-Lecture notes of Xiamen Buddhist Association, 1937 1 1 28th.
The full text is as follows
Master Hongyi is my art teacher and my religious mentor. My life has been greatly influenced by the mage. Xiamen is the place where the mage has traveled in recent years. According to what I have seen during my three days here, Xiamen people are also greatly influenced by the mage. Therefore, Xiamen people and I are both classmates and brothers. Buddhism wants me to give a speech today. I am ashamed of my shallow self-cultivation, so I can't talk about promoting Buddhism and benefiting students. I can only tell my classmates about the days when I studied art and religion with Master Hongyi. Please give me your advice.
He entered Hangzhou Zhejiang No.1 Normal University at the age of 17, and never went to school after graduation at the age of 20. I have only received five years of secondary education or above. During these five years, Master Hongyi, then known as Mr. Li Shutong, was my picture music teacher. Pictures and music are not very valued in schools now, but strangely, in Zhejiang No.1 Normal University at that time, they were more valued than English, Chinese and Mathematics. We have two classrooms dedicated to painting, many plaster models, two pianos and more than fifty organs. We spend an hour practicing painting and more than an hour practicing playing the piano every day. It's not surprising that everyone thinks so. What is the reason? Because of Miss Li's personality and knowledge, we controlled our feelings and conquered our hearts. He never swears, never complains, and his attitude is as humble as after he became a monk. However, all the students are really afraid of him, learn from him and worship him sincerely. I am one of them. Because as far as personality is concerned, he became a teacher not for fame and fortune, but for being a teacher and devoting himself to being a teacher. As far as learning is concerned, he is knowledgeable and versatile. His Chinese is higher than that of Mr. Guo Wen, English is higher than that of Mr. Ying, history is higher than that of Mr. Shi, and common sense is richer than that of Mr. Natural History. He is also an expert in calligraphy and epigraphy, and the originator of China's plays. He can not only teach music, but also teach his music in the background of many other knowledge. Mr. Xia Gaizun once said, "Miss Li's teacher has a bright future." Buddhists and bodhisattvas have a bright future, so why not teach people to worship? I admire him more than others. My temperament is similar to that of Mr. Li. I am happy with whatever he likes. I am in the normal school, and I am the first in the first and second days; After the third grade, I suddenly fell to the twentieth place, because I ignored the homework of many normal students and concentrated on learning the literature and art that Miss Li liked until graduation. After graduation, I couldn't afford to go to college, borrowed some money to travel to Japan, didn't go to school, watched many art exhibitions, listened to many concerts, bought many literary books, and returned to China a year later. On the one hand, I became a teacher, on the other hand, I immersed myself in self-study, and I still have a crush on Mr. Li's art until now. Teacher Li has long been sublimated from art to religion, and I am still at the crossroads of art and religion. Let me think for myself. I'm really a black sheep.
How did he sublimate from art to religion? At that time, people were very surprised and thought that Mr. Li was stimulated and suddenly "escaped into an empty door." I can understand his heart, and I take it for granted that he has become a monk. I think a person's life can be divided into three layers: one is material life, the other is spiritual life, and the third is soul life. Material life is food and clothing. Spiritual life is academic literature and art, and soul life is religion. "Life" is such a three-story building. Those who are too lazy to (or can't) take the stairs live on the first floor, that is, they have a good material life, a luxurious life, honor and wealth, and care for their children and grandchildren, which is enough. This is also a kind of outlook on life. Most people in the world hold this outlook on life. Secondly, those who are willing to (or strongly) take the stairs will climb the second floor to play or stay in it for a long time. This is the people who concentrate on academic literature and art. They devote themselves to the study of knowledge and focus on the creation and appreciation of literature and art. There are many such people in the world, namely "intellectuals", "scholars" and "artists". There is also a kind of person who has a strong desire for life and strong feet. If he is not satisfied with the second floor, he will take the stairs and climb the third floor. This is a religious man. They are very serious, and it is not enough to satisfy "material desire" and "spiritual desire". They must explore the truth of life. They think that the descendants of property are things outside the body, academic literature and art are temporary beauty, and even their own bodies are illusory. They refuse to be instinctive slaves, and must pursue the source of soul and the root of the universe to satisfy their "life desire". This