經律異相 37.31

37.31

有人在道上行。見道邊有一死人。鬼神以杖鞭之。行人言。此人已死何故鞭之。鬼神言。是我先身。生在之日不孝父母事君不忠。不奉敬三寶。不隨師父之言。今令我隨罪而行。苦痛難言。瞋故鞭之。稍稍前行。復見一死人。天人來下。散花於死屍以手摩娑之。行人問言。觀君似是天人。何故摩娑是死人耶。答云。是我故身。生在之日孝從父母。忠信事君。奉事三尊。承受師父之教。令我神得生天。皆是故身之恩。是故以來報之耳。小復前行。又見一天人。衣服鮮好端正香潔。道邊摘酸棗噉之。行人問曰。覩君似是天人。何噉酸棗。天人答曰。我在世時孝從父母。忠信事君奉事三尊。種種作諸功德。唯不喜飲飴人客。今作天人恒食不充。是以食酸棗耳。行人一日見此三變。便還奉持五戒修行十善。孝從父母忠信事君。示語後世罪福追人（出諸經中要事）。

A person was traveling along a road and saw a dead body beside the way; a ghost was flogging it with a staff. The traveler said, "This person is already dead; why do you flog him?" The ghost said, "This is my former body. When it was alive, it was unfilial to its parents and disloyal in serving its ruler; it did not respect the Three Jewels, nor follow the instructions of teachers and fathers. Now it has caused me to suffer in accordance with my sins, with agony that is beyond words. Being enraged, I flog it." Walking forward a little, he saw another dead body. A heavenly being descended, scattered flowers upon the corpse, and caressed it with his hands. The traveler asked, saying, "Looking at you, you seem to be a heavenly being. Why do you caress this dead body?" He answered, saying, "This was my former body. When it was alive, it was filial and obedient to its parents, loyal and trustworthy in serving its ruler, served the Three Venerable Ones, and received the teachings of teachers and fathers. It caused my spirit to attain rebirth in heaven; all this is by the kindness of my former body. Therefore I have come to repay it, nothing more." Walking forward a little further, he saw another heavenly being whose clothing was fresh and fine, handsome, fragrant, and clean, picking sour jujubes beside the road and eating them. The traveler asked, saying, "Seeing you, you seem to be a heavenly being; why do you eat sour jujubes?" The heavenly being answered, saying, "When I was in the world, I was filial and obedient to my parents, loyal and trustworthy in serving my ruler, served the Three Venerable Ones, and performed various good deeds. Only, I did not like to offer drinks and food to guests. Now that I am a heavenly being, my food is never sufficient; therefore I eat sour jujubes." Having witnessed these three transformations in a single day, the traveler returned to uphold the five precepts and cultivate the ten wholesome deeds, being filial and obedient to parents and loyal and trustworthy in serving the ruler, and teaching later generations that sins and blessings follow a person. (Extracted from Essential Matters from Various Sūtras.)