Nu Yalang of Tang Dynasty

The yellow sand flying all over the sky covers the vastness of the world.

A traveler riding a camel cannot see the sky, the earth, or even the light that is so close at hand.

The great food envoy Sukarno, who was wrapped in linen, urged the camels under his seat and walked hard to the center of the camel team. He raised his arms and shouted loudly: "If I remember correctly, walk a little further in that direction."

On the road, there is a resting place, which can be used to escape the sandstorm!"

The leader of the camel team heard this and made a few remarks to his soldiers.

The camel caravan quickly changed its direction and advanced slowly through the sandstorm, finally arriving at a collapsed building.

Taking advantage of the rock wall next to the building to avoid the invasion of sand and dust, the camel team first ordered their subordinates to place the camels in the lee of the wind, and then ordered a careful inventory of the accompanying items. Finally, they took several fellow travelers and entered the building.

's door.

Walking into the abandoned building, looking from the inside, although it is old and damaged everywhere, it can be vaguely seen as a sacrificial site for a certain religion.

The leader of the camel team took off his hood, revealing a face from the Tang Dynasty. It was none other than Zhou Jun, the governor of Anxi.

Zhou Jun carefully looked at the interior furnishings of the sacrificial site. The floor tiles were cracked and buried by yellow sand. The symbol of the holy fire could be faintly seen on the exposed bricks.

Only a small part of the innermost wall of the sacrificial site is left due to the erosion of wind and sand, but the relief on it can be roughly seen as a multi-armed goddess.

Sukarno shook off the dust on his body, came to Zhou Jun's side, followed the latter's gaze, and said: "Protector Zhou, this used to be an altar of Zoroastrianism... Speaking of which, it seems that the Tang Dynasty converted Zoroastrianism to

, called Zoroastrianism.”

Zhou Jun nodded slightly and asked: "How far is it from the capital of Dashi, Akulo?"

Sukarno: "Go west for half a day and you'll be there."

A voice sounded at this time: "When the Sasanian Empire was still there, such Zoroastrian sacrificial sites could be seen everywhere in the desert."

Zhou Jun followed the sound and found that the speaker was Mu Sheikh, the leader of the Dashi Cult.

The latter kept his name anonymous and covered his face with a cloth robe, and followed the Tang Dynasty envoy to the capital of Dashi.

Sukarno said: "Since the Holy Family came to the world, the people of this land have abandoned many false religions and fallen into the embrace of God."

Mu Sheikh glanced at Sukarno and asked: "I heard that you once studied theology in the Academy of Wisdom?"

Hearing this question, Sukarno was a little confused, but he still nodded.

Mushaykh: "Since you have studied theology, have you ever known that the theologians and philosophers of ancient Greece once gathered in the city of Miletus in Asia Minor and held a theological debate. They only discussed one topic - the ultimate source of faith.

From where?"

Sukarno was stunned for a moment and replied: "Faith naturally comes from the believers' gratitude for the gods."

Mu Sheikh shook his head and said: "After days and nights of discussion, those scholars finally came to the conclusion that the origin of faith is not gods, but chaos."

Sukarno opened his eyes wide and said in shock: "Chaos brings faith, how is this possible?! What kind of fallacy is this?!"

Mu Sheikh: "The life of any believer cannot be smooth sailing. All the changes they encounter in daily life, such as falling down when going out, damaged clothes, lost money bags... all these are caused by chaos and order.

Any disorder will be attributed to a force in the dark. Over time, the wise men in the tribe will materialize this force and form an initial form of gods. If they further improve the teachings and supplement the scriptures, they will create

A religion with great persuasive power.”

Sukarno shook his head vigorously: "This statement is blasphemous!"

Mu Sheikh: "You have studied in the Academy of Wisdom in Dashi, so naturally you should have heard this sentence - I respect gods, but I respect truth even more. Academic discussion is free at any time, and it should not

Restricted by the shackles of thinking. Therefore, if you are branded with the crime of blasphemy just because of thinking, then the majesty of the gods will become fragile and not even worth mentioning."

Sukarno pursed his lips tightly and said, "Continue talking, I'm listening."

Mu Sheikh: "If faith arises from chaos, then how does the development of chaos shape faith? Or to put it another way, what kind of chaos can maximize faith?"

Sukarno looked at the old man in front of him who was wrapped in a cloth robe. He shuddered from the depths of his soul and whispered: "I don't know."

Mu Sheikh: "Actually, if you carefully compare the teachings of many religions, you will find a common feature - the ultimate confusion in all religions' teachings is death. All disasters involving death, in any religion,

Among them, they are all used as the best means to strengthen faith."

Sukarno: "How can you think of using death to strengthen your faith?"

Mu Sheikh: "There is the theory of doomsday in Christianity, there is the theory of ascension in Taoism, there is the theory of reincarnation in Buddhism, and there is also the doctrine of jihad in the Great Food Cult... using, disposing of, explaining and sublimating the concept of death

, thus forming the doctrine that believers desperately hope for, which is a required course for every religion."

Sukarno lowered his head and thought.

Mu Sheikh: "In the daily life of believers, apart from birth, old age, illness and death, the fastest way to face death is war. You might as well think about it carefully. There are roughly two situations in the normal state of the world. The first is a peaceful and prosperous age, when believers

They live and work in peace and contentment; the second is that there are wars and the believers are in danger. In which case, the missionary activities will be smoother and the believers' faith will be stronger?"

Sukarno frowned.

Mu Sheikh: "If religion wants to develop, if missionary work wants to be smooth, and if the team of believers wants to grow, then the top leaders of the religious group should focus on how to better utilize or even create chaos...such as famine.

, plagues, wars, etc., preaching doctrines to believers who are in these disasters to deal with chaos is the best way for religion to develop and grow."

After a pause, Mu Sheikh looked at Sukarno and continued: "Extending this topic further, there will always be two forces: royal power and religious power in a country. Royal power restrains its subjects and relies on order, while religious power restrains believers.

, relies on chaos. After comparing the two, we can find that the most convenient and most beneficial way for religion to suppress the royal family is to create artificial disputes. Such disputes can be between different royal powers, or between

It can be between different religious powers, or between royal power and religious power."

Hearing this, Zhou Jun was a little moved. Mu Sheikh seemed to be discussing theology with Sukarno when he said these words, but in fact there was something hidden behind his words.

After saying these words, Mu Sheikh raised his head and looked out the door.

The sandstorm gradually subsided and the sun began to shine on the earth again.

Museh hit his waist and said to Sukarno: "Let's stop chatting here. It's sunny outside and we can continue on our way."

Sukarno was still thinking about what he had just said. When he heard Mu Sheikh's reminder, he said as if he had just woken up from a dream: "Ah, yes, it's time to set off."

Mu Sheikh nodded to Zhou Jun, then took steps to leave the ruins sleeping in the desert.