 |
| the preta realm from the Wheel of Life |
updated and revised on 24th August 2020
The realms of the pretas are to be found in
two places: one is bellow Jambudvipa (our realm of human beings[1]),
which is their main place of existence and is ruled by King Yama, and the other
is between the realm of humans and the realms of the gods. Master Vasubandhu
explains:
“The
king of the pretas is called Yama; his residence, which is the principal dwelling
of the pretas, is located under Jambudvipa. The pretas that are found elsewhere
are the surplus of the pretas. The pretas differ much one from
another; certain of them possess supernatural powers and enjoy a glory
similar to that of the gods”.[2]
Beside those with supernatural powers and a
better situation or the various differences between them, there are some
general characteristics which often appear in the description of pretas. They
are ugly, naked or dressed in rags or covered by their own hair which sometimes
is just hair or hair in the form of needles, swords or spears[3].
Preta spirits have a foul smell, are weakened by hunger, dried by thirst, with
visible ribs and veins, always unhappy and living on the offerings done by
others.
Although pretas (hungry ghosts) differ very
much from one another I try to classify them in two general categories and a
few subcategories, following the example of Masters from the past[4],
and adding a special category at the end, that of pretas who wish to dominate
other beings through religion. I mention that this classification is not fixed,
as there are pretas who are outside of any category or we can classify them
into more categories[5]:
1) pretas who live collectively, and
2) pretas who travel through space.
1) Pretas who live collectively
Among the pretas who live collectively, there
are three types:
a) pretas who suffer from external
obscurations,
b) pretas who suffer from internal
obscurations and
c) pretas who suffer from specific
obscurations.
a) Pretas who suffer from external
obscurations
These are the pretas who suffer from intense
hunger and thirst or from unbearable heat and cold. Thus, whatever food or
water they see in the distance, it proves to be nothing but a mirage, because
when they come closer, they realize it vanished, dried up or that it is guarded
by armed demons who beat them and chase them away.
As Master Genshin described:
“At
times they succeed in finding a stream of pure water but when they rush to it
and try to scoop up the water in their hands, demons of great strength come
along and beat them with iron clubs, or the water suddenly turns into flames
and burns them or it ceases to flow and is dried up”. […]
There
are hungry spirits called Eating-Water whose bodies are parched with thirst.
They rush about in search for water but cannot find even a drop. Their long
hair covers their faces so that they cannot see. They run along the river banks
and if there are people crossing they lap up the water which may be left in
their foot prints, and thus moistening their parched throats they manage to
exist. Or when people make an offering of water to the spirits of their
departed parents they give a little to these spirits and so they prolong their
lives. If the spirits try to take some of this water themselves then the
various demons whose function it is to guard the water beat them with sticks.
Those who in this life mixed water with the sake they sold, or those who put in
earth worms and leeches and so did not fulfill the good Law (Dharma), receive
this reward”.
Also, as Genshin said, "there are still other hungry spirit
called Fear-Hope who live on the offerings which people make to their
departed parents. Beside this they have nothing on which to live. Those who in
this life rob the poor of even the little they have acquired through great
efforts, receive this reward. Then, again, there are hungry spirits who are
born on the seashore where there is neither cool shade nor river water and
where it is so hot that even their winter days are more than a thousand times
hotter than summer days on earth. They subsist on obtaining only the morning
dew. Though they live on the sea shore, the sea looks to their eyes like a dry
place. Those who in this life have taken advantage of merchants who have been
overtaken with illness on their journey and have beaten down their prices and
so robbed them receive this reward”.
In Words
of My Perfect Teacher, Patrul Rinpoche told us the following story related
with these types of pretas:
„Once,
when Srona[6]
was in the land of the pretas, he found their avarice so poisonous that it gave
him a fever and his mouth became completely dry. He came across an iron castle
at whose door stood a terrifying sombre
figure
with red eyes.
‚Where
is there some water?’ Srona asked.
At
these words, a crowd of pretas, all looking like lumps of burnt wood, came
milling around him, begging,
‚Great perfect being, give us water!’
‚I
have found none myself,’ answered he. ‚It is for you to give me some.’
‚What
do you mean?’ replied the pretas. ‚We were born in this land twelve years ago
and until today we have never even heard as much as a mention of water.’"[7]
b) Pretas who suffer from internal
obscurations
This kind of pretas have very small mouths,
some no bigger than the eye of a needle, and a large sized stomach of hundreds
of meters or even more. When they try to drink water, the heat of their breath
evaporates it as soon as it goes down their throats. In the same way, no matter
how much they eat, they cannot be satisfied due to the contradiction between
their mouths and stomachs, but even if they somehow manage to eat a little, it
will burst into flames during the night and burn their inside organs. Also
movement is extremely hard and painful to them because of their grass-like
limbs.
Bodhisattva Nagarjuna said in his Letter to a Friend[8]:
"Some,
with bellies as huge in size as a mountain,
Connected
to mouths, the mere eye of a needle,
Are
tortured by hunger, not having the capacity
To eat
even the tiniest lump of filth thrown away.
