by Pepe O'Neill
As he swam away, Sandy checked over his shoulder several times, to make sure that his friends continued to wave at him until he was no longer in sight.
Chapter 39
THE BLIND DRAGON MUCHILINDA
They followed Celeste down a tunnel of overhanging branches until they reached a large lake surrounded by steep limestone cliffs. Chiselled into these cliffs were hundreds of caves each containing a statue of a seated Buddha inside it. Chamly asked Monkey if he had any idea which one was the Cave of the Ancient Dragon.
‘I have no idea.’ Monkey replied. ‘All I know is that Muchilinda lives deep beneath the lake, not above it.’
‘Well, how is he going to know I’m here?’
Celeste intervened and replied to Chamly’s question. ‘It’s very simple. You see that big flat rock under the Bô Tree by the lake? Go and sit on it. Your shadow will be cast on the water and will be felt by Muchilinda. You just have to wait until he comes up. I was told by the Mother of the Western Skies that he would be expecting you.’
She flew around Jade and Monkeys’ heads. ‘As for you two! Just do me a favour and stay out of the way. Watch, but don’t interfere.’
Monkey sighed and wandered off pretending to admire the caves, while Jade went to chew on some grass close by.
Celeste flew into a branch of the Bô Tree and looked down on Chamly calmly sitting below her on the oblong rock.
The calm was not to last.
Without warning, the waters heaved and frothed in front of Chamly and a large wrinkled white head appeared. The head bellowed loudly. Flames shot from its mouth, missing Chamly by inches. Petrified, Chamly, jumped down behind the rock and hid.
‘I know you are there!’ Muchilinda bellowed as the last of the flames sparkled and fizzed on the water around him. ‘Show yourself, I won’t bite!’
Celeste felt that a mild heart attack was in order, but composed herself and flew down to Chamly who was still crouching in fear behind the rock. With a hint of sarcasm in her voice, she muttered, ‘You are forgetting that he’s blind and very old, Chamly. We do not want to try his patience now, do we? Stand up and don’t be such a coward. If he really wanted to set fire to you, he would have done it by now, rock or no rock. Sit back down so that he can sense your shadow on the water and let’s get this over with.’
Hesitantly, Chamly crept back on to the rock.
Celeste, once satisfied that Chamly was going to stay there, flew back to the branch above and waited to see what would happen next.
Muchilinda cocked his head to one side, listening to Chamly’s movements. When the boy had stilled, he swam to the edge of the lake and lumbered his massive body out of the water. His gigantic claws crushed and sprayed the pebbles as he manoeuvred himself closer to the rock. Chamly could see that from the tip of the dragon’s tail all the way to his eyebrows, his skin was like that of a rhinoceros with great slabs of hard white skin covering his body.
The dragon flopped down and turned his head towards Chamly. Milky eyes stared vacantly out over a scarred, soft skinned, white snout.
‘So you made it,’ Muchilinda croaked. ‘Sakyamüni chose a boy with a bit of sense at last.’ As he said this, smoke blew through his nostrils dispersing into smoke rings above his head. ‘I’ll be so glad when I don’t have to carry the wisdom of the world anymore. I’m getting too old for the job.’
‘Oh really. And how is this wisdom going to be passed on to me? You don’t seem to be carrying a book or anything,’ Chamly asked sceptically.
‘You’ll see. Put the Stone of Peace down on the pebbles beside the lake. Make sure it’s about ten paces away from me, please.’
Still slightly fearful, Chamly undid the plaited purple string from round his neck and as quietly as possible, slipped off the rock and tiptoed out ten, long paces away from the drag
Muchilinda cocked his head, listening to Chamly’s movements, his brow furrowed as if in pain. ‘Quietly please! I can hear a pin drop, so a boy even tiptoeing over the pebbles is like thunder to me. That’s it. Now put the Stone of Peace down and get back on top of the rock.’
Muchilinda waited until Chamly had sat down again before heaving himself back on to his four legs. Breathing deeply through his nostrils, he opened his mouth wide and exhaled. Fire streamed out wrapping itself around the little jade horse.
