佛說觀佛三昧海經 5

English (machine translation) 5

Language: English

5.1

Translated by Guṇabhadra, Tripiṭaka Master from India, under the Eastern Jin

5.2

Chapter Four: Contemplating the Buddha's Mind

At that time, the Buddha's heart was like a red lotus flower, and between the petals of the lotus flower were eighty-four thousand white rays of light. These rays illuminated the sentient beings of the five destinies everywhere. When these rays emerged, the suffering sentient beings were all made manifest.

5.4

That which is called suffering refers to: the Avīci hell, the eighteen minor hells, the eighteen cold hells, the eighteen dark hells, the eighteen minor hot hells, the eighteen knife-wheel hells, the eighteen sword-wheel hells, the eighteen fire-chariot hells, the eighteen boiling-excrement hells, the eighteen boiling-cauldron hells, the eighteen ash-river hells, the fifty-billion sword-forest hells, the fifty-billion thorn-forest hells, the fifty-billion copper-pillar hells, the fifty-billion iron-loom hells, the fifty-billion iron-net hells, the eighteen iron-cave hells, the eighteen iron-pellet hells, the eighteen pointed-rock hells, and the eighteen molten-copper-drinking hells; such numerous hells as these.

5.5

The Buddha told Ānanda: "Why is it called the Avīci hell? 'A' means without, and 'vīci' means obstruction. 'A' means without, and 'vīci' means rescue. 'A' means interval-less, and 'vīci' means motionless. 'A' means extreme heat, and 'vīci' means extreme anguish. 'A' means relentless, and 'vīci' means ceaseless; relentless and ceaseless is why it is called the Avīci hell. 'A' means great fire, and 'vīci' means intense heat; fierce fire entering the heart is why it is called the Avīci hell."

5.6

The Buddha told Ānanda: "The Avīci hell is eight thousand yojanas in length and breadth, an exact square. It has seven layers of iron walls and seven layers of iron nets. Below are eighteen tiers; all around in seven tiers are knife forests, and within the seven layers of walls are further sword forests. Below are eighteen tiers, and each tier has eighty-four thousand layers. In its four corners are four great bronze dogs; their bodies are forty yojanas in width and length, with eyes like flashing lightning, fangs like sword trees, teeth like knife mountains, and tongues like iron thorns. Fierce fire bursts forth from all the hairs on their bodies, and their smoky stench is such that nothing foul in the world can serve as an analogy for it. There are eighteen hell-wardens, with rākṣasa heads, yakṣa mouths, and sixty-four eyes from which iron pellets burst forth scattering like ten-li carts. Their canine teeth project upwards to a height of four yojanas; from the tips of the teeth streams of fire burn the iron carts before them, causing each wheel rim of the iron carts to transform into one hundred million firebrands, knife edges, blades, swords, and halberds, all emerging from the fire. These flowing fires burn the city of Avīci in this manner, making the city of Avīci red like molten copper. Upon the heads of the hell-wardens are eight ox heads, and each ox head has eighteen horns; from the tip of each horn bursts a mass of fire, and the masses of fire further transform into eighteen rims; the rims of fire further change into flaming knife-wheels, about the size of cartwheels, wheel upon wheel in succession amid the blazing flames, filling the city of Avīci. The bronze dogs open their mouths and spit their tongues onto the ground; their tongues are like iron thorns, and when the tongues are extended, they transform into immeasurable tongues filling the ground of Avīci. Within the seven layers of walls are seven iron banners; from the tops of the banners fire surges like gushing springs, and its molten iron splatters and bursts, filling the city of Avīci. Over the thresholds of the four gates of Avīci are eighty caldrons; boiling copper surges forth and overflows from the gates, filling the city of Avīci. Between each tier are eighty-four thousand great iron pythons spitting venom and fire, their bodies filling the city; the serpents roar like celestial claps of thunder, raining great iron pellets to fill the city of Avīci. The tortures of this city are eighty-four thousand billions, and the bitterest among the bitter are assembled in this city. There are fifty billion bugs, each bug having eighty-four thousand beaks; from the tips of the beaks fire streams down like rain, filling the city of Avīci. When these bugs descend, the fierce fires of Avīci blaze intensely, their red light and flames illuminating eighty-four thousand yojanas; surging upward from the Avīci hell, they strike beneath the Mount of Scorched Water in the great ocean; drops of ocean water, about the size of cart-axles, turn into large iron spikes filling the city of Avīci."

5.7

The Buddha said to Ānanda: "If there are sentient beings who kill their fathers, harm their mothers, or revile their six relations—when those who have committed such sins approach the end of their lives, the bronze dogs open their mouths and transform into eighteen carriages that resemble golden carriages, with jeweled canopies above them. All the flames transform into jade maidens. Seeing them from afar, joy arises in the sinners' minds: 'I wish to go inside! I wish to go inside!' As the wind-knives dismember them, overwhelmed by cold, they cry out: 'Could I only get a good fire and sit upon the carriage, burning the fire to roast myself!' Having had this thought, they immediately meet their end. In the blinking of an eye, they are already seated in the golden carriages. Looking back at the jade maidens, [they see that] all of them are holding iron axes to hack and sever their bodies. Beneath their bodies fire blazes up like whirling wheels of fire. Just like the time it takes a strong man to bend and extend his arm, they plunge straight down into the great Avīci hell. From the upper compartment, like whirling wheels of fire, they reach the lower compartment, their bodies filling the compartment entirely. The bronze dogs roar loudly, gnawing their bones and sucking their marrow. The rākṣasa hell-wardens grasp great iron pitchforks, hoisting them up by their heads, while flames envelop their bodies, filling the city of Avīci. The iron nets rain down knives that enter their pores. A transformed Yamarāja proclaims in a loud voice: 'You foolish seed of the hells! When you were in the world, you were unfilial to your parents and were perverse, arrogant, and without moral principle. The place where you are now born is called the Avīci hell. Knowing no gratitude and having no shame, is receiving such suffering and affliction pleasurable to you or not?' Having spoken these words, he immediately vanishes and is no longer seen.