Some,
with bodies just skin and bones, and naked,
Are like
the withered trunk-tops of palmyra palm trees;
While
some blaze flames from their mouths in the sphere of the night,
Having
to eat blazing sand as their food, poured into their mouths."
Master Genshin also described such type of
pretas who suffer from internal obscurations:
“Then
there are hungry spirits called Eating-and-Vomiting whose bodies are very broad
and a half yodjana in height. Their stomach and chest feel heavy, and so
they continually try to vomit, but as they cannot succeed in this they suffer
in various ways. Those husbands who in this life ate the good food themselves
and gave nothing to their wives and children, and such wives as ate all the
good food themselves and gave nothing to their husbands, receive this reward.
Then,
again, there are hungry spirits called Eating-Odour who have to live on the
smell of the food which sick people offer along the rivers or in forests. Those
who in this life allowed wife and children only to smell the good food which
they themselves ate, receive this reward”.
c) Pretas who suffer from specific
obscurations
The experiences of this kind of pretas vary
from one another, according to the specific causes that brought them into that
state. For example, some have many creatures living on their bodies and
devouring them, or may have their own food transformed into various uneatable
and foul matters, while some other cut their own flesh and eat it.
As Master Genshin said, quoting
Nagarjuna’s Prajnaparamita-sastra:
“Then
there are hungry spirits who have nothing at all to eat, and so they break open
their own skulls and eat their brains. Again, there are hungry spirits who emit
flames from their mouths and live upon the moths which happen to fly into these
flames. There are hungry spirits who feed on pus, phlegm and the remains of the
washings of human dung.”
Or as he described in his Ojoyoshu:
“ There
are other hungry spirits who for lack of food go to cemeteries and eat the
cremated bodies, but this does not stay their hunger. Those who in this life
were prison wardens and who ate the food intended for the prisoners receive
this reward.”
A specific obscuration is that which manifests
upon the false teachers of the Dharma:
“There
are hungry spirits called Eating-Law (Dharma) who run about on steep places
where it is difficult to walk, seeking food but finding none. If they enter a
temple and hear an exposition of the Law (Dharma) they obtain strength and
manage to live. Those who in this life sought to obtain fame by a false
interpretation of the Law receive this reward”.
In the following pages
I will present some true stories about this type of pretas.
Once, Srona Kotikarna met a fat and ugly man
near a banyan tree who ate his own flesh. After he found out that he was a
preta, he asked him about the cause of his suffering. The preta said he was a
merchant in Barukaccha city where he used to cheat others and took their
properties and when he was advised by some religious teachers to give up harming
others in this way he told them to go and eat their own flesh.
Later he saw two preta kids with black blood
coming out of their mouths . They told him that their family was dealing with
perfumes. Their mother went to offer food to a Master and they started to say
to her: „you give all our fortune to these sramanas! May the food they bring to
their mouths be transformed into black blood!”. Because of this deed they were
reborn after death in one of the hells and when they emerged from there, their residual
karma brought them in the state of pretas[9].
In the Petavatthu[10]
we are told that once there was a man who had a barren wife. Wishing very much
to have sons, he took a second wife[11]
which immediately became pregnant. The first wife was jealous and gave her a
plant which provoked her an abortion in the second month of pregnancy.
Suspected by the man, the first wife swore, „if I am guilty of this deed may I
one day eat the flesh of my own children”. Because of this she was reborn as a
preta with an ugly body smelling of rottenness. Every morning she gave birth to
five boys and in the evening to another five, but as she was tormented by
hunger she was forced to eat them[12].
Despite this, her hunger was never satisfied and everything started again the
next day.[13]
A man in Savatthi had two wives, Matta – evil,
unfaithful and barren, and Tissa – faithful, calm and who knew to be pleasant
to her husband. When Tissa gave birth to a boy, Matta became even more hostile
to her and started to cause her many problems. After death she was reborn a
preta and appeared before Tissa. Here is the dialogue between the two according
to Petavatthu:
“’You
are naked, ugly, covered in veins, emaciated with your ribs standing out.
Who
are you, standing there?’
‚I am
Mattā, you are Tissā. We were co-wives. On account of my evil kamma, I have
gone to the world of the petas (petaloka). I was violent, abusive, jealous and
miserly. Because I spoke harshly to you, I have gone to the world of the
petas.’
‚This
I know. But I would ask you something else, why are you covered in dirt?’
‚Seeing
you once, freshly bathed and adorned, seated in pleasant conversation with our
husband, I grew angry and jealous. Taking a handful of dirt, I threw it over
your head. As a result of that deed, I am covered in dirt.’
‚Why
are you covered with itchy scabs?’
‚Once
we were gathering herbs in the forest. You took medicinal plants, I took the kapikacchu
plant[14].
Without your knowing it, I sprinkled some into your bed. As a
result
of that deed, I am covered in itchy scabs.’
‚ Why
are you naked?’