The Stone of Peace grew to ten times its original and glowed a brilliant white. Its white light spread over the surrounding pebbles and down to the waterside. Then, brushing each ripple of water, the light spread out over the whole lake and up the sides of the surrounding cliffs highlighting the Buddhas in their caves. As if this wasn’t enough, the whole cliff face began to move and out of the very rock of the cliff, a kaleidoscope of colours whirled and swirled and took on human form.
Chamly thought he was hallucinating.
‘What’s happening?’ Mulchilinda croaked. ‘Tell me!’
‘We’ve got company!’ Chamly cried in consternation. ‘A load of giants have just appeared from nowhere and now they’re all sitting on the other side of the lake as if they’ve been there forever.’
‘Oh good! For a minute I thought my flame was too old for the job. Those giants are the higher gods of the universe,’ Muchilinda croaked. ‘They are here for one reason and one reason only and that is to discuss the future of this particular planet with you.’
‘Look, when is someone going to listen to me. I’m only twelve years old and that is more than enough to cope with. I’m too young to know anything about politics and how to save the world.’
Muchilinda blew more smoke from his nostrils and with a halo of smoke rings above his head, croaked, ‘You have been chosen by Sakyamüni, so get used to it! Describe the gods to me. I want to make sure they are all here.’
Chapter 40
THE VOID OF DAO
‘I give up,’ Chamly said in exasperation and sat back down on the rock. ‘To start with there are four giants dressed like emperors sitting beside something that looks like a red haired ox with long horns. It’s sitting just like a human being.’
‘They are the Emperors of the Celestial Skies. There should be the White, the Black, the Green, the Red and the Yellow Emperor. The Yellow Emperor reigns supreme over all of them.’
‘Why should the Yellow Emperor be more powerful than the rest?’ Chamly asked.
‘Because he is stronger and braver than all the rest, that’s why! He is also extremely clever. The Red Emperor is the God of the Sun. He’s the one that looks like an ox. He’s still a bit wild and unruly, but that’s hardly surprising with all that red hair,’ Muchilinda chuckled. ‘Carry on. Who else has arrived? There should be more.’
‘There are two very muscular giants having an argument. They’re not wearing very much. One of them has the top of his head flattened and his hands are webbed like a duck’s feet. The other giant just looks mean and vicious.’
‘Oh, that will be Zhurong, the God of Fire. He has a very nasty temper when riled. Gong Gong, the God of Water is the one with the flat head. The two of them had such a ferocious fight once, that they made the skies buckle and shift under the strain of their combat. Gong Gong lost his footing and crashed to earth. With his pride in tatters, he tried to commit suicide by ramming his head into a mountain range. As you can see by his flat head, he failed dramatically. Who else has turned up?’
‘There’s a beautiful looking woman sitting on a rock with a lotus flower hat on her head. Who’s she?’
‘Kuan Yin. She’s the Goddess of Mercy. Things must be pretty bad to bring her down here. Her name translates into “one who hears the cries of the world”. Who else? There should be two more.’ Muchilinda croaked impatiently.
‘There’s a large snake with the head and arms of a beautiful woman. Is she a relation of the she demon?’
Muchilinda puffed smoke. ‘No! The woman-snake is the gentle Goddess Nü Wa. She created mankind with her lover Fu Xi. Is Pan Gu here?’
‘Would that be the god with blac
k and white swirls all over his body?’
‘Yes, that’s Pan Gu. The black and white swirls represent the “yin” and “yang” of life. The black swirls represent female cosmic energies and are associated with the cold and darkness of the world, while the white swirls are male cosmic energies and are associated with the warmth of the sun and heavens. Dear old Pan Gu came into existence so that he might create order from chaos and bring balance and unity to the world. His comments today will come in very handy! Now look at the water and tell me when it starts to change.’
‘Change into what?’ Chamly asked. ‘Oh, I see what you mean! The ripples on the water have gone flat and the lake looks like a sheet of glass. What’s happening?’
‘You are about to witness the “Void of Dao”. ‘Keep looking at it! This is the start of your education. It will give you an insight into what is really happening in the world today.’
