Leshan folklore in two couplets

Leshan folklore in two couplets? Chapter 14 of "The Story Behind the Leshan Giant Buddha"? Xu Chengcun

(2013-11-19 15:23:36)

Lingyun Mountain, where the Leshan Giant Buddha is located, has many "plaques" and "couplets" and is extremely rich in content. Among them, there are many original works by ancients and many copies. With the needs of the development of scenic spots, many good and relatively good works have appeared in newly built landscapes. Huang Xueqian, director of Leshan City Cultural Affairs Bureau, said it best: "It doesn't matter whether it's an ancient building or an antique building! If you can't see the couplets and plaques inside, you'll always feel regretful. It's like wearing a suit without tying it." ! What an appropriate and vivid metaphor!

Perhaps this is why the previous leaders of Lingyun Mountain have paid more attention to this issue. But when people look at these "plaques" and "couples", don't they necessarily carefully understand their connotations? This article only takes two couplets in two newly built landscapes in Lingyun Mountain as its title to describe the interesting legends and stories contained in the couplets:

"Moon Pavilion". Go out from the front door of "Dongpo Tower", go down the stone stairs, and go to the left to reach the "Plum Garden". Walking through the "Plum Garden" and walking dozens of steps to the left, the famous calligrapher and painter Li Qiongjiu's wooden horizontal plaque with the word "Yue Pavilion" written by Li Qiongjiu appears in front of people's eyes. This exquisite, unique, simple and elegant Ming and Qing Dynasty The antique building is the "Yue Pavilion".

According to historical records, "Yue Pavilion" was originally located in the ancient city of Gu Jiazhou. The patriotic poet Lu You of the Song Dynasty often visited here when he was working part-time in Gu Jiazhou. The naming of "Yue Pavilion" was made by Lu You. "Pavilion" refers to the building of the high platform, and "moon" refers to Lu You's poem "Mountain Emei's Half-Moon Autumn". What a desirable place! It’s a pity that the ancient ruins have long since disappeared!

In order to inherit history and record humanities, I presided over it in 1987 and it was designed and constructed by Zeng Zhiliang, the chief of the cultural preservation and construction section of this unit. Let this very meaningful ancient cultural landscape of Jiazhou reappear in Lingyun Mountain. "Ting" and "courtyard" are intertwined, and "corridors" and "squares" are dependent on each other. Visitors never stop here! There is a round door in the courtyard with a couplet that is not very eye-catching, but it often does not attract people's attention!

The first couplet: "The tip of the pole must carry the land";

The second couplet: "The Buddha's feet must not touch the waves."

The author and calligrapher are the same person, namely Mr. Wan Yaozong, a calligrapher who once participated in the "Leshan Sino-Japanese Calligraphy Pen Conference" in Lingyun Mountain and received high praise. The couplet with only ten words may seem simple, but it contains folklore stories that were well known to all ages in ancient Jiazhou in the past!

"The tip of the pole must carry the land." It means that the piece of land in Leshan City is carried by the water dragon under the feet of the Buddha and the top of the golden bamboo pole in his dragon palace;

"The Buddha's feet are not near the waves." The Leshan Giant Buddha cannot "wash its feet". It is said that since ancient times, no matter how high the floods in Leshan, the feet of the Giant Buddha cannot be submerged, otherwise Leshan City will also be submerged. What a legendary piece of folklore!

