In the heart of ancient China, where legends intertwine with the fabric of reality, there lived a fervent seeker named Shen Jing. His life’s quest was nothing less than the attainment of the Tao, an elusive state of spiritual enlightenment that promises immortality and harmony with the universe’s rhythms. Despite the absence of a master to guide him, his unwavering spirit led him on a journey filled with challenges, revelations, and a test of faith that would ultimately define his destiny.
This is the tale of Shen Jing’s extraordinary path to enlightenment, where the convergence of belief, perseverance, and a mysterious encounter set the stage for a timeless lesson on the true essence of attaining the Tao.
The quest begins
Since childhood, Shen Jing yearned to find the Tao, but couldn’t find an immortal Master to teach him. Later, he traveled to Zhongshan in search of a way to become immortal. Here, he met an elderly woman who said: “You have a good spirit, the bones of an immortal, and an upright heart. If you focus on cultivating, you shall attain the Tao in ten years.”
She gave him a piece of white stone and said: “Boil the stone with mountain spring water and don’t stop until it becomes as soft as an elixir. You can then eat it and become an immortal. Do not put out the fire until it softens; do not forget!” Shortly after this encounter, she disappeared.
The challenges of faith
The idea sounded magical! So Shen Jing built a thatched hut in the mountains. Besides chopping firewood and fetching spring water to cook the stone, he tended to the fire carefully and was afraid of oversleeping. When he had time, he visited nearby homes to beg for alms and rushed back immediately.
As time passed, people saw him as a strange fellow constantly boiling a piece of stone. Some people sympathized with him, others looked down on him, and a few told him to stop being a fool. Regardless of what others said, Shen Jing continued to cook the stone. Despite enduring many hardships, Shen Jing never forgot what the old woman told him: “You shall attain the Tao in ten years.”
A moment of despair
The tenth year finally arrived. Full of hope, he lifted the lid to check the stone and found it was still hard and hadn’t softened. Jing was spiritually crushed and stopped cooking from that moment on.
A few days later, the old lady came by and questioned Jing: “I told you to boil the stone with spring water, so why did you stop?” He replied: “I followed your instructions and cooked it for ten years. But it’s still hard, and I can’t eat it, so I’m not cooking it anymore!”
She explained: “This is not an ordinary stone; not everyone can have it. Since you were given this stone, why couldn’t you treat it sincerely and follow my instructions without any doubts? If you could have done that, you would have been able to eat it in less than ten years. But since you had doubts, you couldn’t consume it even if you cooked it for a further ten years!”
Shen Jing asked: What kind of staone is it? The old lady replied: “This is a fruit from an immortal tree in heaven. Someone acquired it and then lost it on this mountain. It was blown by the poisonous winds of the human world and became hard. It will turn soft if you are sincere and boil it with mountain spring water. Once you eat the fruit, you’ll obtain the Tao.” Shen Jing thanked the old lady before she disappeared once more.
A moment of truth
After this encounter, Jing contemplated the reason for his failure. He realized that although he had been cooking the stone for 10 years, he still doubted the old lady’s words. Jing recalled her saying: “You shall attain the Tao in ten years as long as you focus on your cultivation.”
Yet he failed to do so! Eventually, he enlightened that the old lady didn’t break her promise, he just failed to have enough faith! With that in mind, Jing bathed, abstained from food, and offered prayers to the divine. With a heart filled with strong faith, he began to boil the stone again. This time, he reminded himself: “I will not doubt the old lady’s words even if I have to cook the stone for the rest of my life!”
Attaining the Tao
The stone turned soft the next day, and its fragrance permeated the mountain. Once again, Jing respectfully bathed and changed his clothes before passionately eating the soft stone. He immediately had a childlike appearance with hair as black as lacquer, a pure heart, and a nimble body. People were baffled when they saw him. A few days later, Shen Jing disappeared, and no one knew where he had gone. People realized later that Shen Jing had attained the Tao.
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