Once upon a time, in a country near China, there was a mountain temple. A young monk lived there, and he made it his daily practice to recite the Lotus Sutra.
One evening, while traveling from place to place preaching the scriptures, the monk encountered a Rakshasa woman, a demon that had taken the form of a human woman. Her appearance was extraordinarily beautiful. She approached the monk seductively and leaned against him with an alluring charm. Overcome by her bewitching beauty, the monk lost control of himself and, before long, engaged in sexual relations with her. Afterward, his consciousness became clouded, and he was no longer in his right mind.
The female demon intended to take the monk to her lair and devour him. She hoisted him onto her back and flew through the sky. As night approached, they passed over a temple. Though still in a daze, the monk faintly heard the sound of monks reciting the Lotus Sutra from within. Gradually, his consciousness began to clear, and he regained his senses. In his heart, he silently recited the Lotus Sutra.
As soon as he did, his body grew heavier and heavier. The demon found it increasingly difficult to fly, sinking lower and lower toward the ground. Eventually, he became so heavy that she could no longer carry him. Left with no choice, she abandoned him and disappeared.
The monk, now fully conscious, found himself in an unfamiliar place, utterly lost. At that moment, he heard the sound of a temple bell ringing. Using the sound as a guide, he made his way to the temple and knocked on the gate. When the gate opened, he stepped inside and recounted everything that had happened to him.
Hearing his story, the monks of the temple said, “This man has committed a grave sin. We cannot allow someone like him to remain among us.”
However, a senior monk, who was highly disciplined and a guiding figure at the temple, spoke up:
“This man was deceived by a demon and acted against his will. Furthermore, he is someone who has demonstrated the power of the Lotus Sutra. Let us allow him to stay in the temple.”
The senior monk then guided him in repenting for his sin of engaging in sexual relations with the female demon.
The monk mentioned the temple where he had originally lived. It was more than two thousand li (approximately 850 kilometers) away. By chance, a villager came by and, upon hearing his story, helped him return to his former temple.
The divine power of the Lotus Sutra is truly astonishing. It is said:
“A female demon, intending to devour a monk, flew across a distance of over two thousand li in an instant. Yet, the moment the monk began reciting the Lotus Sutra, he became so heavy that she had no choice but to abandon him. What a truly wondrous thing!”
And so, the tale has been passed down through the ages.
Silk Painting of Samantabhadra with the Ten Rakshasa Women (Saigodaiji, Okayama City)
[Translation]
Kou Sekijitsu / Siro Inuzuka
This text was created by using ChatGPT-4o to translate a modern Japanese translation into English, and then making some modifications. There may be errors in the English expressions. Please correct any mistakes.
[Cooperation]
Shinichi Kusano
●Japanese
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