Voyages to Hell

translated by

Nguyen Khang & Bui H.Huu

CHAPTER 48

VISIT TO THE 8TH PALACE - INTERVIEW WITH THE KING OF EQUALITY

Buddha Tse Kong who manifested on February 16th, 1978. Year of the Horse (1978) 

The mind, as the moon on the pond, is unfathomed
The meditator penetrates within and perceives beyond
Like Sikya Muni, his blossom heart is detached, undefiled
Or Bodhidharma who crossed the ocean to conquer passions.

Buddha Tse Kong:    The resplendent moonlight is bright and glittering to the eyes. This is a characteristic of light. The spirit of the regenerated man is as bright and luminous as the moon because his heart is not soiled by desires. 

            The moon halo is calm and quiet but it doesn’t give the dreary impression of death. The spiritual adept should look within or on the surface of a quiet and clear lake to see his own reflection and discover his true-self. Even which, living among worldly activities, the spiritual man remains free and detached from common desires because he can preserve his true-self. He persists on the fixation of mind whether on the bed of jade or a place of dust. His vital breath energy can transcend everything else. 

            On the other hand, the profane people may lie at rest on couches of precious wood or marble, or on downy beds, but dust still surrounds them. Though they possess a host of handy devices (vacuum cleaners, detergents, soap powder, towels etc...), they still find themselves covered with layers of dust that is so dense in this world of sorrows. 

            Long ago, on the sacred Mount Ling Chan, Buddha Sakya Muni brandished a flower while he taught the sublime esoteric doctrine. Only the disciple Kasyapa understood the meaning of Buddha’s gesture and he smiled. The flower was not an ordinary flower, it was a miraculous flower of Kasyapa’s heart that blossomed when he looked at his Master. Nowadays, I Tse Kong, brandish my mediumnisitc pen. Some people would think that I am pretending and wouldn’t believe me. An intelligent, comprehending man can understand that the writings of my brush-pen are those of my heart. Within the static, there exists the dynamic, and amid sand, there are grains of gold. The knowing man smiles because he obtains a treasure in the twinkling of an eye. 

            For instance, Bodhidharma who had sailed across the oceans to China, taught his disciples that, “three times three is nine” (1). It means when the Yang attains its absolute, it will then return to its initial cosmic state, or the original source of the soul. He also taught that all religions must come from the same source. The self-serving people of that time didn’t understand. They said that Bodhidharma sought to search in their pockets for money. Ha! Ha! He took no one’s money, because he considered banknotes as scraps of paper. Also, could they keep that money with them for a long time? Or would it be dispersed completely by their descendants? In fact, the Spiritual Initiator wanted to teach us that we must free ourselves from the profane heart, and replace with a Buddha’s heart, or we must eliminate the “inferior heart” for “a superior heart”. 

Yang Ts’ien:   Venerable Master, your teachings are long and hard. I’m afraid that human beings can’t understand. 

TK:      Even the garbage has its value. You have certainly seen the rubbish that is loaded on a trash-cart. Well, some people might find gold in it. Some toss, the others pick, and nothing is lost. It is necessary for us to open our 3rd eye of clairvoyance before we can discern the real value of things. For instance, in the country of gold, a citizen regards gold as sand or pebbles. He doesn’t appreciate gold as a precious metal. It therefore results that anything too abundant and common is neglected and under-valued by the people. Now, let’s prepare for a trip to hell. 

YT:      Where shall we go, Master? 

TK:      To the 8th Palace. Come quickly on the dais. 

YT:      Yes, Sir. I am in place. 

TK:      We arrive now. Let’s down.Before us, is the 8th Palace. The guard is announcing our arrival. 

YT:      The King of Palace and his mandarins are there to welcome us. High above the palace is a board written “King of Equality” of the 8th Palace. The King, in his solemn mantle, is descending the stairway. I humbly present my respects to His Majesty the King. My name is Yang Ts’ien. I am from the Temple of the Sages in Tai Chu. Tonight, we come to visit your palace, and wish to receive favorable assistance from His Majesty. 

The King:    Dispense with formalities. Please, take it easy. You have been pained greatly with your work, as a scribe, and now you are here to visit my palace. Please, follow me. 

