Snow-laden wind swept across the hillside.
Bajie lowered his head to look at the little pit he had dug with the Rake.
Snow had already covered half its opening.
Without a close look, one could hardly tell there had been a pit there.
Bajie paused, then muttered:
"Even covered up, it's still there."
Xuanzang heard him and nodded.
"So there is nothing wrong with looking carefully before you walk."
Bajie looked up at him.
Xuanzang looked at them all.
"Discern the path you wish to take."
"Then cast off some of the burdens forced upon you."
"Let yourself travel light."
"That is what it means to prune the side branches."
"What should be pruned today may not need pruning tomorrow."
"What should be kept today may not need keeping tomorrow."
Bajie frowned.
"Master, doesn't that make choosing even harder?"
Xuanzang nodded. "If there is a pit beneath your feet, look at the pit first."
"If there is a road ahead, walk it."
"See the present clearly, and you can choose."
"A cultivator must not cling to a single rigid principle."
"Nor should you take anyone's words as a warrant that holds unchanged for all eternity."
At this, Bajie scratched his ear.
"Then we don't need to heed your teachings or the Buddha's Dharma either, Master?"
Wukong raised a hand to tug his ear.
"Idiot."
"How many times has Master said it? The Dharma is a raft for crossing. Once you reach the shore, leave it behind."
Bajie hastily ducked behind Sha Wujing.
"Don't, don't, don't!"
"I get it, I get it."
"Anyway, we have to walk the road before us ourselves."
"We shouldn't always look for someone to give us a definite answer."
Xuanzang smiled and nodded.
Bajie immediately grew smug.
"See?"
"Old Pig has some insight too."
Little White