‚There
was a social gathering of friends and family. Our husband invited you, but not
me. So, without your knowledge I hid your clothes. As a result of that deed, I
am
naked’.”[15]
Once, Master Maudgalyayana saw a preta
burried up to his neck in a cesspit. He told him that in his previous life he
supported an evil and greedy monk who was jealous on his brothers:
“’I
was a householder who supported a bhikkhu (monk) of bad character. This bhikkhu
was greedy and selfish; he was attached to my household and jealous of other
bhikkhus. Listening to his words, I too began to abuse the good bhikkhus. As a
result of that, I am a preta in a cesspit.’”[16]
Maudgalyayana asked him what happened with
the evil monk and he received the following answer:
“’I
am standing on his head. My food is what others defecate; the bhikkhu lives
upon what I expel.’”[17]
In the same category of filth we hear about
another preta who was in his previous life a man who cheated his wife and was
now reborn with his head in a hole filled with shit[18]. Another throwed shit into the monks food and
was now reborn as a preta drowned in shit and who was forced to eat from it
with his both hands.[19]
Sometimes we read about pretas who live
together with more spiritually evolved beings due to the bonds of attachments
between them.
For example, Nawa Chewari was once traveling
in the land of the pretas and he came to a beautiful palace where lived a
beautiful and powerful lady:
„When
Nawa Chewari requested some drink and food from her, she took him inside and
gave him enough to eat and drink. She sat on a precious jewel throne, but there
were four men, each one tied with rope to one of the four sides of the throne.
She warned him, ‚I need to go out for a while. If they ask you to give them
something, don't do it. Don't give them anything.’
Of course, as soon as she left, the four men
stretched out their hands and begged for food, drink, anything at
all
to eat. Nawa Chewari felt such great compassion that he gave them each a little
bit of food. As soon as they ate the food, it transformed – one into burning
metal, one to dust, one to stone, and the last to hot ashes. When it reached their
mouths and stomachs, they experienced inconceivable suffering.
As
soon as she returned, she saw their suffering and said, ‚Don't think that I
don't have enough compassion to feed these beings. It is because they suffer so
that I don't give them my food and drink.’
Nawa
Chewari asked the woman what kind of negative deeds had brought on this kind of
suffering. She explained, ‚In our former life, we were a five-person family, I,
my husband, and three sons. One day the father and sons went for a walk while I
prepared a delicious meal for them and waited. Before they came back, a venerable
Arya came asking for lunch. Since I had cooked that food already, I offered it
to him. Soon after he left, I started preparing another lunch for my husband
and
sons. They arrived while the food was still cooking. They were very hungry and
demanded their meal. I explained the reason for the delay and they became upset
and angry with that monk. One said, 'Instead of eating our delicious meal, that
monk should have eaten burning iron metal.' One said, 'He should have eaten
dust.' One
said,
'He should have eaten stones,' and the last one said, 'He should have eaten hot
burning ashes.'
When
they said these things, in my mind I knew that by saying such harsh words about
an offering to a noble monk instead of rejoicing in the virtuous deed, they
would experience inconceivable suffering. I thought, 'When they are
experiencing their suffering, may I see
it
directly with my own eyes.' So by the power of that aspiration, I see them in
this state. If I had not made that aspiration, I would have been born in the
God Realm of the Thirty-three. This is how we were born here as hungry ghosts.’"[20]
Also, in Petavatthu
we are told the story of a weaver who was
devout Buddhist and of his wife who had no faith and was always
unsatisfied and filled with wrong views:
„Once,
when her husband was preparing an offering of food and cloth for the bhikkhus
(monks), she cursed him, saying: ‚Whatever food or drink you give to those
samaṇas, followers of the Buddha, in the next world may it become dung, pus and
blood. And whatever clothes you give them, may they become red-hot iron
plates!’
When
his time came, and the weaver died, he was reborn as a tree-deva of great power
and splendour in the Viñjha Forest. His stingy wife became a petī (preta woman)
living not far from his abode. She was naked, ugly and overcome with hunger and
thirst. She approached the tree-deva and begged him, ‚My lord, I have no
clothes and I wander about extremely hungry and thirsty. Please give me clothes
and food.’ The deva offered her some sublime deva food, but as soon as she
grasped it, it became dung and pus and blood. He gave her a cloak, but as soon
as she put it on, it became a blazing sheet of iron. So with great suffering,
and crying aloud, she wandered away.
A
little later, a bhikkhu who had gotten separated from his travelling companions
chanced upon the dwelling of the tree-deva. Seeing him, the deva assumed a human
form, welcomed him and invited him into his abode. The deva offered the bhikkhu
some ointment for his feet, paid his respects and took a seat. As it happened,
just then the petī (female preta) returned and again begged for clothing and
food. When she was given these things, it happened just as before. The deva
asked the bhikkhu if there were any way to free her from the peta realm.
‚There
is. If one makes a gift to the Buddha, the Noble Saṅgha or even to one bhikkhu,
and dedicates it to her, and if she rejoices in it (anumodati) then she will be
freed
from her suffering.’
Upon
hearing this, the deva offered food and drink to the bhikkhu and dedicated it to
the petī. Instantly, she had a sufficiency of deva-food and became plump and satisfied.
