What is a relic? Does it really exist? How is it formed from the body of a monk? Why does it come out of the body of a monk when he passes away?

What are relics

Relics refer to the bones and bead-shaped gem-like products left after the death and cremation of the founder of Buddhism, Sakyamuni Buddha. When Sakyamuni entered Nirvana 2,500 years ago, his disciples obtained a skull, two bones, four teeth, a middle finger bone relic and 84,000 bead-shaped true body relics from the ashes when he cremated his body. These relics of the Buddha are regarded as sacred objects by believers and they rush to worship them.

The relics are called Tuodu in Indian, also called Shililuo, and translated into Chinese they are called spirit bones, body bones, and remains. It is the crystal left behind after a person passes away and is cremated. However, the relics are completely different from the bones of ordinary dead people. Its shape is ever-changing, including round, oval, lotus-shaped, and some Buddha or Bodhisattva-shaped; its color is white, black, green, red, and various colors; some relics are like pearls, Some are like agate and crystal; some are transparent, and some are as bright as diamonds.

The scriptures say that relics are obtained by a person through the practice of precepts, concentration, and wisdom, as well as his own great vows. It is very rare and precious. For example, after the Buddha's nirvana, the relics burned were as much as one stone and six buckets. At that time, eight kings competed to divide the Buddha's relics, each of them got a share of the relics. They took the Buddha's relics back to their own countries, and Build pagodas for people to look up and worship. In addition, eminent monks and lay followers who have achieved great success in spiritual practice can also receive relics after their death. For example, China's Sixth Patriarch Huineng, and modern masters such as Hongyi, Yinguang, Taixu, and Zhangjia all left behind a considerable number of relics.

The golden blood relic of Sakyamuni Buddha is recorded in relevant Buddhist literature. After the death and cremation of Buddha Sakyamuni, believers found many round hard objects that were crystal clear, colorful, and as hard as steel in his ashes. These are relics, commonly known as relics, and have always been regarded as Buddhist treasures. .

It has been observed that the relic is a bone crystal, and its material composition and structure are unknown. It is said that the monk can only appear after he has passed away and been cremated. The phenomenon of relics is very rare. However, in recent years, the phenomenon of relics has appeared frequently and has become a curiosity in the contemporary Buddhist world.

December 1990. After the death of Master Hong Chuan, a distinguished Chinese monk in Singapore, people found 480 colorful, crystal-like hard objects in his ashes, some of which shone like diamonds. identified. It is no different from the Buddhist treasure relic.

The relics formed after the cremation of eminent monks vary in size and color. On the evening of May 7, 1993, the 79-year-old great sutra master Zhaowu of the Shisheng Temple of the only Tibetan Buddhist Lamaism in Shenyang, Northeast my country, The eminent monk Liji (Mongolian ethnic group) felt unwell and wanted to go back to his hometown of Fuxin, Liaoning Province. Unexpectedly, as soon as someone from the temple sent him to the Shenyang Railway Station, he passed away quietly. The eminent monk's body was sent to Shenyang Wenguantun Funeral Home for cremation. After his cremation, dozens of precious crystals of red, green, yellow, black, white and other colors were found in his ashes. The large ones were like soybeans and the small ones were like rice grains. They were identified by Buddhist experts. It is considered to be the precious relic left by the eminent monk after his death.

It is said that some eminent monks left as many as ten thousand relics. In March 1991, after the death and cremation of Master Tongxian, the executive director of the Chinese Buddhist Association, the vice-president of the Shanxi Buddhist Association, and the vice-president of the Wutai Mountain Buddhist Association, he obtained 11,000 five-color relics, which is the highest in ancient and modern times and the best in the world. most.

The relics left by some eminent monks are as big as chicken eggs. September 27, 1989. The 93-year-old master Kuan Neng, the abbot of Xixi Shi'an in Guiping County, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, passed away. After his cremation, three turquoise, crystal-clear relics were obtained, each with a diameter of 3-4 centimeters, like emeralds.

What is particularly amazing about the golden blood relic of Sakyamuni Buddha is that after the eminent monk passed away, his heart burned with fire, and finally turned into a solid relic. In 1994, the 93-year-old Master Yuanzhao began practicing at the Fahua Temple in Guanyin Mountain, Weiziping Township, Chang'an County, Shaanxi Province. Since June, there has been no progress. On June 12, she suddenly looked very excited and excited. At about 9 p.m., after giving a lecture on Buddhism to the disciples in the temple who came to visit, she said, "I leave my heart to all living beings," and then she was silent again; When I looked at it, I closed my eyes

, sat cross-legged and meditated, and passed away quietly.

Four days later, in accordance with Buddhist rules, the disciples set up firewood on a large bluestone slab in the temple and burned the master. The fire burned for a whole day, and the master's body formed more than a hundred relics and relic flowers of different sizes and shapes. . The relic flower is snow-white in color and is inlaid with red, yellow, blue and brown crystals the size of rice grains. What is particularly miraculous is that the mage's heart has been burned for a long time and turned into a huge black-brown relic. At the end of the cremation, the heart was still soft, and then gradually hardened. More than a hundred disciples present at the time witnessed it with their own eyes. It is said that Master Yuanzhao has a quiet, peaceful temperament and a kind heart, but has a very small appetite. Only eat one or two taels per meal. Wang Xuwen, a lay disciple of the master and president of the Chang'an County Qigong Association, said that Fahua Temple had sent people to bring the relics to the Provincial Buddhist Association. Master Yu Yuan identified them and confirmed that they were rare relics. Later, the local people raised funds to build a stupa for permanent storage.

Its formation is the crystallization of monks’ long-term practice of morality, concentration and wisdom

After passing away, their bodies will be cremated. It occurs naturally after cremation.

Some people say: The relics are gallstones.

It's an ignorant joke.

Gallstones break into pieces when hit. The science of the relic is so advanced at present that nothing can smash it into pieces yet.

Not even a trace.

That’s why Buddhism is so attractive.

Amitabha Buddha, if you have time, read more Buddhist scriptures, they are even more profound