The Lotus Born Buddha (9)
Article/Kuo Yun-ling
Translator/Lian Ju
Is the Buddha-dharma difficult to
understand?
You will find it becomes easier to
understand after you read the script of the drama "Lotus Born
Buddha".
Using simple language to talk about the
Buddha-dharma makes it easy to understand.
But, people have difficulty
understanding the Buddha-dharma when the language is more difficult.
The drama "Lotus Born Buddha"
talks about deep truths using language that everyone understands.
I think most Buddhists have heard about
the Lotus Born Buddha.
But, not all know the details about his
legendary life? If you don't have time to carefully read all five volumes of
"The Biography of Lotus Born
Buddha", reading this script, a
modern translation, is the next best choice.
It combines colorful dialogue, a very
touching story and far-reaching meaning.
The simple language of this play might
give answers to questions that you have had in your heart for a long time.
The Buddha-dharma helps free people
from sufferings be joyful, and feel easy.
The script uses literature, history,
philosophy and science to make the "supreme science" of the
Buddha-dharma easily understood.
The script of the drama "Lotus
Born Buddha" is a modern translation and condensation of the
Buddha-dharma.
May you fly to the summit of the mind
and witness the splendid, beautiful and wonderful scene there.
20. Meeting Manjusri Bodhisattva
Following the children, Lotus Born joyfully comes in front
of Manjusri Bodhisattva.
Manjusri Bodhisattva says to Lotus Born:
My Dharma son,
I have been waiting for you for a
while.
Are you pleased to visit Wu-Tai
Mountain with these naughty children?
Lotus Born replies:
Manjusri Bodhisattva,
I feel very joyful and comfortable.
I realize that the majesty of Wu-Tai
Mountain is wonderful representation of your great compassion, wisdom and
merits.
Manjusri Bodhisattva says delightfully:
It truly is.
You completely realize the essence,
appearance and good usage of Dharma World.
And, why do you come to me and what do
you need?
Lotus Born replies:
Manjusri Bodhisattva—the highest
supervisory of Wisdom,
I come here because Avalokitesvara
Bodhisattva’s great mercy give me inspiration.
I hope I could learn the concept of
the five primary elements from you.
Manjusri Bodhisattva then rebuts on purpose:
Don’t you think they are not the true answers to
life?
Lotus Born replies wisely:
That’s right!
They are not the true wisdom that can
lead sentient beings be out of the three realms of samsara indeed.
Yet, people are influenced by the five
primary elements while they are still in the three realms of samsara.
For example, the change of the moon
not only influences the tide of the sea and crops but even also influences the
fate of people.
If I can teach them how to make good
use of the five primary elements, they thus can pursue good fortune and shun
the course of calamity.
Manjusri Bodhisattva nods his head
with satisfaction and says:
What a compassionate child!
Then he takes a treasure box out and opens it slowly. A puff of smoke flows out the box, and
in the air there shows the images of the diagram of cosmological scheme, the
Eight Diagrams, the constellation and the relationship between the five primary
elements.
Manjusri Bodhisattva teaches Lotus Born while the box
reflects these images:
Yin and Yang come from the diagram of
cosmological Scheme.
The four astronomical phenomena come
from Yin and Yang.
The Eight Diagrams come from the four
astronomical phenomena.
Water comes from metal, wood comes
from water, fire comes from wood, dirt comes from fire, metal comes from dirt.
Astronomy, geography, astrometry,
divination, Fengshui and the Book of Changes all come from Yin, Yang and the
five primary elements.
If you know these knowledge very well,
you can completely understand how the universe and life work, and then, you can
control some happenings under possible situation and live a good life.
Hearing this, the children are all very happy and give
applause for what Manjusri Bodhisattva teaches. They say:
Wonderful!
Manjusri Bodhisattva closes the treasure box, carefully
hands it to Lotus Born and says:
Despite a small box it is, it collects
entire knowledge about the universal rules —
21 thousands volumes about constellation,
21 thousands volumes about Yin and
Yang,
21 thousands volumes about application
of the knowledge
and 21 thousand volumes about
Fengshui.