Mesmerised, Chamly stared into the Void. It was as if the lake had become a television. Images charted the progression and needs of the human race from monkeys to the present day. Chamly was fascinated yet appalled at the amount of material goods the human race thought it needed to be happy in today’s world. The images changed, showing the terrible cost of those beautiful material goods.
Millions of people were making their way into factories where gigantic chimneys spewed smoke into a yellowed sky. Inside the factories, half-starved men, women and children laboured and coughed over the machinery making cars, gadgets and toys for people who, unlike them, could afford them.
He felt guilty that he had most of the toys being shown. If he were honest, he would have to admit that he rather liked having them.
Images of great tropical forests appeared being either cut or burnt down, the wood being used worldwide for furniture and panelling. Thousands of animals lay dying or scorched, their habitats destroyed around them. As far as the eye could see, where once ancient trees grew and the sound of wild animals could be heard, now only stood rows of rat infested Palm Oil trees, the oil from the fruit in much demand by the western world for low fat butter spreads and toiletries sensitive to the skin. The images changed to expanding arid deserts.
‘I tried to give the ground rain to rejuvenate the land and make things grow again,’ Gong Gong cried out. ‘But with all those poisonous fumes billowing their muck up into the atmosphere, I’m not surprised the clouds are on strike!’
The Red Emperor sneered and pointed, ‘How is it that the world is becoming so extreme Gong Gong? All desert in some parts and tremendous flooding in others. Look how many people are either drowning from too much water or dying from the lack of it. That bash into the mountains must have knocked your brains about.’
Gong Gong protested. ‘I try to hold the waters back in the oceans, but the oceans just keep getting fuller and fuller. It’s all the ice melting at the poles. It’s happened before, but that was many, many years ago and the process was a lot of slower with the planet following its natural cycle. Now, that cycle has been speeded up dramatically by the actions of the human race. The King of the Polar Bears has been to see me. He fears the extinction of the bears because they won’t have time to adapt to the lack of ice around them. All creatures need time to adapt to these changes!’
The Red Emperor stood up and bellowed loudly, ‘It’s been rumoured that the human race will require another three planets to support its greed for food and material possessions. I say get rid of them before they destroy the rest of the universe!’
The Yellow Emperor barked. ‘Oh do sit down and stop being a drama queen. Think of poor Nü Wa! She’s the one who created these men and women. And I’m sure Pan Gu didn’t think this would happen when he spread his body out under the blue arch of heaven in order to create the sun, moon and planets. What these images show us is that the Virtues of Dao are being ignored. What we see before us is the steady progression of envy, hatred, conceit, cruelty and greed. The poor want a greater share of the world’s wealth whilst the wealthy take even more desperate measures to keep everything for themselves.’
The gods looked again at the lake. The images showed a terrible future for the planet. The sea had risen and covered vast areas of land causing the mass exodus of people trying to find shelter and food elsewhere. Millions of emaciate people, starving and diseased lay listless and dying on the ground. In cities and towns, rioters rampaged through the streets while thousands fled in terror as those they had thought their friends and neighbours hacked them to death for their food. Bombs exploded into mushroom clouds of poison over rich and poor alike.
Ripples began to form on the water and the Void dissolved.
Kuan Yin shook her head and cried, ‘What a waste of such a beautiful planet.’
The Yellow Emperor stood and turned to face the other gods. ‘It is time to debate and reflect on what we have seen. Can we stop this destruction before it’s too late to turn back the clock? Has anyone got any suggestions?’
‘I thought it was too late already,’ the Red Emperor shouted. ‘The human race prefers to keep their material way of life rather than save the planet for future generations. Every human is only borrowing from the planet. If you borrow something, you shouldn’t deliberately damage it.’
Chapter 41
THE GODS ARGUE
The Black Emperor sighed. ‘I thought humans were supposed to be intelligent? I say we throw a comet at the place and let the evolution of man start all over again. Maybe the next lot will be more inclined to follow the Virtues of Dao.’
Pan Gu started weeping. ‘When I created the planets, unity and disunity balanced harmoniously. Now the yin and yang of life is so unbalanced, that I find it hard to imagine how we are going to change it. Did Nü Wa and I forget something when we gave this world life?’
