諸經要集 7.55

7.55

Fifth, King Yama asked again: 'When you were human, did you not see wicked and villainous men in the world arrested by officers, brought to trial before magistrates, and subjected to punishments under the penal law—having hands or feet cut off, ears or noses sliced away, bodies branded with fire, heads hung up and exposed to the sun, or being dismembered and butchered, suffering various cruel agonies?' The person answered, 'I did.' The king said: 'Did you think you alone could escape if you did evil? Having seen clearly with your own eyes the distinctions between retribution and merit in the world, why did you not maintain goodness, restrain body, speech, and mind, and practice the scriptures and precepts? Why did you seek your own fleeting pleasure?' The person replied, 'It was because of my ignorance and blindness.' The king said: 'Your own deliberate intentions produced unfaithfulness and injustice; it was not the fault of your parents, sovereign, gods, śramaṇas, or men of the Way. Now you must inevitably endure this calamitous punishment yourself.' This was King Yama presenting the fifth divine messenger. When the Buddha finished preaching the sutra, all the disciples received the admonition, stepped forward to pay homage, and rejoiced to put it into practice.