is a religious man. There are only three kinds of people in the world. Although I used the metaphor of three floors, I don't have to go from the first floor to the second floor and then to the third floor. There are many people going directly from the first floor to the third floor, and there is no need to stay on the second floor. There are still many people who don't even live on the first floor and run to the third floor in one breath. However, our master Hong Yi climbed up layer by layer. Master Hongyi's "longing for life" is very strong! His life must be thorough. In his early years, he was filial to his mother and loved his wife, and lived on the first floor. Middle-aged people concentrate on studying art and give full play to their various talents, that is, move to the second floor. A strong "desire for life" could not satisfy him on the second floor, so he climbed to the third floor, became a monk, cultivated pure land and learned precepts. This is natural and not surprising. Being a man is like drinking; People who drink a small amount of wine are already drunk after drinking a glass of Huadiao wine, while people who drink a lot of wine are too weak to drink Huadiao wine and must drink sorghum wine to satisfy themselves. Literature and art are like carved flowers, and religion is like sorghum. Master Hongyi is a heavy drinker, so he doesn't like to drink carved flowers. He must drink sorghum. I can't drink much, I can only drink carved flowers, and it's rare to drink sorghum. But people who drink carved flowers can quite understand the hearts of people who drink sorghum. Therefore, I have always taken it for granted that it is not surprising that Master Hongyi has sublimated from art to religion.
The highest point of art approaches religion. The last vertex of the escalator on the second floor is the third floor, so it is inevitable that Master Hongyi will sublimate from art to religion. Master Hongyi left many Mo Bao in Fujian. These Mo Bao are religious in content and artistic in form-calligraphy. Influenced by Master Hongyi for a long time, most people in central Fujian have rich religious beliefs and artistic accomplishments. As a newcomer to Fujian, I envy and admire this situation!
The day before yesterday, I visited Nanputuo Temple, followed the instructions of Master Guangqia, saw the former residence of Master Hongyi and the willow trees planted by him personally, and also met the Buddhist Zheng Yang Institute founded by him. The master in a broad sense asked me to write a book couplet for Zheng Yang Academy, so I collected a poem from the Tang Dynasty: "You know, everything is different, which can make you heartless" and wrote one. I think it's appropriate to hang this couplet in the Buddhist Zheng Yang Hospital founded by Master Hongyi. Because the first part is about Buddhist scriptures and the second part is about art, we can see the significance of Master Hongyi's sublimation from art to religion. When an artist sees flowers smiling and hears birds singing, until I raise my glass, I ask Mingyue to open the door and see white clouds. He can treat nature as a person and turn ruthlessness into sensibility. This is the realm of "the unity of things and me". Further, it is the true meaning of Buddhism, that is, "everything follows its heart" and "each phase is different". So the highest point of art is associated with religion. The highest artist has a saying: "There is not a word in a silent poem, and there is not a stroke in an invisible painting." It can be seen that the description of the poem is flat, flat, red, green and green. It's just a small skill, the fur of art, and the spirit of art is religious. The ancients said: "The article is small, and the Tao is not respected." Then he said, "You should be more upright and make a statement." Master Hongyi often quotes a Confucian saying when teaching and educating people: "A scholar should be a prophet of literature and art." The so-called "articles", "writing" and "literature and art" are all arts, and the so-called "Tao", "virtue" and "instrumental knowledge" are all religious accomplishments. Religion and art are more important than others, which has been made clear here. Sure, the third floor is above the second floor.
I am too weak to follow Master Hongyi to the third floor. Now I am still on the second floor. I am ashamed of my skills. But I often struggle to climb the escalator and look at the third floor. So I hope that people who study religion don't have to spend more time learning artistic skills, because religion already contains art, and people who study art must further understand the spirit of religion, so that their art can progress. A monk who has lived in Fujian for a long time, I also know a Taixu mage. He is my fellow countryman and became a monk when he was a child. He didn't engage in art and ran three floors at a time. But he, like Master Hongyi, is an outstanding monk and is admired by the world. As we all know, religion is above everything else. In human cultivation, knowledge is more important than anything else. Master Taixu and Master Hongyi, all roads lead to the same goal, and each has his own place. The ability of literary skills is not enough in terms of great personality. I encourage people in Fujian to follow Sir Zhong's example.