Chamly asked Muchilinda what the Virtues of Dao were.
Muchilinda looked at him in despair. ‘You mean to tell me you don’t know? It’s no wonder the world is on course to selfdestruct. The principle upon which the Virtues of Dao is based is that you, and every other human being, are only borrowing from the planet and should respect what you borrow. What you saw through the Void was a testament to how badly humans are abusing this planet. The Virtues of Dao are all about yin and yang and balancing the needs of all things that live and breath upon the planet. If there is no balance, disunity prevails. Without the Virtues of Dao, the planet is definitely doomed.’
Chamly sighed, ‘The Void of Dao has shown me a world without a future and as a child that really upsets me. What is the point of growing up, if I won’t survive as an adult?’
Muchilinda croaked. ‘When you’ve been enlightened with the wisdom of the world, I’m counting on you to put the knowledge to good use. Excuse me while I get everyone’s attention again.’
Muchilinda inhaled deeply and then, bellowing loudly, blew fire across the water at the gods arguing on the other side. They all became silent.
‘I’m glad I’ve got your attention. Sitting beside me is the new Chosen One. He carries the Stone of Peace and the Sword of Victory. There’s still a chance for the planet if he succeeds in taking them to the Cave of Peace and Tranquillity. I ask you to wait until this boy and his generation have at least had a chance to restore balance, before coming to any conclusion on the planet’s future. This boy’s generation will face huge problems as a result of the material greed of their forefathers. The planet is ripe for change. Sakyamüni became a Buddha at the age of twenty-nine and millions of people followed his beliefs for centuries. Why can’t this boy have a chance to do the same? Sakyamüni hoped that when he chose this boy, he was choosing a leader of men. We’ve seen the “Truth of the Cause of Suffering” through the Void today. Maybe this boy and his generation can lead the human race away from the suffering caused by greed and so reach the “Path of Liberation”.’
‘Well I can tell you this much,’ Gong Gong shouted over the lake, ‘the planet will be dealt with naturally by floods, drought, and various killer diseases. If we’re patient, t
here’ll only be about a quarter of the human race in need of such enlightenment.’
The Yellow Emperor called out, ‘Are you saying Muchilinda, that this small boy holds the key to saving the planet?’
‘He might, given the chance!’
‘Does the boy know how to use the sword if the she demon attacks?’ the Yellow Emperor asked.
‘It is the same one you used against the evil Chiyou all those years ago, Yellow Emperor. I do not remember your ever having learnt to use it.’
The Yellow Emperor laughed. ‘That’s true.’
Kuan Yin stood up and floated across the water of the lake towards Chamly. She stooped and picked up the glowing Stone of Peace from the pebbles. With the light illuminating her beautiful face, she smiled at Chamly and then looked beyond him. ‘Jade! You look gorgeous. How does it feel to be yourself again?’ she asked.
Chamly turned to find Jade had lost the donkey skin and was again a magnificent white stallion.
Monkey jumped on to the rock and stood beside Chamly. He called out to Kuan Yin. ‘What about my weapon, Kuan Yin? Chamly needs all the help he can get. Have I not done as the Jade Emperor decreed and got Chamly safely here to the Cave of the Ancient Dragon?’
Kuan Yin smiled, ‘Hello Monkey. I know it was like losing a leg when your weapon was taken from you, but you do have a habit of getting yourself into trouble.’ She bent down to give Monkey a pin. ‘If you keep this boy safe Monkey, the Jade Emperor has said he is going to reward you by making you Chief Wine Maker for the palace. At least then he can be sure you won’t steal it if you have it permanently on tap.’
Chamly was surprised that Monkey’s weapon was so insignificant. Almost immediately though, the pin lengthened into an iron bar.
Kuan Yin smiled at Chamly and gently placed the Stone of Peace on the rock beside him. ‘The stone is too heavy to put around your neck at the moment. Don’t worry. It will soon shrink. The Jade Emperor asks if you would take both the Stone of Peace and the Sword of Victory to the Cave of Peace and Tranquillity. Once they are safely placed inside, the healing of yin and yang can begin. The Celestial Owl will show you how to find the cave.’