The original translator is unknown and is now cataloged in the Eastern Jin records.
The venerable Mahā-Maudgalyāyana was accompanying the Buddha on Gṛdhrakūṭa Mountain. As he traveled along the bank of the Gaṅgā, he saw many hungry ghosts undergoing different kinds of karmic retribution. When the hungry ghosts saw the venerable Maudgalyāyana, they all gave rise to reverence and came forward to ask about the causes of their conditions.
A ghost asked, “I constantly suffer from headaches. I do not know what offense led to this.”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were formerly a human being, you failed to cultivate patience and struck living beings on the head with a staff. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “I constantly suffer from painful sores. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you had no loving-kindness. You burned mountains and forests and harmed living beings. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “My entire body is covered with festering sores, and the pain is unbearable. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you burned pigs and sheep alive. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “No matter how much I eat, it is never enough, and I can never become full. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, although you gave food to living beings, you always made sure that what you gave them was insufficient. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “I constantly suffer from headaches, and no treatment can cure them. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you did not respect those of virtue and instead reviled and humiliated them. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “The sons and daughters I give birth to are all handsome and lovable, yet they all die young. When I think of them, my heart is overwhelmed with anguish. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, when you saw your own children killing living beings, you rejoiced with them and ate the flesh together with them. Because of the killing, they have short lives; because of your rejoicing in it, you suffer this bitter anguish. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “I have one husband, but he keeps many wives. When it is my turn to spend the night with him, he refuses to receive me. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you did not respect your husband and engaged in sexual misconduct without propriety. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “I constantly suffer from headaches, and my male organ is covered with festering sores. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you engaged in sexual activity in the pure areas like stūpas and temples. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “I have received this body, which is coarse, rough, and impure. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you did not honor people of virtue, but treated virtuous people with contempt and threw sand and earth upon śramaṇas, covering them with dust. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “I eat more than a hundred liter of food, yet it is still never enough. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you were formerly a bhikṣu. You obtained provisions on behalf of the Sangha but consumed them yourself. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “I have received this form, with swollen feet and a goiter on my neck. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you forced people and animals to carry heavy burdens without restraint or consideration. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “In this body I constantly suffer from burning heat and thirst. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you delighted in fishing and hunting. When you caught fish, you threw them onto sand and earth and caused them to die in suffering. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “In this body I am deranged, foolish, and without wisdom. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you gave alcohol to others. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “The children I give birth to all turn around and eat me. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you failed to cultivate filial care and support for your parents. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “Whenever I eat, I always vomit. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, someone once asked you for food after midday. You became angry and reviled that person before giving it. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “Throughout this life I have no lack of wealth or possessions, yet I delight in wearing poor and tattered clothing. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, although you delighted in giving, you immediately regretted your gifts afterward. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “In this form I am constantly reduced to dwelling beside lanes and crossroads, with no fixed place to sleep. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, when travelers came seeking lodging, you did not allow them to stay in peace and security. When you saw other travelers lodging there, you became angry and reviled them. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “I have received this form, neither male nor female. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you had no loving-kindness and delighted in castrating domestic animals. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “I have received this body, crippled and unable to walk. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you delighted in acting without righteousness. You bound and confined people and animals, preventing them from moving freely. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “In this body I constantly suffer from burning heat and thirst. When I travel and see the Gaṅgā, cool and beautiful, I enter it to bathe, hoping to obtain cool relief and remove the suffering of heat. Yet as soon as I enter, my entire body festers and decays. When, tormented by thirst, I try to drink, as soon as a mouthful enters my throat, my five internal organs are scorched and destroyed, and my flesh separates from my bones. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you delighted in practicing physiognomy, predicting people’s good and bad fortune. There was little truth and much falsehood in what you said. At times you disparaged people and at times praised them, proclaiming yourself to be virtuous in order to sway their minds and obtain profit and support. You were also deceitful and insincere toward your parents, brothers, and relatives. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future. The suffering you will undergo is multiplied a hundred million times and cannot be fully described.”
