法苑珠林 32.87

32.87

漢南陽文穎。字叔良。建安中為甘陵府丞。過界止宿。夜鼓三時。夢見一人。跪前曰。昔我先人葬我於此。水來湍墓棺木溺漬。水處半燥然無以自溫。聞君在此故來相依。屈明日暫住須臾。幸之相遷高燥處。鬼披衣示穎而皆沾濕。穎心中愴然即寤。寤已語左右。左右曰。夢為虛耳。何足可怪。穎乃還眠。向晨復夢見。謂穎曰。我以窮苦告君。柰何不相愍悼乎。穎夢中問曰。子為是誰。對曰。吾本趙人。今屬注送民之神。穎曰。子棺今為所在。對曰。近在君帳北十數步水側枯楊樹下。即是吾也。天將明不復得見君必念之。穎答曰諾。忽然便寤。天明可發。穎曰。雖云夢不足怪。此何大適。左右曰。亦何惜須臾不驗之耶。穎即起幸之。十數人將導順水上果得一枯楊。曰是矣。掘其下未幾果得棺。棺甚朽壞沒半水中。穎謂左右曰。向聞於人。謂為虛矣。世俗所傳不可無驗。為移其棺醊之而去（右一驗出搜神記）。

Wen Ying of Nanyang during the Han dynasty, courtesy name Shuliang, served as assistant magistrate of Ganling during the Jian'an era. While crossing the border, he lodged for the night. At the third watch of the night, he dreamed of a person kneeling before him who said: "Long ago, my ancestors buried me here. Rushing waters have eroded the tomb, and my coffin has been submerged and soaked. Half is in water and half is dry, so that I have no way to keep warm. Hearing that you are here, I have come to rely on you. Pray pause for a brief moment tomorrow; I would be blessed if you would relocate me to a high and dry place." The ghost pulled open his robe to show Ying, and it was entirely soaked. Ying felt sorrowful in his heart and immediately woke up. Having awoken, he told his attendants. His attendants said: "Dreams are merely unreal; why should they be considered strange?" Ying then went back to sleep. Toward dawn, he dreamed of him again, who said to Ying: "I reported my distress to you; how could you fail to pity me?" In the dream, Ying asked: "Who are you?" He replied: "I was originally a man of Zhao. At present, I belong to the spirits of the registered dead." Ying asked: "Where is your coffin now?" He replied: "It is nearby, ten or so paces north of your tent, under a withered willow tree by the water's edge—that is me. Dawn is about to break, and I will not be able to see you again; you must remember this." Ying replied: "Yes." Suddenly he woke up. At daybreak, when they were about to set out, Ying said: "Though they say dreams are not worthy of wonder, what great urgency is there [for us to rush]?" His attendants said: "Why begrudge a brief moment to see if it is verified?" Ying then arose and went thither. A dozen or so men led the way upstream along the water, and indeed they found a withered willow tree. [Someone] said, "This is it." Digging beneath it, after a short while they indeed found a coffin. The coffin was severely decayed and half submerged in water. Ying said to his attendants: "Earlier I listened to others and thought it was unreal. What is transmitted among worldly folk cannot be without verification." He relocated the coffin, made a libation offering, and departed. (The single verification above is from the Soushen ji.)