法苑珠林 57.14

57.14

又雜寶藏經云。目連至殑伽河邊。見五百餓鬼群來趣水。有守水鬼以鐵杖驅逐令不得近。於是諸鬼徑詣目連。禮目連足。各問其罪。一鬼曰。我受此身常患熱渴。先聞殑伽河水清且涼。歡喜趣之。沸熱壞身。試飲一口。五藏燋爛臭不可當。何因緣故受如此罪。目連曰。汝先世時曾作相師相人吉凶。少實多虛。或毀或譽。自稱審諦以動人心。詐惑欺誑以求財利。迷惑眾生失如意事。

Also, the Saṃyuktaratnapiṭaka-sūtra states: Maudgalyāyana arrived at the bank of the Gaṅgā River and saw a flock of five hundred hungry ghosts coming towards the water. There was a ghost guarding the water who drove them off with an iron rod, so that they could not approach. Thereupon, the ghosts went straight to Maudgalyāyana, paid homage to Maudgalyāyana's feet, and each asked about their sins. One ghost said: "I received this body and constantly suffer from heat and thirst. Having previously heard that the water of the Gaṅgā River was clear and cool, I joyfully approached it, yet its boiling heat destroyed my body. When I tried to drink a mouthful, my five internal organs scorched and rotted, stinking unbearably. By what cause and condition do I suffer such a punishment?" Maudgalyāyana said: "In your former life, you were once a physiognomist reading people's fortunes and misfortunes, with little truth and much falsehood. Sometimes condemning, sometimes praising, you claimed to be precise in order to stir men's hearts, cheating and defrauding to seek wealth and profit, misleading sentient beings and causing them to lose their cherished goals."