Now I have taught you all the 84
thousands volumes.
Lotus Born takes the treasure box from
Manjusri Bodhisattva and then respectfully bows to Manjusri Bodhisattva.
The children say:
We want to learn, too!
We want to learn, too!
Manjusri Bodhisattva smiles and says:
Go learn form Lotus Born!
The children then cluster round Lotus Born and say:
Please teach us soon!
One of the children suggests:
Why don’t we go pavilion outside to learn from Lotus
Born?
Lotus Born is then swarmed to outside.
Before they leave, Manjusri Bodhisattva tells the
children:
Naughty children, you can learn it
from Lotus Born, but never forget that although the knowledge about Yin, Yang
and the five primary elements is profound,
but the Buddha-dharma is just the one
which tells the true answer to life!
The children reply obediently:
Yes, we know that.
They then pull Lotus Born to the pavilion happily.
21、Princess Mandawa
In the palace of Sha-Hua country in India, Princess
Mandawa is sitting with a sad look.
Her mother, Queen Hua-Lian, is standing by her and trying to persuades
her：
Agree the marriage!
Princess Mandawa gives her mother an answer by shaking her
head and an expression of determination.
Queen Hua-Lian heaves a sigh and shows an expression of “can't do anything about it”.
In the meantime, King Jilangjun is entertaining the
ambassadors that come from other countries for proposing to Princess Mandawa
for their own kings. King
Jilangjun proposes a toast to them and says:
You made a long, arduous journey here
and have been gone through hardships!
Everyone proposes a toast back to King Jilangjun and says:
Don't mention it!
Thank you for your kind hospitality.
The ambassador of China says:
Even far away in China, our king also
heard about how beautiful your daughter is.
Please accept our king's proposal for
the valuable legendary pearl's sake!
Then he offers a treasure box with a big legendary pearl
to King Jilangjun.
The ambassador of Nepal says after:
Our king is also sincerely would like
to merry your beautiful daughter.
He sends me specially to offer you the
exotic and unusual treasure as a gift.
The ambassador then presents a box of rare treasures.
The ambassador of neighboring country of India is
unwilling to be outdone and says:
Don't assent his proposal, King
Jilangjun!
Please marry your beautiful daughter
to our king for our good national relationship's sake and for the box of gold's
sake!
He then shows one box of gold to King Jilangjun.
The other ambassadors then say:
We are also in all sincerity!
King Jilangjun is very happy and also feels it's hard to
deal with his daughter's marriage.
He says:
Thank you all for sending my daughter
and me your kings’ great kindness.
I will give you a response as soon as
possible.
The ambassador of neighboring country of India says:
Your Majesty, owing to my country is
one of your neighboring countries, please excuse me for speaking bluntly, We
have waiting for your reply more than one month in your country, would you
please tell us how much longer will we wait?
All the other
ambassadors are also worry about the situation. They say together:
Yes, yes.
Facing such press,
King Jilangjun further feels awkward. He can not help but saying:
Ok, I will
ask my daughter to give all of you a reply.
After saying so, King Jilangjun
calls the maid beside to come to him, and whisper to her to ask her to do
something.
The maid nod and walk
toward the room that prince live.
All the ambassadors
seem to know what’s going
on. They begin to whisper to each
other, discussing what to do next.
King Jilangjun looks
worry and then starts drinking wine.
On the other side, the
maid stops in front of the princess, and say:
Dear princess, king asked me to tell
you that no matter what to do next you have to give him a reply today.
Hearing this, princess
reply firmly:
You go telling my father, if he forces
me to marry, I will either run away or kill myself.
Hearing this, the maid
replys haltingly:
Yes,…..yes.
Then the maid
nervously walks back to the hall.
Seeing this, Queen
Hwa-liang talks to the princess:
My child,
why are you pushing yourself this much?
The princess cries
and then kneels down, saying,
Mother!
No one, including you, really understands what I am thinking.
I am not
interested in the life without any cultivation at all.
