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The Pictorial Biography of the
Venerable Master Hsu Yun

33.   BOWS TO THE RELICS AT KING ASHOKA TEMPLE

After his pilgrimage to P'u T'o Mountain, the Master returned to Ning Po, where he passed through King Ashoka Temple.  He arranged for provisions at a cost of three yuan per month.  Making obeisance to the relics and the two Pitikas (Mahayana and Hinayana), he sought to repay the toilsome labor and kindness of his parents.  The sharira enshrined by King Ashoka are reputed to be those of the True Body of Shakyamuni Buddha, and therefore many people come to make vows and bow before the relics.  The Master went on to T'ien T'ung Monastery, and after hearing an exposition of the Ana!ytical Commentary on the Shurangama Sutra, continued on his way.

The verse says:

Within the Real Body's sharira,

the Tathagata is abiding.

They remain in the world and are conferred

upon people who plant blessings.

If one does not plough one's own fields,

how can one reap a harvest?

Irrigate well, nourish and enrich,

and do not steal time for leisure.

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