法苑珠林 31.76

31.76

In the beginning of the Yuanjia reign of the Song dynasty, a man of Fuyang named Wang made a crab weir in a dead-end canal. Going to inspect it in the morning, he saw a piece of timber about two feet long inside the weir, but the weir was split open and all the crabs had escaped. He repaired the weir and took the timber out onto the bank. Going to look the next morning, he saw the timber was again in the weir, and the weir was ruined as before. Wang repaired the weir again and took out the timber. When he looked at dawn, what he saw was just as before. Suspecting this timber was strange and anomalous, Wang took it, placed it inside a crab basket, bound the top, and shouldered it to return home, intending to chop it with an axe and burn it upon reaching home. Three li before reaching home, he heard rustling movements in the basket. Looking back, he saw that the head of the previous timber had turned into a creature with a human face, a monkey's body, and one hand and one foot. It said to Wang, 'By nature I am fond of crabs. In recent days I indeed entered the water, broke your crab weir, and entered the weir to eat the crabs. I have wronged you in this; I hope you will pardon me and open the basket to let me out. I am a mountain spirit; I will assist you and cause your weir to catch many crabs.' Wang said, 'You have repeatedly committed violence against people on more than one occasion; for this crime you naturally deserve to die.' This species of creature begged incessantly for release, but Wang turned his head and did not answer. The creature said, 'What is your surname and what is your name? I wish to know it.' It asked repeatedly without stopping, but Wang never replied. Coming closer and closer to home, the creature said, 'Since you will neither release me nor tell me your surname and name, what other plan can there be? I must simply meet my death!' When Wang reached home, he kindled a fire and burned it. Afterward all was quiet, and there were no more anomalies. Local custom calls it the mountain xiao. It is said that if it knows a person's surname and name, it can harm them; therefore it had persistently asked Wang, wishing to harm him and free itself. (The preceding single verification is from the Shuyi ji.)