Chapter 24 Section 1

Mesa is a Tibetan born in Beijing. Since his parents have settled in Beijing for a long time, they have lost contact with their hometown.She has also become a Tibetan who has never been to Tibet, and she has never even been to the west.Her understanding of Tibet's religious culture, local customs and customs mainly comes from her parents' words and books, as well as her undergraduate and postgraduate experience at Minzu University of China.Now she has come to Lanzhou, the capital of Gansu Province. Looking at the cityscape with towering buildings and neon lights outside the car window, she is surprised again and again: "It's not bad, it's much better than I imagined." The night scene is like a basin of water.The gloomy sky suddenly began to rain.

After several days of running around, I am already very tired.Zhimei hopes to find a hotel to sleep well.Mesa was unwilling, saying that he could not rest until he had truly opened the "Seven Tara Gate" and obtained the "last terma".Prince Chambord said: "I am familiar with the road here. I will drive, and you can rest in the car." He filled up the gas for the Wrangler, and went to a day and night ramen restaurant to let everyone have a full meal. In silence, the car hit the road. As soon as the Wrangler entered the Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, he shook off the gloom in the sky, and it was bright and bright all the way.Near the source, the Daxia River embraces the county seat of Xiahe County with a majestic meander.At the west end of the county seat, in the bird's-eye view of Longshan and Fengling, in the right-handed conch-like bend of the Daxia River, there is the Tushitian Temple, one of the six major monasteries of the Gelug Sect of Tibetan Buddhism, commonly known as the Yellow Sect. It is called Labrang Monastery or Tashi Banner.It is a forest of merits and virtues that have been auspicious for a hundred generations, shining verdantly on the vast land of Anda.

Labrang Monastery was first built in 1709 AD, in the forty-eighth year of Kangxi, the first master Jamyang was invited by Belecha Khan Danjin, the former head of the Heshuote tribe of Qinghai Mongolia, to return to his hometown to spread the law and build the temple, and the original temple was established. .Afterwards, it was expanded several times, and developed into the current Gannan religious city with six Dhacangs (colleges), 48 Buddhist halls and Nangqian (living Buddha's residence), and more than 500 monasteries. As soon as Prince Chambord saw the monastery, he said enthusiastically: "Tibetan Buddhism takes Lhasa as the center, extends westward to Xinjiang, southward to the foothills of the Himalayas, eastward to the Dadu River Basin and Western Sichuan Plateau, and northward to the The whole of Mongolia. The location of the Labrang Monastery is on the intersection of the eastern extension area and the northern extension area. It plays the role of a cultural hub and a religious beacon. If there is no Labrang Monastery, the entire Hexi Corridor, the middle reaches of the Yellow River, Inner Mongolia, and Outer Mongolia The religious connection between Mongolia and Gannan, western Sichuan, eastern Tibet, and southern Tibet will be very difficult. It can be said that Labrang Monastery just filled the gap at the junction and bridged a very obvious religious fault zone, so that Tibetan Buddhism has It has a wider range of transmission than Tibet itself.”

Mesa next to him kept nodding his head and sighed, "I've been a Tibetan and Tibetology researcher for nothing. I haven't been to such an important place. It's too late." Prince Chambord said: "It's not too late, you came just in time, because I am with you." Mesa said: "Self-righteous. With Zhimei, there is not much without you, and there is not much without you." Prince Chambord said: "Be proud, Zhimei, you talk less, work hard, and hide your secrets. Most women like you." Zhimei honked the horn: "Mesa is not a majority of women, Mesa is just one."

Prince Chambord said: "Wrong, Mesa has at least two, one in your eyes and one in my eyes." Mesa punched Prince Chambord on the shoulder. The herdsmen passed through the monastery area and stopped at the square.The three of them came down, bought tickets at the ticket office, and were about to enter the souvenir shop when a pretty girl came and stopped Prince Chambord. "I'm Yang Jin, the tour guide. Someone asked me to receive you." Prince Chambord asked in surprise: "Who? I didn't entrust anyone." "Entrusted, you really entrusted, entrusted my grandma."