The deva then offered to the bhikkhu a set of deva-clothes
for
the Buddha, again dedicating the gift to the petī. She was at once attired in
deva-clothes, richly decorated and adorned like an accharā (celestial nymph).”[21]
Here is another story of this kind:
„Once,
in Baranasi there dwelt a brahmin family, man and wife together with two sons
and a daughter. The children all became devout followers of the Buddha but
the
parents had no faith, and made no merit. It came to pass that in a terrible
storm their old house collapsed and all five were killed. The mother and father
became
pretas,
and the children bhumma devas[22].
These were seen by the Arahant bhikkhu Saṃkicca and one of his disciples. The
five were travelling together to attend an assembly of the yakkhas (yakkhasamāgama).
The elder son led the procession, riding on a white elephant. The
younger
son travelled in a chariot drawn by four mules, and the daughter was borne in a
litter. Her radiance illuminated the ten directions. Following in the back went
the two pretas on foot. They were black in colour, with
coarse
tangled hair. They carried heavy iron mallets and cursed each other with harsh
words. Their skin was horribly wrinkled and they dripped pus and blood.
They
were very frightful in appearance. They would strike one another with their mallets
and drink the blood and pus from the wounds, but this did not satisfy them and
they were always hungry.”[23]
As we can see from the above, those who
live together with virtuous people do not always copy their example. Also, it
is very rare that two or more relatives know about each other, especially if
they have a different karma. Most of the time they do not remember their past
lives or some do remember while the others don’t.
Sometimes
we read about pretas with a dual situation, that is, half of their time they
enjoy extraordinary pleasures and in the other half they suffer as pretas. Here
is a story:
„In
the days of the Buddha Kassapa there were five hundred married couples, devout
lay followers, who joined together to do good works. The men built bridges,
parks and so forth. They also built a vihāra (monastery). The women would
travel as a group to make offerings there. On one such journey, while staying
at a public hostel on the way home, one of the women was seduced by a rogue and
spent the night with him.
Her
husband heard rumours of her misdeed and confronted her. She denied it, and
pointing to a dog said, ‚If I have done such a wicked deed, when I am reborn
may I be eaten by a crop-eared dog such as this!’ The other women also lied to
protect her, ‚If we know anything about this may we become her slaves in the
next life.’ The adulteress was consumed by remorse for her deed and soon wasted
away and died. She was reborn as a vimana peti[24] in
a vimāna[25]
by Lake Kaṇṇamuṇḍa in the Himavā. As the other women died, one by one, they
reappeared there also, as her slaves and experienced the suffering of slaves.”[26]
Her situation is described as follows by a
prince who found her and became her lover:
„Here
are stairways of gold upon golden sands
Everywhere
sweet delightful scents.
Sweetly
blow the winds, resounding with the cries of heron and geese.
This
is not a human city,
Your
many palaces of gold and silver
Gleam
brightly in the four directions.
You
have five hundred slave girls,
Richly
adorned with sea-shell bracelets,
You
have golden couches with deer-skin coverlets.
When
you lie down on them, you enjoy great sensual
happiness.
Until
midnight comes, then you rise and go outside.
There
you go to the pleasure grove adorned with lotus-ponds.
There
you stand on the fresh grass, beautiful one!
There
a crop-eared dog devours you, limb by limb.
When
you are all eaten, made into a skeleton,
Then
you fall into the pond, and your body is made whole
again.
Then
with all your major and minor limbs, charming and dear to my sight,
You
put on your garments and return to my presence.”[27]
Another woman who lived during the time of
Buddha Kasyapa earned her income from prostitution and was well known for her
long and beautiful hair:
„It
came to pass that some rivals of hers put a drug in her bathing powder which
caused all her hair to fall out. Ashamed of her appearance, she left the city
and eked out a living making and selling liquor. Once, she stole the
garments
of some men who were lying drunk and unconscious. At another time, she gave
some sweet-cakes to a bhikkhu (Buddhist monk) and stood holding a parasol over
him as he ate. At that time, she made the aspiration, ‚May my hair be long, delicate,
glossy, soft and with curling tips!’
When
her time came she died and because of her mixed karma she was reborn all alone
in a golden vimāna in the middle of the ocean. Her hair was long and beautiful,
just as she had wished, but because she had stolen the
men’s’
clothes she was naked. For the entire time between two Buddhas, she was reborn
again and again into the same golden vimāna, and she was always naked.”[28]
2. Pretas who travel through space
This category includes various types of
pretas which are generaly tormented by constant fear and hallucination.[29]
Generaly speaking, they want to offload their
pain on others, so wherever they go they do harm to others, thus many of them
fall into hells when their life as a preta comes to an end. Even when they
visit their dear ones from previous life, they bring only sickness, insanity
and various other sufferings, which causes magicians and exorcists to harm and
destroy them.
They also suffer from the distorted
perceptions of other kind of pretas, like perceiving the sun of winter to be
too cold, or the moon too hot in summer night. Their bodily form may be of
various hideous animals, like ugly dogs, birds and others.
In Samyutta
Nikaya we are told about a preta who was a corrupt monk in his previous
life and who was now flying through air in the form of a monk with his robes
and bowl in fire. In the same text we find examples of corrupt nuns and
novices, men and women, all with their robes and bowls in fire.[30]
Maudgalyayana told the story of a scheleton preta
flying in the air followed by various birds of prey who kicked him with their
beaks, causing him great suffering. Buddha explained that preta was a cow
butcher in his previous life and after he spent a time into one of the hells
his residual karma made him reborn in this form.
