Chapter 44 Su Zhai

Buddhists are undoubtedly ancient vegetarians.The vegetarian food in the temple has become an otherworldly flavor.To this day, besides burning incense and worshiping gods, tasting vegetarian meals in ancient temples has become a icing on the cake homework.There have long been vegetarian dishes in the secular world that look like those made by Zhaifan, but when did the "canteen" run by the temple begin to "open to the outside world"?It is estimated that it existed in the Tang and Song Dynasties, and it has something to do with the great prosperity of vegetarianism at that time. "Qing Barnyard Banknotes" has a more precise record of its commercial development: "The vegetarian dishes in the temples were famous at the time, the Fayuan Temple in the capital, the Dinghui Temple in Zhenjiang, the Baiyun Temple in Shanghai, and the Yanxia Cave in Hangzhou. For example, the table price in Yanxia Cave is "fifty silver coins for the top one". I don't know what dishes are available, but the price already makes people feel extravagant.Even so, there are still many customers who come here attracted by the name—are they pursuing the ethereal and clear realm, or are they for comparison with the fireworks in the world?According to Zhu Wei's judgment in "Testing Food": "When eating vegetarian dishes, generally cold side dishes are served first, such as cucumbers, bamboo shoots, spinach, chuanxiong, and radish. Then big dishes, mushroom gluten, shiitake mushrooms Caixin and assorted tofu are indispensable. To be more particular, there is also a Luohan Quanzhai, which is stewed in a casserole with hair vegetables, mushrooms, winter bamboo shoots, vegetarian chicken, fresh mushrooms, golden needles, fungus, cooked chestnuts, ginkgo, cauliflower, carrots, etc. Make one pot, and the flavors are extremely rich." What he cites is just a popular menu, but its exquisiteness can be seen, and it is not inferior to the fish feast in the world.

What's more interesting is that many vegetarian dishes simply match fish and meat, such as vegetarian chicken, vegetarian duck, vegetarian fish, and vegetarian ham. They are cooked in vegetable oil, imitating only the form, but in fact they are all replaced by tofu, gluten, yuba or other soy products.Sometimes it is even impossible to distinguish by sight, and you must taste it yourself to know its authenticity.Although it is a counterfeit, it has a different flavor than the real thing-it is delicious without feeling cheated.I ate such a table at Lingyin Temple in Hangzhou, and I was amazed: I not only admired its craftsmanship, but also envied its imagination.But most of such excellent banquets have the nature of performing for the audience. I don't think monks will eat such things every day-the essence of life is simple after all.In comparison, I am even more unforgettable about the plain noodles of Jiming Temple in Nanjing (it is said to be from the nun's true biography), which are only sprinkled with chopped green onion and soy sauce, without a little bit of oil, which can reflect the pure heart and asceticism of the epiphany...

Go to Wutai Mountain together, and have a fast meal after finishing the ritual. The "dining hall" is in the backyard of the Buddha Hall. There is no signboard, and the walls are empty. The area is equivalent to a small auditorium. There are nothing but a dozen rows of long tables and chairs—so it looks like a classroom in a private university.Each row can seat 20 people, with solemn expressions, not like eating, but like listening to a lecture.The host briefly explained the requirements, that is, no talking is allowed, and everything is expressed with actions. For example, if you need more food, you should hold out an empty bowl, use chopsticks to draw in the bowl, and so on.There is a rice bowl and a vegetable bowl in front of each person. First, a monk walked by with a rice bucket, serving rice for everyone one after another, and then a monk with a vegetable bucket served food—there was only one dish, which was a Shanxi-style vegetarian stew. , It is made of potato cubes, tomatoes, vermicelli, tofu, and cabbage.What impressed me deeply was that when the monk served me rice, he accidentally spilled rice grains on the table, and immediately reached out and picked them up and chewed them in his mouth.Many people noticed this situation, so everyone ate the fast meal silently, not daring to leave a grain of rice in the bowl.Gourmets may not appreciate such a simple vegetarian diet.But it is conceivable that this is the daily food of the monks.We eat what the monks eat, there is no difference - in Wutai Mountain, I can be regarded as a real vegetarian meal.Perhaps a real vegetarian meal should have such a content and such a mood: one sack of food, one scoop of drink, not happy with things, not sad with oneself... Diners who come here with a curiosity-seeking mentality will be disappointed.It's only their own fault: there is nothing mysterious about the vegetarian food—the mystery is just everyone's mood during the meal.Simplicity is always closer to reality than gorgeousness.