Prince Chambord said: "Impossible, absolutely impossible." "Since it's impossible, why should I wait for you here?" Prince Chambord said, "That's your business. I've been to this place four or five times. I don't need a guide." Yang Jin said: "This time is different, the Labrang Monastery has just been renovated." Prince Chambord frowned and thought: Someone is already waiting for him at this place, who is it?He said to Mesa, "You talk to this girl first." He didn't want the strange girl to know what he was going to inquire about, so he walked into the souvenir shop alone.Generally speaking, souvenir shops have pocket sculptures of famous Buddha statues in this temple, and the salesperson should also know which sculpture comes from which temple.He quickly browsed large and small bronze Buddhas, porcelain Buddhas and wooden Buddhas in front of the counter, and suddenly said, "Bring me a statue of Rigzin Wangmo."

The salesman was stunned for a moment and said, "The statue of Rinzeng Wangmo? Is it a Bodhisattva? I've never heard of it." Prince Chambord comforted himself: I have never heard of it, but not having heard of it does not mean not having it.Labrang Monastery is huge, with tens of thousands of various Buddha statues, who remembers it.He turned and walked out of the souvenir shop, deliberately ignoring Yang Jin, beckoning to Mesa and Zhimei, and walking towards the nearest Wensi College.After walking a few steps, I felt that the air became hard and tense, and the peace and harmony of Buddha's Heaven and Pure Land were disappearing little by little.He stopped and turned his head abruptly.

Twenty paces away, the man with the sunken nose and high cheekbones put a tall brown hat with a wide brim on his head, turned around and hid himself in the crowd of tourists. Skeleton Killer?It has already followed. Behind the Skeleton Killer is the mysterious apostolic organization "The Palace of the Blood Curse of the Invisible Man". Obviously, those invisible and intangible secret passages are at work, fully grasping his whereabouts.Prince Chambord shuddered, realizing that the investigation of Labrang Monastery must be completed in the shortest possible time, so he loudly urged Mesa and Zhimei to leave quickly.He went over and said to Yang Jin, "We really don't need a reception, you'd better go about your business."

Yang Jin smiled faintly: "I'm not busy, my task is to receive you." Prince Chambord had no choice but to whisper to Mesa: "You and Zhimei hold her back, don't let her get too close to me, and don't let her know our purpose until we find out her true identity." Pass the front courtyard, step on the steps of the main hall, lower your head and quickly ask a middle-aged lama sitting by the door: "Is there a statue of Rinzeng Wangmo here?" "A statue of Rinzeng Wangmo?" The middle-aged lama shook his head, "I don't know what you're talking about, so go find it yourself."

Prince Chambord asked what else to ask, but seeing Yang Jin abandoning Mesa and walking towards him, he left quickly. Yang Jin caught up with him and said, "This is Wensi College, also known as Tiesanglangwa Dracang or Huijue Temple." Prince Chambord looked at the plaque of "Huijue Temple" bestowed by Emperor Qianlong in the high hanging hall and said, "Who doesn't know this?" Yang Jin also said: "Wensi College is the Xianzong College of Labrang Monastery. It is a famous and widely-connected chanting dojo, which can accommodate four thousand lamas at the same time. When they play together, the thick wooden door They will all be blown and squeaked."