5.8

"At that time, the hell-wardens again drive the sinners from the lower compartment up to the upper compartment, passing through eighty-four thousand compartments, dragging their bodies past to the edge of the iron nets. It takes a single day and night to traverse them entirely. A single day and night in the Avīci hell is sixty minor kalpas according to the count of days, months, and years in this Jambudvīpa; their lifespan lasts a full great kalpa like this. Sinners of the five heinous deeds, lacking shame and remorse, commit the five heinous deeds; because of their sins of the five heinous deeds, when their lives are about to end, eighteen wind-knives, like iron fire-carriages, dismember and slice their bodies. Pressed by the heat, they then say these words: 'If only I could get lovely flowers and cool, great trees to play beneath, would that not be joyful?' As they form this thought, the eighty-four thousand evil sword forests of the Avīci hell transform into jeweled trees, their flowers and fruits luxuriant, arrayed in rows before them. The great, blazing flames transform into lotus flowers beneath those trees. Seeing them, the sinners say: 'What I desired has now borne fruit!' As they speak these words, swifter than a torrential rainstorm, they sit upon the lotus flowers. Having sat for a short while, various iron-beaked insects arise from the fiery flowers; they bore into their bones, penetrate their marrow, pierce their hearts, pass through their brains, and climb up the trees. All the sword-branches shave away their flesh right through to the bone, and countless knife-clubs fall down from above. The fire-carriages, hearth coals, and the eighteen torments simultaneously arrive to meet them. When these signs appear, they sink down into the earth. Rising from the lower compartment, their bodies, like blooming flowers, fill the lower compartment entirely. Rising from the lower compartment, the fiercely blazing flames reach the upper compartment. Arriving at the upper compartment, their bodies fill it entirely. Because the heat and affliction are so severe, they widen their eyes and stick out their tongues. Due to these people's sins, tens of billions of measures of molten copper and hundreds of thousands of knife-wheels descend from the air, entering their heads and exiting their feet. All these sufferings exceed what was said above by hundreds of thousands of times. Those who possess the five heinous deeds endure their punishment for five full kalpas.

5.9

"Furthermore, there are sentient beings who commit the four grave prohibitions, consume the offerings of the faithful in vain, hold slandering and perverse views, fail to recognize cause and effect, abandon the study of prajñā, slander the Buddhas of the ten directions, steal the property of the Saṅgha, engage in unrestrained and immoral lust, violate and ravish fully ordained nuns of pure precepts, and, feeling no shame toward their sisters or relatives, dishonor and humiliate those close to them and commit numerous evil deeds. When such persons' retributions for sin arrive and their lives are about to end, wind-knives dismember their bodies. They toss and turn restlessly as though being beaten with whips. Their minds become deranged and wildly disordered, generating mad and foolish thoughts. They see their own dwellings, men and women, young and old, as all being impure things, with the foul stench of feces and urine overflowing outside.

5.10

"At that time, the sinners immediately say these words: 'Why is there no fine city wall or pleasant mountain forest here for me to roam and enjoy, leaving me instead amidst such impure things?' Having spoken these words, the rākṣasa hell-wardens lift up the Avīci hell and the various sword forests with great iron pitchforks, transforming them into jeweled trees and cool pools; the flames transform into gold-leaved lotus flowers, the iron-beaked insects transform into wild ducks and geese, and the painful cries of the hells sound like songs and hymns. Hearing them, the sinners say: 'In such a pleasant place I shall roam!' As soon as they have had this thought, they sit upon the fiery lotus flowers. The various iron-beaked insects peck and eat their flesh from their bodily pores, hundreds of thousands of iron wheels enter through the crowns of their heads, and iron pitchforks as numerous as the sands of the Ganges gouge out their eyes. The bronze dogs of the hells transform into tens of billions of iron dogs, vying to tear apart their bodies, seize their hearts, and eat them. In an instant, their bodies are like severed flowers filling the eighteen compartments, each flower leaf numbering eighty-four thousand; at the tip of each leaf are their bodies, hands, and limbs within a single compartment. The hell is not large, nor is this body small; they fill such a great hell completely. When these sinners fall into this hell, they pass through eighty-four thousand great kalpas before this niraya is exhausted.

5.11

"Then they enter into the eighteen compartments of the eastern direction, suffering pain as before. This Avīci hell also has eighteen compartments in the south, eighteen compartments in the west, and eighteen compartments in the north. Those who slander the vaipulya sūtras, are replete with the sins of the five heinous deeds, break up the Saṅgha, defile bhikṣuṇīs, and sever all roots of wholesome goodness—sinners such as these, endowed with manifold offenses, have their bodies fill the Avīci hell, and their four limbs further fill the eighteen compartments. This Avīci hell burns only such sentient beings who are the seeds of hell. When the kalpa is about to end, the eastern gate immediately opens. Outside the eastern gate, clear springs, flowing water, and forests of flowering and fruiting trees all appear together. When these sinners see this from the lower compartment, the fire in their eyes momentarily subsides; rising from the lower compartment, squirming and crawling on their bellies, dragging their bodies, they run up into the upper compartment, their hands clasping the knife-wheels, while at that time hot iron pellets rain down from the sky. They run toward the eastern gate; but as soon as they reach the threshold, the rākṣasa hell-wardens hold iron pitchforks in their hands and stab them through the eyes, and iron dogs bite their hearts, so that they faint in agony and die. Having died, they revive again. They see the southern gate open just as before without difference; the western gate and the northern gate are also all like this! In this manner, they spend half a kalpa. Dying in the Avīci hell, they are born amidst cold ice. Dying in the cold ice hell, they are born in a dark place where for eighty million years their eyes see nothing, and they assume the bodies of great worms, squirming and crawling on their bellies. Their sense faculties are blocked and darkened, understanding nothing, and hundreds of thousands of foxes and wolves drag and tear them to eat them. After their lives end, they are born among animals, receiving the forms of birds and beasts for fifty million lifetimes. When they are reborn among humans, they are deaf, blind, mute, afflicted with scabies, leprosy, ulcers, and carbuncles, poor, destitute, and lowly, with all forms of misfortune serving as their ornaments. After undergoing these lowly forms for five hundred lifetimes, they are subsequently reborn in the realm of hungry ghosts.

