The next day, Amon came to the theater again, and in the same position, he saw Vincent again. The two just nodded and smiled, and then continued watching the play. Today's performance is another playwright's work, and the repertoire of each play is relatively short, so we performed two plays in a row.
The first play was called "Ion", and it still told the story of Apollo. The playwrights in the city-state of Yalun seemed to like to ridicule this god. As the curtain opened and the actors came on stage, Amon frowned more and more as he watched.
The Apollo on the stage is not like a god, but like a licentious and shameless nobleman in the world, not only despicable, but also treacherous and morally corrupt. Apollo came to the world and shamelessly seduced a lovely girl, who gave birth to a son named Ion. Apollo, who only cared about pleasure, abandoned the girl and returned to heaven to be his god.
The girl could not dispose of the child after giving birth, so she put him in a box and sent him to the cave where she had a tryst with Apollo, so that the gods should be able to see their son. Of course Apollo saw it, so he asked Hermes, the messenger of the gods, to help him take the box away and put it in front of the temple of Apollo. The priest took in the child.
The child grew up in his father's temple, playing under the altar of Apollo all day long, but he didn't know who his parents were. Because of his unique origin, everyone regards him as a sacrifice to the gods from the world, and he was born to protect the gods in the temple.
And the girl later married a foreigner. She thought that Apollo had forgotten her long ago, but this incident aroused the jealousy and dissatisfaction of the gods, and Apollo punished her for not having children. The poor woman didn't know why, so she went to the Temple of Apollo to pray to the gods.
The climax of the play is the meeting of mother and son in the temple, when the woman recognizes her son and tells the young man the story of another woman in a distant land, without telling Ion that the unfortunate woman is Herself.
Ion said sadly in front of the altar: "Noble lady, the fate of your friend is so similar to mine. She is looking for her son, and I am looking for my mother. But don't expect the fate of your friend on the altar The gods will give you a satisfactory answer, because you are accusing the gods in the name of a friend, and the gods will not admit their mistakes!"
The woman in the play didn't tell Ion in front of her that she was his mother, and she didn't pray to the gods anymore, she turned and left the temple.
This is the general content of the myths and legends about Ion, but this play on the stage interprets the vague myths into various detailed details. The devil is in the details. It turns a legendary folk tale into a revelation of the evil deeds of the gods. Apollo is not only hypocritical and lustful, but also has a despicable and shameless jealousy.
At the end of the play, there is also a large section of sung narration-"If a god behaves vilely, he is no longer a god! The god body cannot set rules for the world and violate it himself! People imitate the evil deeds of the gods, and The gods also call it evil!"
Vincent Bur suddenly laughed, and a sentence came from his soul: "God Amon, maybe no one will arrange you like this in the future."
Amon also smiled: "There are some sayings in the play that are true. If a god behaves despicably, he is no longer a god, and a god cannot violate the agreement he has made."
Vincentab added: "As you said yesterday, when the gods are no longer transcendent, the so-called gods are also human beings. But this play obviously arranges the evil of the gods, and based on this To criticize the evil of the gods, although we are only talking about the Apollo in the play, it is not the same as pointing the finger at the Apollo in the temple. And the evil of man is the evil of man. change depending on who the author is.”
They were muttering to themselves here, and Medanzo and Aesop were also whispering over there. During an interval between two plays, with the entire theater in attendance, Medanzo murmured, "Is this dramatist sure he's writing about Apollo? And not some lord who offended him? How do I see it? It’s the story of a folk high priest who put on a god’s hat and wrote it into the play.”
Aesop said with a chuckle: "There are many such things in the world, and more people will be willing to watch the protagonist if it is written as a god. If the stage is a cat or a dog, how can the audience be so sensational?"
Medanzo: "The gods are really unlucky."
The Aesops were still laughing: "Who told them to be gods?"
Medanzo added: "I found that people love to watch this kind of play, and writing this kind of play also makes it easier for the playwright to get a higher evaluation. When you see these people in the theater watching the play, the crowd is excited, but many people feel Inexplicably satisfied."
Aesop sighed: "Looking at the scandalous things that Apollo has done, he is not like a god, but a morally corrupt and useless person. People are very happy to see that the gods also have their own vices and unspeakable desires, so they get A sense of satisfaction standing shoulder to shoulder with the gods, who have the same dark and despicable human nature as them."
This time it was Mei Danzuo's turn to smile: "If you think so, they will never become gods, and there can be no gods in this world."
Aesop sighed again: "If the gods really do this, you really don't need to treat him as a god. God Amon is also watching the show, let's continue watching."
Medanzo asked curiously again: "If Apollo watched this play, how would he feel?"
Aesop laughed again: "How do I know, you should ask Apollo. If he really did it, he deserves to be scolded. If he didn't do it, it doesn't matter whether you watch the play or not, it's just human. A cat and a dog were replaced by his name. What kind of things people will do in the world, it is assumed that the gods will do the same."
