Last month, I took several disciples back to Jiguangsi for a visit. Jiguangsi is located by Yílán’s Lóngtán Lake where the scenery is very elegant. It has been a while since I last returned to Jiguangsi but I still remembered that it was in 1977 when I arrived at Lóngtán.
Prior to 1977, I lived at Yílán’s Cizilun Lingshanta. Lingshanta was right next to pauper’s graves which were very desolated. Linggǔtǎ was seven story tall with the ground floor housed Kṣitigarbha and urns of ashes. I lived on second floor. Third floor and above were all empty. This entire tower could represent Buddha’s maxim: the sensuous world is illusory, for there was not even a bed to be found. I found couple wooden boards and placed them together to form a temporary bed. Due to years long of neglect, second floor windows lattices were already rotten away. All that remains were four gaping holes that stopped neither winds nor rains. In a tower that contained only four walls with a bunch of urns of ashes that no one claimed, and mournful sounds of insects from outside as my companions, I lonely contemplated enlightenment of the living and the dying.
For five years, I have lived at Lingshanta, and in 1977, I relocated to Jiguangsi for the next step, to cultivate among burial mounds. There was a large cemetery by the lake. For convenience of meditation and seclusion, I have built a small seclusion room that was barely for one to stay in, and planted alocasia, dried up bamboos, and weeds around the small house. It was very simple and crude. Yet, after all these years, that seclusion room is still remained in midst of the desolated bamboo forest which surprised the accompanying disciples. During those ten plus years of cultivating among burial mounds, I have been using dhūta ascetic practice as the primary cultivating method. As a dhūta ācārin, I have to follow twelve principles:
1. Live in araṇya location – to live in a forest location that is at least 300 – 600 steps away from all human inhabitants
2. Always asking food as alms
3. Always asking alms without discriminating the givers
4. Only a meal per day
5. Only a handful portion of meal
6. No meal from afternoon onward
7. Repairs robe from other’s discard materials
8. Maintains no more than 3 clothing
9. Lives among burial mounds
10. Rests under the tree
11. Lives on bare ground
12. Sits but not lies down
Six of them focus on living criteria; four of them are about eating criteria; two of them are about clothing criteria. Their main focus is to eliminate the sense of greed, to eliminate wicked dharma of body and soul, and to focus on the path of Buddhahood.
Later, after media broadcasts, many believers came to visit. In order to accommodate ever increasing followers, a great hall was build and named Jiguangsi. Afterward, apprentices build a Dìzàngdiàn at an open space next to original great hall. Jiguangsi was further expanded toward the hill in the back where a three floor building was build which became Jiguangsi that everyone sees today.
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