Meton looked at the Buddhist monks and said loudly, "According to the information gathered by the School of Mo, the most prosperous places in the world are Buddhism in India, Tantra in the Tubo Plateau, and Buddhism in the Tang dynasty. I call it Han Buddhism."
In fact, Buddhism was spreading to Johor, Jhancheng, and other countries, but it was not on a large scale and did not attract the attention of the world.
The monks nodded. These three places were indeed the most prosperous places of Buddhism.
"However, Buddhism has been in the Great Tang for six hundred years, but its teachings have yet to be integrated into our Huaxia. All you have done is to translate the Indian scriptures, but none of the scriptures were written by Chinese monks. Every time an Indian monk comes to preach a scripture, it is immediately regarded as a holy scripture and revered as a supreme being." Modun mercilessly criticized the Great Tang's Buddhist doctrine, and even took the initiative to feed it to his mouth.
Master Hui Yuan's face changed. The Shaolin Temple was respected, but in fact, it relied on the title of Patriarch Bodhidharma. Meton could be said to have touched the Buddhist's pain.
"Only when Buddhism takes the initiative to adapt to the Tang dynasty can it gain a firm foothold in the Tang dynasty. Masters, you only see these compound surnames circulating in the Tang dynasty, but you don't know that many of them have quietly disappeared. Whether Buddhism wants to be revived or rejected depends on the choice of Buddhism, "Meton said proudly.
"Buddhism knows what to do," Master Hui Yuan said solemnly. He knew that if Buddhism wanted to integrate into the Tang dynasty, it must adapt the teachings of Buddhism to China. The Indian Buddhist teachings that they had directly taken from the Tang dynasty were obviously not suitable for the situation in the Tang dynasty, which was why there was a disaster.
Meton continued without mercy, "And I think that if Buddhism wants to be revived, it only needs the number of monks and the number of temples. It is simply a big mistake."
"Big mistake!" The monks looked at each other. If Mo Jiazi had said this before, they would have been furious. At this moment, they no longer dared to underestimate Mo Jiazi.
"Yes, is the reason why the Hundred Schools of Thought can be passed down for thousands of years relying on these external objects?" Meton asked.
Master Hui Yuan thought about the revival of Mohism and could not help but think.
"No, of course not. The most precious thing of the Hundred Schools of Thought is our teachings, our scriptures, and our ideas. Even if Mohism takes the opportunity for a thousand years, as long as the Scriptures of Mohism exist, it can still be revived. Buddhism, on the other hand, abandoned the vast Buddhist scriptures of India and used the number of disciples and the number of temples to prove the prosperity of Buddhism, isn't neglecting the fundamentals and chasing the trifles. It is a joke...."
"Chasing the trifles!"
"What a joke!"
The group of eminent monks couldn't help but agree. Among the Hundred Schools of Thought, which school wasn't trying their best to develop their own teachings? Take the School of Mohism for example. Although it had been silent for a thousand years, as long as the Mohist Scripture existed, the School of Mohism would definitely be reborn.
The Buddhists, on the other hand, only had the most number of temples and monks. In the end, they suffered two consecutive disasters. It was no wonder that Moton mocked the Buddhists for neglecting the essentials.
"Seeking scriptures from India?" However, many of the monks could not help but frown.
Meton sighed. "You are in the Tang dynasty, neglecting the fundamentals and chasing the trifles. But I, Mo, respect a monk. He made a great wish and went through a lot of hardships to travel thousands of miles to India to seek the true scriptures."
"Xuanzang!" The monks could not help but be in an uproar. They knew that Meton was talking about Master Xuanzang. For a long time, it was said that Indian monks came to the Tang dynasty, but Xuanzang was a monk of the Tang dynasty who went to India alone to learn scriptures. Moreover, he went alone. One could imagine the difficulties. In addition, they did not know whether he was alive or dead. He could be said to be a negative example among the monks of the Tang dynasty. They all regretted that a future monk of Buddhism had gone astray.
"Xuanzang really went to the holy land of India?" Master Hui Yuan was pleasantly surprised. One had to know that India was the most prosperous holy land of Buddhism. To be able to personally go to India to study scriptures was probably the dream of every monk. However, there had been no news of Xuanzang. Almost all the monks thought that he had failed.
Meton nodded solemnly. "According to the Indian merchants, they once saw a monk of the Tang dynasty in Nalanda Temple, the holy land of Buddhism in India. His depth of Buddhism was unparalleled. He was chosen as one of the Ten Virtues of Sanzang. He was called Master Sanzang."
"Master Sanzang!" The monks could not help but be shocked. They knew that they were all proficient in Buddhism and knew how noble the title of Master Sanzang was.
"That must be Xuanzang. I knew Xuanzang would succeed!" Master Hui Yuan said excitedly. Xuanzang was born in a Buddhist temple in Luoyang. Speaking of which, he had a lot of karma with the Shaolin Temple.
