冥報記 3.5

3.5

Emperor Wu of the Zhou was fond of eating chicken eggs, consuming several at each meal. There was a Director of the Imperial Banquets with the rank of Yitong named Ba Biao, who constantly presented the imperial meals and enjoyed imperial favor. When Emperor Wen of the Sui ascended the throne, he still directed the banquets and presented meals. During the Kaihuang era, he died suddenly, but his heart remained warm; his family could not bear to encoffin him. After three days he revived and was able to speak, saying first, 'Carry me to see the Emperor, to deliver a message on behalf of Emperor Wu of the Zhou!' Thereupon he requested an audience. Emperor Wen summoned him and questioned him, and he said, 'At first, I suddenly saw a person calling me, and I followed him to a place where there was a great cavern. The path we took led directly into the cavern. Just as we reached the mouth of the cavern, I saw from afar over a hundred cavalry approaching from the west, their guard of honor like that of a king. Presently, arriving at the mouth of the cavern, it turned out to be Emperor Wu of the Zhou. I bowed. The Emperor said, "The King has summoned you to bear witness to my affair. You yourself are not guilty of any fault." Having said this, he entered the cavern. The messenger also led me inside to a palace gate and ushered me into the courtyard. I saw Emperor Wu seated together with another person, who was treated as an honored guest with extraordinary respect. The messenger ordered me to pay homage to the King. The King asked, "When you prepared food for the Emperor, how many white dumplings did you present in all?" I did not recognize [the term] "white dumplings." I looked to the attendants, and the attendants instructed me, saying, "Chicken eggs are called white dumplings." I then replied, "The Emperor constantly ate white dumplings; in truth, their number cannot be recounted." The King said to the Emperor, "This person does not remember; it must be extracted from you." The Emperor looked grim and displeased, and stood up. Suddenly, in front of the courtyard, there appeared an iron bed and several tens of hell wardens, all with ox heads and human bodies. The Emperor was already lying on the bed. The hell wardens pressed him down with an iron beam, and the Emperor's flanks cracked open. From the splits, whole eggs poured out, soon reaching the level of the bed, perhaps more than ten hu. The King then ordered them counted. When this was finished, the bed and the hell wardens all vanished, and the Emperor was once more back in his seat beside the King. The King told me to go back. Someone led me out to the mouth of the cavern, where I saw Emperor Wu emerge again. He said to me, "Please tell the Son of Heaven of the Great Sui: In the past you once served together with me, and the storehouses of jade and silk were also accumulated by me. Now, because I destroyed the Buddha-Dharma while emperor, I am enduring extreme, great suffering. May you perform meritorious deeds on my behalf!"' Thereupon Emperor Wen ordered all the people under heaven to contribute one coin to cultivate posthumous merit for him (my maternal grandfather, Duke of Qi, witnessed this in person, returned home, and recounted it in full).