I said: “Then let us visit the dreaded Avīci Hell today! I wonder whether Earth Store Bodhisattva will be there.”
The Magistrate replied: “Earth Store Bodhisattva visits every hell. You have not yet seen the Avīci Hell, Ayù. Come and follow me.”
We needed to traverse several passageways to reach the Avīci Hell. Along the way, endless cries and wails of suffering drifted toward us. The hell is saturated with overwhelming grief, terror and agony. Now I comprehended why the Bodhisattva exhorted me to cultivate diligently before I wrote The Inexorable Nether Laws. Anyone lacking sufficient concentration power would be engulfed by the intensely negative magnetic field permeating this place. This is truly no place for humans. May all tormented beings trapped in hell attain deliverance soon! Without the enveloping protection of the Buddhas’ power, even if I were not overwhelmed, I would expend most of my vitality. I am grateful for the Buddhas’ blessing and support. I, Ayù, had to fulfill this mission well to repay the profound kindness of the Buddhas!
Right at that moment, my heart began to race. Super terrifying sounds reverberated all around. The place appeared desolate and crude, far less constructed than the Hell of Sexual Misconduct with its relatively modern appearance. This hell is secured behind many tightly barred gates. Oh! The heat is overwhelming; it is unbearably hot!
The Magistrate explained: “Once condemned souls enter this hell, they cannot leave. All living beings consigned here are those whose evil deeds have reached the ultimate extreme. The subterranean magma within exceeds one thousand degrees. This can be called the severest punishment among all our hells!”
One thousand degrees? That was utterly horrifying! For the sake of completing The Inexorable Nether Laws, I had to summon my courage to behold it. Empowered by the Buddha’s strength, I was permitted to peer inside through a small iron window of the Avīci Hell. The hell itself is not vast. Its shape resembles a human nose, with a dark hollow cavity at its centre. This chasm leads down to subterranean magma that billows with smoke, blazing ferociously. Condemned souls are boiled thoroughly in the smouldering magma before being hurled upward. They are not cast to another location, but suspended amid the scorching fumes rising from the magma to be scorched and burned. Before their soul entities can recover, still screaming in excruciating torment, they are dragged back down into the blazing magma to undergo punishment once more, letting out another shrill cry of agony. Such is the Avīci Hell: suffering cycles on without the slightest respite. The scene is unspeakably tragic.
It had been pitch-black and sweltering just moments before, yet suddenly an incomparably refreshing sensation descended. I lifted my gaze and saw that the venerable Earth Store Bodhisattva had arrived in compassion. I prostrated myself before Earth Store Bodhisattva! Today the Bodhisattva did not manifest a gentle, compassionate appearance; instead, he appeared as a standing wrathful manifestation of Earth Store Bodhisattva. Behind the Bodhisattva radiated a vast circular golden aureole. He stood upon a blue-green lotus flower, beneath which blazed raging flames. Yet these flames brought no stifling heat. On the contrary, they gave me a sense of delusive thoughts being dispelled. The precious pearl held in Earth Store Bodhisattva’s left hand was fiery red. At the apex of the golden khakkhara in his right hand bloomed an additional red lotus blossom. The Bodhisattva emanated immense power to subdue demons. At first sight, one could not help but stand in awe and reverence, daring not to give rise to any frivolous or deluded thought. This was the first time I had beheld Earth Store Bodhisattva in such a stern bearing. Dharma Master Daoming and Dharma Protector Elder Min, standing on either side, showed little change. Daoming manifested the dignified appearance of a bhikkhu, crossing his hands to form the demon-subduing mudra. Dharma Protector Elder Min stood beside the Bodhisattva with palms joined. The Bodhisattva’s mount, Diting, however, had grown far larger in stature and also displayed a wrathful countenance.
Suddenly an official of the netherworld came to report that an affair required the Magistrate’s attention in the Judgment Hall. The Magistrate then told me I might continue my observation on my own; should I have any questions, I could make supplication to Earth Store Bodhisattva. I pressed my palms together to bow and express gratitude to the Magistrate!
At that moment, Earth Store Bodhisattva gestured for me to fly upward first. The gates of the Avīci Hell would be opened after a short while, for the Bodhisattva feared the scorching magma might injure me. Relying on the mighty spiritual power of Earth Store Bodhisattva, I ascended to a position beneath him and suspended myself in mid-air. Meanwhile, Dharma Protector Elder Min descended before the multiple iron gates of the Avīci Hell. Two ghost enforcers opened the gates and stepped out, then cautiously shut them right away, worried that splashes of magma would land on Dharma Protector Elder Min. Dharma Protector Elder Min said there was an edict from the Yama King permitting several condemned souls to be brought out as cases for Ayù’s reference. Earth Store Bodhisattva instructed that three condemned souls be summoned. Ordinarily, not a single condemned soul can ever be released from the Avīci Hell. The ghost enforcers therefore went back inside and led out three condemned souls. The three condemned souls emerged: two male souls and one female soul. Tormented beyond endurance, they could not stand and were utterly incapable of speech. Covered in mire with festering, disfigured bodies, they looked pitiable in the extreme. Seeing their miserable plight, I was on the verge of tears.
Right then, Dharma Master Daoming took the crimson pearl from Earth Store Bodhisattva’s hand and began reciting mantras. Instantly, the pearl radiated boundless light that permeated every corner of the Avīci Hell. The entire hell grew incomparably cool and tranquil. All cries of suffering fell silent, and the magma lost its scorching heat. All my nervousness faded away, replaced by a peaceful, warm sense of ease. Listening closely, I recognized it was the Earth Store Bodhisattva Dhāraṇī. I had held this mantra deeply dear. After Daoming chanted for some time, the three condemned souls gradually regained consciousness. Coming to their senses, the male souls managed to drop to their knees.