“Yes, Magistrate!” I pressed my palms together in gratitude, and then returned by white lotus flower.
20 / Retribution for Abortion and the Infant Souls’ Wailing City of the Wrongfully Dead
Grateful for the Buddha’s supporting empowerment, Ayù departed by white lotus flower.
Amitabha!
“Magistrate! Today Ayù wishes to ask you about the karmic retribution brought by abortion.”
The Magistrate said, “Abortion is an act severely punished by the netherworld authorities. The laws of the netherworld set forth three ways to cultivate hidden virtue. The first is to save human lives; the second is to support widows in preserving their chastity; the third is to perform supreme good deeds without letting others know. Under the law of karma, hidden virtue is potent enough to reshape a person’s destiny. Throughout history, many famous examples show hidden virtue leading people to become high officials and dignitaries in the human world, with distinguished descendants. Someone destined to live in poverty may, through cultivating hidden virtue, become a high-ranking dignitary with prominent descendants in the mortal world. Di Renjie (630–700), Chancellor of the Tang Dynasty, stands as a typical example. When Di Renjie was young and traveling to the capital for imperial examinations, he checked into an inn. Late at night, the inn’s widowed landlady, a beautiful woman, attempted to seduce him. Di Renjie remained vigilant, guided by his unwavering integrity. Not only did he strictly refrain from immoral sexual conduct himself, but he also exhorted the widow to abide by feminine virtues. He patiently taught her the Buddhist practice of Contemplation on the Impurity of the Body, which he used to quell carnal desires. After practicing this contemplation, the widow was filled with remorse and maintained unwavering loyalty and chastity for the rest of her life. Later, precisely because Di Renjie rejected this unsolicited temptation, his fame spread far and wide across the realm. If mortal beings can break free from predestined karmic trials, uphold pure moral precepts, and preserve their noble integrity wholeheartedly, Heaven will never treat them unjustly. The nether laws will record tremendous hidden meritorious virtues on one’s Register of Life and Death, augmenting one’s blessings and wisdom. Abortion essentially snatches the life of a sentient being, violating the precept against killing. An unborn child, inherently pure and kind, is slain. This karmic offense bears equal gravity to killing one’s father or mother, and shedding the blood of a Buddha, while also forging malevolent karmic bonds with the child. As the common saying goes: ‘No kinship forms without past goodwill or grievance.’
“The karmic bond between a child and its parents falls into two categories: the child comes either to repay a debt or to claim repayment for a debt owed. If the child arrives to repay a debt, being killed will plant resentment in its heart, turning the bond into a harmful one. If the child originally comes to collect a debt, matters grow far worse. Malicious ties combined with hatred will only entrench the cycle of karmic indebtedness further.
“There are three circumstances surrounding abortion. First: The parents do not intend to abort, yet the fetus lacks sufficient blessings. Examples include fetal death in the womb, molar pregnancy, or maternal illness and other circumstances that prevent the child from being born. In such cases, the parents must repent sincerely, recite sutras for deliverance, and dedicate the merits so the infant souls may escape suffering and attain well-being at an earlier time.
“Second: Abortion is undertaken due to financial difficulties. This is forbidden by nether law; financial hardship cannot justify taking a life. How one resolves troubles matters greatly. No matter how difficult life in the mortal world may be, it is vastly better than suffering retribution in hell after an abortion — bear this firmly in mind! It is also possible that this infant has come to repay your kindness. If brought to birth, your family’s finances may improve, bringing modest prosperity. Naturally, this depends on each individual case. Those who commit such abortions will have their blessings diminished in this lifetime: physical health, career prospects, wealth and more will all decline. After death, they will suffer retribution for one thousand years in the Sword Forest Hell. If the abortion takes place outside marriage, the offender will first endure five hundred years of punishment in the Rod and Whip Hell. Even after being reborn as a human, residual karmic consequences for the killing remain. For instance, women may suffer gynecological illnesses, and men may develop disorders of the reproductive system.
“Third, this is the most prevalent type among mortals nowadays. Many unmarried men and women resort to abortion once they conceive a child, and this act incurs the gravest karmic retribution. Their blessings will be depleted while they are still alive. Upon the end of their lifespan, they first undergo punishment for eight hundred years in the Rod and Whip Hell, followed by two thousand years of torment in the Sword Forest Hell. Women who undergo abortion bear heavier karmic guilt than men, for it is the woman who makes the final decision to proceed with the abortion. Hence her transgression weighs more. On the contrary, if a man pressures a woman to have an abortion, but the woman ultimately protects the fetus and gives birth to the child, a bad deed will be recorded against the man, while hidden meritorious virtue of good conduct will be credited to the woman. If the man later repents sincerely, takes good care of the child, and earnestly exhorts mortals not to commit abortion, his karmic offense of inciting others to abort may be lifted. Ayù, would you like to go and see it?”