Other examples of flying pretas are also given
in the Samyutta Nikaya: a pile of
meat flying in the sky, human figures without skin (men and women), a body
without head, a hideous woman with a very bad smell, all of them hunted by
birds of prey, crows or vultures. The majority of these pretas were butchers
and the body without head was an executioner. The woman without skin was
unfaithful to her husband and the hideous and smelly one used to be a fortune
teller and allowed herself to be possesed by yaksa.[31]
*
As we have seen,
the causes of being born among pretas are various kinds of actions motivated by
greed, avarice, jealousy, etc.
Master Genshin said:
"The
Shobonenjogyo[32] says
that those who are cruel, covetous, jealous and envious fall into this realm of
hungry ghosts (Spirits). By the cruel and the covetous are meant those who
think only of their own things, who do not love others or give alms, and those
who are never satisfied no matter how much they rob others”.
In chapter four of his Kyogyoshinsho, Master Shinran
quotes Master Che-kwan of Koryo[33]:
“Hungry
ghosts are called pretas in Sanskrit. Their places of habitation are found in
various realms. Hungry ghosts with much merit become spirits of mountains and
forests or of graveyards. Those without merit dwell in filthy places, receive
no food or drink, and are constantly whipped[34].
Forced to dam up rivers and oceans, they suffer immeasurable pain. Those who
harbor flattery and deception in their hearts and have committed the five grave
offenses and the ten evil acts that belong to the lowest degree of karmic evil[35]
receive the recompense of this state of existence”.[36]
Some pretas remember their previous lives and
the karmic causes that lead to their present state, but not all, as we can see
in the following story:
„Maudgalyayana
came upon a preta while passing through a sugar-cane field. The preta was
tormented by hunger and thirst but unable to partake of the abundant sugarcane.
‚I am
destroyed, I am devoured. I try and try to take some
food.
I weep, but a poor fragment of myself Of what kamma is this the result?’
Maudgalyayana
explained that in his human life he had been walking along eating sugar-cane
when a poor man came up behind him and begged for some. At first he
ignored
the man’s pleas. After some time, without turning around, he contemptuously
held a piece of sugar-cane out behind his back for the beggar to take. Maudgalyayana
told him that now he could only take sugar-cane from behind his back. The preta
did so and found he could now eat to his heart’s content.”[37]
The lifespan of a
preta is described the same by
Bodhisattba Vasubandhu[38]
and Master Genshin:
“One day
in this realm is as long as one month of human life and existence here lasts
for 500 [preta] years".
Other texts, including Nagarjuna's Letter to a Friend, say that the life of
pretas can be even longer, like five thousand or ten thousand preta years. In
the stories presented above we see that sometimes their lifespan can be even
longer.
A special category of hungry spirits
-
Powerful pretas who wish to dominate other beings through religion -
At
the end of this presentation on pretas, I would like to add another special
category of hungry ghosts - the powerful
pretas who wish to dominate other beings through religion.
As I explained above, there are various types
of pretas, and not all of them are weak or tortured by mere hunger or thirst.
Some pretas have great powers due to previous good karma and merits, as
Vasubandhu said: "the pretas differ
much one from another; certain of
them possess supernatural powers and enjoy a glory similar to that of the gods”[39],
but also great arrogance and pride.
Among the pretas, the category
called gyalpos in Tibetan are the most powerful. "Gyalpo"
means "king" or "royal" and it indicates the various
leaders of the preta plane of existence, so they are from the same category
Vasubandhu reffered to in the above passage. It is said that in their past
lives they were great practitioners who accumulated merit, but were not able to
overcome pride and arrogance, or they died with thoughts of hate, vengeance,
etc.
Generally speaking, all the pretas have the
tendency to influence others. They are all eager for attention, offerings, etc,
but the gyalpos have the best power to put this wish into action. They can be
masters of deceit[40],
disguise in various ways, even take the appearance of great teachers of the
past or Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, and they like to impart various so called
"teachings". There are some stories of advanced Buddhist
practitioners who were tricked by gyalpos. This category of pretas can also
perform miracles and offer visions to make people entrust and obey to them.
