It is said that Xuanzang, the holy monk of the Tang Dynasty, bid farewell to his homeland with tears and traveled westward, determined to retrieve the true scriptures from Tianzhu, the kingdom of Buddha, and save all sentient beings in the world. This is his destiny in this life, his fate with Buddhism.
For this grand mission, he prepared for twenty-six years. Since he repeatedly applied to Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty to travel west to seek legal advice but was not allowed, Xuanzang decided to "breach the charter and go to Tianzhu privately."
Therefore, it invisibly added great difficulties and obstacles to his journey westward to seek Dharma. Not only was he unable to obtain personnel, material, political and other support from the Tang Dynasty, he also had to avoid the Tang Dynasty. of manhunt. However, Xuanzang, who was determined to seek Buddhism, was not deterred by difficulties. He resolutely embarked on the road to the west.
With the help of Buddhist believers, Xuanzang successfully left the country and entered the vast Gobi. He trudged forward along the Silk Road that led to merchants from Persia and Tianzhu. The future was full of crises and life and death were uncertain. However, Xuanzang, who had already put life and death aside, moved forward firmly without hesitation.
On the way, a merchant and believer who often traveled between Persia and the Tang Dynasty worshiped Xuanzang as his teacher, promised to sponsor Xuanzang, and accompanied Xuanzang on his journey to the west to obtain Buddhist scriptures. However, he soon regretted it and planned to kill Xuanzang at night to silence him. Fortunately, his actions were discovered by Xuanzang. Under Xuanzang's sincere persuasion, he finally gave up the idea of ??killing Xuanzang, but he took away the donated materials.
The shocked Master Xuanzang gathered his spirits and continued on his way. Because there was no guide and there were sandstorms in the desert, Xuanzang soon got lost. He walked around but couldn't find the right path, and always returned to the same place as he walked. To make matters worse, the water in his water bladder drained out, and when he found it, there was only half a cup of water left. Don’t know where the water source is ahead? There was no food to replenish his strength, and the hot weather consumed too much energy. Soon, Master Xuanzang fell into a trance. He was in a daze. Under the guidance of the horse, he moved mechanically step by step. Taking heavy steps.
In order to prevent himself from losing consciousness, Master Xuanzang kept reciting Buddhist teachings. When he couldn't hold on any longer, he wet his lips with water.
I just walked and walked like this. I don’t know how long I walked, and I didn’t know which direction I was going. The water in the water bag had already been drained. It was all gone. If the water source is not discovered, our Master Xuanzang will have no choice but to pass away regretfully, helplessly and unwillingly.
Suddenly, Master Xuanzang’s feet went weak, and he lost his balance and rolled down the sand dune. This fall caused Master Xuanzang to completely lose consciousness.
When our Master Xuanzang woke up again, the stars in the sky were shining brightly on the desert, the breeze was blowing, and he felt the rare coolness. Everything in front of me was so quiet and peaceful, with a different kind of style and scenery. I never imagined that the desert could be so beautiful.
Master Xuanzang’s first reaction was that he was in the Western Paradise, but the physical pain brought him back to reality. He thought everything he saw was just a mirage, because he saw The surface of the lake, the sparkling surface of the lake, the surface of the lake with swaying water plants. Just when Master Xuanzang's heart was sinking, he saw his horse, his only constant companion on the journey, snoring happily and immersed in the happy time of grazing. . As the horse swung, Master Xuanzang felt the coolness of a few drops of water. What he saw with his eyes might be fake, but the feeling in his body faithfully told him that all this was real, not a mirage, not an illusion, not fake.
Master Xuanzang completely melted himself into the world of water, letting every inch of his skin melt into the water. Water is indeed the source of life. It not only washed away his travel dust, but also washed away His fatigue.
In the desert, the water source is a place of dynamic life and a gathering place of life. During the rest period at the water source, Master Xuanzang finally returned to the human world and met a camel team passing by to replenish the water source. With the help of the camel team, Master Xuanzang continued on his journey westward.