Chapter 34: Nine Grades of Buddhism "Is it the level 1, level 2, and level and level cultivation levels in novels?" Akechi Mitsuhide became interested, took a sip of beer, and waited for Takeda Saburo to tell the truth. "To be honest, there is indeed a relatively complete cultivation system, but it is only for reference and does not represent real strength and cultivation." Takeda Saburo sat up straight and said with a smile: "Buddhist practice can be roughly divided into nine levels, from low to high: the level of abiding mind, the level of true words, the level of Dharma, the level of secret seal, the level of Samadhi, the level of Homa, the level of Dalai Lama, the level of position, and the level of Tathagata." "Practice with a focused mind, recite the mantra, generate dharma power, make the secret seal, and realize samadhi." "As for the realms that come after that, they are beyond my comprehension right now." "But I heard from my master that if one can reach the level of Samadhi, he can be the abbot of a temple. If one can reach the level of Homa, he can be called a great monk of the time. As for if one can reach the level of Dalai Lama, he can be called a holy monk." Takeda Saburo spoke calmly. He glanced at Hiramiya Chiye who was listening attentively and said, "This is just a rough division, not the only one. It is just to let practitioners roughly understand the level of their own practice." "Moreover, the level of cultivation is not only reflected in these aspects, and the strength is not simply a matter of one level suppressing another." "To be more precise, this is just a rough classification of cultivation levels, and it cannot be directly equated with real Buddhist practice."
Saburo Takeda elaborated on this point many times to prevent his words from affecting Chiya Hiramiya's practice. Pinggong Chiye nodded to show his understanding. Just like some old monks who sit in the scripture library, they do not practice mantras, do not generate magical powers, and do not make secret seals. However, once they recite Buddhist scriptures, they still have great magical powers and great power, which makes it difficult to include them in the normal practice system. According to Saburo Takeda, the existence of this practice system is more to point out a way forward for those who are ignorant of practice, and to provide a reference. If classified according to this level system, I should have already broken through to the secret seal level. Samadhi should refer to the practice of stopping distracting thoughts, calming the mind and concentrating attention. It can enable the meditator to enter a higher spiritual realm and gradually change the mysterious energy of life form. There are probably two ways to achieve it. One is the innate ability, which is innate concentration, and the other is acquired concentration which is achieved through acquired efforts to increase concentration. And he is the former. Homa Chapter... It turns out that Homa comes after Samadhi. Pinggong Qianye suddenly felt as if the clouds in his heart had been cleared and the sun had appeared. He had been practicing in ignorance all the way and it was difficult for him to see the road ahead. For example, his mantras, dharma and secret seals are to be practiced simultaneously rather than one by one. Although Saburo Takeda only gave a name to the subsequent realm, it already gave him a glimpse of his next path of cultivation. Homapin should be the state you are in at the moment. "Takeda, what level are you at now?" Akechi Mitsuhide asked with great interest. "I am ashamed. I just gained magical powers and was allowed by my master to go down the mountain to gain experience in the secular world." Takeda Saburo said with some discomfort, "You are the first Buddhist practitioners I met after I came down the mountain." After saying this, he subconsciously glanced at Pinggong Qianye. Being defeated in strength just after coming down the mountain was indeed a big blow to him.