Into my opinion, the abrahamic/monotheist
religions (Judaism, Christianity, Islam) were caused by such powerful pretas
with imperialist tendencies. All of these religions were founded arround
visions, miracles and a central authoritarian "divine" figure who
pretends total subsmission from his believers. The jealousy of the
"god" of Old Testament is clearly expressed in the first of the ten
comandments and in other passages of the same text. This is also accepted in
Christianity:
“I am
the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house
of bondage. You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for
yourself a carved image – any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or
that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you
shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For
I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the
fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate
me, but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love me and keep my
commandments.”[41]
Also in the Quran there are many passages like
that, but I quote here only a few:
„Follow,
[O Muhammad], what has been revealed to you from your Lord - there is no deity
except him - and turn away from those who associate others with Allah”.[42] (Qur’an 6:106)
„And
whoever has not believed in Allah and his Messenger - then indeed, We have
prepared for the disbelievers a Blaze.[43]
And to
Allah belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth. He forgives whom he
wills and punishes whom he wills[44].”[45](Qur’an
48:13-14)
„Indeed,
the worst of living creatures in the
sight of Allah are those who have disbelieved, and they will not [ever]
believe.”[46] (Qur’an 8:55)
„Muhammad
is the Messenger of Allah ; and those with him are forceful (ruthless) against the disbelievers, merciful among
themselves.”[47]
(Qur'an 48:29)
„I will
cast terror into the hearts of those who disbelieved, so strike [them] upon the necks and strike from them every
fingertip."[48] (Qur’an 8:12)
„Fight
those who do not believe in Allah or in the Last Day and who do not
consider unlawful what Allah and His Messenger have made unlawful and who do
not adopt the religion of truth from those who were given the Scripture -
[fight] until they give the jizyah willingly while they are humbled.”[49] (Qur’an 9:29)
As we can see here, such a "god" is clearly NOT an Enlightened being, but a
person dominated by jealousy, frustration and anger, who shares his so
called "love" only with those who love him or follow his
instructions, and punishes the lack of obedience of fathers to the third and
fourth generations. Also, in the case of the Quran, he encourages his
worshippers to be ruthless with non-believers, whom he himself regards as
"the worst of living creatures" and does his best to terrorize them!
Surely a being like that will sink even more in the lower realms, even in the
hells, after his life as a gyalpo or powerful preta is over.
We can see clearly the difference between such
angry spirits dominated by the need for attention and a Buddha who has
undiscriminative Compassion for all beings, no matter they accept His teachings
or not! A Buddha does not need the attention and worship of others[50],
He is not affected if beings love Him or despise Him. Praise or critic do not
influence Him. All He does for unenlightened beings arises from His pure Wisdom
and Compassion:
"The
Buddhas of the ten quarters think compassionately on sentient beings just as a
mother thinks of her child."[51]
Also, how do all Buddhas try to convince us to
entrust to Amida Buddha? Clearly, not by force, nor terror, and not by
threatening to destroy us and our children to the third and fourth generations:
"Shakyamuni
and all the other Buddhas
Are truly our compassionate father and mother.
With various compassionate means they lead us to awaken
Supreme shinjin (faith in Amida Buddha) that is true and real."[52]
Are truly our compassionate father and mother.
With various compassionate means they lead us to awaken
Supreme shinjin (faith in Amida Buddha) that is true and real."[52]
Surely, no good can come from entrusting to
some worldly jealous and vengeful spirits, no matter if the teachings
associated with them do contain some good elements, too[53].
Powerful pretas (and their followers) can have their own spiritual evolution,
some may be better than others, but certainly, not one of them is enlightened
and none escaped from the slavery of the three poisons: ignorance,
greed/attachement and aversion. Contrary to this, taking refuge in a Buddha
will lead us, sooner or later, to Enlightenment. Thus, one must be extremely
careful to whom he is entrusting oneself to, as the effect is simmilar to the
cause. If we take refuge in samsaric spirits, no matter how powerful they are,
we will never escape samsara; if we take refuge in the Buddhas, and especially
in Amida Buddha, we will ourselves attain Buddhahood.
The
monotheistic religions believe in the existence of a creator god. However, this
runs contrary to the teaching of the Buddha, according to which unenlightened
beings are the karmic cause for the existence of unenlightened samsaric
realms. Their individual and collective karma actually manifested the realms,
worlds and universes in which they live[54].
Contrary to this, Enlightened beings or Buddhas, naturaly and karmically
manifest Pure Lands or Enlightened realms. If a so called "supreme
being" created a world like ours that means he is not enlightened, because
if he was enlightened this world would have been perfect and inhabitted by
perfectly enlightened beings. Amida Buddha (and any Buddha!) does not
pretend to be the creator of this samsaric world, but only of His enlightened
Pure Land, where He vowed to bring all samsaric beings for their final
liberation (attainment of Buddhahood/Nirvana).
Any person who pretends to be the creator and
owner of this world or any samsaric world is afflicted with arrogance and is
hungry for power - a feature which is often found in some gods and especially
in some powerful pretas (hungry spirits) who have connection with the human realms.
The attitude of such spirits or gods is an imperialist one, that is, to receive
the praise and submission of as many beings as possible. I often give the
example of Baka Brahma, the god who was mislead by Mara into believing that he
was "the Omniscient, the
Omnipotent, the Lord God, the Maker, the Creator, the Chief, the Ordainer, the
Almighty, the Father of all that are and that will be" and was
corrected by Shakyamuni Buddha[55].
