五僊 Five Immortals (Excerpt I)

五僊
Five Immortals (Excerpt I)
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五仙庙位于中国湖北省十堰市张湾区柏林镇的白马山上，在武当山山门以西50公里。是武当山七十二峰之一的天马峰，海拔1058米，庙内敬奉的是五位仙人，所以称为五仙庙。他们按年龄大小排列位次。神像道装打扮，手拿法器，形态各异，因为他们的传说很多，在这里给大家做一个简短的介绍。
相传在一千多年前的宋辽战乱时期，他们五个同时来到了白马山。当时国家战乱，到白马山
躲避战乱逃难的人很多，饥饿和疾病给难民带来了极大的痛苦。
大仙爷相貌慈祥，和蔼可亲。乐善好施，他在别处买来了很多粮食衣物，分给难民，救助了很多饥饿人的生命。人多纷争也多，大家有了纷争，大仙爷动之以情，晓之以理，为他们排忧解难，化解纷争，使大家能够相互包容，和睦相处。看到有人打猎，大仙爷就出面制止他们，不让他们随意伤害动物，并教育他们，天地万物和人是一体的，要有慈悲怜悯的思想。对受伤的动物，他也极力的救治放生。所以众人看到他都觉得好像是自己的长辈家人一样，很敬重他，都愿意听从他的教诲，按照他说的去做 。
二仙爷是一个有极高武功的人，力大无比，几个人抬的石头，他一个人就能轻松的拿起来，他手中的宝剑，会自己发出嗡嗡的响声，把宝剑抛出去很远，宝剑像有了生命一样自己会飞回来，非常神奇。战乱时期，强盗土匪很多，到处杀人抢劫，他听到有土匪抢劫的消息就会主动去找他们，让他们不要再做伤天害理坏事，重新做人，如果有的强盗土匪不听劝说，他就把他厉害的功夫展示给这些土匪强盗看，匪盗们看到二仙爷的功夫后都非常害怕，表示要改邪归正不再做坏事。虽然外面很多战乱但是白马山这一带的难民都能平安，所以山上的山寨大家叫太平寨，一直到现在都没有改名。

Five Immortals Temple is located at the top of White Horse Mountain near the town of Bai Lin, in the Zhang Wan District, Shi Yan City, Hubei Province, China. It lies fifty kilometres west of the mountain gate of Mount Wu Dang. The peak of White Horse Mountain is called Heavenly Horse Peak, which is 1058 meters above sea level, and is one of the seventy-two peaks of the Wudang mountain range. Five Immortals are piously worshipped inside the temple, hence its name. The place of each in the temple is arranged according to age and seniority. The statues of the deities are adorned with Daoist clothes, holding ritual instruments in their hands, and their appearance and shapes are all different and individual. Since their legends are numerous, only a brief introduction will be given here.

According to legend, more than one thousand years ago during the chaotic wars of the Song (960-1279) and Liao (916-1125) dynasties, these Five simultaneously came to the White Horse Mountain. At that time, the country was immersed in the turmoil of battles and fighting, and many in flight from the calamities arrived at White Horse Mountain to take shelter. Famines and diseases brought great suffering to the refugees.

The Great Immortal Elder was compassionate, affable, friendly, kind and charitable. He bought a great amount of grain from other locations, as well as food and clothing, and distributed this among the refugees, saving the lives of many starving people. Where there are many people, there will also be a great deal of strife and disputes, so everyone was caught up in arguments. The Great Immortal Elder moved people’s feelings and enlightened them through reasoning in order to resolve the difficult situation so they might leave their worries behind and put an end to the strife and disputes. Thus, he enabled everyone to show mutual forbearance and toleration, so they could get along harmoniously. When he saw people hunting, he personally stepped in and put a stop to it, not allowing them to harm animals at will, and educating them at the same time:

The Ten Thousand Things of Heaven and Earth and humans form an integral whole. Thus, one must have thoughts of compassion and mercy.

Furthermore, he made great efforts to rescue injured animals, and to heal as well as release them. For these reasons, crowds of people upon seeing him felt as though he were an elder of their own family. Many venerated him, and all were willing to listen to him and follow his teachings, and to do what he said.

The Second Immortal Elder was endowed with the utmost skill at martial arts and possessed incomparable strength. He could effortlessly pick up a heavy stone that would otherwise require several people to be lifted. The treasured sword in his hand would of itself emit a humming sound. When this treasured sword was hurled into the distance, it appeared to have a life of its own and would fly back by itself. It was highly miraculous. At the time of the tumultuous wars, robber bandits were widespread, and there was murder and looting everywhere. Whenever the Second Immortal Elder received news of their plundering, he would go out on his own initiative and search for them, to prevent them from committing further atrocities and offences against the Heavenly principles, and would make them start a new life. If the bandits did not listen to his advice and persuasion, he would display his tremendous Gong Fu to them. After the bandits had seen the Second Immortal Elder’s Gong Fu in this way, they would be terribly afraid and show that they wanted to change from their evil ways and return to the upright path, never again committing evil deeds. Although there were many chaotic wars fought around them, the refugees of White Horse Mountain were all able to remain peaceful and safe. That is why the top of the mountain is called the Stronghold of Great Peace by everyone. To this day, its name has never changed.

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Post-Scriptum:
The full article will appear in the appendix of Purple Cloud Press’ forthcoming publication of 《The 49 Barriers of Cultivating the Dao》 by Xing De/Li Shi Fu, a manual for refining one’s Inner Nature based on Liu Yi Ming’s 50 Barriers. Li Shi Fu is abbot of Five Immortals Temple (www.fiveimmortals.com).