CHAPTER 21THIRD VISIT TO THE PALACE OF SOUL-RESUSCITATION FOR THE FOUR CATEGORIES OF CREATURES Buddha
Tse Kong who manifested on December 9th, 1976.Leap year of the Dragon
(1976)
Buddha
Tse Kong: In the bitter cold of hell cries and
laments resound; lawless humans cry with affliction, dead beasts utter
their complaints. The four categories of creatures are being massacred
in too great numbers on earth. Throat-cut, disemboweled, they have not
yet recovered from the terror of the slaughter. In vain, they struggle
against death, weak and helpless, they submit to their destinies,
supplicating and imploring like a death-sentenced convict weeping under
the gallows. Their spiritual energy disperses in the winds and falls
dust-like in hell where the Palace of Soul-Resuscitation for the Four
Categories reassemble it, waiting to reconstitute it to human form. They
are judged according to their karma and the debts they incurred in their
earlier life. It is common knowledge that the people who don’t follow
the right path, who do perverse acts counter to celestial reason without
caring for the consequences, and whose hearts are wicked, will be
transformed by the law of metempsychosis into the forms of the four
categories of creatures, viz. the viviparous, the oviparous, the
marsh-animalcules, and metamorphosing insects. Yang Ts’ien, make
yourself ready for a tour to hell. Yang
Ts’ien: Please,
Master, the father of an adept of the Temple of the Sages has just died,
and I still feel inconsolably afflicted. Why can’t a man as honest and
meek as him survive a little longer in order to save the noble cause of
the Temple and progress farther on the religious way? TK:
It is imperative that every mortal pass through the phases of
birth, old age, sickness and death, no matter how high he is placed in
the hierarchy of society. Take those sovereigns, noblemen, and heroes of
battles who had onetime grasped the whole of a kingdom, or of an empire,
in their hands. One and all they ended up lying motionless, their bodies
stiffened, their arms along their sides, their faces waxen, their eyes
closed. Dust-born, they returned to dust. The death of an ordinary man
is but a natural event. The important thing is whether or not he led a
virtuous and meritorious life. When a man dies, his physical body alone
disintegrates while his virtuous soul perpetuates eternally. This
explains why the dogmas and doctrines of the sages and virtuous men
exist immortally after their death. Have you ever seen anybody on earth
who chanced not to die? Don’t be that chagrined, my boy. YT:
I am so eager to see that dead man again. His descendants said he
had been warned of his death two days before the term of his terrestrial
sojourn. They all knew he would rejoin the sphere of buddhas. I ask
myself to what extent of spiritual perfection can one acquire such
prescience? TK:
To see him now is impossible, since the time is not propitious.
Those premonitory signs against his death were forwarned by the highly
evolved immortals who felt touched by the sincerity of the person. This
fact demonstrates that the genii and demons really exist, and that they
are not creatures of fiction. If a man applies himself seriously to
spiritual perfection, every incident of his life is outlined on the palm
of his hand. All he does is to read it. The matter is as simple as that.
