“This is freshly made, soothing and refreshing soup. Drink it now, then have it again next year.”
What! One serving a year? Even ganoderma lucidum cannot boast such potency. One serving sustains them through an entire year. Truly remarkable nourishment.
Just then, the vendor’s hand brushed against mine. She said: “Your body temperature is quite high. Take care of yourself. Come, have a bowl; it will cool you and bring ease.” I smiled and replied: “Thank you, but I shall pass today.” I had naturally run a low temperature since childhood in the mortal world, yet here in the civilian district, my warmth struck them as unusually high. Along the way, I watched souls shopping freely. This district carried a quiet, muted atmosphere. Yin energy lingered, yet it was vastly milder than the aura permeating the hells.
I wished to ask the Magistrate: “What is the average lifespan of beings dwelling in this civilian district? And do they take in food by sucking it in?”
The Magistrate answered: “Their shortest lifespan spans three hundred years, while the longest reaches one thousand five hundred years. Those who possess good roots and engage in cultivation may pass away sooner, to be reborn among humans or in the heaven realms.
As for food, they do not require three daily meals like human beings. Souls of the Netherworld subsist upon contact food, absorbing the essence of food. One intake suffices to sate them for roughly a year. If their living descendants make offerings once at Qingming in April, this supply can sustain them for a full year. Bear this vital warning: mortals must never offer meat to honor ancestors. Sacrificial meat only heaps further karmic offences upon their forebears dwelling in the ghost path. Descendants ought to make offerings of vegetarian food, fresh flowers and fruits instead. Naturally, the finest form of commemoration is to recite sutras, chant the Buddha’s name, cultivate virtue and perform good deeds, then dedicate the resulting meritorious virtues to ancestors, repaying their parental kindness and helping their ancestors ascend at the earliest opportunity.
We shall conclude our visit for today. Do not forget to inform living people upon your return: cease offering animal flesh to ancestors, for it only brings further suffering upon the departed.”
This journey touring the Netherworld Civilian District broadened my horizons immensely; I learned many truths. I discovered that after people die and become ghosts, there is indeed another realm and world in which their unfinished karmic lives continue.
I expressed gratitude to the Magistrate for his teachings, and went home by white lotus flower.
16 / Creators of Western‑Han Erotic Paintings from More Than 1,900 Years Ago Are Still Imprisoned and Suffering in the Great Hell