To know the ins and outs of the story, you still need to mention "Leshan Giant Buddha - Lingyun Mountain"! Said: Su Dongpo, who lived in the "Dongpo Tower" in the past, because of his profound knowledge, made the Water Dragon King of the "Sanjiang" Dragon Palace fall in love with him, so he ordered his "third prince" to worship Dongpo as his teacher and often go to "Dongpo Tower" to study. . The "Third Prince" is very diligent. He comes early and comes home late all year round. He often comes and goes from the "cave sky" at the foot of the Buddha. One day, Su Dongpo saw the third prince frowning and asked him why. The "Third Prince" replied with a sad face: "I heard my father say yesterday that Jiazhou City will soon be sunk, so I feel anxious"! Su Dongpo was very surprised and deeply disturbed when he heard this! So he made an agreement with the "Third Prince" to go to the Dragon Palace to seek help from the Dragon King. The Dragon King suddenly saw his son's teacher "visiting", so he welcomed Su Dongpo as a guest of honor and asked happily: "Sir, must you ask for something when you come?" Su Dongpo replied calmly: "You are right, I want to borrow a sample from the Dragon King." Things!" The Dragon King said: "There are treasures everywhere in the Dragon Palace, you can choose!" Su Dongpo said: "There is no need for treasures, just borrowing a piece of land from the Dragon King is enough!" The Dragon King was deeply surprised! He asked: "What is the use of land? It's not worth mentioning!" Su Dongpo replied: "The purpose of the vegetable garden is to grow vegetables!" The Dragon King asked: "Which land is good? Just borrow it!" Su Dongpo looked up at Jiazhou Gu Cheng pointed his finger and said, "That's it! Can you call me?" The Dragon King agreed. Su Dongpo asked knowingly: "There are unforeseen circumstances in the sky. Is the land in Jiazhou safe?" The Dragon King replied: "To tell you the truth, there will indeed be a sinking disaster in Jiazhou soon!" Su Dongpo changed the subject: "In this case, there is still something we can do. ?" The Dragon King smiled sweetly: "What's so difficult about this? I'll use the golden bamboo to support it. It's safe!" Su Dongpo was so happy that he just stood up to leave. Who knows, "When will Master Dongpo return?" Unexpectedly, in a panic, he pretended to be confused and raised his hand high, which meant that he would not return it again. Unexpectedly, the Dragon King misunderstood Su Dongpo's raised palm as "stretching out five fingers" and said: "Ah! Got it! The fifth watch is ringing, It’s time to return the land!” The knowledgeable Su Dongpo was rejected. Faced with embarrassment, say goodbye quickly without expressing your approval. Immediately after landing, an order was issued: "From now on, the ancient city of Jiazhou is not allowed to call the fifth watch again." The gong did not ring, and the city of Jiazhou was safe forever! "Leshan has never called the fifth watch since ancient times!" and "Floods never cover the Buddha's feet!" Since then, it has become a favorite story known to people of all ages in Leshan!

"Buddhist Paradise".

Covered by pines and bamboos and surrounded by pink walls, a towering palace imitating the ancient Tang Dynasty style is located on the Danxia Peak. It is the extension of the cultural connotation of the Leshan Giant Buddha, the "Buddhist Paradise". (This landscape will be described exclusively in the following article) On the main entrance of the "Tianwang Hall" here, there is a nanmu couplet with gold characters.

The first couplet: "Maitreya became a Buddha soon to save all living beings";

The second couplet: "Ordinary people who want to ascend to heaven should also have a kind heart"!

The couplets and calligraphers were two late well-known cultural figures, cultural relic experts and calligraphers in Leshan, the former Luo Mengding and the latter Tian Jiale. The creation of this couplet by two old gentlemen originated from a "Buddhist Story":

Said: In the Western Paradise, one day, the brothers "Sakyamuni Buddha" and "Maitreya Buddha" , went out to travel with his teacher "Disha Buddha". Soaring in the clouds and mist, feeling relaxed and happy, they landed in the world again in an instant. As they walked, they walked, and suddenly a high mountain blocked their way. "Disha" jumped up with both feet, flew up to the top of the mountain, laughed heartily, and said with a loud voice like a bell: "Listen, you two! As soon as I call you, you two will set off immediately. Whoever can reach me first will be my master." If you give way to him, you will become the 'Present Buddha', and if you give way to him, you will become the 'Future Buddha'!" After "Disha" finished speaking, "Shijia" has arrived! When I turned around to look, "Maitreya" didn't move a step. I asked him why? "Maitreya" opened his belly and carried a cloth bag, and said happily: "Brother goes first, and I will go to save all sentient beings!" The story explains: "Sakyamuni" is the "present Buddha", and "Maitreya" is the "future Buddha" .

The author wrote a couplet based on this "Buddhist Story", which means to warn the world: "Maitreya", who has "great supernatural powers", is willing to be a "future Buddha" in order to save all living beings. As for ordinary people like us today, if we want to "ascend to heaven" after death in the future, we must be kind-hearted and do more good deeds and avoid bad deeds while we are still alive!

Continuous, to be continued?

?2013·11·19·

Lingyun Mountain? The first chapter of "The Story Behind the Leshan Giant Buddha"? Xu Chengcun

?(2013-02-28 13:00:18)

?"The Buddha is as high as the mountain, and the mountain is as high as the Buddha." This was the shock I felt when I first met the Leshan Giant Buddha in the early 1950s! When people pay homage to the Leshan Giant Buddha, they will definitely associate their thoughts with Lingyun Mountain. The reason is very simple, because the Leshan Giant Buddha was carved along the cliff of Lingyun Mountain. In a sense, if there were no Lingyun Mountain, there might not be the Leshan Giant Buddha. To put it more directly: Leshan Giant Buddha regards Lingyun Mountain as its pure land, and Lingyun Mountain is radiant because of Leshan Giant Buddha!

