法苑珠林 64.31

64.31

During the Tang dynasty, Li Zhili of Longxi was agile in his youth, skilled in archery, capable in horsemanship, and also adept at shooting pellet-bows, killing a great deal. Sometimes he trapped fish in numbers beyond reckoning. In the nineteenth year of the Zhenguan era, he fell slightly ill, and died in three or four days. He then saw a ghost leading a horse that was larger than horses ridden in the mundane world, who said to Zhili, 'King Yama summons you.' He then had Zhili mount the horse. In an instant, they suddenly arrived before the King. The King gave strict orders, saying, 'I dispatch you to subjugate the rebels; you must under no circumstances be defeated. If you are defeated, I will put you to death.' There were twenty-four companions. Looking toward the northeast, the rebels were without boundary; heaven and earth were completely darkened, and dust fell like rain. Zhili and the others were routed. He spoke to his companions, saying, 'The King's order is grave and severe; we would rather die advancing than return in defeat.' Zhili turned his horse around and advanced, shooting three arrows, after which the rebels seemed to shrink back slightly. When he completed five shots, the rebels finally dispersed in defeat. The affair concluded, he went to have an audience with the King. The King reproached Zhili, 'Although your enemy retreated, why were you defeated at the outset of battle?' With hemp he braided his hair, bound his hands and feet, laid him down upon a stone, weighed him down with a large millstone, and ground him. The four men before and after him were all crushed and lacerated in body. When it came to Zhili's turn, he shouted in a strained voice, 'That the rebels were defeated earlier was entirely due to Zhili's strength! If I am still killed by the King, there will be no way to encourage those who come after.' The King thereupon released him, giving no further orders, and let him wander at will. After a total of three days had passed, he set out toward the northwest and entered a walled compound. There was a pack of birds and beasts that could fill more than three mu of land; all came to demand his life, gradually closing in on him. He had once shot and killed a female dog, which ran straight forward and bit his face, and then his body, leaving nothing uninjured. He saw three great ghosts, each fifteen feet tall and of the same girth, who jointly stripped Zhili's skin and flesh. In an instant it was entirely gone, leaving only white bones for his face and eyes, with his five internal organs also visible. They then distributed this flesh to the birds and beasts. His flesh fell away and grew back; as soon as it grew, it was stripped again. Like this for three days, the bitter agony was so extreme it could not be fully recorded. When this was over, the great ghosts, birds, and beasts suddenly vanished entirely. Zhili looked back and saw not a single thing, so he leaped over the wall and fled south, not knowing where he was going. In his mind, it seemed as if one leap covered a thousand li. He again saw a ghost catch up with Zhili, who covered him with an iron cage. Innumerable fish vied to peck and feed upon him. After a long while, the ghost finally turned back, and the fish also disappeared. His family had formerly supported a monk, who had died earlier; this monk came, removed the cage from Zhili, and said to Zhili, 'Danapati, you are exceedingly hungry.' He handed him three white pills shaped like jujubes and told Zhili to eat them. At that moment he was completely sated, and [the monk] said to him, 'Danapati, return home; I too will take my leave.' When Zhili reached the north of his residence, he saw a great pit inside of which various spears and lances were densely planted, so that he could not cross. He saw his elder brother's daughter along with a maidservant carrying a box, with coins, silk, and a vessel of food and drink to the northeast of the pit. In his heart, Zhili thought that this maidservant and his niece were playing, and found it very strange. Turning his head to look north, he immediately saw a ghost advancing straight ahead brandishing a sword. Zhili was terrified, threw his body down into the pit, and immediately revived. From his initial death until his rebirth, a total of six days had passed. Later he asked his household, and learned that his niece had taken paper money and silk to send off Zhili; what he had seen at that time appeared as bronze coins and silk fabric (the above three verifications are taken from the Mingbao ji).