Wherever he went, wherever Yang Jin talked, Prince Chambord quickened his pace in annoyance. Mesa and Zhimei deliberately stayed behind, and asked a lama who was adding oil and lighting a lamp in a low voice: "Do you know where the statue of Rinzeng Wangmo is?" No result, they went to ask other lamas.The lamas became more and more confused, and instead asked Mesa and Zhimei: What is the statue of Rinzeng Wangmo?It seems that the "Statue of Rinzeng Wangmo" has nothing to do with Tibetan Buddhism. Prince Chambord walked quickly, looking at the famous thick pillars and magnificent banners in the main hall, and stopped for a few seconds in front of the golden throne of the master of the temple, Master Jamyang, and the main Dharma platform of the temple. There are statues of Sakyamuni, Tsongkhapa, Ershengliuzhuangyan and Jiamuyang masters of all generations.Escorted by a dazzling array of embroidered Buddha statues, they walked out of Wensi College and walked towards a tall and magnificent hall.Glancing at the plaque "Shouxi Temple" bestowed by Emperor Jiaqing of the Qing Dynasty, he stepped in. Shouxi Temple is the tallest building in Labrang Monastery. The palace-like square pavilion on the top of the six floors is covered with gilt copper tiles, decorated with gilt copper lions, copper dragons, copper vases, copper Dharma wheels, and copper Ruyi.There is a shocking gilt bronze statue of Maitreya in the hall, and on both sides are gilt bronze statues of the Eight Great Bodhisattvas. Prince Chambord looked here and there, turned his head and didn't see Yang Jin, so he walked towards an old lama, bowed respectfully and said, "Master, I want to ask something, Rinzeng..." Suddenly he found Yang Jin coming from behind a pillar. Flashed out, quickly shut up, turned and walked away. Yang Jin came over and said, "Maybe I know what you want to know." Prince Chambord said: "There is no need to ask. Isn't it just to inquire about Buddha statues when you come to the temple?" Yang Jin said: "Labrang Monastery is a large-scale plastic arts museum. There are more than 29,000 Buddha statues preserved in the temple. Which Buddha statue do you ask?" "I inquire about the largest Buddha statue." "The largest Buddha statue is a lion roaring at the Buddha, and you can't see the end at a glance." "Where's the youngest?" "The smallest Buddha statue is a small woodcarved Buddha that is no taller than an inch and less than two light weights on the thousand Buddha tree - two multicolored lotus stands, a pair of large gold-plated vases, two fine copper linden trees, each with five Hundred leaves, one Buddha stands on each leaf, and there are a thousand Buddhas in total, which is called the Thousand Buddha Tree. It is a rare treasure, and it is also a wonderful work of Tibetan Buddhism." Prince Chambord wanted to ask more questions, when he saw the skeleton killer wearing a brown tall hat hastily walked into the Shousi Temple.He hid on the side of the pillar, bypassing the Skeleton Killer's line of sight, walked out quickly, and went straight to the Sakyamuni Buddha Hall not far away. He remembered the allusion of "seven-step lotus".Sakyamuni was able to walk as soon as he was born. He walked seven steps, and a lotus flower bloomed at each step, so the lotus flower symbolized the birth of Buddha.According to the Buddhist scriptures, the seven steps taken by Sakyamuni are the embodiment of the Dharma body of the seven goddesses.If the seven goddesses are Seven Tara, then the statue of Renzin Wangmo who "guards the gate of Seven Tara" has something to do with Sakyamuni?He felt that it was very likely that he would find the answer in the temple of Shakyamuni. The shape of the Sakyamuni Hall resembles the Jokhang Temple in Lhasa, with a three-story high roof and a roof of distilled gold and copper tiles.There are two statues of Sakyamuni Buddha in the hall, one is bronze and the other is gold.Prince Chambord knew that the Golden Sakyamuni was brought back from India by Master Jingming in the eighth century. It was first enshrined by Tsongkhapa, the founder of the Gelug Sect, and then it was transferred to almost all the great monasteries of the Gelug Sect in Tibet. Finally, it was welcomed by the first master Jamyang Please go to Labrang Monastery as the treasure of the town temple. Seeing that Yang Jin was not around, Prince Chambord hurriedly asked a young lama who was ringing the Dharma bell and flipping through the scriptures: "Do you know where the statue of Rinzeng Wangmo is?" "Ringzin Wangmo? Are you asking a girl?" "No, it's a statue." "A statue? Is it the statue of the Buddha mother? Then I don't know." His heart brightened: "By the way, Rigzin Wangmo must be a female god and Buddha. Yang Jin followed.Prince Chambord left the young lama, walked to the front of the golden Shakya, bowed and bowed, looked carefully, saw nothing, turned and walked away.As soon as he arrived at the door, he met the skeleton killer face to face. Prince Chambord stood three meters away and stared at the other party, seeing that he didn't have a murder weapon in his hand, he was slightly relieved.The two faced each other, and the exchange of eyes was like the collision of fire and ice. In the