What's the story of offering a pigeon to set free?

Letting go is a charitable act. There is a story about releasing animals in ancient times. Let's find out.

There is an old saying: "Do go

What's the story of offering a pigeon to set free?

Letting go is a charitable act. There is a story about releasing animals in ancient times. Let's find out.

There is an old saying: "Do good deeds and accumulate virtue". This sentence is to persuade people to do more good and do more good. In the famine years, some wealthy families donated rice to help the victims who were hungry and cold. These are virtues. During the Taiping period, releasing fish and turtles into the pond and birds into the nature is called "releasing", which is all good deeds. Later, on the first day of New Year's Day, some people released the caught birds and called them "caring creatures".

During the Spring and Autumn Period, the State of Jin established Handan as its capital. Zhao Jianzi, the minister of the State of Jin, likes to have turtledoves caught for him and sent to his home during the Spring Festival to let him fly.

On New Year's Day, local people in Handan can make an exception and flock to Zhao Jianzi's mansion. They all came to provide Zhao Jianzi with turtledoves so that Zhao Jianzi could be released. Zhao Jianzi was very happy and gave them a generous reward. On the first day, from morning till night, there was an endless stream of people offering turtledoves.

Zhao Jianzi's doorman stood by for a long time and asked him why he did it. Zhao Jianzi replied: "I let it go on the first day of New Year's Day to show my love and kindness to creatures!" The doorman went on to say, "it's rare that you have such a kind heart for creatures." I wonder if it ever occurred to you, my Lord, that if the people of the whole country knew that you were going to release the turtledoves, they would scramble to catch them, and as a result, many turtledoves would be killed and injured! If you really want to release the turtle and save its life, don't catch it without the following order. Just like now, if you reward people to catch so many turtledoves for you, and then you release them, then your kindness to turtledoves can't really compensate for the disasters you have caused them! "

After listening to everyone's words, Zhao Jianzi paced up and down at the door with his hands behind his back, thought carefully for a while, and nodded silently and said, "That's right."

This fable exposes the hypocrisy of some people who only talk about form but not effect.

The origin of the custom of releasing animals

In the pre-Qin period, Confucius took Shun as an example and emphasized environmental protection. Mencius emphasized sympathy and inspired Liang with benevolence and righteousness. The different usages of Lu's Spring and Autumn Annals and Liezi create an atmosphere of forbidding killing and releasing dust. After Buddhism was introduced into the Han Dynasty, Dharmaksema's translation of "The Product of the Old Man's Running Water-The Best Classic of Jin Guangming" provided a theoretical basis for the release of Buddhism.

Shang Tang's successful crusade not only made good use of everything, but also knew how to cherish all life and prevent all life from being destroyed. His kindness in governing the country and his deeds of "dissolving the net into soup" can be seen. "Lv Chunqiu Yi Yong" records:

Around Tang Jian's wishing net, he made a wish, "Everything that fell from the sky, came out of the ground and came from all directions left our net." Don said, "Hey! It's over. Why not? " Take three portions of soup, put one on it, and even teach Zhu Yue: "In the past, spiders could weave webs, but today people learn to weave webs." If you want to be left, you will be left; if you want to be right, you will be right; if you want to be high, you will be high; if you want to be left, I will take my life. "The kingdom of Hannan heard:" The virtue of Tang Dynasty is also an animal. "Forty countries return to it. If you are surrounded by people, you may not get birds; Remove the soup from its three sides and put it on one side to net its forty countries, not the net bird. '

Cheng Tang, who loves things, stressed that releasing dust is the best way to conform to the nature and public opinion. Ren Jun can't bear to watch hunters cast nets everywhere, which runs counter to the virtue of heaven and good life. So he removed three sides, leaving only one side: and changed the prayer to turn the anger of killing into harmony, which shows that the ruler will win the hearts of the people more easily if he puts dust on it.

"Getting soup out of the net" has a great influence on later generations, and its story is still quoted by Lianchi in the Ming Dynasty. Liezi Fu Shuo recorded the story that "Zhou Jianzi was at the right time":

On the first day of the first month, people in Handan will give Jane pigeons. Jane's son is very happy, and he will get a generous reward. The guest asked why. Jane said, "It is a sign of kindness to let Zheng Dan go." The guest said, "People know that you want to let go, but they will be caught in the competition and many people will die. If you want to live, you can't help but stop grasping. If you catch it and let it go, it is irreparable. " Kenko said, "Of course." It can be seen that during the Spring and Autumn Period, there was a custom of catching birds and releasing them in Handan, but the folk release was mainly to show kindness to creatures, and it was difficult to offset the merits and demerits of catching them first and then releasing them. At that time, Zhou Jianzi listened to the public's persuasion and changed the practice of "catching and releasing things" to "prohibiting people from catching", which was an earlier record of banning slaughter and arrest in China.

In spring, creatures grow and the ancients have taken measures to protect them. The sixth chapter of the Book of Rites Moon Order says: "The Moon of Meng Chun ... ordered the sacrifice of trees and rivers, forbidding logging, covering nests, killing children, insects, fetuses, birds and laying eggs." During the renewal of Yongzheng in spring, don't cut down trees for a living, don't build nests to play, and don't destroy seedlings. Otherwise, it will lose the way for all things on earth to survive.

"Decoding nets with soup" and "releasing fish" show that the custom of releasing fish has a profound ideological background in China culture. Dharmaksema's translation of "Golden Light Classic, Running Water Elders" provides its own resources for Buddhism. The contents are summarized as follows:

Running water's eldest son could not bear to expose the fish to the sun, but begged his king to take twenty elephants to the negative water to save his life, and Wang Yun invited him. The eldest son was invited to the elephant stable and 20 elephants were taken away at will. Both of them borrowed more skins from the restaurant, went to the place where the water was cut off and filled the water with skins. When the elephant is negative, it will pour into the pool. When the water is full, it is the same. The living water elders rescued the dying fish, gave them water and food, and explained Mahayana classics to them. After listening to the scripture, all the fish were born. '

Running Water for the Elders has an important influence on Buddhism's release custom, such as the twelve karma, the sacred names of Buddha and Bodhisattva, the merits and demerits of release, the release procedures and the release ceremony. The story of the elders saving fish and releasing dust in running water has enhanced people's understanding of the idea of releasing dust in the central plains of Buddhism, and it is easier to be accepted and spread.

The Confucian idea of releasing animals stems from compassion, such as "giving birth to animals and fish". Therefore, Buddhism's release of dust combined with the appeal of Confucianism can be successfully implemented among the people.