Rubber tree’s act of charity
In 1994, I still lived in a bungalow with a single courtyard. It’s the Mid-Autumn Festival, and the flowers and plants in the courtyard are still lush.
The first room on the left after entering the door is my study and reception room. There is a large rubber tree placed by the window, and a pot of delicate asparagus is placed on the flower stand to the right of the desk inside the window.
This afternoon, my son, who was in middle school, had no classes. After lunch, he went to the study room to do his homework. And I was reading scriptures in my bedroom, waiting for the arrival of the old monk Miaofa.
At about four o’clock, the doorbell rang, and I went out to welcome the old monk Miaofa and his waiter into the study. The 16-year-old son put his hands together and asked the Master, then continued to do his homework.
After sitting down, the old monk Miaofa asked his son: “Do your feet smell bad?”
The son blushed and said, “My feet have been smelly since I was 12 or 13 years old. No matter how much I wash them, it doesn’t work. Just now my dad asked me to open the door to ventilate half an hour in advance. Can you still smell the smell? I’m so sorry. I’ll go to the room over there.”
Master smiled and stopped and said, “I didn’t smell any bad smell. Just now you bowed to me, and all the plants in your house ran in to bow to me. This pot of asparagus in your house told you that you You spent the whole afternoon just hanging around here, or playing with gadgets, and didn’t do much homework. Besides, your feet smell so bad that they almost died of the smell.” Hearing what the old monk said, the son was so shocked that his face became even brighter. He turned red and looked at me in embarrassment, maybe because he was afraid that I would scold him.
I smiled and said to the master: “This child has been like this since he was in elementary school. During the parent-teacher meeting at school, the teacher said that he sat well in class and seemed to be listening attentively, but he couldn’t hear me when I called him three times. How can I educate him? He can’t change it either. Fortunately, my grades are so-so and passable. But this foot is so bad that it’s so bad, what can I do?”
While I was speaking, Master kept his eyes slightly closed. Later, he said: “Your rubber tree just comforted Asparagus bamboo and said that it can help it. Let me tell you, use its two yellow leaves to process it ‘like this’ (forgive me for not being able to explain in detail, To prevent the rubber tree from suffering), just let me use it once.”
Although it is said in the Ksitigarbha Sutra that flowers, plants and trees all have spiritual consciousness, I am still curious to hear that plants can talk.
“In what form do the rubber trees and asparagus trees you see speak to you?”
“The rubber tree is the image of an adult wearing green ancient clothes, and the asparagus tree is also wearing a green shirt, but it is thin and delicate, and looks like a boy with a boy’s scarf on its head. The flowers in your yard are mostly girls, with bright clothes. Or maybe this is the case. It’s all an illusion, just a kind of information transmission. This is the mystery of nature. The Buddha said that “all appearances are false.” The “Heart Sutra” says that “form is empty, empty is color, and the same is true for feelings, thoughts, and consciousness.” So there is no need to Mutually.”
I still asked persistently: “Since the plant has spiritual consciousness, if I cut off two of its leaves, won’t it also feel pain?”
“Yes, the rubber tree asked me to tell you just now. After you cut off two leaves, please use a little soil in the flower pot to apply on the wound to relieve the pain. In addition, it has followed you to chant sutras and learn Buddhism. Give it another When wiping the back of the leaves, do not add white wine to the water. It must also observe the precepts. It gave up two leaves to help asparagus, which is a Buddhist spirit of giving. In addition, it also wants to repay you for your careful care of it. , so I am willing to accept the pain.”
After hearing this, I was very moved and became even more convinced that this information was correct. It was indeed my friend who told me that rubber trees like to “drink” and taught me that when I wipe the leaves of the rubber tree every week, adding some white wine to the water will make it grow more vigorously. I also understand why the Buddha said: “Pure bhikkhus and Bodhisattvas, walking on the wrong road, do not step on the growing grass, but how can they pluck it with their hands? How can they be so compassionate that they take all living beings and feed them with their flesh and blood?”
That night, after being treated according to the “such and such” method, my son’s feet no longer smelled at all. This mythical thing really happened in my home, which also reminded me of Li Shizhen, Sun Simiao and other miracle doctors. They were able to understand the medicinal properties of so many Chinese herbal medicines and wrote “Compendium of Materia Medica” and “Qian Jin Prescription”. To come up with a good way to save the world, the Bodhisattva must come again, so that he can have unfathomable wisdom, communicate with the herbs, and benefit mankind. Since then, my family and I have never intentionally harmed any plants, and we can’t even bear to trample on the grass on the roadside.
Today, mankind has entered the 21st century, and the concept of “maintaining ecological balance and building a green home together” has become more and more popular. However, I feel that the earliest environmental defender in the world is probably none other than our teacher, Gautama Buddha. “Pure bhikkhus and bodhisattvas, walking on the wrong road, do not step on the grass, but how can they pull it out with their hands? How can they be so compassionate that they take all living beings and feed them with their flesh and blood.” These thousands of words will be followed by the Buddhist scriptures that carry them. Together they will last forever, always shining with the light of wisdom.
