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- Touring the Fifth
Tribunal Again
- 4th Visit to
the Gouging Heart Prison
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- JiGong:
There are quite a number of people who are uninterested
in gainful employment for their own advancement but
rather prefer to spend their time in gambling to pass
their days. Originally, these people were good people
but because of their bad contacts they became useless
and squandered their time and property and ultimately
became detestable. Of late there had been a series of
thefts and robberies and swindling, all due to such bad
hats requiring easy money. Gambling is a very bad habit
and I would advise human beings not to indulge in this
vice. Of all vices, lewdness is the most serious one
because some people do not understand the meaning of
shame; also, women are included in this group. Some
women do not know what shame is; some stealthily leave
their homes without the knowledge of their husbands in
order to have sexual enjoyment. This is more or less
like the sin of gambling. That is why there are now so
many sinful souls in Hades. Today I will bring Yang
Sheng again to visit the 16 Gouging Heart Prison. Yang
Sheng, quickly get up on the lotus flower platform and
we will start.
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- Yang Sheng:
I’m safely seated, dear Master, we can start…..
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- JiGong: We
have arrived; Yang Sheng, get down.
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- Yang Sheng:
I have come down. Today I observe that there is a great
change in the outlook of the souls here – many of them
are in high spirits; why is it so?
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- JiGong: It
is because this is the period of the festival of the
Hungry Ghost when, in the human world, people pray to
and offer food to the hungry ghosts in connection with
the ritual of relieving souls out of purgatory; those
souls who are not too sinful have the privilege of
enjoying themselves by eating the various food offerings
and collecting burnt paper money.
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- Yang Sheng:
Oh! Is that so? I see that the Officer is coming to
welcome us.
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- Officer:
Welcome to both of you, JiGong and Yang Sheng. This
happens to be the period of the Festival of the Hungry
Ghosts; that is why you see so much activity here where
the less sinful souls are allowed their annual freedom
to visit the human world, so please tolerate this slight
confusion.
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- JiGong:
Please do not stand on ceremony; we have disturbed you
so many times and I wish to apologize to Officer and
Generals for any inconvenience caused.
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- Officer: We
have received the Order saying that both of you are
visiting us for the purpose of writing the Book,
“Diyu Youji,”(Journeys to the
Underworld) to educate human beings to do good
deeds; this is indeed very meritorious and consequently
you deserve every assistance. I would invite you to come
inside to have a look.
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- Yang Sheng:
Thank you very much. I observe that in this Prison,
there are many sinful souls who are wailing loudly
without stop.
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- JiGong: In
this Gouging Heart Prison are imprisoned those souls who
had committed great sins; that is why the amnesty on the
Festival of the Hungry Ghosts is not extended to them to
visit the human world and partake of the feasts, etc.
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- Officer:
Today I will bring out two sinful souls so that they can
tell you their sinful stories themselves. Look here,
sinful souls, this is JiGong Huofo and the other is a
human being of Sheng Xian Tang, named Yang Sheng. They
have received the Order from Yu Huang to visit Hades to
collect data and stories on what goes on here in Hades
for the purpose of writing the Book to urge human beings
to do good deeds. I want both of you, sinful souls, to
relate your stories to them and remember not to hide any
important facts.
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- 1st Soul:
Alright, I will relate my story. When I was alive on
Earth, I was very active in doing business, traveling
very often, living mostly in hotels. In due course, I
met undesirable people who introduced me to gambling. At
first the gambling was just pastime but eventually I got
myself deeply involved and I gambled everyday. If I did
not gamble even for one day, my hands became itchy and
my heart also itched, yearned to gamble. In spite of the
fact that I was active in my business thereby earning
good money; the gambling urge made me gamble daily and
heavily until I lost a lot and was forced to borrow
money from friends and business contacts throughout the
land. I was deeply in debt, so much so, that I could not
even give my family money for their up-keep. When I was
43 years old, one day while riding a motorbike under the
influence of alcohol, I met with an accident resulting
in my death. My soul was brought to Hades and then only,
did I realize that my life-span had been shortened by 5
years. My earthly activities were investigated from the
1st Tribunal to the 4th Tribunal
and subsequently I was transferred to the 5th
Tribunal where Sen Luo Wang, on seeing me, became very
angry. He sentenced me to this Gouging Heart Prison for
a term of 13 years. Every day my heart is gouged out,
the reason being that as my heart was very fond of
gambling, it has to be treated. I wish to advise human
beings not to gamble heavily because heavy gamblers who
take to gambling as a means of livelihood are greatly
detested here, and in the 5th Tribunal with
Sen Luo Wang as Head, heavy gamblers are punished with
100 strokes on the buttocks, and then only will their
sins be further investigated, the reason being that
heavy gamblers sat at the gambling sessions daily until
their buttocks became hardened through lack of exercise.