Now, make haste, or else we’ll be late. Quick! Embark on the dais. YT:
Here I rush, Master. Start off... TK:
Arrival! Now, let’s disembark. YT:
Look! The Thousand-year King and his mandarins are they’re
waiting for us. TK:
Go ahead with your reverences. YT:
Please accept our most profound expression of respect. You are
going to be disturbed again, as I wish to know further have your palace. The King: No ceremonials, please! I am happy to learn that you two are not disgusted by the spectacle of the flocks of beasts that populate my gate. You have come here three times and it’s an honor to me. Please come inside. TK:
I thank you, Sir. Since time is pressing, I appreciate your
favoring Yang Ts’ien with your personal guidance so he can collect
adequate information. The
King: Please
follow me to inspect the different places. YT:
How marvelous! This place is equipped in the way of a
vacuum-cleaner on earth. Swarms of mosquitoes, sucked from nowhere, are
falling into snowflake-white heaps, floundering ghastly. The King:
They are the mosquitoes swatted or killed by men’s insecticide
sprayers on earth. Attracted by telluric emanations, they fall down here
in heaps of 500 each. Their souls which were scattered everywhere in the
world, are now regrouped in many heaps which fall apart. If we sprinkle
resuscitating-water on them, they recover their human form. YT:
Amazing equipment, indeed! It would be wonderful, to see how it
operates. The
King: It is the effect of the centripetal force exercised by the core
of the earth. Since the souls of mosquitoes are frittered away and their
nature is impure, they are naturally sucked down to this place. Their
vital energy was disseminated like grains of sand, now it gets fused
together in a single mass. This is where the marvel of the resuscitating
mechanism lies. Let’s go elsewhere. YT:
This large ground serves as an enclosure for beasts. Ordinarily,
we seldom see all these animals gathered together. Tigers and lions are
seen here as in a zoo, whereas hens, ducks and hogs are extremely
abundant. Here we are, back to the palace. Is there any information you
can give me, Sir? The
King: For the moment, I am examining a complaint lodged by that cock
you see over there. I’m going to give you his file. During his
lifetime on earth, this cock was the son of a rich man in northern
Formosa. Being vain about his father’s wealth, he committed adultery
with other people’s wives, and made use of his money to seduce many
young girls and gratify his carnal pleasures. He also satisfied his
sexual demands with prostitutes. Therefore, he had contracted a heavy
karma. In payment for his misdeeds, he was transformed into a cock for
five consecutive incarnations. Now, he has completed his punishment, and
his soul comes to our palace to solicit his resurrection to human form. YT:
How terrible! Cocks descending from humans! Now, what would
happen to chicken-eaters? Is that a crime? The
King: All
creatures have a spirit of the same nature. Only the apparent forms
differ. They possess the same spiritual stock as men’s. It is
customary that men like to eat the meat of animals. Nutritively
speaking, meat, and eggs, provide a high extent of nourishment. People
get a lot of strength while eating them. Yet, it is expedient to know
that these species of creatures are nothing but faulty human souls who
expiate their crimes through a reincarnation. Their bodies contain a
sinful vital essence. By the way, at the moment their throats are cut,
and in their ultimate struggle for survival, they are seized by panic
and terror, which causes serious disturbance in their blood, and toxic
substances are secreted from their viscera. By killing and absorbing
their flesh and blood, men get fed with adequate amount of nutrients but
at the same time, they consume harmful substances. The same phenomenon
occurs among humans. Those who are victimized by terror, or submitted to
continual or repeated torment, have their blood denatured. It then
results that they suffer from physiological diseases which derive from a
psychological source. A healthy man with a ruddy complexion when alive,
is colorless when lying on his death-bed. It is therefore evident that
the sanguine composition changes. The eaters of slaughtered animals are
more likely to absorb the noxious substances than the nourishing ones in
the meat. In a word, advantage and disadvantage are on a par. A number
of scientists have studied this subject on food nutrition. For the
people regenerating to the religious way, it would be impossible to
deprive them immediately of meat. Nevertheless, it is advisable they eat
less and less meat, in order not to be impregnated by impure blood.
Otherwise, it would be difficult for them to reach the Way. As regards
the sin for eating meat, let’s delay the topic until another time. YT:
What you said conforms to the principles of science, Sir. It
depends upon each one’s will whether to adopt the meat regimen or not.
The pro and con of such a decision is well exposed. Now, permit me to
ask you a question: I see over there an ape and a parrot. They seem to
be clever. The ape mimics man’s every gesture and the parrot speaks in
a man’s voice. Do they belong to a higher class of beasts? The
King: That ape has identical gestures with men’s. He is pretty clever
too. In his earthly life, he was a religious man. However, he had
followed an unorthodox way and is now incarnated in an ape. The parrot
was a fine speaker who caused ruin and death to other people. It’s a
pity that a fine speaker fails to avail of his talent. The men of the
living world should be prudent in each of their gestures that might
damage morality. If not they will be incarnated in the forms of birds or
animals, not knowing when they will be delivered from their karma. This
is a piece of advice which should not be neglected. TK:
Time is running short, and we have to end our visit here. In
brief, it is clear that your palace takes charge only of restoring human
form to the creatures. The decision on the fates of the four categories
of creatures, whether or not they are permitted to recover their human
form, is the responsibility of the King of the 10th Palace. This fact
should be known to humans on earth. Yang Ts’ien, get ready to go home. YT: May I express to you my profound gratitude for the teachings you have given me. I have to leave now. |
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