“There are also many cases in which would-be parents encounter spirit-related disturbances because the infant souls become resentful after abortion. The infant souls you saw holding yellow warrant tokens were going out to seek revenge on their would-be parents. These are the so-called spirit-related disturbances. The resulting misfortunes range widely. Milder cases involve possession, prolonged illness and taking medicine; in severe cases, their very lives are placed in jeopardy. Many aborted infant souls are in fact ancestral kin of these parents reincarnated into human life.
“Ayù, go witness the Shattering Hell now. Return and record its horrors in full to warn the people in the mortal world.”
“Yes! Thank you, Magistrate!” I immediately arrived at the Shattering Hell.
I noticed a consistent trait shared by all hells: deafening wails and moans of agony can be heard long before entering the gates, an eternal hallmark of hellish realms. It is no exaggeration that hell is the ultimate place of suffering—one must never fall here.
I watched as female souls were herded by ferocious yakshas toward tiny, round, red iron cavities reeking of putrid stench, one spirit per cavity. The holes were far too narrow to fit their forms. The souls turned to flee, yet to no avail. The savage yakshas roared, skewering the souls with sharp pitchforks and forcing them brutally inside. The souls’ bodies gushed blood, their limbs snapping, until they were crammed fully into the iron pits. The yakshas waved fans over each cavity, instantly restoring the souls’ broken bodies unharmed. Then they dragged the souls out with sharp hooked blades, drawing shrill screams of unbearable pain. Next, the yakshas took shears and cut the souls’ flesh piece by piece, covering the ground in pools of blood. Once every fragment of the body was severed, suction devices pulled the pieces back together to resurrect the spirit. The cycle of agonizing torture repeated endlessly. The sight was unspeakably horrific; I could bear to watch no longer. Amitabha! Never commit deeds that harm others, for this torment is hundreds and thousands of times more agonizing than mortal childbirth.
After thanking the Magistrate for his efforts and pressing my palms together, I returned by white lotus flower.
23 / Do Not Weep, Little One — The Magistrate Elaborates on Remedial Practices for Abortion
Grateful for the Buddha’s supporting empowerment, I departed riding a white lotus flower.
“Amitabha!” I, Ayù, prostrated to the Magistrate. Today I wished to ask the Magistrate: “What can be done to make amends after abortion, and how do you view this question of making amends?”
The Magistrate replied, “No matter what reason drives mortal parents to terminate a pregnancy, once the abortion is carried out, they incur the complete karmic offense of taking a life. The Netherworld’s Register of Life and Death shall record this transgression: on a specific year and month, certain individuals slew an unborn infant soul. By virtue of this entry, those who procured an abortion will be tried and punished in the Main Hall of the Netherworld once their mortal lives end.” If the abortion occurs solely because the infant soul seeking rebirth lacks sufficient meritorious blessings, the infant’s parents will not be condemned to suffer in hell after their passing. Even so, these parents must still repent for their own karma and insufficient blessings that prevented the infant from being successfully born into the mortal world. They must repent and dedicate merit to the infant soul, and earnestly pray that the infant soul may soon transcend suffering and attain rebirth on virtuous paths. Every single occurrence in existence is bound together by intertwined cause and effect. For an infant soul to enter its mother’s womb, countless intricate karmic connections of good and evil deeds forged across countless past lifetimes tie the spirit to its destined parents. If the spirit perishes midway through gestation, this is fixed karma that cannot be changed under nether law. Such misfortune arises because both the infant soul and its parents committed harmful transgressions such as killing, theft, and sexual misconduct in their previous incarnations.