Strange, what does it mean that Sun Wukong's Golden Cudgel weighs 13,500 jin?

 

Strange, what does it mean that Sun Wukong's Golden Cudgel weighs 13,500 jin? What does it mean that Sun Wukong's Golden Cudgel weighs 13,500 jin?

Sun Wukong has three magical treasures. The Golden Cudgel is used to defeat monsters, which symbolizes the Buddhist Dharma for eliminating afflictions. Then, what is the implication of the *Journey to the West* specifically pointing out that the Golden Cudgel weighs 13,500 jin? Is this number a bit strange? Strange things must have their extraordinary meanings. So what does 13,500 imply?

 

Let's first take a look at the origin of the Golden Cudgel. It is the "Divine Needle that Stabilizes the Bottom of the Heavenly River". A river has flowing water, and "indulging in external allurements" means clinging to external conditions, which is the root of afflictions. The word "stabilize" stops the "flow". The Golden Cudgel can change freely. How does it change? For practitioners, changing "flowing outward" to "flowing inward" is cultivation. "Inward" means that it no longer clings to external conditions. The weight of 13,500 jin is a "heavy weapon", and also represents a "major event" and a "major turning point".

 

Buddhism has three major periods of turning points: the *Right Dharma Period* of 1,000 years, the *Image Dharma Period* of 1,000 years, and the *Final Dharma Period* of 10,000 years. From the Right Dharma Period to the Final Dharma Period, the Buddha specifically talked about 5 stages, each lasting 500 years:

1.  The stage of firm liberation: most people tend to follow the path to liberation

2.  The stage of firm meditation: practitioners are mostly proficient in meditation

3.  The stage of firm extensive learning: people focus on listening to and studying Buddhist Dharma

4.  The stage of firm stupas and temples: more energy is put into building stupas and temples

5.  The stage of firm strife: disputes within Buddhism increase

 

Then, the 10,000 in 13,500 should refer to the Final Dharma Period, the 3 refers to the three periods, and the 500 refers to the five stages. Interestingly, when the Buddha entered Nirvana, his head faced north and his face faced west. Every action of the Buddha was to teach the Dharma. His disciples asked why he took this posture. The Buddha said that his head facing north and face facing west meant that in the 5th 500-year stage, the Buddhist Dharma would flourish greatly in the Kingdom of Chen (the Land of the Rising Sun, referring to China), which is in the north of India, then spread to the West, and quickly spread throughout the world.

 

This is a prophecy of the Buddha recorded in Buddhist scriptures 2,500 years ago. So 13,500 refers to the Buddha's prophecy: in the 10,000-year Final Dharma Period, which is the third period, that is, the 5th 500-year stage, the Buddhist Dharma will flourish greatly in China, then spread to the West and the whole world. The Golden Cudgel was discovered in the "East Sea", and "Eastern Chen" referred to China at that time; it was presented by the Dragon King of the East Sea, and the "dragon" is a symbol of China. Think about the popular song a few years ago: "There is a dragon in the distant East, its name is China". Doesn't this clearly tell everyone that the Buddhist Dharma is now going to flourish in China and spread to the world!

 

Also, when the Buddhist Dharma flourishes, it will surely flourish with the *Lotus Sutra* and the *Shurangama Sutra*, the kings among the sutras. "The *Shurangama Sutra* for enlightenment, the *Lotus Sutra* for becoming a Buddha". Aren't the Lotus Sutra dojos blooming all over China in recent years! China's current reality is consistent with the prophecy in *Journey to the West*!