5.12

"In the realm of hungry ghosts, they meet kalyāṇamitras, the great bodhisattvas, who rebuke them, saying: 'In your former bodies throughout measureless lifetimes, you committed baseless offenses, slandered [the Dharma], and lacked faith, falling into the Avīci hell and receiving various sufferings that cannot be fully spoken of. You should now bring forth a compassionate mind.' When the hungry ghosts hear these words, they recite: 'Namo Buddhāya!' Relying on the power of the Buddha's grace, they immediately pass away and are born in the realm of the Four Heavenly Kings. Having been born in that heaven, they repent their faults, rebuke themselves, and arouse bodhicitta. The light of the Buddhas' minds does not abandon them; it gathers them in with compassionate pity for them, just as for Rāhula, teaching them to avoid the hells just as one protects one's own eyes."

5.13

"The Buddha said to the Great King: "If you wish to know what the light of the Buddha's mind illuminates, it constantly illuminates such suffering sentient beings who are without interval and without rescue; what the Buddha's mind focuses upon is constantly these most evil sentient beings. Because of the Buddha's mind-power adorning itself, after the passage of incalculable kalpas, he causes those sinners to arouse bodhicitta."

5.14

The Buddha said to Ānanda: "What are called the eighteen cold hells? As for the cold hells: in the eight directions there are ice mountains, with eighteen compartments per mountain; furthermore, there are eighteen minor ice mountains, colored like crystal. Such cold ice fills the spaces between the ice mountains like ordinary lotus flowers, eighteen yojanas high; above them are ice wheels, twelve yojanas in length and breadth, falling from the sky like hail raining from heaven. In the world there are naturally those who lack compassion, who violently rob, pillage, plunder, strip people bare, and freeze sentient beings to death. As the retribution for such a person's sins, when their life is about to end, all the knife-winds transform into blazing fire. The sinner thinks: 'Why do I not now lie upon ice?' Pressed by the fire, as they form this thought, the rākṣasa hell-wardens hold ice wheels and tread the air, arriving like white cranes in flight. Seeing them, the sinner feels the heat dispelled and a sense of cool relief; love and desire arise in their mind, and when their breath ceases and life ends, they are born upon an ice mountain. After being born, the eighteen ice mountains seem to fan them as with fans; all the cold ice enters through their pores, filling one compartment out of the eighteen compartments. They crack open and split apart like red lotus flowers; ice wheels above and below cover their bodies completely. The ice mountains of the eight directions crash together simultaneously; they can utter no other words, only crying out, 'Aṭ-aṭa!' At that time, the sinner immediately has this thought: 'When shall I escape this cold ice and be born amidst hot fire?'

5.15

"At that time, there are iron birds in the air that spit fire from their beaks and descend from the sky, cracking their skulls and pecking at their brains, so that the sinner immediately dies. After their life ends, the hell-wardens strike the ground with iron pitchforks and call out: 'Live! Live!' At the sound, they immediately revive. Having arisen, they reflect: 'A great fire blazes fiercely upon my body now; I wish to obtain the former ice to extinguish this fire.' The hell-wardens again greet them with ice wheels and cast them into the hell, so that there is none of the eighteen compartments they do not pass through. The measure of lifespan in years in this cold hell is eighty million years according to the days and months of the Four Heavenly Kings. Once their sin is exhausted, they are born among lowly people, impoverished and despised, serving as slaves to others for five hundred lifetimes, with clothes that do not cover their forms and food that does not fill their mouths. Once this sin is exhausted, they meet a kalyāṇamitra and arouse bodhicitta."

5.16

The Buddha said to Ānanda: "What is called the dark hell? As for the dark hell: there are eighteen layers of black mountains, eighteen layers of black nets, eighteen layers of iron beds, and eighteen layers of iron canopies. Each mountain is eighty-four thousand yojanas high; each canopy is likewise eighty-four thousand yojanas thick. Between each canopy, eighteen layers of black iron enclosing mountains are arrayed like a forest, casting darkness over these mountains. In the world there are naturally foolish sentient beings who steal the lamp lights of the Buddha, Dharma, and Saṅgha; who steal from their parents, teachers, and upādhyāyas; who slander those who preach the Dharma; and who also revile mundane debaters and teachers, showing no respect for the honorable or lowly, and having no sense of shame. Due to these sins, when their lives are about to end, lightning flashes unceasingly before their eyes. They immediately think: 'What sin have I committed to constantly see this fire?' They then close both eyes, not wishing to see [it] or the light of the sun and moon. When their lives are about to end, the rākṣasa hell-wardens hold aloft great iron beds and spread great iron umbrellas, arriving through the air like a massive cloud.

