When an emperor wanted to renovate a temple in the capital, he sent someone to find a skilled designer, hoping to make the temple beautiful and majestic. Later, two groups of people were found, one of them was a well-known craftsman and painter in the capital, and the other group was a few monks. The emperor didn't know which group of people had better craftsmanship, so he decided to compare. He took the two groups to a small temple that needed to be renovated and gave them the same amount of money at their disposal.
The artisans bought more than 100 colors of lacquer and many tools, while the monks bought only simple cleaning utensils such as rags and buckets.
Three days later, the emperor came to inspect it. He first looked at the temple decorated by the craftsmen – a temple that was decorated with colorful and golden light.
The Emperor nodded in satisfaction and went to see the temple that the monks were in charge of renovating. He was stunned at first glance - the temple that the monks had renovated had not been painted with any paint, they had just wiped all the walls, tables, chairs, windows, etc. very cleanly, and all the items in the temple showed their original colors, and their shiny surfaces were like mirrors, reflecting the colors outside. The changing clouds on the horizon, the shadows of the trees swaying in the wind, and even the colorful temple opposite have become part of the beautiful colors of this temple. In the main hall, many pilgrims are bowing to the Buddha reverently.
The emperor asked the monk, "Where did you spend your money?"
The monk clasped his palms together and replied, "Your Majesty, those wanderers who have received alms are praying for you in front of the Buddha!"
The emperor was deeply shaken.
The temple, which is unadorned by the monks, seems to have a magical power, and the mirror-like surface reflects the colors outside, reflecting the beauty of simplicity to the extreme.