YT:      Thank you, Sir. Outside the palace, the souls are grouped in large number, each one waiting for his turn. They express astonishment at our arrival. Some of them are beaten by the guards and they scream frightfully. 

The King:   Please take a seat. Venerable Buddha and Mr. Yang Ts’ien, I am really delighted to have a talk with you. General, bring us some tea. 

The General:   At your request, Sir. Venerable Buddha and Mr. Yang Ts’ien, please help you for tea. 

The King:    We have been waiting for your visit. Only now the honor is mine. 

TK:      Our time for each trip is quite limited. The fact of writing a book requires a great deal of time. Thanks to the disciples of the Temple of the Sages who devoted themselves day and night to help in writing the book. It will be completed in spite of many difficulties. Our work is slow, but steady. A great piece of work can’t be done in haste. 

YT:      Both of us are deeply touched by your kindness. All we can do is to show our strong will in overcoming the obstacles. 

The King:    Accomplishing a divine mission isn’t an easy task. Every minute and second, you must exert patience and efforts without failure. If you deviate from your task a single second, you may never redeem your mistakes. While man’s heart is still troubled, he cannot approach the Tao. Conversely, if he continue to strengthen his will, regeneration will be possible. Thanks to the cultivation of body and mind, people commit fewer errors. As a conclusion, by keeping a regenerated heart we can attain the Tao even in the terrestrial world. Whether success can be obtained or not depends entirely upon us. 

YT:      I am happy to receive your golden teachings, Sir. I would like to know the situation of the 8th Palace. 

The King:    Perfect. Here it is. The 8th Palace is in charge of re-educating the souls who committed too many sins, and not being punished adequately by the other palaces.  These souls are handed over to the 8th Palace for complementary punishments. Our palace is provided with a prison called Big Prison with Blazing Heat plus 16 additional smaller prisons for the sinners committing various crimes. I make an appeal to human beings, urging them to walk on the right path, to learn morality, and regenerate themselves for aquiring knowledge of the absolute truth - To know about their soul origin and destination in order to avoid hell and painful reincarnations. 

YT:      Please explain to me why the sinful souls neglect to give me their names and addresses, but only the reports of their sins. If these details can also be published on the book “Voyages to Hell”, the moral teaching to human beings will be much more effective. Humans believe only on the things with accurate proof. If lack of proofs and research, they may become suspicious. May you kindly explain to me the reason so I can report to my fellow-friends? 

The King:    The knowledge of the human beings in hell is still very limited. Therefore, God’s edict has clearly specified to reveal only the sinful actions of souls without their names and addresses. Though we are well aware of the fact that their names and addresses would bear a more effective impact upon moral teaching, we dare not do so. The reason is that the descendants of the souls, on earth, would be ashamed and humiliated. If the names of their dead parents appear in the book, they will be mentally and spiritually troubled. Our intention to encourage good actions will have a counter-effect, and our good will to teach morality to men will be defeated. We are therefore compelled to keep secret the identities of sinful souls. 

TK:      A nobleman is forever noble, and a vile man remains as ever vulgar. If one has to deal with a sinner, one must first arrest him. Then his identity will be asked later. The fact of believing or not believing in the existence of paradise and hell is without importance, because if the people act dishonestly or inhumanly, they will fall into the grip of the King of Hell. At that time, it will be too late to believe. Well, it’s time to leave now. We shall come back later. Be ready, Yang Ts’ien. 

YT:      May we take leave and many thanks to you, Sir. 

The King:   Order to the Mandarins and Generals to render honors to our guests. 

YT:      I am ready, Master. 

TK:      Here we are. Disembark and hurry back to your body. 

(1) In the principle of Yin and Yang, the digit 9 designates absolute Yang. Once the Yang reaches its absolute, it turns back to digit 1 which is the source. The disciple who practices spiritual perfection and meditation will succeed to purify himself in order to reach the state of absolute Yang. He will attain enlightenment and return to his original source, which is paradise.

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CONTENTS

Forward
Introduction
Preface
Summary
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Chapter 53
Chapter 54
Chapter 55
Chapter 56
Chapter 57
Chapter 58
Chapter 59
Chapter 60
Chapter 61
Celestial Edict
Postface

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