經律異相 16.38

16.38

The arhat Paripūrṇāśaya constantly instructed and converted hungry ghosts. He saw a hungry ghost whose appearance was hideous; anyone who saw him would have their hair stand on end and be struck with terror. From his body issued blazing flames like a great mass of fire. From his mouth came forth maggots, and pus and blood overflowed; the foul stench carried far, so that none could draw near. From his mouth he spewed flames tens of zhang in length, and from his ears, nose, eyes, body, and joints he emitted various flames tens of zhang long. His lips hung downward like those of a wild boar. His body was one yojana in length and breadth. He clawed at himself with his hands, wailed aloud, and ran back and forth. At that time, Paripūrṇāśaya asked the hungry ghost, 'What past sin did you commit to suffer such torment now?' The hungry ghost answered, 'In the past I was a śramaṇa. I was attached to my quarters, stingy, and greedy without letting go. My body maintained the deportment, but foul and evil speech came from my mouth. Whenever I saw monks who upheld the precepts and practiced vigorously, I would insult them and look upon them with hostile, sidelong glances. Relying on my noble clan, I thought I would never die, and created countless roots of unwholesomeness. Better to cut out one's own tongue with a sharp knife and willingly suffer pain from kalpa to kalpa in this manner, than to slander a vigorous monk for even a single day! If you return to the land of Jambudvīpa, you can use my appearance to admonish all the monks: guard well against faults of speech and do not utter words recklessly; if you see monks of pure conduct who uphold the precepts, resolve to proclaim their virtues. Since receiving the form of a hungry ghost, I have passed through hundreds of thousands of myriads of years suffering this torment; when this life ends, I shall enter hell.' Having said these words, the hungry ghost wailed aloud and cast himself to the ground, like Mount Tai collapsing or heaven and earth overturning. This was brought about entirely by faults of speech! Those who can guard against faults of speech receive boundless blessings. Furthermore, when Kāśyapa Tathāgata appeared in the world, he expounded the Dharma teachings; when his converting work was complete, he entered parinirvāṇa in the realm of parinirvāṇa without remainder. Sometime after his nirvāṇa, there was a Tripiṭaka monk named Yellow Face. The Sangha instructed him: 'Do not get involved in any of the miscellaneous tasks; only expound the wondrous Dharma for the junior students.' At that time, though harborling inward contempt, the Tripiṭaka monk could not refuse the Sangha's order, so he explained the sūtras' meanings for the junior students. When calling on them to receive the teachings, he would say: 'Come forward quickly, Elephant Head!' To the second he would say: 'Horse Head!' Next, 'Camel Head!' Next, 'Donkey Head!' Next, 'Pig Head!' Next he called: 'Sheep Head!' 'He-goat Head!' Next, 'Lion Head!' Next, 'Tiger Head!' Next, 'Bird Head!' Next, 'Brown Bear Head!' In this manner he called them by names of various beasts, beyond count. Tripiṭaka Yellow Face uttered such countless evil words; though he taught the meanings of the sūtras, he could not escape his sin. When his body broke up and his life ended, he fell into hell, undergoing immeasurable suffering through tens of millions of kalpas. When his remaining retribution was not yet exhausted, he emerged from hell and was born in the great ocean taking an aquatic form, having one body with a hundred heads of immense size. When creatures of other kinds saw him, they all fled (From the Sūtra on Guarding the Mouth).