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Money Grow on Trees
The captain had never encountered such a sight. There, dangling from the trees, were riches of all kinds - a tempting temptation for any pirate. However, the captain knew that giving into his itchy fingers would jeopardize everything. Instead, he was thinking to absorbed every bit of knowledge he could, for surely there must be a fascinating reason behind this.
During his strolls through the village, the Captain observed individuals adorned in orange fabric, tightly wrapped around their bodies in a peculiar manner. They had shaved heads and walked with a sense of divinity. Curiously, the villagers emerged to offer them food. The Captain pondered whether these individuals were beggars in uniforms or something else entirely. One of the villagers enlightened him, explaining that these were monks from a nearby temple. It was customary for the villagers to receive blessings by providing food to the monks each morning.
Later that day, following the scent of an alluring fragrance, which he soon discovered to be emanating from money tied to the trees, the Captain finally laid eyes upon the temple. The structure was breathtaking, adorned meticulously from the ground upward. Inside, the walls were adorned with illustrations depicting the story of the Buddha.
This enlightened individual, known as Siddhartha Gautama, was the founder of Buddhism. The Captain was told that Siddhartha Gautama, more commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wanderer, an ascetic, and a religious teacher who resided in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE.
The Captain received news this morning that the Temple was the designated venue for the villagers to bring their trees. These trees were adorned with money sprouting from a basket containing all the necessary items for the afterlife. The villagers firmly believed that their spirits resided within their bodies, awaiting a new life after death. Thus, the trees served as offerings to their departed family members, as well as a preparation for their own lives after passing. To ensure the presence of these spirits during the ceremony, the monks performed a ritual. The temple grounds boasted a multitude of trees, each varying in shape and size. It was evident that someone was diligently preparing for a prosperous afterlife, judging from the impressive sums adorning some of the trees. Clearly, when their time eventually came, they would be off to a good start.
As the day progressed, the Captain observed a shift in the atmosphere. The individuals around him seemed cautious yet jovial, their animated conversations reverberating in the air. Some of them moved peculiarly, swaying from side to side. Was this exuberance overwhelming them? No, there was another explanation. At the perimeter of the temple grounds, a small group of villagers had gathered. They were indulging in rice whisky, and their behavior took on an unusual demeanor thereafter. Meanwhile, the monks continued their blessings, and the villagers persisted in their revelry. On his journey back to the rice paddy, the Captain couldn't help but notice that the drinking festivities carried on within the village. Families and friends rejoiced, catching up on their everyday lives, while also reminiscing about loved ones who had already departed this world.
After being invited in to one of the houses the Captain also walked side to side on his way back to the Land Rafter.
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