the wondrous mind of Nirvana, the true formless reality, the subtle Dharma gate, which is not established in words, but is transmitted separately outside the teachings…”

"The eye is the source of knowledge, the wondrous mind is the essence, Nirvana is the ease of practice, the true form is without form, and the form of the Dharma is a transformation."

"When the Patriarch Xuanzang returned with the true scriptures, he took the five natures and eight consciousnesses as the foundation, Nirvana as the Dharma, and the Dharma characteristics as the result, and founded the Dharma characteristics and consciousness-only school. Compared with what the Buddha said, it has the only difference of 'only'."

“In the past, when the World-Honored One attained enlightenment under the Bodhi tree, he held up a fresh flower, pointed to the sky and swore an oath: ‘In heaven and on earth, I alone am the most honored.’”

"The Buddha's words at the Vulture Peak assembly included nature, consciousness, and phenomena, so why was the only one missing?"

“If it lacks ‘only,’ how can it be called the true Dharma? Therefore, ‘only I’ is the meaning conveyed by the Buddha’s flower offering.”

"........."

Chen Jing used the Faxiang-Weishi school founded by Xuanzang and the Buddha's past experience of attaining Buddhahood to provide double evidence that "I am the only one" means the meaning of holding up a flower.

Upon seeing the painting of the Buddha holding up a flower yesterday, Chen Jing immediately grasped the meaning behind the Buddha's gesture. He never intended to fabricate an unassailable lie to argue his point to a draw.

Choosing to argue the Dharma based solely on my own will was not intended to deter the monks from questioning me, but rather because this intention truly reflected the Buddha's intention in holding up the flower.

He then asked, "I wonder if Master Xin is satisfied with this evidence?"

There should be one more chapter today. You have to figure out how to pick flowers on your own, and you have to write poems yourself. It's really hard to write quickly.

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(End of this chapter)