"Lingyun Mountain". As the name suggests, the ambition is "Ling Yun". What a fitting title! Danya cliffs, lush and green, are the mainstay of the "Three Rivers" of the powerful town. No matter how "the waves of the Dadu River surge", the "Three Rivers" rush, and the "turbulent waves crash on the shore", it "remains still"! The surging evil water reached its feet, letting it roar and roar, but in the end it had no choice but to rush eastward!

The ancients said: "The mountains and rivers in the world are in Shu. The mountains and rivers in Shu are called Jiazhou, and the victory of Jiazhou is called Lingyun." Lingyun Mountain is composed of nine small peaks: Lingbao, Wangyun, Jifeng, Qiluan, Yongcui, Danxia, ??Jiuri, Duiyue and Zhurong, so it is called "Lingyun Nine Peaks", also known as "Xiaojiu Yi". The ancients left extremely beautiful poems about each mountain peak. Let's give a few examples:

Qiluan Peak: Qiluan is hanging on the cliff, and Maitreya is in the air, looking tiredly. The seven floors of the pavilion are 300 feet high, and the Qingyi River flows into Huai'an.

Lingbao Peak: Lingbao is secretly opened and the cloud roots are broken. Three rivers meet and thousands of horses gallop. The light can be seen outside the Sala Ping. All the peaks are listed here.

Surrounded by luxuriant forests and bamboos, red towers with painted eaves, and green peaks and mountains, the scenery is charming. Lingyun Temple, a thousand-year-old temple, is simple, solemn and spotless. Because it is located at the top of Lingyun, there is a saying that "the birds are flying out of the temple, and the green peaks carry the red tower". The Lingbao Pagoda in the prosperous Tang Dynasty, despite the vicissitudes of life, still stands safely. Bells are hung on the tower body, the wind blows the bells, and they sing in unison, and the Sanskrit music comes from the sky.

Since the Tang and Song Dynasties, countless literati and poets have left their remains here. Primary school students in Leshan City can recite the poem "I don't want to be granted the title of Marquis of Ten Thousand Households, nor do I want to know Jingzhou of Han Dynasty, but I want to be the guardian of Han Dynasty and travel in the clouds while drinking wine" written by Su Shi, a great writer of the Northern Song Dynasty. Enter from the north gate of Lingyun Mountain, go up the stairs along the Lingyun Plank Road, and look out into the distance. The sails of the boat are dotted, and the light of the water touches the sky. Looking back, you can see countless traces of ancient people on the cliff. The most eye-catching one is "Su Dongpo carrying wine" "Shi You Chu" has five characters in regular script, strong and neat, vigorous and vigorous. The "wine-carrying pavilion" on the platform on the right is a sight to behold!

Huang Tingjian, who is as famous as Su Shi, suffered many misfortunes due to the rebellious party and dictatorial power. He was full of economics and failed to find his talents. He traveled around the world and left a beautiful and touching poem in Lingyun Mountain: "Lingyun smiles and sees peach blossoms, which have begun to bloom in thirty years." After arriving home, after the spring breeze and spring rain, I will swim with the water to the end of the world."

A couplet by the Ming Dynasty writer "Yang Sheng'an" directly left an "eternal masterpiece" for Lingyun Mountain: "Spring water, summer clouds, autumn moon, winter pines occupy the scenery of the four seasons, and the East Qu and the West beat the North Lunan." Look at the sect of Jintian and unify all dharma.”

There are many historic sites such as "Dongpo Tower", "Haishi Cave", "Zangjing Tower", and "Zhuyi Cave"...

The more precious ones are A national first-level cultural relic protection unit - "Eastern Han Dynasty·Ma Haoya Tomb". Tens of thousands of tombs are concentrated in "Hutou Bend", with multiple floors above and below each other.

The unearthed cultural relics in the museum include stone coffins, wooden coffins, pottery coffins, pottery houses, pottery horses, pottery chickens, pottery dogs, pottery turtles, and pottery turtles. What is especially breathtaking is the numerous lifelike pottery servants in different shapes. ·······

The world-famous stone Maitreya Buddha statue - "Leshan Giant Buddha" happens to be placed in such a scenic spot. People have to turn their thoughts back to Haitong, the founder of Leshan Giant Buddha and an amazing figure in history.

