The Story of Hsüan Tsang
Island School , Daswani , Rohan – 15
Years ago , a mediocre , run-of-the-mill family from China was sent on a journey to fetch some scriptures . However , their mission was nothing near as bland . The mother , pregnant and father , deceased . Immediately after the boy was born , he was tied to a plank with a letter penned in blood and pushed into a river . Here is the story of that boy , “ Hsüan Tsang .”
At that time , long ago , most monks usually looked very serious . But this boy grew up to be uniquely different , even though he was quite dignified , he always wore a little smile . No matter what happened , this young boy never lost this glimmer of inner happiness . And on happy occasions , he had the brightest smile and the warmest laughter of all .
His sixth birthday was the day he found out about his parents . His master sat him down and explained it to him . The boy understood , and a tear wept down his face ; yet , he still retained his smile . He was thrilled to know the truth , and He was so happy for all that was terrible was left behind him .
Sometimes his friends asked him why he was so happy that he always smiled . He chuckled and said , " You wouldn ' t believe me if I told you ! And if you think I lied , it would be a dishonour to my master ." His wise old master knew that this glowing source of happiness could not be wiped from Hsüan Tsang ’ s face and so , he made the happiest monk his favourite assistant .
The summer after the boy turned seventeen , the wise old master and his followers went to the city . The king permitted them to live in his garden for the spring . As summertime approached , the monks were preparing to return to the forest . Considering the health of the old leader , the king went to him and said , " My friend , you are now very old . You are growing weaker . What good does it do to go on a treacherous walk back to the forest ? Send your followers back , and you stay here ."
The master then called his assistant to him and said , " You are now the leader of the monks . I am too old and too weak . I will stay here with the king ." So , the monks returned home , and the master remained . Hsüan Tsang continued his meditations in the forest . He attained so much peace and wisdom that he grew even happier than he was before . However , Hsüan missed his master ; Hsüan wanted to share his new knowledge . So , he returned to the city for a visit .
He trekked back to his old place of solitude , with all of his belongings on his back , and when he arrived , he sat on a rug at the feet of his master . They didn ' t speak very much , mainly because the old monk was sick . However , every so often the assistant would say , " Thank You , Thank you so much !"
The king then entered the room to pay his respects to the chief monk . However , the assistant just kept saying , " Thank You , Thank you so much !" He didn ' t even stop to greet the king and show his due respect . This lack of respect disturbed the king , and the king thought , " With all my concerns , looking after the kingdom , the citizens , I take my time out for a visit to a monk which I provide shelter for , and they don ' t even respect me enough even to recognise me . How insulting !" He responded to the elder of the two monks , " Venerable chief , I think your friend must be lightheaded . Does he lie here so unacquainted all the time ?"
The head monk replied , " O king , have patience , he is a far better man than what you see . He just has a few traumatic memories . Wait , and I shall tell you the source of his happiness .
" Oh , enough with this measling stories , I ' ve had enough with it ." " All you peasants ever want is just rubbish for yourselves ," The king said .
" Please listen , not many know it . Immediately after the boy was born , he was tied to a plank with a letter written in blood and pushed into a river . After being driven into the river , Hsüan Tsang endured a treacherous life . Before I found him , he was held by a family of three ; they raised him till he was five , but all they did was torment him . They laughed at him , tossed him around and treated him as a slave . When he was six , Hsüan Tsang ran away with a blood letter detailing what happened to his parents . That ' s when I found