Ask Not of Heaven

Mo Wen Tian (Ask Not of Heaven) is an Eastern fantasy novel by the author Mogu, serialized on Qidian Chinese Network since 2006 and now completed, totaling roughly 1.6 million Chinese characters. It long lacked a formally published print edition, circulating mainly through electronic texts and fan-made "meticulously proofread" compilations. The author describes it as "mental gymnastics," intending not to educate the public but simply to entertain his compatriots; beneath its lively adventure shell, the novel carries a great deal of discussion about faith, rules, and order. The story begins on the grasslands of northern Tibet: the protagonist Luosang is a herdsman, versed in some medicine and serving as village head, who has no wish to become an immortal or a Buddha, only to enjoy a splendid life in the mortal world. However, when the great lama Enzhagebu, a eminent monk, passes away sitting in meditation on the grasslands and his remains do not decay, attracting herdsmen, officials, and monastery monks to pay homage, Luosang is drawn into the affair and strikes a deal with County Magistrate Gabuji: holding the prayer beads left by the great lama, he is to convey to Kawalun Monastery the message that "the great lama has gone to the Pure Land and will not return," in exchange for the chance to study in Beijing. After a sky burial on the snowy plains, he leaves the plateau with the Treasure Chest Sutra and hidden knowledge of tantrism, enters Beijing, and encounters strange matters such as book tombs, formation arrays, the six realms of reincarnation, demon infants, and the gate of reincarnation, thereby becoming entangled in a far larger conflict between gods, demons, and the human world. The novel blends tantric cultivation, Buddhist and Daoist speculation, and modern urban life and financial maneuvering, taking "balance" as its highest law and asking what the power of faith can and cannot do.