ExclusiveTraditional Chinese Tales：Thousands of Carvings Finally Make a Great Being

A long time ago, a large temple, in classical architectural style, was built in a city. The temple was solemn, sacred, and peaceful. But the only thing missing was a Buddha statue for the faithful men and women to worship. The faithful group invited a famous sculptor to carve a Buddha statue for the temple so that they could express their reverence. Seeing the faithful group being so devoted, the sculptor went to the mountains to select stones himself. His dedication finally paid off, and he selected a stone with superior quality. Because the stone was so large, the sculptor split it into two halves. Then he randomly selected one of them, took up his chisel, and began to work on it. Shortly after the carving started, this piece of stone became a little unbearable. He asked the sculptor, It hurts terribly. Could you please be gentler? I have endured wind and rain in the mountains for ages, and I have never experienced such painful feelings. After the carvings, can I really turn into a Buddha statue? The sculptor answered, Endurance is a process. As long as you have strong determination, there will be a new life at the end of pain. If you believe me, please continue to endure. The stone thought for a while, and told the sculptor with hesitation, I'll listen to you, but when can you finish carving me? The sculptor put down the chisel in his hand and said to the stone, I have just started working. You still need to endure for 30 days. After the work is done, if others are not satisfied, I will need to continue to refine. But if others are satisfied, you will become a Buddha statue. The stone went silent for a while. On one hand, he became pleased with himself while imagining that one day he would become a Buddha statue being worshipped by tens of thousands of people. On the other hand, he could not bear the severe pain of being carved. Finally, four hours later, he shouted, This pain is killing me! This pain is killing me! You'd better stop carving me with this chisel because I really can't stand this pain anymore. The sculptor put down the stone that was carved a little bit and simply split it into four pieces of stone slabs and laid them on the temple floor. Then he picked up another piece of stone and started working on it. After a while of carving with knives and hammering with axes, the sculptor curiously asked this piece of stone, Do you feel any severe pain? The second piece of stone said, The previous piece of stone and I were originally one piece. The severe pain feels the same to both of us, but I can't give up easily. The sculptor asked, Why don't you ask me to be gentler when carving you? The stone replied, If I ask to be gentler, the carved Buddha statue may not turn out exquisite enough in some areas. Then you may have to rework and start all over again. It's better that you get it perfectly right the first time and do not waste anyone's time. After hearing this, the sculptor praised the second piece of stone in his heart for its tough character and happily continued his work. After 30 days of endurance, an exquisite Buddha statue was finally carved successfully. A venerable, solemn, and mighty Buddha statue amazingly stood in front of people. It was respectfully placed on the altar, receiving people's praise and worship. This temple became increasingly popular with many worshippers. One day, the stone that was made into slabs questioned the Buddha statue, Why are you placed so high up to be worshipped while I have to endure being trampled on by thousands of people every day, allowing people to step on my body to worship you? The stone that was carved into the Buddha statue smiled lightly and replied, The reason is very simple, because you only went through a very simple process to become stone slabs while I had to endure tens of thousands of hammering and countless carvings to become a Buddha statue. In fact, endurance and desire for comfort is only a difference of one thought. If one misses a certain opportunity, one may suffer long-term pain. If one firmly believes in the promise of the future and endures the test of time with tenacious perseverance, one will definitely welcome a bright future.