法苑珠林 46.47

46.47

Under the Song, Hu Bizhi of Yuzhang was once Assistant Administrator of Wuchang Commandery. In the twenty-sixth year of the Yuanjia reign of the Song, as soon as he entered the official residence, there were demonic anomalies. In the middle of the night, when the moon lit up the room and the doors and windows were slightly open, someone would lean and stand outside the door, resembling a small child. When the door was closed, one heard footsteps as if of wooden clogs, but looking out, nothing was to be seen. This happened very frequently. In the third month of the twenty-eighth year, the entire household contracted an epidemic illness. Voices spoke in the air, throwing tiles and stones, or dry earth. By midsummer, the sick were all bedridden, and the force of the voices and throwing grew even fiercer. He then invited Daoists (daoren) to observe a fast and recite scriptures throughout the night, but [the stones] came twice as heavily like rain, only failing to hit the Daoists and the scrolls of scriptures. In autumn and winter, voices gradually arose, and tiles and stones hit people; the flesh turned dark and bruised, though not exceedingly painful. Bizhi had an old wet-nurse who was fond of cursing. The ghost frightened her greatly at her side. Bizhi invited a Daoist Libationer (jijiu) to submit petitions and deploy talismans to drive it away, and it gradually subsided. In the twenty-ninth year, the ghost returned more severely than before. The next year, fires repeatedly broke out four times in the official residence; through hurried pouring of water, they were put out in time. The ghost constantly made sounds like a dog, and the family members always called it 'Chilan'. Later, it suddenly spoke, 'I sound like Wu.' At the third watch, it knocked on the door. Bizhi asked who it was, and it replied, 'Cheng Shaoling.' Holding a torch, he went out to look, but completely nothing was seen. Several days later, during the second watch, it again clapped its hands outside the door. [Bizhi] then cursed it again. It said in reply, 'Sir, do not curse me. I am a good deity, not the one who came before and after. Censor Tao has sent me to inform you.' Bizhi said, 'I do not know Censor Tao.' The ghost said, 'Tao Jingxuan. You once associated with him in the past.' Bizhi said, 'When I was with him in the capital, we served Hengyang; moreover, he never served as a Censor.' [The ghost] said, 'Tao is now in a realm of blessing, serving as a Heavenly Censor. The previous and subsequent harassment was done by Master Shen. This official residence was originally Shen's home; he came to look at the house and casually spoke and threw things playfully. Angered by your excessive expulsions, to the point of cursing and ordering maidservants to be disrespectful toward him, and furthermore causing the Libationer to submit petitions severely accusing him of crimes that reached the Heavenly Bureau, Shen has now gone up to heaven to state: "He is a disciple who has taken the three refuges in the Buddha; why does he not seek blessings from the Buddhist fold, but instead causes a Libationer to submit petitions?" From now on, you need only single-mindedly revere the Dharma, and there will be no need for the evil ghost to distress you.' Bizhi invited nuns to read scriptures, and after observing a fast for one night, he again heard the Censor send word outside the door, stating: 'Assistant Administrator Hu, seeing Shen litigating against you very bitterly, according to his words, you were rather unreasonable. If you can take refuge with sincere devotion in the Sambuddha, practice the scriptures, and uphold the precepts, then the flock of evils will be shut out. Because of our deep past affection, I have specially informed you.'