5.17

"At that time, formless voices in the air say: 'Here is darkness; do you wish to go?' Hearing the voice, the sinner immediately forms the desire to go there. When their breath ceases and their life ends, they sit upon the iron bed, plunging down like a soaring king of geese into the dark place. Having entered within, knife-wheels above and below chop and mince their bodies. There are great iron crows with long and sharp beaks and talons that fly down from the mountains to strike and peck the sinners. In acute agony, they run swiftly seeking light but cannot find it, while caltrops beneath their feet pierce their bones through to the marrow. In such panic and terror, they pass five hundred million myriad years, also reckoned by the days and months of the Four Heavenly Kings. Those people smash their heads against the black mountains, their brains spilling out and their eyes popping forth; the rākṣasa hell-wardens fork them back with iron pitchforks and set them into their eye sockets. When their punishment is ended, they emerge to become impoverished people with squinting, cross-eyed, or blind eyes that see nothing, or they are driven away by people on account of leprosy. Such retributions for sin continue for five hundred lifetimes; after this has passed, they meet a kalyāṇamitra and arouse bodhicitta."

5.18

The Buddha told Ānanda: "What are called the eighteen minor hot hells? As for the eighteen minor hot hells, like the Avīci hell, they also have seven layers of walls and seven layers of iron nets, with immeasurable evils as their adornments. There are sentient beings who do not obey their master's teachings and give rise to rebellious evil minds, not recognizing kindness and nurture, stealing from the master and harming the master, defiling the master's pure food, sitting upon the master's bed and seat, grasping the master's alms-bowl and concealing it as impure, committing five kinds of evils. What are the five? Namely: reviling the master, slandering the master, beating the master, killing the master, and holding various poisons to give the master to drink. If śramaṇas or brāhmaṇas commit various non-dharmas, harming their masters and slandering their masters, these sinful evil people lack all shame and conscience, stripping images, destroying stūpas, plundering Dharma treasures, and killing uncles, parents, brothers, and sisters. When such sinful people are about to die, eighteen hell wardens of the Avīci hell each raise an enclosed compartment hell with an iron fork. These multiple hells are like a great jeweled canopy, raining down fine rain with raindrops like flowers. Because of this person's sinful retribution, feverish distress enters his heart; having been burned by fire, seeing the rain as refreshing and cool, he immediately thinks: 'May I be able to sit beneath the sheltering canopy; having the cool rain sprinkle upon me, would that not be delightful!' Having spoken these words, his breath expires and he dies. In the brief time it takes to throw a ball, he immediately sits upon a great bed of swords. A hundred billion sword blades, the blades all shooting forth fire, burn and pierce his body. In the sky, the jeweled canopy transforms into a wheel of fire, which splits his crown straight down from above. His body shatters into several thousand pieces. From above, molten copper pellets rain down, entering his pores. The rākṣasa hell wardens pierce the sinful person's eyes with great iron forks, or shoot iron arrows into his heart, so that he faints and dies. In an instant, he revives and sits upon the bed of swords, and a violent whirlwind blows him down into hell. Having entered the hell, Yamarāja at that time, together with his palace, appears in the sky and proclaims: 'Hell-seed! You committed multiple evils, killing your master and slandering your master. The place where you are now born is called Tongue-Extracting Avīci; in this hell you shall spend three kalpas.' Having spoken these words, he vanishes and is no longer seen. The agony of this hell is as explained above."

5.19

The Buddha told Ānanda: "What is called the eighteen sword-wheel hells? As for the sword-wheel hells: there are sword mountains on all four sides; between the mountains, swords are stacked like bricks. In the sky there are eight hundred trillion enormous sword-wheels, descending in succession like raindrops. There are sentient beings who delight in tormenting others and killing sentient beings. At the time of their death, they suffer from a disease of surging breath, with their hearts stifled, agitated, and full, their hearts hard like stone. They then make this wish: 'If only I could get a sharp sword to carve away these ailments, would that not be pleasant!' At that time, a hell warden carries a sword-wheel upon his head, concealing it so it does not appear, and goes to where the sinful person is, speaking humble and modest words: 'I have a sharp sword that can cut away severe illness.' The sinful person is delighted and thinks to himself: 'Only this would bring relief.' His breath expires and he dies, being born upon the sword-wheel; like a drunken elephant running, he falls into the midst of the sword mountains. At that time, the four mountains close together all at once, and the four kinds of sword mountains slice and sever his body. Unable to bear it, he faints and dies. The rākṣasa hell wardens drive and force the sinful person to climb the sword mountains. Before he reaches the mountain peaks, the swords wound his feet right through to his heart; out of fear of the hell wardens, he crawls upward. Once he reaches the mountain peaks, the hell wardens hold all the sword-trees in their hands and strike the sinful person dead. Before he dies, iron dogs gnaw at his heart, inflicting hundreds of forms of painful poison, and iron worms gnaw and eat his flesh until it is completely gone. Soon after, he is summoned back to life, and with his feet bound to iron wheels, he falls from the sky. In a single day and single night, he undergoes sixty billion births and sixty billion deaths. There are many such kinds, eighteen in total. Because of this person's sins, it becomes even more severe, lasting for eighty million years according to the lifespan of the Four Heavenly Kings. When his punishment is completed, he is reborn in the world, falling among animals, where for five hundred lives his body serves to feed many mouths. For another five hundred lives he receives a lowly form, and only after that does he encounter a great kalyāṇamitra and give rise to bodhicitta."

