what u think of Guan Gong as Dharma protector?
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i a bit sceptical at first. as i watched the Romance of the Three kingdom. Guan Yu although was very righteous, even Cao Cao respect Him. He had an affinity with HuaTuo, went to war for the country, killed many enermies in battles etcs, but eventually He died a terible death. He got beheaded by a Wu enermy Lu Meng(?).
however scepticatism changed for the better when i heard Great Ven Hai TaoÂ’s affinity of learning Dharma and ordaining was from praying to Guan Gong. and moreover, when He met Da Bao Fa Wang (Urgyen Trinley Dorje), and He was very happy like as if He was affinity with Him. Da Bao Fa Wang told Ven Hai tao that Guan Gong is a dharma protector! u can see the face and body of Da bao Fa Wang, huge like Guan Gong. He said Guan Gong used to be a dragon, which was beheaded by Jade God becoz it protected earthÂ’s people, something like that. not sure of the detail yet. maybe post it next time when i watch the vcd.
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hmm, Believing is good already ,Originally posted by sinweiy:i a bit sceptical at first. as i watched the Romance of the Three kingdom. Guan Yu although was very righteous, even Cao Cao respect Him. He had an affinity with HuaTuo, went to war for the country, killed many enermies in battles etcs, but eventually He died a terible death. He got beheaded by a Wu enermy Lu Meng(?).
however scepticatism changed for the better when i heard Great Ven Hai TaoÂ’s affinity of learning Dharma and ordaining was from praying to Guan Gong. and moreover, when He met Da Bao Fa Wang (Urgyen Trinley Dorje), and He was very happy like as if He was affinity with Him. Da Bao Fa Wang told Ven Hai tao that Guan Gong is a dharma protector! u can see the face and body of Da bao Fa Wang, huge like Guan Gong. He said Guan Gong used to be a dragon, which was beheaded by Jade God becoz it protected earthÂ’s people, something like that. not sure of the detail yet. maybe post it next time when i watch the vcd.
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I am in harmony with this kind of comment
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Ya I believe it is true..
There's once am American kept dreaming of the same man wearing military suit - ancient Chinese kind, telling him that he has Yuan with my shi fu. When my shi fu came to visit him, he even drew out the picture (he is an artist) - my shi fu saw and at once said it is the Dharma Protector.
Dunnu isit Guan Gong though.
I think I posted the picture in sgforums before.. -
In the year 162 A.D. during the period of the warring states of the Three Kingdoms, a child was born to a humble family in Shansi who grew up to become China's most illustrious and outstanding son, a great hero, and was later deified to become one of the most popular Gods of the Chinese people. His admirers and devotees ranged from Emperors to the common people and his popularity never waned over the long period of time. thousands of temples and shrines have been erected in his honour and canbe seen in all parts of the country. His images and portraitsadorn home shrines or walls of countless homes whether they be Taoist, Confucianist or Buddhist.
In a country strifed with wars and rebellions throughout its history
of the various Dynasties, great heroes have emerged and distinguished themselves in every way to deserve veneration and rememberance but none has ever equalled Kuan Ti to gain elevation into the ranks of Gods or enjoy worship by different classes of people as their patron saints. To the Taoists and others, Kuan Ti was their God of War, while the Buddhists confer upon him
the great honour as their Protector.
Born as Kuan Yu he led a simple life and made his living as a young man by selling bean-curd which provided the excuse for the bean-curd sellers to respect him as their patron saint today.
He also devoted much time to serious studies and on one occasion,
displayed his excellent memory power by reciting word for
word, the entire volume of the Classics after reading it but once.
Kuan Yu's other name is Yun-Chang.
Through his great love for justice and fair-play, Kuan Yu soon got himself into deep trouble when he slayed the licentious and corrupt magistrate who forced a poor girl to become his concubine. This made him into a criminal and Kuan Yu had to flee for his life into the mountains. As he was trying to cross over to the neighbouring province he chanced to stop by a stream to have a
wash; when to his surprise he noticed a great change to his appearance!
His facial complexion had changed from white to a reddish tint which saved him the trouble to disguise himself so that he was able to walk through the sentries who were guardingthe mountain pass without the least of problem.
Upon reaching Chu-Chou of the Szechuan Province he soon befriended two others who shared his noble ideals and virtues and they ended up as “sworn brothers” in a ceremony which has been recorded in the history as the “Brotherhood at the Peach Orchard”.
