PureInsight | March 22, 2004
[PureInsight.org] During the Tang Dynasty, there was a man named Wei Sigong who was a resident of the capital city Chang'an. He was a friend of two young men surnamed Dong and Wang. In the sixth year of the Yuanhe Period [1] during the rule of Emperor Xianzong in the Tang Dynasty, the three of them studied together at the Yue Temple on Mount Song.
About 100 steps to the northeast of the temple lay a natural water basin underneath a rock. The rock basin was just over 10 feet in perimeter. The spring water seemed to replenish itself and never ran dry. Everyone in the temple drew water from the basin for his daily use.
Wei and his friends had moved into the temple in the spring. One day in mid-July, the three of them went to get water during their leisure time. Standing by the pool, they saw a giant snake slowly rolling and crawling in the rock basin. It measured dozens of feet in length and had a jet-black body with glittering white patterns all over it. The three men were very frightened. After watching for a long while, Wang and Dong brought up the idea of taking it home to eat. Wei Sigong said, "No, we can't do that. How can you be sure that no dragon hides on this famous mountain and in this big town? Don't you think this may be a dragon in disguise in this rocky basin? Also, the scales of this snake are quite different from those of ordinary snakes. We have to be cautious!" His friends didn't listen to him. They killed the snake with rocks, and took it home. They snickered at Wei Sigong for being a hypocrite.
A little while later, someone said there was another snake in the rock basin. Wang and Dong went there immediately and wanted to kill the snake again. Wei Sigong tried to dissuade them from killing the snake again. Just when Wang and Dong were about to throw a rock at the snake, it soared up to the sky. When the three of them returned to the temple, the first snake was still cooking and wasn't quite ready for eating. Suddenly, a huge clatter erupted in the mountains, and the earth began to shake. Gusts of wind and clouds filled the valley. Sand and small rocks were flying in the air. In the blink of an eye, the sand and wind had reached the temple. The sky was dark and everything was pitch-black. Amidst the howling wind, people in the temple heard a voice from the clouds and winds, "Don't hit the wrong person." Immediately, fire came down from the sky and hit the house where the three men lived. The house was burned to the ground. Wang and Dong both disappeared, but Wei Sigong was left in one piece under the roofed porch of the temple.
The bodies of Wang and Dong weren't found until two days later at south gate of the temple. Wei Sigong later told what had happened before their death. People who are enthusiastic about killing should learn a lesson from this story and be more thoughtful in the future. More importantly, this story clearly illustrates a principle of the Gods. Even though Wei Sigong might not have been benevolent at all times, he had saved himself from the rage of the dragon because he said kind things trying to save the dragons. [Dragons are a type of deity in ancient Chinese mythology.] Compassionate words saved Wei Sigong's life. Imagine what awaits those people who often do good things.
Note:
[1] Wipipedia Encyclopedia: Tang Dynasty
Translated from: http://www.zhengjian.org/zj/articles/2004/3/12/26186.html
