Two Precious Scroll Narratives of Guanyin and Her ... - Khamkoo

134 ThePreciousScrollofIncenseMountain,Part2
Now be so kind as to hang up that placard nicely again,
Unless you want to lose your life and visit the Lord of Shade.
Our firm orders, the law of the land, make no distinction:
We don’t care whether you are a layperson or a monk!’’
The monk approached them and spoke as follows:
‘‘Dear gentlemen, please be so kind as to hear me out.
Humans suffer from four hundred and four diseases,
And each and every one of these diseases has its root.
With a prescription but lacking the herbs there’s no cure,
Without a prescription but having the herbs there’s hope.
If I, this poor monk, really did not possess the herbs,
How would I dare enter the great gate of the court?
A precious pearl in a linen sack is often ignored,
A brocade bag stuffed with chaff fools the crowd.
Let’s stick to the present, and forget about the past—
Please announce this old monk to your saintly ruler!’’
The soldiers guarding the gate had a good laugh and said: ‘‘This
crazy monk has no idea what he is crashing into! You’re a guy who
has no idea of life and death! The court and the state are not to be
trifled with by the likes of you!’’ Before they had finished saying this,
someone shouted: ‘‘Reverend, come here! The ancients said: ‘A
monk should respect the Buddha.’ Let me explain things to you.
God knows how many learned scholars of the Imperial Secretariat
and renowned physicians have been unable to cure the emperor.
It’s just too laughable! How could you save someone else when you
cannot even control the rotten sores on your face? You must be
some rascal monk! It’s obvious that you come here to seek your
death. Now hang that golden placard up again, and then quickly
make yourself scarce. If you tarry and the officers arrest you, your
life will not be spared!’’ The monk said with a smile: ‘‘My dear gentlemen,
why do you try to bully me? I left the householder’s life at
an early age, and I have traveled though seventy-two countries.
Whether it is evil diseases that affect the body, or corpses and
skeletons—without using even a single dose of a miracle cure, I remove
the root of the disease and bring the skeleton back to life. Irrespective
of how many diseases our father the emperor is afflicted
by, they all have their causes. Don’t ridicule me for the sores on my
face; I know the prescription but lack the herbs. As for the disease