A holy magnolia tree that rained nectar
[ yi kui ren jia fu zhong yin yu shu chang kong lai gan lu zhao fan gan zhi mu bu lin ]
[ er zheng de xing chi jie guo yu chi zhan sheng deng hua zang jia shen nian kai si chun jiang jin ]
The first line of the couplet is “yi kui ren jia fu zhong yin yu shu chang kong lai gan lu zhao fan gan zhi mu bu lin.” Someone who calls himself a person of humility meditated under a magnolia tree and thereby planted holy seeds (causes). Suddenly, from the sky over the magnolia tree descended fragrant, sweet, and pure tasting nectar. That day, the blazing sun was shining down from the completely cloudless sky. There was not a drop of rain. Nectar descended like dense rain from morning until evening only in the area occupied by the magnolia tree’s approximately eleven-foot circumference. However, from morning until evening, not one drop of nectar wetted or moistened any of the branches of that tree. The ground under the tree was wet. People’s clothes were also wet. Yet, the tree branches remained dry. The second line of the couplet is “er zheng de xing chi jie guo yu chi zhan sheng deng hua zang jia shen nian kai si chun jiang jin.” As a result of their practice, two self-cultivators attained a very high level of realization and virtue. They were able to lift a more than 4,000 pound lotus tub used to bathe the Buddha. Fourteen other people tried to lift that tub together but were unsuccessful. That lotus tub also manifested holy supernatural states. Thus, at the end of winter in the year called ’Jia Shen’ according to the Chinese calendar (i.e. 2004), that lotus tub used to bathe the Buddha was moved to Hua Zang Si and placed in the Pavilion Containing Evidence of Holy Events for worshipping. With the immanent arrival of spring, the causes and conditions to spread the dharma will mature. As spring begins, everything looks fresh again, and the opportunity to save living being sprouts.
