Third category: It refers to those who recklessly engage in sexual misconduct before and after marriage, consumed by overwhelming lust and living a dissipated life of indulgence. They will inevitably suffer diminished blessings and shortened lifespans in this lifetime. After death, they are sent to hells including the Hell of Embracing Copper Pillars, the Hell of Iron Bed and the Hell of Swallowing Copper Balls, enduring no less than ten thousand years of torment in each hell. The exact suffering is determined according to individual circumstances. Once their hellish punishment concludes, they are reborn into the animal path. Some return as mandarin ducks, others as dogs, snakes and other creatures.
At present, the largest group undergoing retribution in the hells belongs to this third category, and the hells have expanded vastly compared with before. Many people committing sexual misconduct in the mortal world fall into this group and will come to the hells for retribution in the future.
The Magistrate continued: “Husbands and wives must strictly refrain from intercourse during the wife’s menstrual period. Intercourse is also forbidden during pregnancy and lactation; otherwise their blessings will be depleted. Moreover, intercourse during menstruation attracts all kinds of ghosts that devour blood and vital essence, feeding on the couple involved. Every act of illicit sexual union draws essence-devouring ghosts that drain one’s qi, leading to bodily illness and persistent misfortune.”
The Magistrate also revealed that women who wear overly revealing clothing in summer lose blessings for one week, for such attire arouses lustful thoughts in the opposite sex. Hearing the Magistrate’s words, I realized how critical the arising of every single thought and every idea is. It turned out that ghosts and spirits in the unseen realm watch, supervise and record every one of our deeds.
I was deeply grateful to the Magistrate for this vital information and the heavenly secrets disclosed. I took my leave of the Magistrate there. May all sentient beings cultivate pure brahmacarya and escape the sufferings of the hells.
5 / Terrible Retribution in the Great Hell for Masturbation: The Magistrate Fully Reveals Heavenly Secrets!
Buddhas and Bodhisattvas deliver all sentient beings without cease, just as the ocean cannot exist apart from its waves; thought after thought continues unbroken, and wave follows wave without interruption. May all sentient beings under heaven reflect deeply upon this, abide by their duties, observe the Five Precepts to preserve their human rebirth, and maintain purity and self-respect. I also aspire to learn the boundless compassion of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, to toil without rest and to serve countless sentient beings. Yesterday, by the power of the Buddha, I journeyed down to the hells once more.
Bowing in homage, grateful for the Buddha’s empowerment, as soon as I recited the Buddha’s name, I arrived at the suffering hell. Without the Buddha’s protection and encircling radiance, I would be utterly exhausted. The negative magnetic field of the hells surges forth ceaselessly like overwhelming tidal waves. If, in the human world shrouded in gloom, rain fell continuously for seven days, and one caught a cold, many would already cry out how bitter life is. Imagine enduring constant drizzle, illness, dizziness and weariness yet still having to work. In truth, the sufferings of hell are at least hundreds and thousands of times more severe than any mortal agony, and torment in the hells never pauses. Even now, screams and agonized moans drift from the hells. Let us follow the sounds and behold what unfolds!
Wow! Many male souls stand naked, entwined by soft‑looking two‑headed serpents emitting fiery‑red flames. To these male souls, the serpents appear as beautiful women caressing them. Yet the instant the two‑headed serpents touch their genitals, they bite them clean off. The male souls howl in excruciating pain and fall unconscious. The two‑headed serpents exhale a breath, and the souls instantly revive; their mangled genitals are suddenly restored intact. Then the serpents flare their fiery‑red radiance once again, repeating this cycle of torment. I could bear to watch no longer, my heart heavy with sorrow.
Countless male souls endure this horrifying torment here. I approached the nether magistrate and asked what karmic offence brought such retribution upon them. The Magistrate explained: “This is one of the hellish karmic fruits for those who indulged in masturbation during mortal life — the retribution of the Two-Headed Fire Serpents.” They must endure this torment for ten thousand years measured by hell time. This is merely one of the evil retributions for ordinary practitioners of masturbation.