All what
I think is: It is so difficult for me to get a life that doesn’t need to worry
about how to make living. What I
want is cultivation because as long as we die we may not have a chance to get a
life again. So, if we do not
cultivate in this life, when can we cultivate again?
Queen Hwa-liang see
her daughter’s decision is so firmly, she
also cries and says:
But, if you against your father’s will, he will be
very angry.
The princess says:
Mother, so
I need more of your help.
My dear
mother, because of the merits I collect in the past, I was born as a princess
that has more freedom than the ordinary people so that I can focus myself on
cultivation.
But, if I
am married, even to be a queen, so what!
In our
country, man is worthy than women, women has to obey all the regulation, it is
impossible for me to dominate my own life, not even to focus myself on
cultivation.
Meanwhile, the maid has walked to the side by the
king. She reports quietly to the
king. The king becomes very angry
when he hears the reply from the princess. But, since there are guest, he can only require himself to
smile and say:
Please keep using the meal. I’ll be back soon.
Seeing the
situation, every ambassador keep whispering to each others, discussing what’s going on.
The king rushes to the
front of the princess angrily and shout at the princess:
Will you
marry or not?
Princess answers:
I will
marry nobody.
What I
want is cultivation.
Hearing the answer,
king become more angry, shouting:
You must marry.
The princess replies:
No, I won’t.
The king shouts again:
You must marry!
The princess still
replies:
No!
Hearing what
princess has replied, the king is so angry to beat the princess. The princess does stay away but cry.
The queen is shocked
by such situation. When she awake, she pull away the king immediately, and says
loudly:
Don’t beat my precious
daughter.
You have
never beaten her before.
The king stops beating
and gradually become steady from the anger.
Seeing the scar on the
body, the princess looks sad but steady.
She takes off the gorgeous scarf and then tears it off. She further picks up a knife beside and
cuts off her long and dark hair. She then kneels down and close her hands,
saying:
I wish I’ll never be born as a noble every life.
After saying this, the
princess picks up the knife again, intending to kill herself.
The queen is so scared
to take away the knife and shouts:
Don’t do that!
The queen can not
stand the whole series of stimulation but cries.
Seeing this, the
princess begin to give in, but she never give up her insist on idea. So, she
explains to her father solemnly:
There are
stories about looking for the dharma that do not care for one’s life, such as the
half of a dharma poem, and scarifying one’s life as the food for the
tiger.
Dear
father!
I don’t want to be a
general woman. What I want is the
life of cultivation.
Seeing what princess
has talked, the king is so angry and can do nothing. Therefore, the king finally gives in and shouts:
Enough!
Then, he steps back to
where he work and does not look back.
While the king has
returned to the reception hall, all the ambassadors see something wrong. They keep silent and expect to hear to
what king will tell them.
The king force himself
to say:
My
daughter decides not to marry anyone.
So, I have
not been a good host.
You all
can go back.
Seeing such change,
all the ambassadors not only don’t know what’s going on, but also come up some
dissatisfied. They begin to give out their opinion. They say,
Why does
thing come to this situation!
At least
you should pick a king among all the countries.
I feel be
fooled.
King Jilangjun see all
the ambassadors can not accept the situation. He further says,
I will return you all the gifts for
marriage.
What king has said
seems there is no chance to change the situation.
All the ambassadors
become more dissatisfied.
The ambassador of the
neighbor of the king says,
King Jilangjun, you really do not give
us the face.
All other ambassadors
are getting angry and says:
Yes, yes!
What princess has done
makes king Jilangjun become unstable.
He replies in bad temper:
I have
declared clear enough.
My
daughter will never get married.
You all
can go back now.
The ambassador of the
Nepal speak angrily:
OK!
We all
have heard what you said that princess will never get married.
But, if
the price has ever married, we will send out the army to beat you for your
breaking of the promise.
All the ambassadors
say together:
Right!
The ambassador of the
Nepal shouts:
Let’s go!
The other ambassadors
can not stand what king has done. They pick up gift angrily and say:
Let’s go!
A happy banquet then
becomes very unhappy. The king
feels so upset and then sit down.