Let us first read the relevant records in the "Memory Stele of the Great Maitreya Statue of Lingyun Temple in Jiazhou" written by Wei Gao, the governor of Xichuan Festival in the Tang Dynasty (the final engineer of the Leshan Giant Buddha): The foot of Lingyun Mountain in the past , "The sudden roar of anger, the thunder for hundreds of miles", "The demand and payment hit the cliff, and the waves were empty", "The boat went with the waves, and the people did not survive." It vividly describes the severe situation of ancient Jiazhou in history, where three rivers surged into Lingyun Mountain, floods caused disasters, and ships were destroyed and people died. In order to cure the "water disaster", the eminent monk Haitong, with his fearless spirit of "can gouge out one's own eyes, but rare Buddha's wealth", went around asking for alms, and directly commanded the huge project of "ten thousand people's efforts, thousands of people working together". It is conceivable that under the historical conditions at that time, just as the poet Qin Shen of the Tang Dynasty said in a poem: "I climbed up against the wall and climbed up into the air. I was so happy that I climbed up and realized the vastness of the universe. I looked down at the three rivers." Haitong was not afraid of hardships and directed the project of carving the Buddha under extremely dangerous conditions such as cliffs and rough waves.

If we look at the problem from today's perspective, can we come to the conclusion that Haitong is not only a compassionate master who promotes Buddhism. He is also a warrior who saves people from suffering, fights against heaven and earth, and cuts mountains and rivers. From an architectural point of view, under the historical conditions at that time, he can truly be called a knowledgeable and scientifically leading designer and engineer. From an art point of view, he can fully serve as an artist who is proficient in aesthetics. .

However, due to the huge project of carving the Buddha statue and the long construction period, Haitong died before it was completed! His spirit deeply moved the "officials" at that time. Immediately afterwards, Zhangchou Jianqiong, the Jiedushi envoy of Jiannan and the envoy of Xichuan interview system, and Wei Gao, the Jiedushi of Xichuan, presided over the completion.

Historical figures like Haitong can be said to be rare from ancient times to the present. His intelligence lies in facing reality, adapting to local conditions, promoting advantages and avoiding disadvantages, taking models from mountains, and cutting cliffs to build buildings. Buddha, throw stones to fill the river, slow down the rapid kicking. This not only achieves the purpose of avoiding "water damage", but also adds "highlight to the ceiling" to the beautiful picture of Lingyun Mountain. Judging from the overall environment of Jiazhou, a good situation has been formed in which mountains, water, Buddha and city complement each other and integrate into one, making the beautiful picture of ancient Jiazhou even more perfect!

The essence of this "Superman" masterpiece is of course concentrated in the Buddha statue itself, with kind eyes and kind face, sitting dignifiedly, with smooth lines and well-proportioned proportions. However, while carving the main body of the Buddha statue, he also gave extremely careful and comprehensive consideration to the surrounding environment that complements the main body of the Buddha statue. He cleverly placed the seat of the Buddha statue in an important position overlooking Emei, the powerful "Three Rivers", and the direct stop of the "flood disaster". The Buddha statue has lotus feet on its feet, and its eyebrows are expressive and awe-inspiring. On the rock walls on both sides of the river, two majestic King Kong statues are symmetrically carved. What is particularly fascinating is the "Nine-curved plank road" carved at the same time. On the stone wall on the right side of the Buddha statue, it circles nine curves from bottom to top until it reaches the top of Lingyun. People are immersed in the scene, whether from top to bottom or bottom to top, as long as they reach the halfway point of the "Nine Bends", they will suddenly feel that the illusion is in the sky, and the steps are like clouds, as if they are in a fairyland. But looking down, I felt dizzy again as I was in an abyss of dangerous rocks. Maybe you will naturally think of Li Bai's poem: "Wearing Xie Gong's shoes, climbing the Qingyun Staircase, seeing the sea and sun halfway, and smelling chickens in the sky." People say: "Infinite scenery can be found on dangerous peaks." The more dangerous the place, the better the scenery will be. This statement may have some truth.

It is worth mentioning that when people climb the Jiuqu Plank Road, they must not forget the extremely precious two-niche Tang Dynasty relief sculptures that remain on the rock wall of the plank road. It is the best preserved cliff statue among the thousands of original statues in niches on both sides of the Maitreya statue. Although it is severely weathered and incomplete, some parts are still very clear. Its warped patterns are carefully carved, the characters are vivid, and the lines are beautiful. It is also engraved with towers and pavilions, which is valuable information for studying the architecture and stone carving art of the Tang Dynasty.

