Master Jingkong’s teachings
Buddhists who follow Buddhism pick out many relics after being cremated, but they don’t know what relics are? What does it mean?
Relic is an ancient Indian language, which is Sanskrit. When translated into Chinese, it means solid material, which means that after cremation, there is a kind of crystal that is very solid. And this kind of solid body is not necessarily a collection of certain parts. For example, bones can be formed into relics, hair can also be formed into relics, blood can also be formed into relics, and skin and flesh can also be formed into relics. We ordinary people think that it is It's incredible. When he picked up relics after being cremated in the past, it is generally said that his heart is pure, and he has practiced meditation to some extent to have this auspicious sign. But in our modern society, it seems that after cremation, it is becoming more and more common to see relics. We see and hear a lot about relics and relic flowers. Are they real solid objects? This is difficult to say.
You can use a hammer to knock a truly solid object. If the hammer can knock it into a dent, the relics and relics will not move. That is true.
In the past, Master Tanxu passed away in Hong Kong more than 20 years ago. The British were very surprised, so they took one of his relics and really knocked it with a hammer. The following is The cushion is a steel plate, and I hit it with a hammer, and sure enough it couldn't be broken. The inside of the hammer is dented, but the relic remains intact. Foreigners see this and marvel at it as a rarity. Generally, the relics picked up look like relics. If we press hard, they often break. From this, we know that this is not true.
Modern society is really in a state of decline. Everything is counterfeited and fake. No matter what we eat, wear or use in our daily life, there are too many counterfeits. It seems that now
there are also fake relics and counterfeit ones. Therefore, after cremation, it does not matter whether there are relics or not. The presence of relics does not mean that he has achieved fruition through practice. It can only mean that he has done a little hard work in practice, but it does not mean that he has achieved fruition. Nor can those who recite the Buddha's name represent him in rebirth. To truly recite the Buddha's name and rebirth, we can judge from this point of view the auspicious sign of his death. The significance of relics is not very great, as long as we know it.
The most important thing is, we need to understand how the relics are formed? Why? Master Zhangjia told us that relics are related to a pure mind, that is, to concentration. If the mind is scattered, it is impossible to have relics; if the mind is pure and there is meditation skill, there may be relics.
The distribution of relics is also not certain. Relics may be made of bones, meat, blood, or hair. Their shapes and colors are different.
The number and color of the relics vary, depending on the level of skill. Leaving relics and leaving a physical body cannot prove that one has achieved success in practice, it can only mean that one has made great efforts in practice.
At the same time, relics are related to the power of vows. Many people who are truly successful in practice do not want to keep relics or physical bodies. This has a lot to do with the power of vows. Generally, keeping relics is nothing more than a souvenir for future generations, and it also serves as an encouragement to fellow Buddhist practitioners.