5.20

The Buddha told Ānanda: "What is called the sword-wheel hell? As for the sword-wheel hell: it is precisely fifty yojanas in length and breadth, filled with sword-trees, the number of trees being as numerous as rice, hemp, bamboo, and reeds. Each sword-tree is forty yojanas tall, having eighty-four thousand sword-wheels as leaves, eighty-four thousand sword-wheels as flowers, eighty-four thousand sword-wheels as fruits, and eighty-four thousand streams of boiling copper as branches. In the world there are foolish sentient beings who delight in killing without satiation. When such a sinful person approaches death, he contracts a great fever, and then thinks: 'My body is now sometimes hot and sometimes cold, my whole body stiff and hard like an iron anvil.' He then makes a wish, saying: 'If I could obtain a vajra sword to cut away this ailment, the joy would be unspeakable.' At that time, a hell warden transforms his body into the form of the person's own parents or close friends, stands before him, and tells him: 'I have a secret method; in accordance with what you wish, I shall bestow it upon you.' When the sinful person hears this, his mind is filled with fond yearning, and he urgently desires to obtain it. His breath expires and he dies, and like a galloping horse, he is born amid the sword-flowers. Immeasurable sword blades pare his bones and tear his flesh, shattering him into pieces as small as beans. Furthermore, iron birds descend from the trees, gouging out his eyes and pecking at his ears; a great rākṣasa holds an iron axe in his hand, breaking his head and spilling his brain, which iron dogs come to lap up. After he dies, he is summoned back to life and driven to climb the trees. Before reaching the treetops, his body is shattered like dust. In the course of a day, his body passes through the various trees; in the course of a night, he again passes through the various trees; in a single day and single night, his body is destroyed like dust, beyond all reckoning. Because of the sin of killing people, he suffers such calamity. After eighty trillion years, he is born among animals, his body constantly bearing heavy burdens and having its skin flayed after death. After five hundred lives, he is reborn among humans, poor, short-lived, sickly, and emaciated. After this has passed, he encounters a kalyāṇamitra and gives rise to bodhicitta."

5.21

The Buddha told Ānanda: "What is called the fire-chariot hell? As for the fire-chariot hell: each copper cauldron is precisely forty yojanas in length and breadth, filled with raging fire, having twelve wheels below and ninety-four fire-wheels above. There are sentient beings who, having become disciples of the Buddha, or followers of Brahmā and the ninety-six heterodox ways, whether among the monastic assemblies or the householders, deceive others with wrong livelihoods, behaving crookedly and committing evil. When such a sinful person is about to die, the wind element stirs first, and his body becomes cold as ice. He then thinks: 'When will I be able to obtain a great, raging mass of fire, so that by entering and sitting within it, I may permanently eliminate this cold illness?' Having formed this thought, the rākṣasa hell wardens transform a fire-chariot into the likeness of a golden lotus flower, with a hell warden atop it appearing in the form of a young boy, holding a white whisk, dancing as he approaches. When the sinful person sees this, affection and attachment arise in his mind: 'Such a golden flower with radiant and glorious colors will illuminate me and make me warm, surely banishing the cold; if I could sit atop it, the joy would be unspeakable.' Having spoken these words, his breath expires and he dies. Loaded onto the fire-chariot, his limbs catch fire, and falling into the mass of fire, his body is scorched and disintegrates. The hell wardens summon him back to life, and at their call he revives immediately. The fire-chariot runs over his body eighteen times in total, shattering his body like dust; from the sky, boiling copper rains down, sprinkling over his body, whereupon he immediately revives. Going back and forth like this, rising up to the edge of the boiling broth and falling down into the cauldron, run over by the fire-chariot, in a single day and single night he undergoes ninety billion deaths and ninety billion births. When this person's sin is exhausted, he is born into an impoverished and lowly family, enslaved by others, bound to others without freedom. Only when he has finished repaying his past gains and support is he then liberated. Due to the meritorious virtue of his former wholesome mind when leaving the household life, he encounters a kalyāṇamitra who preaches the Dharma for him; his mind opens in understanding, and he becomes an arhat."

5.22

The Buddha told Ānanda: "What is called the boiling excrement hell? As for the boiling excrement hell: there are eighteen iron cities of eighty yojanas; each iron city has eighteen compartments; in each compartment, all four walls have hundreds of billions of sword-trees. The ground is like knife blades, the blades three feet thick; upon these blades are hundreds of thousands of caltrops, beyond calculation. Between each caltrop and sword-tree, various iron worms are born in immeasurable numbers; each iron worm has a hundred thousand heads; each head has a hundred thousand mouths; at the tip of each mouth are a hundred thousand roundworms vomiting hot excrement, boiling like molten copper, filling the iron city. Above are iron nets and iron crows. In the world, there are sentient beings who break the eightfold abstinence precepts, defile the novice monk's precepts or the novice nun's precepts, defile the probationary nun's precepts, defile their own pure precepts, defile the monk's precepts or the nun's precepts, or defile the upāsaka precepts or the upāsikā precepts. The monks, nuns, upāsakas, upāsikās, novice monks, novice nuns, and probationary nuns—these seven assemblies and all others—defile the sangha's pure food, defile their parents' food, stealing and eating it first, handling it with impure hands; or monastic administrators, relying on their own authority, defile the sangha's pure food; or disciples of the four assemblies, with impure bodies, sit upon the sangha's communal beds; or commit sthūlātyaya offenses without repenting for a long time; eating the sangha's food in vain; and sitting among the assembly of the sangha to participate in the poṣadha with the sangha. When such numerous and immeasurable sinful people of impure, evil karma approach death, their entire bodies become fragrant like musk deer glands, unbearable [to smell]. They then think: 'Where can I go so as not to smell this fragrance? Such a scent is like a mad wind coming to熏 [fume and disturb] my heart.' Having formed this thought, the rākṣasa hell wardens transform their own bodies to resemble painted vases filled with feces and filth; they go to the sinful person's place and touch him with their hands, causing love and attachment to arise in that sinful person's mind. His breath expires and he dies, and like being blown by the wind, he falls into the boiling excrement. Having fallen in, he festers and rots, gnawed and eaten by numerous worms; as he runs to the east and west, his bones are scraped through to the marrow. Pressed by hunger and thirst, he drinks the hot, boiling excrement, and roundworms and maggot worms gnaw at the root of his tongue. In a single day and single night, he undergoes ninety billion births and ninety billion deaths. When his sin is exhausted, he is born into an impoverished and lowly family, bound to others without freedom. Even when born in the world, he constantly encounters evil kings and belongs to masters with wrong views; various evil occurrences press upon his body, and goiters, swellings, and malignant sores serve as his garments. Due to the wholesome causal condition of having heard the Dharma in past lives, he encounters a kalyāṇamitra, leaves home to train in the Path, and becomes an arhat, endowed with the three knowledges, the six supernormal powers, and complete in the eight liberations."