A ghost asked, “Ever since I received this body, vicious dogs have constantly come to me. Their bodies are huge, their teeth sharp, and both eyes blazing red. Day and night they come and devour my body. Before my life has ended, my flesh immediately grows back, and then I undergo the same suffering again. The pain is unbearable. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you were the keeper of a shrine to the devas. In that shrine you took the blood of cattle and sheep and offered it in sacrifice to the devas, while eating their flesh yourself. You told people, ‘If you make sacrifices to the devas, you will obtain great good fortune.’ You committed various evil and heterodox acts and deceived the people. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “I have received this body and constantly dwell amid filth. My entire body is smeared and covered with it, and everything I eat is also filthy. I continually undergo this suffering and cannot escape it. Foulness and distress envelop my body, and my misery is beyond reckoning. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you were a brāhmaṇa. You did not believe in the Buddha-Dharma and took no delight in making offerings to śramaṇas and practitioners. Whenever they came to beg from you, you never wished to see them. Once, a practitioner came to ask you for alms, and you thought, ‘I should devise some means to make him never come again.’ You then took a bowl, put excrement at the bottom, covered it with rice, and gave it to the practitioner. After receiving it, the practitioner returned to his dwelling and set it aside. After washing his hands clean, he sat down and took up the bowl. When he reached in to eat, he found filth inside, with a stench so foul that one could not approach it. Because of this cause and condition, you now undergo this foul and distressing retribution. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future, constantly swallowing blazing iron pellets while your body festers and decays. The suffering cannot be described.”
A ghost asked, “I have received this body with many tongue everywhere. Axes spontaneously appear and cut them off again and again without number. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you were a young practitioner. The Sangha assigned you to fetch pure water and prepare a syrup made with rock sugar to distribute among the Sangha. The rock sugar was hard and in a large lump. You broke off a little and secretly ate one mouthful. Because you stole property of the Sangha, therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future, swallowing molten copper poured into your mouth. The suffering cannot be described.”
A ghost asked, “I have received this body and constantly suffer from hunger. I go to the latrine intending to eat excrement, but a powerful ghost stands there and beats me with a staff, so that I cannot even approach it. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you were once a practitioner and had charge of a Stūpa. You miserly guarded the property of the Sangha and did not provide good food to the Sangha, but constantly gave them coarse and inferior food. Sometimes, when you intended to prepare good food and saw visiting bhikṣus arrive, you would stop preparing it and wait until they had left before serving it. Because of your malicious and miserly mind, therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “I have received this body. My belly is as large as a jar, while all the other parts of my body are small. My throat is like the tiny eye of a needle, so food cannot pass through it. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you were the head of a village. Relying on your power and influence, you bullied and oppressed the people and constantly extorted food and drink from them without righteousness, causing hardship to the populace. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “I have received this body. On my shoulder there is constantly a copper vessel filled with molten copper. In my hand I hold a ladle, scoop it out, and pour it over my own head. My entire body is scorched and destroyed in this way again and again without number, and the pain is immeasurable. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you renounced the household life to cultivate the Way and had charge of the Sangha’s food and drink. You took a jar of ghee and hid it elsewhere. When visiting practitioners came, you did not give any to them. After the guests had left, you took out the ghee and distributed it among the resident Sangha. This ghee was property of the Sangha of the four quarters, in which all had a share, yet you concealed Sangha property and distributed it unequally. Because of this cause and condition, you obtained such suffering. You now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future. The suffering you endure is beyond reckoning.”
A ghost asked, “I have received this body, and people constantly come carrying knives and saws. They cut and flay my body, split open my abdomen, and take out my five internal organs. My flesh is exhausted and my sinews are severed, and the pain is unbearable. After a short while, my flesh grows back and my body is restored, whereupon they immediately come and cut me again. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you were a brāhmaṇa who did not believe in the true Dharma. You constantly held heterodox views, served deities, and continually sacrificed cattle and sheep in prayer. Because of this offense, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “I have received this body, and people constantly come carrying knives and saws. They cut and flay my body, split open my abdomen, and take out my five internal organs. My flesh is exhausted and my sinews are severed, and the pain is unbearable. After a short while, my flesh grows back and my body is restored, whereupon they immediately come and cut me again. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you worked as an executioner and had charge of killing people. You had no loving-kindness and delighted in doing so. Because you committed such offenses, you obtained this painful retribution. You now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “I have received this body, and beneath both armpits there are constantly blazing iron wheels turning. Their intense heat presses against my body and scorches and destroys both armpits. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you renounced the household life to study the Way and prepared various cakes for the Sangha. Before the Sangha had come to eat, you greedily stole some of the Sangha’s cakes, concealed them beneath your armpits, took them to a secluded place, and ate them. Because of this cause and condition, you obtained such suffering. You now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future. The suffering is immeasurable.”