After a short break, there was another play on stage. When the performance reached its climax, Mei Danzuo couldn't help but look at the place where God Amon was, wanting to see how the god would react. The play just now was still choreographing the evil deeds of the gods, but now this play simply denies the existence of the gods.
A hero soars into the sky on a winged horse to see if the gods exist or not? He did not find any trace of the gods, but looked down from the sky on the rampant evils in the world, and the power is trampling on justice. The hero sang loudly——
"Good people,
Please listen to me.
It is said that there are gods in the sky,
But no, really no!
As long as you have a sliver of wisdom,
Don't believe the old legends.
There are countless tyrants in the world,
They take goodness away.
Those who worship the gods,
What a cowardly heart!
Please tell me where is the spirit
When I fly into the sky and don't see them,
Where is the light, warmth, and hope
I will declare to the world,
There are no gods in the sky, really no! "
When the play came to this point, many audience members showed expressions of horror. Aesop turned his head and said to Medanzo: "I don't know if there is one in the sky, but there is one sitting in the theater today."
Mei Danzuo frowned: "If the playwright really sees this world in this way, then there are indeed no gods in the world he sees, and the gods are sitting in the audience watching the play he wrote."
Aesop sighed: "The hero who flies to the clouds can declare that there are no gods in the sky, but is he also examining his heart when he shouts? Where is the light, kindness, warmth, and hope he is calling for?"
In the most crowded part of the theater, Vincent Bu asked jokingly, "God Amon, how do you feel?"
Amon didn't answer directly, but asked instead: "Vincent, I would like to ask you, how would you feel if Apollo's name was changed to Infinite Light in the first play just now?"
Vincent Bu replied with a smile: "You are asking the wrong person. The Buddha said that the enlightened person is not a god, and he has never regarded himself as a god. Infinite light is just a title. The light of self-nature shines in all directions. It is complete, without beginning and end, without birth and death, like coming and going, capable of producing ten thousand dharmas. It doesn't matter how you arrange it, since the immeasurable light shines brightly in the ten directions, it is also invisible."
Amon blinked: "Oh? What about the one I saw in the Syrian desert?"
Vincent Bu replied: "The body is transformed according to the fate, just like you I saw in Yalun City."
Amon: "I am not infinite light."
Vincent Bu: "You are a driver at the theater."
Amon smiled: "I see! What about the Buddha you mentioned?"
Vincent Bu replied: "Give wisdom and contemplate and repay it. Hearing the Dharma is like seeing my Buddha. Do all good methods, contemplate the self-nature and seek perfection."
Amon nodded slightly and said, "Immeasurable Light has three bodies?"
Vincent Bu also nodded and said: "Dharma body, incarnation body, sambhogakaya, three bodies in one."
Amon stopped talking, and entered a state of ethereal meditation. He really became a theater spectator, watching the people in the theater silently, and the drama in his eyes was not only on the stage. Everyone is watching the drama on the stage, and at the same time they have become the performers of this drama in the world, watched by the gods.
Amon verified the current realm, and he didn't know what the name of this realm should be. He only knew that the angels called him the only god. Then, beyond this kind of achievement, is there a higher realm, and if so, how should we prove it? Amon didn't think about it and didn't have time to conceive it, because he hadn't reached the state where all kinds of achievements in his current state were complete.
But today, hearing Vincent Bu mention the infinite light gave Amon a kind of insight—there is indeed a higher realm. He did not accept the guidance of the infinite light, but he could use another way to verify it. As for the way to prove it, Amon is still exploring.
At this moment, Amon suddenly discovered that another god was also watching a play in this theater. If Amon hadn't been watching everyone in this state, he might not have discovered anything. Because this person has been watching plays in this theater for the past three days, but Amon didn't pay special attention to him, let alone recognize him, and only then did he suddenly discover who he was.
It was a middle-aged man with thick eyebrows, big eyes, and a strong figure. He was sitting in the best seat in the theater not far from Aesop. He was wearing a white robe. There were fine wine and fruits on the small table in front of the seat. . Amon had never seen his appearance before, but a mysterious induction awakened the imprint of deja vu in his soul.
After the death of King Leoni of Kibata, Zeus came to the world with another identity, and he was sitting in the theater of Yalun City at the moment.
The play on the stage had Apollo choreographed that way, and Zeus would not have had a bright face. And in the myths circulating in the world, Zeus did many things worse than Apollo in today's play. Compared with the "deeds" of Zeus, Apollo's mess in the play "Ion" is nothing.
In the second play that followed, also by the same playwright, the hero simply goes up to the clouds, curses the gods, and then announces to the world that the gods do not exist. But looking at Zeus's appearance, he was not angry at all, and he was always smiling while drinking and eating. What he saw was interesting, and he was a bit heartless.
