法苑珠林 62.56

62.56

唐兗州曲阜人倪買得妻皇甫氏。為有疾病祈禱泰山。稍得瘳愈。因被冥道使為伺命。每被使即死。經一二日。事了以後還復如故。前後取人亦眾矣。自云。曾被遣取鄉人龐領軍小女。為其庭前有齋壇讀誦。久不得入。少間屬讀誦稍閑。又因執燭者詣病女處。乃隨而入。方取得去。問其取由。乃府君四郎所命。府君不知也。論說地獄具有條貫。又云。地下訴說生人非止一二。但人微有福報。追不可得。如其有罪攝之則易。皇甫見被使役。至今猶存。今男子作生伺命者。兗州見有三四人。但不知其姓名耳（右此一驗出冥報拾遺）。

In the Tang, Lady Huangfu, wife of Ni Maide of Qufu in Yanzhou, prayed to Mount Tai due to illness and gradually recovered. Consequently, she was employed by the nether realm as an Arbiter of Fate (siming). Whenever she was dispatched, she would die; after one or two days, when the task was finished, she would return as before. Those she took before and after were also numerous. She herself said: ‘I was once sent to take the young daughter of the local Commander Pang. Because they had a vegetarian altar in the courtyard chanting scriptures, I was long unable to enter. Shortly thereafter, the recitation paused slightly, and taking advantage of someone holding a candle going to the sick girl's place, I followed them inside and was only then able to take her away.’ When asked the reason for taking her, it was an order from the Prefectural Lord's Fourth Son; the Prefectural Lord did not know of it. Her accounts of hell were fully ordered and coherent. She also said: ‘Those in the netherworld lodging complaints against living people are not just one or two; but if a person possesses even slight karmic merit, they cannot be summoned. If they have offenses, taking them is easy.’ Lady Huangfu was seen to be employed in this service, and is still alive today. Currently, among men who serve as living Arbiters of Fate, three or four can be seen in Yanzhou, but their names are not known. (This single verification is from the Mingbao shiyi.)