Chang-fei, a butcher, became the youngest brother. He was a man of fiery temper who had an unyielding sense of justice and was well known for his immense appetite both for food and adventure. He also had a black face which was full of whiskers and together with his formidable frame of some seven feet high, very few would dare cross his path. His great love and loyalty to Kuan Yu has won him a place of honour so that he is always seen standing behind Kuan Ti in all depictions. -
Liu Pei, the elder brother who came from a distinguished but impoverished family with Imperial linkage, was known to be a man of honour. He was later to distinguish himself by founding the Later Han Dynasty. Kuan Yu, a powerful figure of more than eight feet tall, possessed an enigmatic personality and integrity which won him respect of all whom he met.
Together these three newly sworn brothers set out and became involved in military pursuits, Kuan Ti once serving under the crafty and famous Ts’ao Ts’ao. They displayed great military prowess and fought many battles which can be read in full details in the famous novels of “The Romance of the Three Kingdoms”.
Kuan Yu proved himself worthy of the honour and affection of those who fought with him for he was brave and generous and was never known to turn aside from danger. He also proved his fidelity on the occasion when he was taken prisoner together with the wife and concubines of Liu Pei, and having been allocated a common sleeping quarters with the ladies, he preserved
their reputation and his own trustworthiness by sitting all night through, outside their door, reading a book under the bright light of a candle. There is also another version of this account which stated that he stood through the night at the door of the ladiesÂ’ room with a lighted lantern in his hand.
In the recorded history of his life Kuan Yu had many occasions to display his nobility, uprightness, integrity, loyalty and bravery. He lived at a time of great distress and chaos when the virtue of the Han Dynasty, set up in 202 B.C., began to decline and uprising, warring, dissatisfactions and rebellions were rampant.
Temptations of acquiring wealth, fame and power did not deter him from remaining faithful to the oath that he had taken with his brothers at the peach orchard: “…to be loyal to each other in life and united in death…” And of his ability to bear pain unflinchingly, there was an occasion when he was wounded by a poisoned arrow which required the arrow and the poison to be removed. He calmly submitted himself to the terrible ordeal and allowed his arm to be cut opened and scratched to the bone by his physician while he concentrated his attention on a game of chess, without showing the least sign of pain.
In the year 219 A.D. he was captured by Sun Chuan and put to death. It was recorded that on the night of his death, his spirit appeared to a Buddhist monk, to seek for instruction on the BuddhaÂ’s teachings. -
According to the Buddhist account, Kuan Yu manifested himself before the Tripitaka Master Chi Tsai, the founder of Tien Tai Buddhism, with a retinue of spiritual beings. The Master was then in deep meditation at the Yu Chien Mountain when he was distracted by Kuan YuÂ’s presence. After receiving the
teachings Kuan Yu requested for the Five Precepts and became a Buddhist practitioner.
He then vowed that he would henceforth be a guardian for the Buddha-dharma and thus, for more than a thousand years, Kuan Ti has been worshipped as a Guardian or Dharma Protector in the Buddhist temples.
The Pure Land Buddhists also respected him as the Sentinel to the Western
Paradise of Amitabha Buddha. For these reasons Kuan Ti has earned a place in the Chinese Pantheon of Deities; his statues are normally found in the first hall of most temples and incense should be offered to him as a mark of respect.
The honours and tributes that the succeeding Emperors of the various Dynasties conferred upon him marked him as the greatest military hero that ever lived. Kuan Yu earned the rank of ‘TI’ meaning “God” or “Emperor” and has ever since received worship as Kuan Ti or Wu Ti. Here are the other main awards which he had subsequently earned, elevating him to the ranks of
Duke, Prince and then Emperor:
1. In 1120 the Sung Emperor ennobled him as the “Faithful and Loyal Duke”. Eight years later he again conferred him another title, that of “The Magnificent Prince and Pacificator”.
2. In 1330 Emperor Wen of the Yuan Dynasty honoured him with the title of “Warrior Prince and Civilizer”.
3. In 1594 Emperor Wan Li of the Ming Dynasty conferred on him the title of “Faithful and Loyal Great Ti, Supporter of Heaven and Protector of the Kingdom”. In his honour thousands of temples were built across the land so that people could honour and worship him, thus making him one of the
most popular Gods of China.