5.23

The Buddha said to Ānanda: "What is meant by the eighteen caldron hells? As for the caldron hells, there are eighteen caldrons, each caldron being exactly forty yojanas in length and breadth. Filled with boiling [liquids], each caldron is enclosed by sevenfold iron nets. Five hundred rākṣasas stoke great coal fires to heat the copper caldrons. This rock fire blazes flame upon flame, unbroken and impossible to extinguish for sixty days—equal to fully one hundred and twenty thousand years of days in Jambudvīpa. Thus the caldrons boil over, shooting upward like stars, turning into fiery wheels that fall back into the caldrons. There are sentient beings who transgress the Buddha's prohibitive precepts, who kill living beings for sacrificial offerings, or who, for the sake of eating meat, burn mountains and fields, harming living beings, or scald living beings alive and burn them with fire. When such sinners are about to die, they become agitated and vexed in body and mind, losing control of their bladder and bowels; they feel now hot as boiling water, now cold as ice, and at once have this thought: 'If only I could get warm water to bathe in, would that not be joyful?' The rākṣasa hell-wardens transform themselves into young servants holding bathing basins, and go to the sinner's place. The sinner is delighted and covets the basin; with breath cut off, life ends, and he is born into the boiling caldron. He quickly melts and rots away, leaving only bones. Iron forks dredge him out; iron dogs devour him, vomit him onto the ground, and thereupon he revives. The hell-wardens drive and press him to re-enter the caldron; terrified of the caldron's heat, he climbs the sword-trees, where his flesh and bones are cut to pieces and fall back into the boiling caldron. Because of the sin of killing living beings, in a single day and night he dies as many times as the sands of the Ganges, and is born as many times as the sands of the Ganges. When his sins are ended, he is born among animals, in the short-lived forms of swine, sheep, fowl, and dogs, passing through every one. Having received such forms for eighty million years, when his life ends, he is reborn among humans, receiving two kinds of retribution: first, frequent illness; second, a short lifespan. A short lifespan and frequent illness will be his constant companions. After countless kalpas, he encounters a kalyāṇamitra, receives and upholds the five precepts, and practices the six pāramitās."

5.24

The Buddha said to Ānanda: "What is meant by the River of Ashes hell? As for the River of Ashes hell, it is two hundred yojanas long and twelve yojanas wide. Below it are sharp blades, and on its banks are sword-trees. It is filled with fierce fire twelve zhang deep, over which molten ash covers the fire to a depth of forty zhang. In this world there are shameless sentient beings who steal from their parents, steal from their teachers and elders, and steal from good friends, brothers, and sisters. Such foolish people have no shame or remorse; they do not recognize the debt of their upbringing, have ungrateful minds, covet profit and desire gain, do not perceive calamity, and disobey the instructions of their teachers. When such a person is about to die from the retribution of these sins, breath fills his heart and belly, his panting becomes discontinuous, and he at once has this thought: 'My heart is like mud, and breath chokes my chest; if only I could obtain a slight fire to warm and dry my body, would that not be pleasant?' In response to his thought, the rākṣasa hell-wardens immediately arrive, transformed into a wife and children, carrying in their hands a brazier covered with a thin layer of ash, and approach the sinner. At that time the sinner is overjoyed; because of this joy, with breath cut off, his life ends, and he is born into the River of Ashes. Between the sword-trees stands a rākṣasa holding a sharp sword, coming to harm him. Terrified, this person runs into the River of Ashes. Lifting and lowering his feet, the blades wound his feet. The sword-trees rain knives that penetrate his pores. The rākṣasa uses a fork to skewer and rip out his heart; he collapses to the ground and dies of anguish, only to revive immediately. Due to the causal condition of the sin of stealing from teachers, elders, and parents, in a single day and night he undergoes five hundred billion births and five hundred billion deaths. Driven by hunger and thirst, he opens his mouth wishing to eat; the sword-trees rain knives that enter the tip of his tongue, splitting his belly and tearing his chest, so that he faints and dies. Because he previously heard the names of the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha, after his punishment ends he gains rebirth among humans, poor and base. Awakening to the impermanence of the world, he leaves home to study the Way: when there is no Buddha in the world, he becomes a pratyekabuddha; if there is a Buddha in the world, he becomes an arhat."

