經律異相 46.47

46.47

Maudgalyāyana arrived at the bank of the Ganges River and saw a flock of five hundred hungry ghosts approaching the water. There were demons guarding the water who drove them off with iron staves, preventing them from drawing near. Thereupon the ghosts went directly to Maudgalyāyana, paid homage at his feet, and each asked about their offenses. One ghost said, "Having received this body, I constantly suffer from fever and thirst. Hearing previously that the water of the Ganges is pure and cool, I joyfully ran to it, but it boiled with heat and damaged my body. When I tried to take a single sip, my five internal organs scorched and rotted, stinking beyond endurance. Through what cause and condition did I receive such retribution?" Maudgalyāyana said, "In your previous lifetime, you were a physiognomist. You read people's good and bad fortunes with little truth and much falsehood, sometimes disparaging and sometimes praising them, claiming to be accurate in order to manipulate people's minds, deceitfully tricking them to seek wealth and profit, misleading sentient beings so that they lost what they desired."