However, those who have such an imperialist tendency are not only from the
realms of gods, but from the preta realms, too. My opinion is that most of the
gods who live way beyond our human realm are more busy with enjoying their
beautiful long lives, than dealing with the affairs of the humans. So, I think
that the pretas are more connected with us, and more involved with our plane of
existence, as they can even receive various substances from us in the form of
sacrifices[56]. Knowing
this we must be aware of the category of powerful pretas who want to dominate
others through religion, and do as Shinran advised us:
“Those
who take refuge truly and wholeheartedly, freeing themselves from all
delusional attachments and all concern with the propitious or unpropitious,
must never take refuge in spirits or non-Buddhist teachings.”[57]
[1] The realm of human beings
does not mean only the humans living on this planet. The Buddha Dharma
recognizes the existence of many parallel universes and worlds populated with
humans, Jambudvipa being only one of them. Other three “continents” or human
realms are Purvavideha, Aparagodania and Utarakuru. Each of these four
“continents” has their own smaller “subcontinents” or realms where there are
human beings with features and lifespans different than our own.
[2] AbhidharmakoSabhasyam,
English translation by Leo M. Pruden; Berkeley, Calif, Asian Humanities
Press, 1991; vol 2, p. 460
[3] In Samyutta Nikaya 19, are described one preta with hair like swords
which moved up and down hurting him while he was flying through the air,
another one with hair like spears, or like arrows, and another two with hair
like needles. The majority of these beings had violent professions like hunters
and torturer. The preta with hair like needles who entered through various
parts of his body was a man who slandered the Dharma.
[4] Patrul Rinpoche, The Words of My
Perfect Teacher, Boston: Shambhala, Revised edition, 1998, p.72-76
[5] Jamgon Kongtrul said that according to Saddharmasmrty Uupasthana Sutra, Yama rules over 36 types of
pretas. Unfortunately, he did not go into details and we do not have yet a
complete English translation of this sutra.
Jamgon Kongtrul Lodro Taye, The Treasury of Knowledge – Book One: Myriad
Worlds, Kalu Rinpoche Translation Group, Snow Lion Publications, Ithaka,
New York, 1995, p. 114
[7] Patrul Rinpoche, The Words of My
Perfect Teacher, Boston: Shambhala, Revised edition, 1998, p.72
[8] Letter to a Friend (bShes-pa'i
springs-yig, Skt. Suhrllekha) by Nagarjuna, translated by Alexander
Berzin, 2006, http://www.berzinarchives.com/web/en/archives/sutra/level6_study_major_texts/suhrllekha_letter_friend_nagarjuna/letter_friend.html
[9] Udana Commentary - The Buddhist
Cosmos: A Comprehensive Survey of the Early Buddhist Worldview; according to
Theravada and Sarvastivada sources, by Punnadhammo Mahathero, Independently
Published, Arrow River Forest Hermitaje, 2018, p.181
[10] Petavatthu – Stories about
hungry ghosts, scripture included in the Khuddaka Nikaya from the Pali canon.
[13] Petavatthu - The Buddhist
Cosmos: A Comprehensive Survey of the Early Buddhist Worldview; according to
Theravada and Sarvastivada sources, by Punnadhammo Mahathero, Independently
Published, Arrow River Forest Hermitaje, 2018, p.181-182
[15] Petavatthu - The Buddhist
Cosmos: A Comprehensive Survey of the Early Buddhist Worldview; according to
Theravada and Sarvastivada sources, by Punnadhammo Mahathero, Independently
Published, Arrow River Forest Hermitaje, 2018, p.182
[16] Petavatthu - The Buddhist
Cosmos: A Comprehensive Survey of the Early Buddhist Worldview; according to
Theravada and Sarvastivada sources, by Punnadhammo Mahathero, Independently
Published, Arrow River Forest Hermitaje, 2018, p.182
[17] Petavatthu - The Buddhist
Cosmos: A Comprehensive Survey of the Early Buddhist Worldview; according to
Theravada and Sarvastivada sources, by Punnadhammo Mahathero, Independently
Published, Arrow River Forest Hermitaje, 2018, p.182
[19] Samyutta Nikaya 19:12 - The Buddhist Cosmos: A Comprehensive
Survey of the Early Buddhist Worldview; according to Theravada and Sarvastivada
sources, by Punnadhammo Mahathero, Independently Published, Arrow River
Forest Hermitaje, 2018, p.185
[20] The Jewel Ornament of Liberation
– The Wish-fulfiling Gem of the Noble Teachings, Gampopa, translated into English
by Khenpo Konchog Gyaltsen Rinpoche, Snow Lion Publications, Ithaka, New York,
1998, p.364-365
[21] Petavatthu - The Buddhist
Cosmos: A Comprehensive Survey of the Early Buddhist Worldview; according to
Theravada and Sarvastivada sources, by Punnadhammo Mahathero, Independently
Published, Arrow River Forest Hermitaje, 2018, p.189
[23] Petavatthu - The Buddhist
Cosmos: A Comprehensive Survey of the Early Buddhist Worldview; according to
Theravada and Sarvastivada sources, by Punnadhammo Mahathero, Independently
Published, Arrow River Forest Hermitaje, 2018, p.185
[26] Petavatthu - The Buddhist Cosmos:
A Comprehensive Survey of the Early Buddhist Worldview; according to Theravada
and Sarvastivada sources, by Punnadhammo Mahathero, Independently
Published, Arrow River Forest Hermitaje, 2018, p.193-194
[27] Petavatthu - The Buddhist
Cosmos: A Comprehensive Survey of the Early Buddhist Worldview; according to
Theravada and Sarvastivada sources, by Punnadhammo Mahathero, Independently
Published, Arrow River Forest Hermitaje, 2018, p.193-194
[28] Petavatthu - The Buddhist
Cosmos: A Comprehensive Survey of the Early Buddhist Worldview; according to
Theravada and Sarvastivada sources, by Punnadhammo Mahathero, Independently
Published, Arrow River Forest Hermitaje, 2018, p.194
[29] According to Patrul Rinpoche spirits like tsen, shindre, jungpo, mamo,
theurang, whose names do not have an English equivalent, are included in this category. Patrul
Rinpoche, The Words of My Perfect Teacher,
Boston: Shambhala, Revised edition, 1998, p.75
[30] Petavatthu - The Buddhist
Cosmos: A Comprehensive Survey of the Early Buddhist Worldview; according to
Theravada and Sarvastivada sources, by Punnadhammo Mahathero, Independently
Published, Arrow River Forest Hermitaje, 2018, p.185
[31] Petavatthu - The Buddhist
Cosmos: A Comprehensive Survey of the Early Buddhist Worldview; according to Theravada
and Sarvastivada sources, by Punnadhammo Mahathero, Independently
Published, Arrow River Forest Hermitaje, 2018, p.184
[34] They are beaten by
various demons which appear to these pretas as guarding the food and water. See
the first category of pretas – those with external obscurations.