After climbing the plank road, reaching the top of the mountain, a simple and unique corridor-style pavilion immediately appeared. Yuan Zirang of the Ming Dynasty was full of praise for this pavilion: "On the pavilion, there are three mountains of condensation, and water comes from the sky. "The smoke waves are as far as the eye can see and the green fields are endless", which is called "Near River Pavilion".

Lingyun Mountain is truly a treasure house of cultural relics and a paradise of calligraphy. With its irreplaceable physical testimony, it is praised as a nationally famous Buddhist holy land and a national scenic spot.

The Leshan Giant Buddha, the world's largest and famous at home and abroad, was built in the early years of the founding of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty (713 AD). The project spanned ninety years and four generations of emperors, and was completed in the 19th year of Zhenyuan (803 AD) of Emperor Dezong of the Tang Dynasty. It reflects the ingenuity and perseverance of the Chinese nation with irrefutable facts! It is seventy-one meters high. The Buddha statue faces Emei, with its feet on three rivers, (Dado River, Minjiang River, Qingyi River) and nine peaks on its back, which is majestic and majestic. With its unparalleled historical, scientific and artistic value, it is listed as a world cultural heritage by UNESCO.

Monuments are irreplaceable physical witnesses of the long history of mankind, and cultural relics cannot be "reborn" again.

As time goes by and the years change, it becomes extremely important to strengthen the protection of treasures! In the early 1980s, after the chaos was restored, Leshan City, Sichuan Province, the "Land of Abundance", established the "Leshan Giant Buddha Cultural Relics Protection Administration".

At this time, I was dispatched by my superiors to leave my job at the Cultural Bureau of the Renshou County People's Government and embrace the spring breeze of "reform and opening up" to work in the "Leshan Giant Buddha Cultural Management Bureau". After retiring in 1993, he worked for another fourteen years to build and manage the "Buddha Paradise", a landscape that enriches the cultural connotation of the Leshan Giant Buddha. In total, I have been "accompanying, guarding, and protecting the Buddha" for more than 20 years, and I have personally experienced many extremely vivid and unforgettable "stories." ?Now that I recall it, I am filled with emotion! It is necessary to record it for people to appreciate and correct!

Short articles will be published in installments below to systematically introduce the relevant "stories"...

From Lezhi's "Tree Embracing Buddha" to recalling Leshan's "Chopping Down the City Wall Trees"? Xu Chengcun

?(2017-05-30 10:40:15)

?Recently, I saw a striking report in the West China Metropolis Daily: "Le Directly in front of the main hall of Baoguo Temple in Zhixian County, there are thousands of Buddha statues of different sizes and shapes, embedded in the roots of an ancient banyan tree, forming a rare spectacle of Buddha and tree living in correspondence... ". People can't help but think of the controversy over the cutting down of trees for the city wall in Leshan last year.

?Everyone knows that the "banyan tree", commonly known as the yellow horn tree, likes to live on rocks, so when people plant the banyan tree, they must deliberately place a large number of stones at its roots to facilitate the survival and growth of the banyan tree. , what’s the reason? The banyan tree needs it! Because the banyan tree likes one of the nutrients in the rocks the most, its roots secrete a liquid that penetrates the rocks to absorb the nutrients it needs. On the contrary, the intertwined roots of the banyan tree just invisibly anchor the rocks firmly. . This is the principle of mutual dependence and mutual survival between the two...

?Trees have "spirituality" and people have feelings! Leshan is my second hometown. Anyone who is a little older will still have fresh memories. Let me ask: In the land of Bashu in the past, which ancient town, temple, inn, or road store did not have two towering trees! They are a sight to behold, but they are also environmentally friendly. Especially the strange trees growing in special locations are a rare spectacle.

It is regarded as a "feng shui tree" by the local people, relying on it to protect it from wind and rain, "roost" in the shade, and bring "good luck"! "Safety"!

?The wonder of the "Tree Embracing Buddha" at Baoguo Temple in Lezhi has lasted for thousands of years. People (including some cultural relics and architectural experts and scholars) are wondering whether the tree or the Buddha came first? The center point of the more important issue is to study how to protect it...

?Landscape depends on cultivation, and wonders are even harder to find! Contact Leshan's arbitrary move of "cutting down trees for the city wall" is really puzzling! Why can't we treat them differently and proceed from reality, but there is a "one size fits all"!

Of course, worthless miscellaneous trees can be removed, but we must not hastily engage in "clearance all the way". Banyan trees should be retained. Large trees can be pruned to strengthen management, seek benefits and avoid harm, and let the ancient city wall of Jiazhou More historical style!