skeleton killer, it was an unconcealable hatred, and in Prince Chambord, it was an uncontrollable fear. "Why, why are you forcing me like this?" Skeleton Killer smiled coldly: "Ask knowingly." Prince Chambord tentatively asked: "If I give up the 'Gate of Seven Tara', will you still kill me?" "It's too late, you can't close the door that's already open." "The 'Seven Tara Gate' has not really opened yet." "The Temple of the Invisible Blood Curse doesn't think so." "It's the 'Hall of the Invisible Man's Blood Curse' again, where is it?" "Be with you forever." The Skeleton Killer reached into his pocket and swished out the exquisitely carved skull knife.Prince Chambord trembled all over, but was grabbed by the shoulder of his coat by the skeleton killer when he wanted to escape.Yang Jin came over suddenly, inserted between Prince Chambord and the Skeleton Killer, and took Prince Chambord's arm.The skeleton killer let go of Prince Chambord, brushed past Yang Jin, and retracted the gleaming skeleton knife with a snap. Prince Chambord and Yang Jin stepped out of the Sakyamuni Hall, and when they looked back, the skeleton killer had already knelt down in front of the Buddha statue and kowtowed reverently. Yang Jin said, "Do you know this person?" Prince Chambord said: "I don't know, you seem to know?" He thought, obviously this girl has also seen the skeleton knife just now, and she also knows what the skeleton killer wants to do. I have never met her before, why did she save me? Yang Jin said: "I have seen it, in a dream." Prince Chambord shook his head with a wry smile, left Yang Jin holding his hand, and walked south. Yang Jin caught up with him: "I really saw you in my dream, I also dreamed of you." Prince Chambord stopped and stared at her: "What on earth are you doing?" "I'm here to receive you. I'm a tour guide just to wait for you every day." "Don't say that to me. I've seen a lot of tour guides who are soliciting customers. But I still like you. If we don't have a girl, I will let you stay with me all day." , took out a hundred yuan and handed it to the girl.The girl shook her head.Another hundred, still shaking his head.He added another hundred, stuffed it into the girl's hand and said, "Thank you for saving me just now." Yang Jin looked aggrieved: "This is not what I want." However, she still followed the rules of the monastery and did not return the unsatisfactory alms to the benefactor.This disappointed Prince Chambord a little: If she was really pure enough not to care about money at all, then I would fall in love with her.He walked away. Yang Jin followed, and still said in the friendly tone of a tour guide: "In front is the White Tara Buddha Hall." Prince Chambord was stunned: How could I forget that there is a White Tara Buddha Hall in Labrang Monastery. Still disappointed, there is no Rinzeng Wangmo Buddha statue in the White Tara Buddha Hall, and the White Tara statue here has nothing to do with the "Seven Tara Gate".He couldn't help asking: "Where are there female gods and Buddhas in Labrang Monastery?" Yang Jin said: "There are roughly four series of goddesses in Tibetan Buddhism, the Dolma series, the Dakini series, the Dharma protector series, and the female demon series, which basically belong to Tantra. There are five Tantric schools in Labrang Monastery, among which There are twenty-one Tara Buddhas enshrined in the Tantra Upper School." Not far from here is the Continuation School.Prince Chambord walked over and paid homage to the Eight Great Medicine Buddhas, the Sixteen Arhats, the Thirty-five Buddhas of Repentance, the One Thousand Bronze Buddhas of Amitayus, and finally came to the twenty-one Tara Buddha statues at the fastest speed.Twenty-one Tara Buddhas are transformed from the eyes of Avalokitesvara. In addition to the common white Tara and green Tara, there are red Tara, yellow Tara, black Tara, purple Tara, blue Tara, Flower Tara and so on.Under the light of butter lamps, the beautiful Tara, with their graceful demeanors that are friendly to all people, and enchanting in the hazy smoke, express the feelings of the Buddha kingdom and the gods towards sentient beings in a gentle and lovely way. Prince Chambord saw that Yang Jin was standing at the door and did not come, so he hurriedly asked the lama who kept the lamp, which Tara was named Rinzeng Wangmo.The answer was silence, as if the lama was simply unwilling to pay attention to such inexplicable questions. He looked down one by one, hoping to see the trace of the "Gate of Seven Tara" in the arms of a certain one, and soon realized that it was a waste of time, and was about to walk away when Mesa and Zhimei walked in. Mesa and Zhimei told Prince Chambord that they had just gone to the Kalachakra College, Hevajra College, Tantra College and Medical College of the Tantric Department, but they did not find out about the statue of Rinzen Wangmo. "It looks like we're thinking the wrong way," Mesa said. Prince Chambord said, "Why don't we go to Gongtang Pagoda?" Yang Jin came over and said, "Visiting Labrang Monastery and Gongtang Pagoda is a must." They left the continuation school, bypassed the Langcang Palace and the Gongtang Palace, and walked towards the Gongtang Pagoda.