法苑珠林 75.48

75.48

During the reign of Emperor Wu of the Jin dynasty, a young man and woman in Hejian Commandery fell in love and agreed to marry. Soon after, the young man was conscripted into the army for many years. The parents married the girl to another man, and before long she died of grief. When the young man returned, in deep sorrow, he went to her gravesite. At first, he wished only to weep and express his grief, but overcome with emotion, he excavated the tomb and opened the coffin, and she instantly revived. He then carried her home, nursed and cared for her, and after a few days she fully recovered. Her husband then went to demand her back. The young man would not return her, saying: 'Your wife was already dead; when in the world has anyone heard of a dead person reviving? This is a gift bestowed on me by Heaven; she is no longer your wife.' They took each other to court, but neither the commandery nor the county could decide the matter, and they submitted the case to the Minister of Justice. The Minister of Justice memorialized: 'Her revival from death was moved by the extremity of earnest devotion, resonating with Heaven and Earth. This falls outside ordinary principles and cannot be settled by conventional etiquette or decided by ordinary forms of law.' He ruled that she should be returned to the one who opened the tomb. (The single verification above is from the *Soushen ji*.)