4. In 1813 the Ching Emperor added the appellation “Military Emperor” and Kuan Ti was regarded as the Patron of the Manchu Dynasty.
5. In 1856 during the battle between the Imperialists and the rebels, Kuan Ti was said to have appeared in the heavens which helped to turn the tide of the battle in the EmperorÂ’s favour. After the victory, Emperor Hsein Feng quickly elevated him to the position of reverence similar to that of Confucius, the great Sage of China.
All these awards have helped the people to remember and worship Kuan Ti not only as a God of War but also as their God of Chivalry and Prosperity. He is also regarded as the Guardian of the Brave, Loyal and Righteous, and so on. However it must be mentioned here that the manner of worship of Kuan Ti at his temples are not necessarily a Buddhist practice, although he has
earned a place into the Chinese Pantheon. Buddhism may accept and even encourages its followers to revere the Gods for their virtues or pray to them for some protection or worldly boons, but they must always be aware that Enlightenment cannot be won by such practices and that their refuge should be sought in the Three Jewels only. -
As a Buddhist deity, Kuan Ti stands alone but as a Taoist deity he is usually accompanied by two other companions. A young looking man is always protrayed beside him holding his seal while Chang Fei can be seen with his halberd which according to tradition, the edge of it facing towards the direction of the suspected danger from evil influence. For this reason he is often depicted as standing behind Kuan TiÂ’s right so that his halberd
may face the other direction, if so required.
Kuan TiÂ’s anniversaries fall on the 13th day of the 2nd moon and the 13th day of the 5th moon in Malaysia and Singapore while Hong Kong celebrates it on the 24th day of the 6th moon.
It is also customary for the Chinese to make their way to Kuan Ti temples at the start of the Chinese New Year to offer prayers of gratitude for favours rendered and to seek his continued protection for the coming year.
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Was lucky to have accidently visited Guan Gong Grave in China.
Heard the story there :
He was deheaded, but haunted the locals for a long time. His body was not buried at first, cause in ancient times no one dare to collect & bury the body of Emperor's deheaded. It was left to decay in the sun.
His anger rose as no one in the whole country dare prepare his funeral or even do something good for him or his body. He have risk his whole life to protect this country & not a single person gave him little respect. He have help thousands in his counrty but was turned against & deheaded where no one help him.
So a high monk came to haunted place. Guan Gong sprite appears & ask this high monk why he was in this state. The monk told him that he have killed many people during the war. His karma have come to be in this state of being deheaded & becoming lost. Guan Gong ask for solution. Was advise him to take refuge in the Dharma. Immidately he took refuge infront of this high monk. Guan Gong vow to protect Dharma for 1000 years & Vow to protect people in his homeland. These vows was dedicated to those poor deaths he have cause.
After many miracle the local experiances & was confirmed it was the deed of Guan Gong. Then his body was re-covered secretly & given a silent buried by people (Lau Pai Sing). His grave was built by many people's effort. At first was a simple & small gave. Later people experiances his good deed, re-built the grave bigger.
Then later stage of his continueous helping, temple was raise for him to help him & local people accumulate good karma. -
Nice!Originally posted by surfer188:Was lucky to have accidently visited Guan Gong Grave in China.
Heard the story there :
He was deheaded, but haunted the locals for a long time. His body was not buried at first, cause in ancient times no one dare to collect & bury the body of Emperor's deheaded. It was left to decay in the sun.
His anger rose as no one in the whole country dare prepare his funeral or even do something good for him or his body. He have risk his whole life to protect this country & not a single person gave him little respect. He have help thousands in his counrty but was turned against & deheaded where no one help him.
So a high monk came to haunted place. Guan Gong sprite appears & ask this high monk why he was in this state. The monk told him that he have killed many people during the war. His karma have come to be in this state of being deheaded & becoming lost. Guan Gong ask for solution. Was advise him to take refuge in the Dharma. Immidately he took refuge infront of this high monk. Guan Gong vow to protect Dharma for 1000 years & Vow to protect people in his homeland. These vows was dedicated to those poor deaths he have cause.
After many miracle the local experiances & was confirmed it was the deed of Guan Gong. Then his body was re-covered secretly & given a silent buried by people (Lau Pai Sing). His grave was built by many people's effort. At first was a simple & small gave. Later people experiances his good deed, re-built the grave bigger.
Then later stage of his continueous helping, temple was raise for him to help him & local people accumulate good karma.
Amituofo!
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