In the whole theater, Aesop, Medanzo, Vincentub, and Amon all smiled, but when the second play reached its climax, only Zeus was smiling, his expression seemed to say: "Since you said no Gods, then why do you scold gods? If you give all the bad habits of human nature to gods, will people be able to get rid of it?"
Amon watched silently without thinking, and read the meaning of Zeus's smile, and Zeus became a part of the drama in front of him. I just wonder if Zeus saw Amon? In the eyes of Zeus, does Amon also appear in human drama
…
On the second day after Amon entered Yalun City, he wandered around the temple square, and then watched the play for three days, staying for a total of five days. In the early morning of the sixth day, he said to Aesop, "It's time to see everything. We should leave here and send you back to your hometown, Midori."
Mei Danzuo asked a little puzzled: "Why don't you stay for two more days? I haven't seen enough of the theater yet!"
Amon replied: "If you want to see the theater, you have plenty of time to go, but I found Zeus in the theater yesterday. He was sitting next to you two, and he has been there for the past three days. I entered Olympus without permission." God's Domain, it's better not to cause extra problems."
Medanzuo was taken aback: "Really, why didn't I find out?"
Amon explained: "Zeus' achievements are no less than mine. I only discovered him yesterday when the show was about to end. I haven't noticed it for the past three days. You didn't find him normal."
Medanzo: "My god, did Zeus find you?"
Amon: "I don't know about it, but it's not that he doesn't know me, I'm just who I am."
After breakfast that day, the rent was paid, Amon drove Aesop, and Medanzuo followed on horseback. The three "master and servant" left Yalun City and rushed to the city-state of Midori.
Today's Midori city-states have also joined the Yalun League. Most of the city-states in the Yalun League are located in coastal mountainous areas, passing through many dangerous places along the way. There is no need to worry about large groups of people, but small groups of pedestrians also need to beware of strongmen. After all, this place has just experienced war, and some soldiers occasionally do some free business part-time after they are free.
When passing through a dangerous mountain road, there was no one around, and suddenly Mei Danzuo heard a few people talking in the dense forest. One person said: "That Aesop came back after making a fortune outside, so he must have brought a lot of money with him. No one here knows him, and no one cares about his whereabouts. He killed him with a sword and threw his body down the cliff , the money is all ours.”
The other person seemed to be the leader, but said in a very displeased tone: "You called us, saying that there was a big deal, but you didn't understand the situation! That old man named Aesop is fine, but his groom and guards are Not easy to deal with!"
The previous man said: "What are you afraid of? There are only two of them, and they don't even carry weapons, while we have eight here."
The leader said angrily: "I'm afraid the eight of us are not enough to deal with two people! Didn't you notice? The carriage was as stable on the mountain road as it was on the flat ground. Don't you think it's crazy, ordinary coachmen have such skills?"
Another person said: "Look at that guard again. His riding skills are simply arbitrary. The distance and position between him and the carriage are always the same. He is as light as walking. Can ordinary bodyguards have such skills?"
The person who spoke first was surprised: "Could it be two great warriors? That Aesop is so rich, he can let the big warriors drive the carriage for him!"
The leader said again: "How can a great samurai know how to drive a horse-drawn carriage? If you have money, you can't hire it. That's a matter of status! I think the coachman is a very powerful mid-level samurai, but the guard might really be a great samurai. This deal We absolutely can't do it, let's stop thinking as soon as possible."
Someone next to him suddenly said: "I heard that Aesop came from Salem City. He traveled thousands of miles and passed through many war-torn places. If the guards were incompetent, they would have been robbed long ago. How can we wait?"
This is a group of robbers. The messengers are eyeing Aesop in the city. They ambushes outside the city in an attempt to make money and kill them. However, they came excitedly but regretfully did not dare to do anything. They could only watch helplessly as the carriage drove from the dense forest. Pass. Robbers also have a robber's way of life. If you jump out without knowing the situation recklessly, you will only become a small thief who dies quickly.
The carriage had gone far away, and suddenly someone in the dense forest exclaimed: "Fire! How could it be on fire?... Pants, oh, my pants!"
Someone shouted again: "I'm scalding to death!" Hastily threw the weapon in his hand, and then hurriedly reached out to take off his clothes.
It turned out that at this moment, the weapons in their hands suddenly turned red, as if they had been scorched in a furnace, and their pants were all on fire for no reason. The bandit burned his hands and body, threw away his weapon, took off his burning clothes, and rushed out of the forest naked, all terrified and inexplicable, thinking that he was being punished by the gods.
Aesop's carriage had already gone far away, and Medanzuo rode beside the carriage, laughing happily, obviously he did what happened just now. Aesop, who didn't know the inside story, asked, "What's so funny?"
Medanzo replied: "The weather is so nice and cool!"
Of course, Amon, who was driving the car, also heard the conversation of the gang of robbers in the dense forest, and knew what Medanzuo had done, but he ignored it and was only thinking about one question silently—who was Zeus that he met in the theater yesterday