The words struck Fuxia’s ears like a clap of heavenly thunder. Countless memories surged up in his mind, and many of his earlier doubts slowly became clear.
Fuxia bellowed, "Then why are you so stubborn?!"
"Stubborn?" Kongheng smiled, shook his head, and said softly, "The next day, when I returned to the temple, I had completely forgotten every word spoken by those few Mahas. I opened the scriptures to read, but every volume blurred before my eyes. The characters leaped from the pages one after another, streaming away toward Zhao and Yan State.
"When I turned to look back, I saw the entire courtyard filled with characters, like refugees fleeing famine hand in hand. A sea of words flowed down the mountainside, vanishing into the boundless horizon. That very night, every scripture in my Liao River Temple turned into blank paper."
His words slowly hung in the air, and a look of understanding crossed Li Ximing’s face. Kongheng let out a couple of self-deprecatory laughs and replied, "That is why I am least skilled in debating the Dao."
Fuxia finally fell silent, while Kongheng spoke in a gentle tone, "I was only eighteen that year. I had just finished reading manuals on cultivation methods and collections of intriguing tales. I was preparing to read the scriptures, but from that moment on, I had no books left to read.
"Senior, the cultivators of the Seven Daos all long for the Dharma of ancient times, when one could often ascend to the seat of the Revered One. They come to me seeking the true scripture, but I have nothing to give you. I have never read such things. In all my cultivation until now, I have relied only on my own heart to comprehend."
A look of dawning realization crossed Fuxia’s face. At last, he understood why Kongheng so often met his rebuttals with silence. His voice lowered slightly as he said, "The ancient scriptures are not suited to the Dao of today!"
"Indeed." Kongheng said gently, "I have read the scriptures of all Seven Daos. Great Desire is boundless. It talks about first gaining, then losing in pursuit of solemnity. Wrath manifests form, turning evil to good and shaping the treasured image. Dharma strives for realms, spreading the Buddhist Dao throughout the present world and delivering all beings.
"Discipline is harsh and cold, knowing the sea of suffering and thus providing a boat to cross. Virtuous clarifies the heart, turning joy, anger, sorrow, and desire into the pursuit of nothing from something. Compassion dwells within, nurturing all beings, and all beings in turn nurture me. Emptiness devotes itself wholly, transcending self-attachment in pursuit of liberation..."
Kongheng said softly, "You all take people into the Pure Land. Senior, it’s not that I do not know the fundamental Dharma. I have also entered the Pure Land. Let us set aside for now whether the people’s joy there is genuine or not.
"But your esteemed Dao uses the suffering of the mundane world and the joy of the Pure Land to instruct the masses and make them forget worldly attachments in pursuit of a solemn and tranquil state of emptiness. Has that truly been achieved? Has there ever been a great master of divine abilities emerging from the Mahas' Pure Land? Is divine power in the Pure Land truly the Mahas' personal possession, or is it liberation free from the pull of suffering and joy?"
For the first time, Kongheng grew solemn. There was no anger on his face and no rebuke, there was only deep thought and concern. His fair face, bathed in the glow of five-colored light, shone with boundless radiance.
He said, "None... Senior, none at all."
Fuxia stared at him in disbelief. The old monk revealed a thoughtful expression for the first time. However, the moment that expression appeared, Fuxia’s entire aura faltered for an instant.
He said coldly, "There are also accomplished ones in the Pure Land, such as cultivators like Du'en and Liubai... you..."
Kongheng shook his head and said softly, "Have you ever seen them?"
Fuxia’s eyes lit up as he seized on those words and said in a deep voice, "Just because I haven’t seen them means they don’t exist?"
"You have seen them." Kongheng gave him no chance to argue and replied softly. Seeing Fuxia stunned, he lightly pointed toward the sky and said with a smile, "Liubai is right up there."