5.25

The Buddha said to Ānanda: "What is meant by the Sword-Forest hell? As for the Sword-Forest hell, it spans eight thousand yojanas, filled with sword-trees that bear red-hot iron pellets as fruit; these sword-trees are twenty-four yojanas high. There are sentient beings who are unfilial toward their parents, disrespectful toward their teachers and elders, who commit bad vocal karma, lack compassionate love, and inflict swords and staves upon others. When the sinful retribution of such a person is about to bring about death, his mind, like glue, attaches to everything, and he at once has this thought: 'My mind is bound and attached, relinquishing nothing. Addicted to alcohol and fond of lust, even though my body suffers afflictions, my mind still does not cease; if only I could obtain a sharp knife to sever this love!' In response to his voice, the rākṣasa hell-wardens immediately arrive, transformed into attendants, holding up a bright mirror to show him, and saying to the sinner: 'Your mind has many attachments; you may look into this mirror.' When he looks into the mirror, he sees in it the image of a sharp sword, and at once has this thought: 'My body is now frail and cannot bear lustful deeds; if only I could obtain this sharp sword to cut off my mind, would that not be pleasant?' As he has this thought, his breath is cut off and his life ends. Receiving the body of a hungry ghost, he is suddenly born by transformation amidst the sword-trees. Once born, iron pellets enter through the crown of his head and exit through his mouth; his intestines and stomach are scorched and charred, and he collapses to the ground. The hell-wardens then beat and drive him with iron forks, forcing him to climb the trees. Having climbed one tree, iron-beaked insects devour him; terrified, he leaps onto another tree. In this manner, driven from one to the next, he passes through all the sword-forests, undergoing eighty thousand births and eighty thousand deaths in a single day and night. After his sins are ended, he is born into eras of famine and kalpas of pestilence; as a human, he is lowly and base, his breath is constantly foul, and he is loathed by people. After countless kalpas, he encounters a kalyāṇamitra and generates bodhicitta."

5.26

The Buddha said to Ānanda: "What is meant by the hell of fifty billion thorny forests? As for the Thorny-Forest hell, it spans eight thousand yojanas, filled with iron thorns; at the tip of each thorn are twelve swords, and above on the trees are large, red-hot iron tongs. In this world there are foolish sentient beings who engage in harsh speech, divisive speech, frivolous speech, and unrighteous speech; they engage in unrestrained teasing, falsely proclaim right and wrong, speak of the faults of the scriptures, and disparage masters of scholastic debate. When such sinful retribution is about to bring about death, their throat parches and their tongue dries up, and they at once have this thought: 'If only I could obtain a sharp thorn to pierce my neck and draw blood, causing streams of water to flow through all my veins, would that not be pleasant?' As they have this thought, the rākṣasa hell-wardens transform themselves into the person's parents, holding in their hands a moon-pearl with a thorn growing at its tip, which they hold up toward his mouth as if water were about to drip. The sinner is delighted: 'What I wished for has now come to fruition!' Having had this thought, his breath is cut off and his life ends; in the time of a great flash of lightning, he is born amidst the thorny forest. After being born, the rākṣasa hell-wardens take iron tongs in their hands and pull out his tongue; eighty iron oxen with great iron plows plow and tear his tongue apart. Wind blows through the trees of the thorny forest, violently buffeting his body, so that in a single day and night he undergoes six hundred births and six hundred deaths. After this has passed, he gains rebirth among humans with hanging lips and a wrinkled face, his speech stammering and stuttering. Such a sinner has sores breaking out all over his body with pus and blood overflowing, and for five hundred lifetimes he is loathed by people. After this has passed, even if he speaks, people do not believe or accept it. Eventually, he encounters a kalyāṇamitra and generates bodhicitta."

5.27

The Buddha said to Ānanda: "What is meant by the hell of fifty billion copper pillars? As for the Copper-Pillar hell, there is a copper pillar resembling a great mountain, six hundred yojanas high. Below it is a fierce fire; above the fire is an iron bed, and on it are knife-wheels. Between the knife-wheels are iron-beaked insects, with iron crows beside them. In this world there are foolish sentient beings who, with abundant greed and delusion, are defiled by impure attachments, commit sexual misconduct, and engage in impure acts in improper places and at improper times. If there are bhikṣus, bhikṣuṇīs, brāhmaṇas, or other celibates who transgress pure conduct at improper times and in improper places, up to anyone who commits sexual misconduct and performs impure deeds, when such sinners are about to die, their entire body arches stiffly and twitches uncontrollably, like a drawn bow unable to sustain itself, and they at once have this thought: 'If only I could obtain a solid, large pillar of copper or iron to bind this body so that it does not shake!' The rākṣasa hell-wardens immediately arrive, transformed into young servants holding an iron staff, and approaching the sinner, say: 'Elder! Your body is now stiff while all other things are weak; you should grasp this staff.' His heart rejoices, and with breath cut off his life ends. In the time it takes to brandish a staff, he is born atop the copper pillar. Fierce flames blaze and incinerate his body; terrified, he looks down and sees a beautiful woman on the iron bed—if a woman, she sees a handsome man—and love and lust arise. From atop the copper pillar they wish to throw themselves to the ground; the copper pillar pierces the body, iron ropes ensnare the neck, and iron-beaked insects peck and devour their flesh. Falling onto the iron bed, fire erupts simultaneously from the six sense organs of both men and women; iron-beaked insects enter through their eyes and exit through their genital organs. If one has defiled the precepts, there are separately nine hundred million smaller insects, like carbuncle worms with twelve mouths, flames shooting from their mouths as they bite and devour the body. As retribution for this sexual misconduct, in a single day and night they undergo nine hundred billion births and nine hundred billion deaths. When the punishment is ended, they are born among doves and pigeons, receiving the bodies of doves and pigeons for five hundred lifetimes; they are reborn among dragons for five hundred lifetimes, and later reborn among humans without sex organs, with two sex organs, or with indeterminate sex organs, or with the bodies of eunuchs for five hundred lifetimes. Even if they gain human form, their wives will not be chaste and virtuous, their children will not be filial or affectionate, and their male and female slaves will be disobedient. After this has passed, they encounter a kalyāṇamitra and generate bodhicitta." The Buddha said to Ānanda: "What is meant by the hell of fifty billion iron mechanisms? As for the Iron-Mechanism hell, there is an iron bed exactly four hundred yojanas in length and breadth, upon which are mounted trigger-latches; between the latches are ten trillion iron crossbows, and the arrowheads of the iron crossbows have ten billion sharp blades. In this world there are foolish sentient beings who, out of greed and desire, are unfilial toward their parents, disrespectful toward their teachers and elders, disobedient toward good teachings, who kill living beings, and who devour deceitful persons. When the sinful retribution of such a person is about to bring about death, his body trembles, and fluids spontaneously flow from all six orifices of his body. Such a sinner sees his own bed as tūla-cotton, and immediately has this thought: 'When will I get a firm, cool place to lie down and sleep? Would that not be pleasant!' When he has this thought, the rākṣasa hell-wardens raise up a bed with forks, spread a large woolen rug over it, and approach the sinner. Seeing it, the sinner is overjoyed and wishes to lie upon the rug; with breath cut off, his life ends, and he is born upon the iron mechanism. Ten trillion iron latch-triggers move from below, the iron latches rise and fall, and countless iron crossbows are all drawn at once, each iron arrow shooting through the sinner's heart, so that in a single day and night he undergoes six hundred billion births and six hundred billion deaths. When such a sinner has finished undergoing punishment, he is born among animals for five hundred lifetimes, and is reborn among humans, poor and base, driven and ordered about by others, frequently falling into penal confinement and constantly enduring beatings. After this has passed, he encounters a kalyāṇamitra and generates bodhicitta."