A ghost asked, “I have received this body, and red-blazing iron pellets spontaneously fall from the sky. They enter my mouth and pass into my belly. Sometimes they enter from the left and emerge on the right, and sometimes they enter from the right and emerge on the left. My entire body is scorched and destroyed, and the pain is immeasurable. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you renounced the household life and became a śrāmaṇera. You cooked āmra fruits for the Sangha. While distributing them among the Sangha, whenever you came before your preceptor, you would give him seven fruits without authorization. Because of this cause and condition, you obtained this grievous suffering. You now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “I have received this body. Whenever I wish to move forward, as soon as I begin to move or turn around, I am spun about like a whirlwind and cannot advance at all. My sorrow, distress, and torment are beyond reckoning. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you practiced divination. You deceived others and caused their minds to become confused and deluded, at times making them rejoice and at times making them afraid, though none of it was true. Because of this cause and condition, you obtained this evil retribution. You now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “I have received this body, and there is constantly burning heat within me, as though I were carrying boiling water and fire inside. Moreover, I am repeatedly burned and boiled, undergoing innumerable kinds of suffering and pain. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you were the chief consort of a king. At that time the king favored and honored a junior consort, and you constantly gave rise to jealousy. You devised an evil means and sought to kill her. Waiting until she was asleep, you boiled ghee until it became hot and poured it onto her abdomen. She suffered immeasurable pain from this and consequently died. Because of this cause and condition, you obtained such suffering. You now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “I have received this body, and by nature I am filled with fear. I constantly fear that people will come to seize me, confine and bind me, place me in cangues and fetters, and subject me to cruel punishment. I never experience any joy. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you delighted in sexual misconduct and violated other people’s wives and daughters. You constantly feared being discovered, and your mind was never at peace. Therefore, you now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future, at times lying upon an iron bed and at times embracing a copper pillar. Sufferings such as these are beyond reckoning.”
A ghost asked, “I have received this body, and blazing iron nets and cages spontaneously appear and entangle my body. They burn and scorch me until my body is destroyed, and the pain is impossible to describe. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you constantly used snares and nets to kill fish and wild animals and cages to capture birds. Because of this cause and condition, you obtained such piercing suffering. You now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “I have received this body without hands or feet, like a mere lump of flesh lying in the wilderness. Foxes, wolves, tigers, leopards, eagles, vultures, and many other birds compete to seize me and eat me. The pain is impossible to describe. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, you devised evil means. Whenever either you or another person became pregnant, you administered medicine that caused the fetus to be destroyed. Because of this cause and condition, you obtained such suffering. You now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
Then three ghosts came forward together and asked, “We have received these bodies, and iron nails constantly fall from the sky and pierce our bodies, penetrating the flesh and breaking the bones. The agonizing pain reaches into the marrow. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were human beings, one of you was a horse trainer, one a cattle trainer, and one an elephant trainer. Greedily coveting the wealth of others, you recklessly pierced the animals with needles, causing them pain without relieving their suffering. Because of this cause and condition, you obtained such suffering. You now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
A ghost asked, “I have received this body without a head. My eyes, ears, nose, and mouth are all located upon my chest. What offense led to this?”
Maudgalyāyana replied, “When you were a human being, whenever you saw someone being killed, you helped by seizing the victim’s head and delighted in pulling it, without any loving-kindness. Because of this cause and condition, you obtained such a body. You now undergo this retribution and will suffer further karmic consequences in hell in the future.”
After Maudgalyāyana had answered all the ghosts, they all gave rise to reverence, rushed forward, and repented of their offenses. Seeing their joy, Maudgalyāyana further taught them the Dharma. After hearing it, all the ghosts were greatly delighted.