At that moment, Fuxia had already forgotten all their quarrels. He slowly raised his head, trembling. The six-armed Vajra stood majestic and solemn, its six arms pressing firmly down upon the radiant pass.
"You... impossible! Don’t think to deceive me with your wicked words!" shouted Fuxia.
Kongheng slowly shook his head, his voice very soft as he said, "This is the solemn, treasured form. This is the pure realm. This is the one in the Pure Land who has forgotten both self and other. When I was eighteen, he came to aid me from the Wrathful Manifestation, and to this day, he has not spoken a single word."
Fuxia did not know how to respond. He was lost and at a loss for what to do. Kongheng said softly, "I know what senior brother means. The Wrathful Subduer of the Four Demon Emperors has fallen, and the Wrathful Dao lineage is in decline. He wants me to give rise to wrath in my heart and devote myself wholly to the Wrathful Manifestation, so as to accomplish the Maha's will and restore the Dao lineage. Am I right?"
Fuxia was silent for a moment, then replied, "It is."
Kongheng’s expression was gentle, the radiance on his face growing ever brighter, as he said pleasantly, "That is the crux of the problem. You believe the Wrathful Manifestation is good, so you want me to become the Wrathful Manifestation, and thus you came to take me. You believe all living beings suffer, so you wish to deliver them all and create a blissful Pure Land. First, you let them endure all the pain and hardship, then you place them all within it, so they will be filled with gratitude."
He asked, "You stand above, seeking to deliver all living beings, but have they ever wished to be delivered by you?"
"Why wouldn’t they want it?!" Fuxia’s expression changed, and he said in a deep voice, "The world is so full of suffering, and the Pure Land so full of joy. Seize any commoner at random in Yan and Zhao State, and every one of them yearns to enter the Pure Land with all their heart !"
Kongheng said softly, "That is because life in this world is too bitter, and they seek only pleasure. But boundless peace, boundless purity, and boundless stability in the form of a solemn, treasured image is not what the common people desire. They suffer the pains of the seven emotions, yet they also enjoy the pleasures of the seven emotions. Boundless solemn form is nothing more than a boundless image of death. It is only when the suffering grows so great they wish to die, when they would rather have no joy at all, that they are willing to enter the Pure Land.
"You think everyone wishes to enter the Pure Land, but in truth, they are all tormented until they have no choice but to wish for it."
Fuxia rebuked, "Nonsense! Who would not want a solemn, treasured form? Those who do not simply lack the realm to attain it!"
Kongheng rose to his feet, speaking in a gentle tone, "A solemn, treasured form, boundless in its utmost purity, is still but a single form. No matter what it encounters, it responds in exactly the same way, as it is the same person. If ten thousand people achieve it, in truth it is just one person occupying ten thousand bodies. Senior Fuxia, that is not how you cultivate to become the Revered One.
"You act in the name of cultivating to become the Revered One, using vast lands of joy to deceive millions and intending to use puppets of solemn form to seize all their souls! Meanwhile, you keep your own seven emotions and six desires, sitting high above, watching the world with a smile and calling it foolish!
"Some even more foolishly end up using that solemn form to occupy themselves in the end! Millions reduced to one boundless peace, one boundless purity, one boundless and unshakable image of death!"
Fuxia looked at him heavily, his voice hoarse, and said, "Is this what the ancient Buddha taught?"
Kongheng looked at him quietly and said gently, "This is what I say."
The scorching blaze of departing fire had already climbed up his body as Kongheng’s words hung in the air. Li Ximing’s urging voice sounded again and again, and Fuxia’s face suddenly went blank.
"In that case, Kongheng, why not become a Maha yourself?" Fuxia's old face was filled with sincerity. Tears rolled down his cheeks as he begged, "If all Seven Daos are wrong, then you, Kongheng, could ascend as Maha, teach the world the way to infinite liberation, turn this filthy world on its head, and create the foremost Pure Land! My lord, return to the North Demon-Subduing Temple! We are willing to serve at your command!"