Turtle, Buddha often uses the golden turtle as a metaphor for the Buddha nature that is life, death and nirvana, saying that the Buddha can swim in the sea of ??life, death and nirvana, just like a turtle can swim in water and land. In addition, the Buddhist scriptures use the metaphor of "tortoise hiding six" to mean that students should protect the six roots, just like a turtle protects its head, tail and four legs.

Guizang Six: 1. Hiding the head means that all living beings close their eyes and do not allow them to observe colors, so they will not be harmed by all colors and dust.

2. Hiding the left foot in front of the body is a metaphor for all sentient beings to close their ears and prevent them from hearing sounds, so they will not be harmed by all sound and dust.

3. Hiding the right foot in front of the body is a metaphor for all living beings to collect the nose root and prevent them from smelling the fragrance, so they will not be harmed by all the fragrance dust.

4. Hiding the left foot behind the back is a metaphor for sentient beings to collect the root of the tongue and prevent it from tasting, so that it will not be harmed by all taste dust.

5. Hiding the right foot behind the back is a metaphor for all sentient beings to collect their body roots and prevent them from being touched, so they will not be harmed by any contact with dust.

6. Hidden tail is a metaphor for sentient beings to collect their mind and not let them know the Dharma, so they will not be harmed by all the dust of the Dharma.

The dove represents the trouble of greed. It is also an animal often seen in Buddhist scriptures, such as the "Five Worlds of Life and Death" image of reincarnation that shows all living beings in the five realms of hell, hungry ghosts, animals, humans and heaven, and the endless flow of life and death.

Extended information

The Pigeon and the Buddha

There was a big country in ancient India. The land in this country was fertile, and the people had ample food and clothing, and lived and worked in peace and contentment. The king's name was King Sibi. He was a king with a broad mind and loved his people like a son. He loves Buddhism and vows to save all sentient beings.

One day, an eagle was chasing a dove. The eagle chased the dove, and the dove was in danger. It flew around and had nowhere to hide. Finally, it flew to the arm of King Sibi and asked the king protection.

The eagle chased but could not catch the pigeon, so it said to King Sibi: "This pigeon is my delicacy. I am unbearably hungry now. Please give the pigeon to me." King Sibi said: "I once made a wish to save all living things, but now the dove seeks protection, how can I not save it and let it die?"

The eagle laughed and said: "Since the king cherishes all living things, if I eat If I don't get food, I will starve to death. Shouldn't I be saved?" King Sibi said, "I can give you other food to eat." The eagle replied, "I only eat strange flesh and blood, and I won't eat any other food." ”?

King Sibi thought to himself, I can’t save one life and harm another. It seems that only by exchanging my flesh for pigeons can I save two lives at the same time.

So he ordered his men to get sharp knives, cut off the meat from his legs and feed it to the eagle, but the eagle said: "Since the king wants to use his own meat to replace the doves, then I don't dare to do more. If you want, just the same weight of meat as the pigeon."

King Sibi ordered a scale to be brought, and put the pigeon on one end and the cut meat on the other.

The strange thing is that all the flesh on the king's body has been cut off, but it is still not as heavy as the pigeon. The king was very puzzled, so he endured the severe pain and struggled to sit on the scale.

At this time, the heaven and the earth were shaking, and all the gods were moved by King Sibi's good deeds of saving all sentient beings. They praised him in unison and sprinkled countless smallpox.

Suddenly, the eagles and doves disappeared. It turned out that Shakten and his ministers transformed into eagles and doves to test King Sibi's sincerity and confidence. Finally, Shakten used his divine power to restore King Sibi's body. the original condition.

References: Ifeng.com Buddhism - Revealing the mysterious meanings of the twenty-four animals in Buddhist scriptures