[35] This means that they did
not do such evil acts as to fall into hell. However, sometimes, as we have seen
in the previous stories, rebirth in the preta realm is due to the residual
karma left after the sinner already spent some time in one of the hells. For
example, somebody who killed his mother (one of the five gravest offenses) goes
first to hell and then he is reborn as a preta.
[36] Kyogyoshinsho – On Teaching, Practice, Faith, and Enlightenment,
translated by Hisao Inagaki, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and
Research, Kyoto, 2003, p.334
[37] Petavatthu - The Buddhist
Cosmos: A Comprehensive Survey of the Early Buddhist Worldview; according to
Theravada and Sarvastivada sources, by Punnadhammo Mahathero, Independently
Published, Arrow River Forest Hermitaje, 2018, p.191
[38] Bodhisattva Vasubandhu said: „All the
hungry ghosts live 500 years in their years of months and days.”
The
Jewel Ornament of Liberation – The Wish-fulfiling Gem of the Noble Teachings, Gampopa, translated into English by Khenpo Konchog Gyaltsen Rinpoche,
Snow Lion Publications, Ithaka, New York, 1998, p.102
[39] AbhidharmakoSabhasyam, English translation by Leo M.
Pruden; Berkeley, Calif, Asian Humanities Press, 1991; vol 2, p. 460
[40] However, not all gyalpo spirits manifest a negative and imperialist
attitude. There are also some gyalpo who show interest in the Dharma, but as
they have an inconstant character, and pride and anger are some of their main
features, they can be easily offended and manipulated by the Maras.
[44] This is against the law
of karma as according to Islam everything depends on the arbitrary wish of
their god.
[50] To worship the Buddha is
karmically beneficial for the unenlightened beings, not for a Buddha, as He
does not depend on anything.
[52] Shinran Shonin, Hymn of the
Two Gateways of Entrance and Emergence, The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series,
Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.629
[53] Although the object of
these religions is false and they are filled with wrong views, some of their
moral teachings can be useful to anybody.
[54] See the chapter
"Some Buddhist explanations of the origin and existence of the
universe" from my book, The True Teaching on Amida Buddha and His Pure Land, Dharma Lion
Publications, Craiova
[55] See chapter "There is no supreme god or creator in the Buddha
Dharma" from my book, The True
Teaching on Amida Buddha and His Pure Land, Dharma Lion Publications,
Craiova, 2015, p. 18
[56] Judaism and Islam are
religions who practiced and are still practicing blood sacrifice. Any “halal”
meat that a faithful Muslim should eat must come from animals that were killed
according to a certain ritual in which the name of Allah is invoked. Indeed,
only a preta can be interested in such a bloody ritual while a celestial god
would certainly feel disgusted. I also
mention that many sacrifices are described in the Old Testament which is a book
accepted by Christianity although this “new” religion gave up on such practices
but kept the same god who is also the father of Jesus and who used to accept
animal sacrifices. He is the same god who says he is a jealous god who punishes
the parents’ lack of faith through their children until the third of fourth
generation.
[57] Shinran quoted this passage in his Kyogyoshinsho, chapter VI, from the Sutra of the Ten Wheels of Ksitigarbha. Kyogyoshinsho - The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo
Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.273
[58] Sutra of the Samadhi of All Buddhas' Presence as quoted by Shinran Shonin in his Kyogyoshinsho, chapter VI, Kyogyoshinsho - The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.255
[58] Sutra of the Samadhi of All Buddhas' Presence as quoted by Shinran Shonin in his Kyogyoshinsho, chapter VI, Kyogyoshinsho - The Collected Works of Shinran, Shin Buddhism Translation Series, Jodo Shinshu Hongwanji-ha, Kyoto, 1997, p.255
0 comentarii:
Post a Comment