Revealing the real Living Buddha Jigong in history: He did not look like "Brother Sharp"

The real Jigong in history: Before, the handsome beggar "Brother Sharp" became famous on the Internet. In the words of teacher Han Qiaosheng, it was "quick as lightning to cover up ears and steal bells". However, things on the Internet come and go quickly. As the true identity of "Brother Sharp" was quickly revealed, the imagination brought by a photo suddenly changed from "infinite" to "zero". Nowadays, "Brother Sharp" is obviously a thing of the past. However, if Brother Sharp had been born more than 800 years earlier, he probably would have had the chance to become a true "famous person" that would never fade away. In the 18th year of Shaoxing in the Southern Song Dynasty (1148), a baby boy named Li Xiuyuan was born in Yongning Village, Tiantai, Zhejiang. A few years later, Mr. Li became famous, and his name in the world was "Ji Gong". To this day, in terms of popularity, Jigong is still considered a "first-line celebrity" in the Chinese world.

Jigong was very stylish. He was dressed in a "mixed and matched" outfit, with "torn shoes, a torn hat, and a torn cassock..." This image design is very classic. Later, many successful people had similar " Gene", such as the Northern Beggar Hong Qigong written by Jin Yong. Of course, this alone is not enough to become famous. Just like "Brother Sharp", wearing cool clothes will still be forgotten. In fact, there is an important factor in Jigong's fame, which is the right time, place and harmony. He lived for a long time in Hangzhou, the most prosperous city in the world at that time, where the largest number of literati in China gathered at that time. In an era when journalism had not yet been born, literati, especially those at the bottom of society, assumed the main function of news dissemination. As a result, Jigong's deeds were created, processed, and disseminated, and finally Jigong was "famous." Some people say that 2009 is the "era of quilt". In fact, Jigong was already "bandited" more than 800 years ago. The myth of "Brother Sharp" created by photographers can only last for a few months, but the myth of Jigong created by ancient literati can be circulated forever. The key reason lies in the word "being".

The real Jigong has two major highlights: he is good at poetry and has excellent medical skills. Nan Huaijin once commented on Jigong's poems: "If we talk about poetic style in terms of poetic context, he is not inferior to Fan Chengda and Lu Fangweng, the four great masters of the Song Dynasty." However, how many people know Jigong's poems today? As for medical skills, it is even more difficult for ordinary people to understand them. As a result, our literati predecessors used Jigong's "shell" and got rid of the constraints of historical facts. Soon, an omnipotent Jigong was born who could not only skillfully handle household affairs, but also fight corruption and eliminate evil. After hundreds of years of literati constantly adding fuel to the fire, Jigong not only has not become outdated, but has a tendency to become popular forever.

Among the many legends about Jigong, "The Trouble in the Prime Minister's Mansion of Qin" is the most talked about. Jigong and Qin Hui competed against each other, splitting characters, and competing in limericks... In the end, Jigong won a great victory, and Qin Hui made a fool of himself. Similar to the legends of Dongfang Shuo and Xu Wenchang, the battle of wits between Jigong and Qin Hui also used the writing techniques most commonly used by lower-level literati. The representatives of the evil forces seem to be all gentlemen. Not only are they willing to patiently gossip with a weak opponent, but they will not resort to strong tactics when losing, but will be disgraced and consider themselves unlucky. If all the bad people in the world had such a state, the world would definitely become a beautiful paradise.

Like Dongfang Shuo and Xu Wenchang, there is not much connection between the legendary Jigong and him in reality. They are all just containers, which contain the fantasies of lower-class literati and ordinary people about "literary heroes". In fact, if "Brother Sharp" traveled to the Southern Song Dynasty, walked on the streets of Hangzhou, and happened to meet a down-and-out scholar...a few years later, he might also become "Jigong". He would have superhuman abilities and be busy maintaining world peace every day... "Brother Sharp" is not Jigong. He cannot tolerate our lust for "literary heroes", so we are still impetuous because we cannot create a god to protect ourselves. Like Dongfang Shuo and Xu Wenchang, there is not much connection between the legendary Jigong and him in reality. They are all just containers, which contain the fantasies of lower-class literati and ordinary people about "literary heroes".