Issue 309

Earth Store continued, “Holy Mother, beings, who commit such offenses will fall into the Fivefold Relentless Hell where they will constantly seek temporary relief from their suffering but will never receive even a moment’s relief.”

Earth Store Bodhisattva continued, “Holy Mother, or Lady Maya, beings, who commit such offenses will fall into the Fivefold Relentless Hell, five kinds of relentless hells, where they will constantly seek temporary relief from their suffering but will never receive even a moment’s relief.”

Lady Maya further asked Earth Store Bodhisattva, “Why is that hell called Relentless?”
Earth Store replied, “Holy Mother, all the hells are within the Great Iron Ring Mountain. There are eighteen great hells and five hundred subsequent ones, each have their own names. There are hundreds of thousands more that also have their own names. Relentless Hell is found within a city of hells that encompasses more than eighty thousand square miles. The city wall is made entirely of iron, towering ten thousand li high. A raging inferno blazes throughout the entire city. There is hardly any empty space. Within the city are many interconnected hells, each with a different name.

Lady Maya, Shakyamuni Buddha’s mother, further asked Earth Store Bodhisattva, “Why is that hell called Relentless?”

Earth Store Bodhisattva replied, “Holy Mother, all the hells are within the Great Iron Ring Mountain. The eighteen great hells are the largest and the five hundred subsequent ones each have their own names. Each name is unique. There are hundreds of thousands more that also have their own and different names.

What is Relentless Hell? Relentless Hell is found within a city of hells that encompasses more than eighty thousand square miles. The city wall is made entirely of iron, towering ten thousand li high. A raging inferno blazes throughout the entire city. Fire shoots out from the west side of the city to the east side wall; and from east side to the west side wall. Balls of fire also shoot from the south side of the city to the north side wall; and from the north side to the south. There is conflagration everywhere in this hell. There are also many kinds of evil beasts. There is hardly any empty space. Within the city are many interconnected hells, each with a different name.

There is just one hell called Relentless. Its circumference is eighteen thousand miles. The wall of that hell is a thousand miles high, totally made of iron, and covered with a fire burning downward that is met by a fire burning upward. Iron snakes and dogs spewing fire race back and forth along the top of that wall.

There is just one hell called Relentless. This hell is named Relentless because in this hell, the torment is incessant, the suffering is non-stop. Who are the souls suffering in this hell? Those who committed offenses. Every person who committed offenses has a soul that undergoes suffering in hell. Typically, someone dies without being too conscious of the pain. For example, someone can be burned to death or guillotined. In both examples, the person doesn’t feel any pain after death. They do not know what suffering there is in dying.
In the hells, are beings unaware of their pain after death? They are also unaware.

However, once they die, they are born again, then die and are reborn repeatedly. How do they come to life again? There are two kinds of wind in the hells — putrid wind and fragrant wind, both known as Clever Breezes, which strangely enough, blow and revive the dead. Those resurrected by the putrid wind are born again but ugly. Those resurrected by the fragrant wind are good looking. The majority are revived by the putrid wind and continue to suffer in hell. Those revived by the fragrant wind are destined for the heavens. The fragrant breeze makes beings beautiful; in contrast, the putrid wind makes beings ugly like asuras. A few days ago, I described a case in which all the facial features of a person bunch together tightly as if they were a partnership company. Isn’t that ugly and weird? Revival by the putrid wind occurs instantly, and there is not the slightest interruption in the suffering.

Its circumference of this large city is eighteen thousand miles. The wall of that hell is a thousand miles high. Since the wall of that hell is one thousand miles high, all sunlight is blocked. Hence, it is dark in the hells. Luckily, there are fires in the hells that cast some light. These are the fires of karma, which roast and sear the skin, burning ferociously and causing people to suffer intolerable pain. Think about it. What would you do if you got there? Over there, every moment is not at ease. That’s truly not at ease! Not at ease! Truly not at ease!

The thousand-mile-high wall is totally made of iron. This solid iron is firm and cold. It symbolizes the solidly firm karmic retributions of living beings. Once living beings get there, their hearts turn cold. Ahh! Their minds that compete for fame or profit are gone. In that place, there is nothing but suffering. Oh, no! Suffering! Suffering! Truly suffering! Over there, they experience no other thought besides suffering. If you were there, getting slapped on your face would be much better than being burned by fire; getting kicked would be less painful than being bitten by the hell dog. At that moment, you know how contentment feels.  And the city is covered with fire burning downward that is met by fire burning upward.

Iron snakes and dogs…In each of the four corners of this 1000-mile-high city is a huge iron dog eight hundred miles tall. From the head of each dog arises eight heads, each of which has eight bull-like horns, making a total of 64 horns. As the heads turn about, the horns become wheels of fire and wheels of knives, which cut through like knives. When these iron dogs see an offender, they devastatingly stab him with their horns. Has anyone seen this kind of monster, a horned dog? You can go ahead and take a look if you wish, but let me tell you, you will not be able to come back. That’s right. Once you go there, you will leave without a trace. You will forever have no exit date from that place. Going there is not like going to the movies. After watching the movies, you can go home. But when you go to the hells, there is no returning home, you have no such freedom.

Not only do these dogs and snakes bite, but they also spew fire. They have fires that burn their bodies which make them smell so noxious that anyone who smells it will vomit their very guts. This is not a pleasant feeling. It is intolerable. You don’t have to go there and look, just imagine it and you know it is totally devoid of ease. These iron snakes and iron dogs race back and forth along the top of that hell’s wall.

In that hell, there is a bed that extends for ten thousand miles. One person undergoing punishment sees his or her own body covering the entire bed. When hundreds of thousands of people undergo punishment simultaneously, each still sees his or her own body covering the bed. That is how retributions are undergone by those with the same karma.

In that hell, there is a bed that is not for beings there to sleep, but to be tortured. The size of this bed extends for ten thousand miles. One person undergoing punishment sees his or her own body covering the entire bed. When hundreds of thousands of people undergo punishment simultaneously, each still sees his or her own body covering the bed. That is how retributions are undergone by those with the same karma. These are the retributions that correspond to the offense karma and evil karma committed by living beings.

What is more, these offenders undergo extreme suffering. Hundreds of thousands of yakshas and other evil ghosts display fangs like swords and eyes like lightning as they pull and drag the offenders with their copper-clawed hands.
Other yakshas wield huge iron halberds that they use to pierce the offenders’ mouths and noses or stab their bellies and backs. They toss the offenders into the air and then catch them by skewering them with the halberds, or they let them drop onto the bed.
Iron eagles peck at the offenders’ eyes and iron serpents wrap around their necks. Long nails are driven into all their limbs. Their tongues are pulled out, stretched, and then plowed through. Their internal organs are gouged out, sliced, and minced. Molten copper is poured into their mouths, and their bodies are bound with hot iron. Responses to their karma go on like that throughout hundreds of thousands of deaths and rebirths. They pass through hundreds of millions of eons seeking escape in vain.