Li Shutong’s last handwriting before his death

On October 13, 1941, Master Hongyi passed away.

After the Mid-Autumn Festival, Master Hongyi felt that his illness was getting serious, so he wrote two verses in handwriting to say goodbye to his friends. The verse goes: "The friendship between gentlemen is as light as water. If you hold on to the image and seek, you will be thousands of miles away. Ask me what's the right thing." "The flowers are blooming in spring, and the moon is full in the sky." On October 13th (the fourth day of the ninth lunar month), Master Hongyi passed away in the Wanqing Room of the Wenling Nursing Home in Quanzhou. On his deathbed, he wrote "Sorrow and Joy" four times. The word is the last word.

After becoming a monk in July 1918, Li Shutong lived under the Buddhist name "Hongyi". He vowed to promote the law. Among the many sects of Buddhism, Vinaya is the most important to practice. Hong Yi practiced hard and kept the precepts very strictly. He only had breakfast and lunch every day and did not eat after lunch. He wore no more than three pieces of clothing, even in the cold winter. He left behind a piece of robe with 224 puddings, all of which were mended by himself. Ma Yifu once wrote a poem: "The ascetic practice is heavy, and the legacy of art is thoughtful. I know that my heart is a Buddha, and I always take the precepts as my teacher." He wrote " "Bhikkhu's Precepts and Appearances of the Four-part Vinaya", "A Brief Introduction to the Nanshan Vinaya at Home", and founded the "Nanshan Vinaya Academy". Since the twenty-fifth year of Sengla's reign, he has been traveling like floating clouds throughout Zhejiang, Fujian, Shanghai, and Qingdao. He was seriously ill three times and put his life and death at risk. In order to admire him, Xia Beizun, Feng Zikai and others held the disciple ceremony and protected the Dharma for life.

Master Hongyi is the eleventh generation founder of the Nanshan Vinaya Sect. He was extremely indignant at the Japanese invasion of China and said: "What we eat is the millet of China and what we drink is the water of Wenling. As a disciple of Buddhism, we cannot save the country at this time. It is extremely difficult to do so. We think we are not as good as one." What a dog!" He once wrote the words "Recite Buddha without forgetting to save the country, and save the country without forgetting to recite Buddha", and added the following words: "Buddhas, who are aware of the truth, can swear to sacrifice their lives, sacrifice everything, and be brave and diligent. Save the country. Therefore, to save the country, we must recite the Buddha's name."

The friendship between gentlemen is as light as water. The communication between gentlemen is as pure as water, without impurities.

If you hold on to the image and seek it, you will be a thousand miles away. It means that if you only look at the superficial appearance of friendship, it may seem like you are seeing the real situation, but in fact it is far from the truth.

When I asked Yu what was appropriate, Kuoer said nothing. You are asking me where I will settle down. The road ahead is vast and I am speechless.

The flowers and branches are full in spring, and the moon is full in the sky. But all I saw was that spring was full of flowers, the bright moon was in the sky, and there was peace and tranquility. That was my home.