576: Don’t save yourself, save others

Sacrificing one's body to feed a tiger, cutting one's flesh to feed an eagle!

How similar this act is to what the Buddha did back then!

Bhaisajyaguru pondered for a moment, then said in a deep voice, "And then?"

Tang Ku said in a deep voice, "Afterward, the bandit leader raised his butcher's knife against the little novice monk and sneered, 'Good. Since you are willing to sacrifice your life for righteousness, how can I not help you... However, you must make them swear an oath to prove that they will not leak our business!'"

"Before the little novice monk could answer, those refugees spontaneously swore oaths to Heaven. Various vicious oaths came out of their mouths, making even the murderous bandit leader's scalp tingle. The bandit leader looked at the little novice monk and sneered, 'Look, these people you want to save don't care about your life or death at all! Is there any point in doing this?'"

"The little novice monk pondered slightly and suddenly said, 'I only do what I should do. As for what they think, that is not something this humble monk can control. Even if it is they who take the knife to cut me, I have no complaints and no regrets!'"

"The bandit leader frowned and said, 'Good. Since that is what you think, I will fulfill your wish... You people, if you want to live, each of you must cut this little monk once.' Everyone present was instantly shocked. This monk was still just a child, and he was willing to sacrifice himself for others. How could they return kindness with enmity and lay their steel blades upon him? Just as everyone was in a dilemma, the bandit leader threatened, 'If you don't cut him, then you all can just die!'"

"The little novice monk knew that he was in a situation where death was inevitable, so he couldn't help but sit cross-legged on the ground, put his hands together, and recite Buddhist scriptures... At that time, he did not know many Buddhist scriptures, just one Agama Sutra that he recited all year round... Under the threat of the bandit leader, the first person to come before him with a steel knife was a fifty-year-old woman. She held the knife tremblingly and said to the little novice monk, 'Little Master, we are truly forced into this. I... I will only lightly cut you; it won't really hurt you!'"

"The little novice monk, who should have been afraid, smiled at the old woman and said, 'Don't be afraid. If you are too light, I fear these evil men will not spare you. I am here, unmoved and unshaken. I will take your cut to save you from this sea of suffering!' The little novice monk's face was full of compassion. He looked at the old woman without fear, and then looked at the bandit leader with equally compassionate eyes, saying, 'I only hope that after you see me take so many cuts, you will commit fewer sins of killing!'"

"The bandit leader said nothing, raised his knife, and made a cut on the little novice monk's neck. Blood flowed instantly. He looked at the old woman and sneered, 'Look, how easy it is. After dozens of cuts, he might not even die!' The little novice monk frowned slightly, but his determined expression did not change in the slightest. The old woman, however, could no longer bear it because of her fear. The steel knife in her hand fell to the ground with a 'clang'. She looked at the little novice monk and burst into tears, crying, 'You saved our lives, and if we lay our blades upon you, it would be an act of unrighteousness. Our lives are cheap, so how could we bear to let a living Buddha take the suffering for us... Children, fellow villagers, even if it means death, we cannot let our benefactor take the suffering for us. Are you afraid of this death?' At this moment, all the refugees did not hesitate in the slightest. They knelt before the bandit leader one after another, saying, 'We would rather die to ensure the safety of this Little Master!'"

"The bandit leader stood there in stunned silence for a long time. He looked around and found that his subordinates, who were as fierce as baleful stars, all had the same expression as him, blankly watching this scene without saying a word. Suddenly, he seemed to think of something. He thrust his long knife fiercely into the ground, shook his head, smiled bitterly, and sighed, 'I have committed evil for half my life and killed for half my life, but I did not expect to be taught a lesson by a child... Alas, my sins and our accumulated karma are like the surging sea. Even if I use the rest of my life to atone for them, it will not be enough... Little Master, do we... still have a chance?'"

"The little novice monk asked in confusion, 'Are you not going to kill us anymore?'"

"The bandit leader shook his head and said, 'I have killed too much. After death, I will surely fall into Avici Hell, but as you said, to kill one less person is to have one less point of sin!'"

"The little novice monk chuckled and said, 'That is wonderful. Benefactor, you have realized your errors. As long as you uphold kind thoughts from now on, there will always be a day when your sins are atoned for. It is said that even a thousand days of doing good are not enough, but one day of doing evil is already too much. Atonement is bound to be a long process, and no one knows when it can be fully cleared, but as long as you persist in doing good, there will definitely be a day when it is cleared...'"

Speaking to this point, Tang Ku suddenly stopped telling the story, looked up at the gods and Buddhas filling the sky, and revealed a meaningful smile.

"And then... did the bandit leader let those people go... did he do good deeds to atone for his evil in the future... having killed so many people, did he go to Hell later..."

The surrounding Cultivators looked at Tang Ku, who had stopped halfway through his story, feeling impatient, and many asked questions in succession.

Bhaisajyaguru was silent for a moment, then suddenly said, "The ending of the story... did this bandit leader take these dozens of people into their city, uphold kind thoughts from then on, take in passing merchants and refugees, save people in the vast desert, and finally live until his natural death? Is that it?"

"Hehe, it seems you guessed it. I believe most people have guessed it!"

Tang Ku clapped his hands and laughed.

"Is this story you told... true or false?"

Bhaisajyaguru asked with some difficulty.

"Truth cannot be false!"

Tang Ku smiled and said, "Even merchants know the principle of 'not cheating the young or the old.' As a renunciant, I do not speak falsehoods; how could it be just empty talk?"

"I..."

Bhaisajyaguru suddenly gave a bitter smile, turned around, and flew toward the sky, leaving behind a sentence, "I have lost..."

Except for the Buddhist Disciples, everyone was still confused, but only Li Chengqian frowned slightly: "So that's how it is..."

The old Daoist on the side couldn't help asking, "Did you understand? Is this story... related to the debate on Buddhism?"

"Have you forgotten? Just now, Bhaisajyaguru said that if one cannot save oneself, how can one save others? Those whose cultivation is not enough cannot even save themselves, so how can they save others... But the little novice monk in this story has low cultivation and little ability. It can be said that he didn't even know what he was doing at all. However, while he could not save himself, he was able to save those refugees who were almost ungrateful, and even converted a murderous bandit, letting him devote his remaining life to good deeds to atone for his sins... If this story is true, then it really slaps Bhaisajyaguru in the face and refutes his theory to the point of worthlessness!"

Li Chengqian said.

"Then is this story true?"

The old Daoist asked, puzzled.

"I'm not sure. I have never heard the Holy Monk mention this story!"

Li Chengqian said.

In the sky, Compassionate Guanyin could no longer hold back and asked Tang Ku in a loud voice, "Who... is that little novice monk?"

Tang Ku smiled and said, "Take a guess!"