However, physical strength does not represent true Buddhist practice, and he does not think that Pinggong Qianye can easily surpass him in other aspects. He is also professional in exorcising evil spirits. His master said that in the city, desires are like a sea, evil spirits are rampant, evil spirits break the law, and all living beings suffer. "Hiramiya, what rank are you at?" Akechi Mitsuhide looked at Hiramiya Chiye with curiosity. "I just gained magical powers not long ago." Pinggong Qianye smiled and said that it is better to be humble. I developed magical powers when I was 13 years old, and only 3 years have passed since then, which is really not too long. It’s just that he made great progress in accumulating magical power. Although he had never seen other people with great magical powers, he felt that his magical powers should be extremely vast and powerful. "You are so talented. I am 18 years old and you look younger than me." Saburo Takeda did not hide his surprise. "Hiramiya, 16 years old, a freshman at Shiraishi High School, has never had a romantic relationship." Akechi Mitsuhide smiled and put his arm around Hiramiya Chiya's shoulders, helping him to give the answer. "Two years difference..." Takeda Saburo shook his head and sighed, "With such a talent for cultivation, only my junior brother in Shitennoji understands or can compare with you." "It's really interesting. Why did your junior fellow apprentice choose Mingbai as his Dharma name?" "We are all from the Ming generation." "Takeda, what is your Buddhist name?" "...Drink your wine." Saburo Takeda, a rough man of nearly meters in height, showed an embarrassed expression on his face for the first time, and even tried to avoid the question by pretending to be angry. Seeing this, Akechi Mitsuhide chuckled and said, "Takeda, there are times when you can't speak." Pinggong Qianye and others also had a smile on their faces. "It's not like I can't say it." Takeda Saburo put away the feigned anger on his face, leaned back, spread his arms, and gave Akechi Mitsuhide a provocative look, "If you drink three bottles of beer in one breath, I will tell you my Dharma name, but I'm afraid you can't do it." "You are underestimating my alcohol tolerance!" The last thing a man can allow is for others to say that he is not good enough. Mitsuhide Akechi stood up, put his right foot on the glass table, asked someone next to him to open three bottles of beer for him, picked up one and drank it directly with his head tilted back. Pinggong Qianye glanced at the beer label. The capacity was 330 ml. If there were three bottles, it would be nearly 1 liter. For Mitsuhide Akechi, who has been hanging out in bars for many years, this is not a difficult task. Gulp, gulp, one bottle, two bottles. When Akechi Mitsuhide finished the last bottle easily, Takeda Saburo smiled and said, "Tomorrow, that will be my Buddhist name." What’s your Dharma name tomorrow? Akechi Mitsuhide raised his eyebrows slightly, twitched the corners of his mouth, and almost spit out the wine in his mouth, but fortunately he stopped in time.
"Mingzhi, you and Master Mingtian are both from the Ming generation." Hiramiya Chiye silently stabbed him again, and Akechi Mitsuhide could no longer bear it and spat out a mouthful of wine. With foresight, Hiramiya Chiye turned Akechi Mitsuhide's shoulders so that he was facing the bottom of the booth, where the crowd was dancing in silence. A mouthful of wine spurted out, but it didn't attract any attention. "Oh, if I say you can't do it, then you can't do it." Takeda Saburo smiled and stabbed again, then raised his water cup and clinked it with Hiramiya Chiya's Coke cup, "Happy cooperation." "You two bastards! You're deliberately plotting against me!" Akechi Mitsuhide wiped the wine from the corner of his mouth and rolled up his sleeves while cursing. They were all young, the oldest, Akechi Mitsuhide, was only 18 years old, and they were all still young teenagers. After the little episode, they quickly became familiar with each other. Chat about everything from all over the world, celebrities, politicians, current affairs. Pinggong Qianye drank an ice cola and was gradually drawn into this atmosphere. "Takeda, I heard that the five-story pagoda in your Shitennoji Temple contains the Buddha's relics. Is this true?" someone asked. Saburo Takeda did not give a direct answer, but just said: "There are many places to visit in Shitennoji Temple. The South Bell Hall, the North Bell Hall, the Rokujido Hall, and the Yuyahojo are all good attractions." The man knew what to do and didn't ask any more questions. In order to ease the subtle awkwardness, Akechi Mitsuhide shook the bottle in his hand and asked in a low voice, "Are there really so many demons and monsters in the city recently? I feel that this time, many temples have sent their own disciples down the mountain to gain experience." "A lot, more than you can imagine." Takeda Saburo's expression became serious. "If you encounter any evil things and need to exorcise evil spirits, you can come to me for help. This is the main purpose of my coming down the mountain to train." "I don't need any reward. I just want to eliminate more demons and monsters for the common people." Saburo Takeda's passionate words drew applause. Pinggong Qianye's expression moved slightly, but he didn't say anything. He was also interested in this topic because he had a very intuitive understanding of the prevalence of demons and monsters in big cities in recent times. "I heard that the great monster Qingxuandeng has been resurrected and returned." When the conversation gets heated, Saburo Takeda doesn't mind revealing some confidential information. After all, everyone present was a descendant of the temple, but their level of practice varied. The news about the great monster Aoandon caused a burst of gasps, and even Akechi Mitsuhide put down the bottle of wine in his hand and began to listen carefully. "I also heard about it from others. He is looking for and investigating the resurrection of the great monster Aoandon. He is currently active in the Tokyo area." "If you know any news, please tell me." Saburo Takeda spoke very seriously. This matter involved a great monster, the famous Aoandon, and no one present, including himself, had the ability to handle it alone. Hiramiya Chiya originally wanted to say something, but Takeda Saburo's next words made him choose to remain silent. "Do you know the great monk Master Liansheng?"
(End of this chapter)