5.28

The Buddha said to Ānanda: "What is called the Iron Net Hell? As for the Iron Net Hell: there are eighty-nine layers of iron nets. Within each net are ten billion iron needles; on each iron needle are placed five trigger-mechanisms. In the world there are false and deceitful sentient beings who, with deviant and flattering minds, bewitch and confuse people; harbouring slander and malice in their minds, they think evil thoughts day and night, bringing evil thoughts to completion moment by moment. When such a person's retribution for their sins arrives and their life is about to end, their body becomes intensely itchy, and they immediately form this thought: 'If only I could get a bundle of needles to pierce and prick the itch-mites, would that not be delightful!' While they are having this thought, the hell-warden rākṣasas transform into a good physician who, holding sharp needles in hand, proclaims: 'I shall treat your illness!' The sinner's heart is gladdened. Their breath ceases, their life ends, and they are born within the iron nets. Crawling with their body underneath, all the triggers move, and immeasurable needles shoot into their pores. Tossing and turning amidst the iron nets in this way, they die in a kṣaṇa and are reborn in a kṣaṇa. When their retribution is complete, they are born in a borderland, a place devoid of the Buddha's Dharma, where they do not even hear worldly good words spoken, much less the true Dharma. Although born among humans, they are subsumed under the three evil destinies; after innumerable kalpas have passed, they meet a kalyāṇamitra, yet although they get to hear the Dharma, their mind does not understand it."

5.29

The Buddha said to Ānanda: "What is called the Iron Cavern Hell? The Iron Cavern Hell is the utmost suffering in the realm of hungry ghosts. There is an iron mountain, twenty-five yojanas in both length and breadth. On the mountain there are further five hundred trillion great hot iron pellets; each iron pellet is round and exactly thirteen yojanas across. In the mountain there are further hundreds of thousands of swords and blades. At that time, on the eastern side of that mountain there is an opening, a small aperture like the mouth of a Magadhan peck-measure, emitting only black smoke. In the world there are foolish sentient beings who are bound and attached by stinginess and greed, their minds like vajra; they delight only in seeking and demanding, never having any satiety. They give nothing to their parents, wives, and children; they regard the teachings of their masters and elders as excrement; and they bestow no food or clothing upon their servants, kin, or friends. Such stingy persons do not reflect upon impermanence, protecting and begrudging their wealth and property just like their own eyes. When such a person's retribution for their sins arrives and their life is about to end, their sense faculties are blocked and shut, and their mouth is clenched shut, unable to speak. They think silently in their mind: 'After I die, these evil people will consume my wealth and goods like swallowing iron pellets, and will dwell in my house like staying in a dark room.' Having formed this thought, the hell-warden rākṣasas transform into stingy people who magically gather up the wealth and goods and come to the sinner's place to burn them with fire. The sinner's heart is gladdened. Their breath ceases, their life ends, and they are born on the fiery mountain, as if molten copper were being cast into an iron cavern. Having entered the cavern, sword-worms and blade-worms gnaw and feed upon their body; the smoke stings their eyes so that they cannot see the flames of fire. Terrified and panicked, they run wildly east and west; their heads strike the iron mountain, and the iron pellets move up and down, entering through the crown of their head and exiting through their feet. They die in a single thought-moment and are reborn in a single thought-moment. When their retribution is complete, they are born among hungry ghosts, their bodies large and tall, several tens of yojanas, their throats like the tubes of needles and their bellies like great mountains; running east and west seeking food, molten copper is poured into their throats. Only after eight thousand years pass does their suffering end. They are then born among spittle-eating ghosts, pus-eating ghosts, and blood-eating ghosts. When that sin is exhausted, they are reborn as privy spirits, pigs, and dogs. When that sin is exhausted, they are reborn in a poor, destitute, and base place devoid of clothing and food. Later, they meet a kalyāṇamitra and give rise to the bodhicitta."

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佛說觀佛三昧海經 — Classical Chinese