Firstly I now feel very shameful and secondly, my back
side is very painful. Aya, aya! I am feeling very sore
at my back side and so I beg JiGong to kindly help me
out of my present suffering.
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- JiGong:
Those who indulge in heavy gambling have hands which
“have no gratitude”;
now, since your hands “have no
gratitude” with what hands do you want to plead
with me? It is better for you to meekly endure your
present punishment and stop pleading with me to help you
out.
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- Officer: You
had better forget about pleading for mercy; it is
better, in the first place, to correct or cure your
gambler’s heart, then only will you be sent to the
“Branding Iron
Prison” to burn your
sinful gambling hands. When you were alive, who told you
to gamble so heavily that after death your soul will
have to meet with so much suffering? You asked for it
yourself, no one asked you to gamble so heavily,
therefore you must face the consequences of your own
actions. Second soul, come out and relate the events of
your dirty life on Earth; do not miss or hide any
important detail.
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- 2nd Soul:
There are so many people here; I am ashamed to speak
out…By nature I was very unprincipled and even after my
marriage, there was no improvement because I continued
to have affairs and association with the opposite sex.
In my life-time I associated with no less than 5 male
friends and enjoyed their company very much, all without
the knowledge of my husband. When I was 54 years old, I
had a heart attack, resulting in my death. My soul was
brought by the Black and White General to face the Magic
Mirror which showed the very disgraceful episodes of my
sinful life on Earth. I had no alternative but to admit
everything and so I was sentenced to the Gouging Heart
Prison for a term of 20 years, where I have to suffer
daily by my heart being gouged out. I beg JiGong to
intercede on my behalf so that I need not have to suffer
so much.
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- JiGong: You
being a woman, did not honor, safe-guard or respect your
womanly virtues, by stooping so low as to become loose
in morality and craved only for your own vanity; how can
I ever intercede on your behalf? You never performed any
good deeds; how can I help you?
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- Officer:
JiGong, don’t let her bother you. When she was alive,
she wanted enjoyment, pleasure and fun. Therefore, now
she has to have her heart gouged out. She asked for it
and so has to receive the penalty for her own sins. If
you want the Saints to help you, you should have
“dropped your butcher’s knife”
when you were still living. If you had done so, your
pleading to the Saints will surely be answered.
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- JiGong:
Officer, what you had just said is very correct. Those
who gamble heavily and those who have lewd hearts should
quickly change their bad practices and forthwith lead a
new life and quickly perform benevolent deeds and moral
practices. If these gamblers and
“loose” women can go to
temples and promise in front of the Deities that they
will print and distribute the Book
“Diyu Youji” to advise
human beings to do good deeds, then only will the
Deities intercede on their behalf to lighten their sins.
Time is running short; so Yang Sheng, prepare to return.
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- Yang Sheng:
Yes, Sir. Thank you, Officer and Generals, for your kind
assistance. We have to return.
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- Officer:
Generals, line up and say goodbye to JiGong and Yang
Sheng.
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- JiGong: Yang
Sheng, quickly step on the lotus flower platform to
return.
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- Yang Sheng:
I’m safely seated, dear Master; we can start now….
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- JiGong: We
have arrived at Sheng Xian Tang. Yang Sheng, get down.
Soul, return to your body.
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- End of Journey No
35
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