Meton said seriously, "If the Buddhists are willing, the School of Mohism can pass on the message and communicate with Master Xuanzang. Let the Tang dynasty and India exchange their scriptures. Translate all the Buddhist scriptures into Chinese. Then, the Buddhists can carry it forward. This is the best time for the revival of Buddhism in the Tang dynasty. It is also the best time for Buddhism to be assimilated into Chinese and get rid of the prejudice of the Hu sect."
In history, when Master Xuanzang returned, he brought back 657 scriptures. However, it was only a small part of the scriptures in India. With the help of the School of Mohism, the number of scriptures passed to the Tang dynasty would be several times more than that. One could imagine the significance of this to the Buddhists.
The monks' breathing became heavier. The Buddhists did not have the confidence to reject this condition.
"Marquis Mo, aren't you making it sound too easy? According to what this little monk knows, Master Xuanzang went through a lot of hardships and spent a total of four years to reach India. That means that the return trip will take a total of eight years. Too many things can happen in eight years. How are you going to fulfill your promise today?" Bian Ji snorted coldly.
Meton heard this and could not help but laugh. "It seems that my evaluation of the Buddhists was not wrong. Not only did the Buddhists enjoy the fruits of others' labor, but they were also frogs in a well. Two years ago, this kid said that there was more than one path to India. Master Xuanzang chose the most difficult path to fulfill his great ambition."
"More than one path?" Master Fa Lin's eyes flashed. He could not help but look at Meton. He knew that the Indian numerals were learned from India by the ancestors of the School of Mohism.
"That's right. One of the paths was taken by the ancestors of the School of Mohism. It directly passes through the Tubo Plateau and goes to India. Although one has to go through the test of altitude sickness, now that the Tang dynasty has defeated Tuyuhun, and there are special envoys in Tubo, it is much more convenient to pass through Tubo. If there are no accidents, it will only take a few months to travel from Lanzhou to India. Of course, the Buddhists will have to overcome the obstacles themselves," Merton said.
Many monks could not help but be tempted. Tubo was also a place where Buddhism was flourishing. Logically speaking, they should be of the same sect. Moreover, Tubo, which was connected to Tubo, was the birthplace of the Buddha. After crossing Tubo, they would arrive at India. This path could be said to be the most convenient one. The only drawback was the altitude sickness in Tubo.
"Other than the path through the Tubo Plateau, there is also a sea route. According to the merchants of Johor, Johor and other countries are across the sea from India. The Lingnan Road of the Tang dynasty also had many sea merchants who traversed the four seas. They also have sea maps that lead to India. A round trip would take at least one year. Although there are risks, it is advantageous in terms of carrying capacity. It would only take one trip, and it would be enough to transport all the sutras back from India. Aren't these three paths enough for the Buddhists to choose?" Meton made Fa Lin speechless with just a few words.
The Buddhists' minds were suddenly filled with thoughts. After Mo Jiazi's analysis, they were surprised that there were so many options for what they thought was an extremely difficult task. Although these three paths are not easy to take, the Western Regions route is too far away, and the Highlands route is the closest. However, there is the danger of altitude sickness, and the sea route is also dangerous. "
"We Buddhists choose the Highlands route," Master Fa Lin gritted her teeth and said.
The Highlands route seemed risky, but now that the Tang dynasty had conquered Tuyuhun and had an envoy in Tubo, it was already convenient enough. In addition, altitude sickness had been solved during the Western Expedition to Tuyuhun. As long as they adapted for a period of time, altitude sickness could be cured without any medicine. Moreover, the ancestors of the School of Mo could cross the Tubo Plateau. Was the Buddhists inferior to the School of Mo?
"No!" Master Hui Yuan shook his head and said, "The Buddhists need all three paths. Now that Xuanzang is taking the Western Regions route, we cannot miss the Highlands route or the sea route. This is related to the revival of the Buddhists. We cannot afford to lose it."
"Master Hui Yuan is wise!" The monks nodded in agreement.
"Many thanks to Almsgiver Mo for pointing out the way for the revival of the Buddhists," Master Hui Yuan said solemnly.
When Meton heard this, he could not help but smile. He knew that he had achieved his goal today. He said seriously, "I am not doing this for the Buddhists, but for the Tang dynasty. Do you know what Xuanzang was called when he traveled to the West?"
The monks looked at Meton in confusion.
"Tang Sanzang!" Meton said solemnly.
"Every time Master Xuanzang went to a country in India, he would be treated with respect by the kings. The biggest reason was that the Tang dynasty was getting stronger day by day. His Majesty conquered the Eastern Turks in the North and Tuyuhun in the West. Every time he defeated a country, Xuanzang was treated more and more respectfully in other countries. In the future, when the Tang dynasty became stronger, Buddhism would prosper. When people talk about Buddhism, the first thing they would think of was the monks of the Tang dynasty, not the monks of India. Hence, all the countries came to the Tang dynasty to seek the true scriptures instead of India," Meton said excitedly.
"Tang Sanzang!" The monks were deep in thought. Their dissatisfaction with the restriction of the Buddhists immediately disappeared.
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