Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons

Is there a kind of debt that cannot be repaid in this life, but needs to be repaid in the next life, and the next life, and many lives?

Yes, if you kill many people in this life, you will have to pay off your debts in every life. No matter what, it is impossible that you will have to pay off your debts in the next life if you abuse others and they kill you. Bullies are despicable and despicable, but one life is worth it.

But although this statement was obvious, it should not have been said by Manjusri and Samantabhadra. They were originally here to take the Lion, Elephant and Peng back, and at least they should have saved the three demons from returning to Buddhism in the next life. Now that Wen Jiao had dealt with the three demons in this life, she also wanted to beat them so that they would never be able to turn over. How could the two Bodhisattvas respond?

Wen Jiao saw that Manjusri was silent for a long time, so she said, "Since Manjusri Bodhisattva doesn't want to speak, I will speak for him. I am Xuanzang's biological mother after all. In order to chat with my son, I will avoid my Taoist companion who is tired of bald...monks and read some scriptures when I have free time. I remember clearly that 'Anyone who breaks the precept of killing will fall into the three evil paths of hell, hungry ghosts, and animals after death. Even if he is born in the human world, he will inevitably suffer from many diseases and have a short life.' This is the first rule written in your Buddhist "Brahma Net Bodhisattva Precepts". I wonder if the two Bodhisattvas agree with it or not?"

She chuckled: "Could it be that the vast sea of ​​​​rules and regulations are just used to deceive ordinary monks, and the high and mighty Lingshan gods and Buddhas are not included in them?"

These words were really heartbreaking. Puxian immediately said, "Why do you say that, goddess? The sins of this life will naturally be repaid in the next life... It's just an injustice..."

"So, the two Bodhisattvas also feel that the evil deeds committed by the three demons in this life must be severely punished and suffered in the next life, the next life, and even thousands of lives to pay for their sins." Wen Jiao interrupted him and conjured up a pen and paper. "Please write down the promise you made today. I will be the guarantor and publicize it later. When it comes true in the future, it can also be used as a good story to promote the law of cause and effect in Buddhism."

Samantabhadra's face changed, and he frowned, saying, "Goddess, please do not misunderstand me. The sins of this life will naturally be repaid in the next life, but when will the cycle of revenge end? Why don't I and Manjusri lead the three demons into Buddhism in the next life, and recite the Buddha's name and burn incense every day, so as to redeem the sins of the previous life with this boundless merit."

“Bodhisattva, if one can accumulate infinite merits equivalent to a human life just by chanting Buddha’s name and burning incense, then the incense burner in the temple should be the one most qualified to become a Buddha.” Wen Jiao’s tone was gentle, but the look between her eyebrows was teasing.

This teasing expression defuses the tension between the two sides. The two Bodhisattvas also turn gentle and pleasant. Manjusri says: "The goddess has a sharp tongue. She is a seed of debate."

Wen Jiao sighed, "I don't deserve that. After all, all that talk about past lives and cause and effect is just a waste of words. The Bodhisattvas and I have been going around in circles. As for the reason for this, although you and I have not said it clearly, we both know it in our hearts."

With her current abilities, it was already her limit to force Manjusri and Samantabhadra to agree to deal with the Blue Lion Demon and the White Elephant Demon. Because of the Buddha Tathagata, they would not agree to Dapeng's solution no matter what. On this point, it was futile for her to argue with him.

To put it bluntly, for the two Bodhisattvas, sending Dapeng to the eighteen levels of hell with no hope of reincarnation was not unacceptable, but this decision could not be made by them in any case.

"Goddess of Heaven is wise, so please stop arguing in vain." Manjusri said.

Is it a useless dispute? Wen Jiao lowered her eyebrows, her expression calm and indifferent.

What is beneficial and what is not beneficial? Between heaven and earth, is it that what a person or an immortal strives for just the word "benefit"?

She raised her eyes, her gaze was sharp, and she used her final killer move: "Two Bodhisattvas, I actually have no sectarianism. Although I practice Taoism, I also have respect for Buddhism. But what I respect is not the golden body, but..." She raised her hand, and the clouds and light merged, and a scene appeared.

The tearful woman placed the crying baby in a wooden basin and reluctantly pushed it into the water. The baby drifted with the current and was rescued by an octogenarian monk. The monk was dressed in cloth and straw sandals, with an old face and a dusty appearance. He looked like an ordinary, down-and-out old man, but his eyes were extremely kind. While chanting Buddha's name, he heated up the thin porridge that he had worked so hard to get, dipped the tip of his chopsticks in it, and fed it to the baby's ever-opening mouth.

She looked across and saw two Bodhisattvas wearing bright and gorgeous clothes, shining brightly like the sun and the moon.

"... Buddhist monks who walk in the secular world, understand people's sufferings, are compassionate and merciful, and save people from suffering. Without their mercy, there would be no me and my son Xuanzang today. This is also the beginning of my son's fate with Buddhism, and the beginning of his vow to worship Buddhism." Wen Jiao said, showing the disappointment on her face to the eyes of the two Bodhisattvas, "Although my son Xuanzang is no different from ordinary people in terms of love, hate, ignorance and anger, his heart towards Buddhism is extremely bright, and the sun and the sky can see it. If he knew that he had been practicing hard for more than ten years under the stars and moonlight, just to go to such a sacred mountain where relatives and friends protect each other, to seek such a true scripture where good and evil will not be punished in the end, he would definitely sigh, 'It's better not to take this extremely evil, wicked and false scripture'."

This was the first time today that the two Bodhisattvas' expressions changed drastically at the same time.

If Wen Jiao was just a disciple of Dongfang Guangmingxingjun, Qingmiaoyuanjun, and Dangmo Tianzun, the demon-subduing goddess who was recently in the limelight and widely respected by the people, then the two Bodhisattvas would only give her some face.

But she had another identity. She was the biological mother of Jin Chanzi, a key figure in the Buddhist plan to spread Buddhism to the East. She was not the kind of mother who had a shallow relationship with her and died early, but the kind of mother who cared for her all the time, greeted her every day, and helped her from time to time. The mother-son relationship was deep and she respected her. The two Bodhisattvas found her very difficult and a headache.

She said that Lingshan Mountain protects the relatives and friends, and the true scriptures say that there is no retribution for good and evil in the end. Will Xuanzang believe it?

Of course it is faith.

After believing it, will he give up on his journey to obtain the scriptures?

Given his temperament, he would definitely give up. Even though he had spent more than ten years of his best years on this, suffered countless hardships, and completed most of the journey, and as long as he completed the remaining half, he would gain the Buddhist status that countless people envied. This was because he no longer had faith in Buddhism.

Once piety is lost, it will naturally be abandoned. This is the quality possessed by any enlightened person.

The Buddhist sect had been planning to spread the Dharma eastward for ten generations. In the previous nine generations, they did not even reach Xi Niu Hezhou before the road collapsed. In this life, in order to ensure that there would be no mistakes, the Buddhist sect even detained the Monkey King Sun Wukong to protect the Dharma. Seeing that they had already traveled most of the way, how could they allow any mistakes to occur?

Ten is the tool of numbers, the most perfect and complete number. If something goes wrong in the tenth life, there will be no chance to start over. Unless the Buddhist sect gives up the eastward advance, or starts all over again, and formulates a new plan from one to ten.

Can they really do it? Every powerful person can sense the great trend of heaven and earth. The Three-phase God of Xiniuhezhou and the Great Tang Sect in the western lands, their fortunes are like the rising sun, and sooner or later they will rise to the sky. And by then, it will only take a few hundred years. Do they really have a chance to start over?