i originally posted these on the Maitreya group:
i heard this from my dad. im not sure if it really happened to sima qian, or he was inspired to write a story like this.
there used be a great literary writer named sima qian in ancient china. one day he came into acquaintance with a deity. but the deity was invisible so sima qian requested for the deity to manifest into something that a normal human being like sima qian could see visually.
so the deity manifested into a glorious magnificent being that sima qian could see. however the deity looked part god, part demon. terrified and suspicious, sima qian asked if he was a deity or god, because he had some demonic features.
the deity replied, 'i am both. there is no differentiation'
in madame white snake, an old chinese legend/fable, we see a 'demoness', madame white snake, becoming 'good' because of her love, and a supposedly 'good' spiritual monk, Fa Hai, become 'evil' because of his obsession with obliterating madame white snake, because she was a 'demoness'. there are paths to light and dark, and dark to light,
which way will you go? ^_^
both ways, it doesn't really matter.