法苑珠林 62.34

62.34

Furthermore, the Abhiṣeka-sūtra says: Ānanda asked the Buddha, "If a person dies and is carried to the mountain wilderness and a tomb or stūpa is built, is that person's spirit present within it or not?" The Buddha said, "It is both present and not present. If, during their lifetime, the person neither cultivated good roots nor recognized the Three Jewels, but also did not commit evil—having no good to receive blessing for, and no evil to receive misfortune for—and had no good friends to cultivate merit on their behalf, their spirit remains within the tomb or stūpa with nowhere else to go; therefore it is said to be present. Or, during their former life in the world, they may have extensively cultivated merit and goodness and diligently practiced the path, and they were either born in the heavens—among the Trāyastriṃśa gods—to receive blessings therein, or born in the human realm into an eminent family, naturally being born wherever they wished; in such cases it is not present. Furthermore, as for it not being present: in their former life in the world, they may have killed living beings, performed sacrificial prayers, disbelieved in what is true and right, earned their livelihood by wrong livelihood, and flattered, feigned, and deceived others, falling into the realms of hungry ghosts and animals, fully suffering all kinds of torment and passing through the hells; therefore it is said not to be within the tomb or stūpa. Or, as for it not being present: when the bones of the five grains have not yet decayed, there is still a faint spirit; once the bones are rotted away, this spirit is extinguished, having no vigor and being unable to bring misfortune or fortune to people. When the spirit is not yet extinguished, it may be that of a fellow villager or relative; the deceased person had no merit in life, and furthermore practiced wickedness and flattery, so they should fall into the class of ghosts and spirits, or become the spirit of a tree or miscellaneous object. Having no heavenly blessing to receive, yet not taken in by hell, they roam freely about human villages; since they have no food, they frighten people, producing various anomalies to disturb their minds. Or there are demonic charlatans and false teachers who rely on them to seek blessings, asking for fortune and protection in their desire to attain long life; through their foolishness and wrong views they kill living beings to offer sacrifices, and upon death they enter the hells, hungry ghosts, and animals, with no time of release. How could one not be cautious? Furthermore, on the day when a person approaches the end of life, one should burn incense, light lamps to keep the brightness burning, and upon the pinnacle mast of a stūpa or monastery hang a banner for the deceased and recite the venerable sūtras for full twenty-one days. Why is this so? A deceased person is in the intermediate state, their body like that of a small child, their sins and merits not yet determined; one should cultivate merit on their behalf, wishing that the spirit of the deceased will be born in the immeasurable lands of the ten directions. Relying on this merit, they will surely attain rebirth. If the deceased committed offenses during life and should fall into the eight difficulties, by virtue of the banner and lamp they will surely attain liberation. If they had good vows to be born to parents in another land but could not be born quickly, by virtue of the banner and lamp they will swiftly be born without further obstruction. Once reborn, they will become a meritorious child to people, never to be taken advantage of by wicked ghosts, and their clan will be wealthy and powerful. Therefore, one should cultivate the merit of goodness, banners, and lamps. Moreover, if men or women among the four assemblies, either when approaching the end of life or after having passed away, fashion a yellow banner on the day of death and hang it upon the mast, this will cause them to obtain merit, leave the sufferings of the eight difficulties, and attain rebirth in the pure lands of the Buddhas of the ten directions. By making offerings with banners and canopies according to their heart's wishes, they will directly attain bodhi. As the banner turns with the wind until it is completely worn out and reduced to fine dust, the wind blows the fine dust, and the merit is immeasurable. When the banner turns once, they attain the position of a cakravartin; even when it is reduced to dust, they attain the position of a lesser king; the retribution is immeasurable. The forty-nine lamps illuminate all the dark regions; sentient beings undergoing suffering, bathed in this light, are all able to see one another. On account of this merit, those sentient beings are delivered and all attain rest."