So I have heard. At one time the Buddha was staying near Sāvatthī in Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍika’s monastery. There the Buddha addressed the mendicants: “Mendicants!” “Venerable sir,” they replied. The Buddha said this:

“Mendicants, suppose there were two houses with doors. A person with good eyesight standing in between them would see people entering and leaving a house and wandering to and fro. In the same way, with clairvoyance that is purified and superhuman, I see sentient beings passing away and being reborn—inferior and superior, beautiful and ugly, in a good place or a bad place. I understand how sentient beings are reborn according to their deeds. ‘These dear beings did good things by way of body, speech, and mind. They never spoke ill of the noble ones; they had right view; and they chose to act out of that right view. When their body breaks up, after death, they’re reborn in a good place, a heavenly realm, or among humans. These dear beings did bad things by way of body, speech, and mind. They spoke ill of the noble ones; they had wrong view; and they chose to act out of that wrong view. When their body breaks up, after death, they’re reborn in the ghost realm, the animal realm, or in a lower realm, a bad destination, a world of misery, hell.

Then the wardens of hell take them by the arms and present them to King Yama, saying: ‘Your Majesty, this person did not pay due respect to their mother and father, ascetics and brahmins, or honor the elders in the family. May Your Majesty punish them!’ Then King Yama engages, presses, and examines them about the first messenger of the gods. ‘Mister, did you not see the first messenger of the gods that appeared among human beings?’ He says: ‘I saw nothing, sir.’

Then King Yama says: ‘Mister, did you not see among human beings a little baby collapsed in their own urine and feces?’ He says: ‘I saw that, sir.’

Then King Yama says: ‘Mister, did it not occur to you—being sensible and mature— “I, too, am liable to be born. I’m not exempt from rebirth. I’d better do good by way of body, speech, and mind”?’ He says: ‘I couldn’t, sir. I was negligent.’

Then King Yama says: ‘Mister, because you were negligent, you didn’t do good by way of body, speech, and mind. Well, they’ll definitely punish you to fit your negligence. That bad deed wasn’t done by your mother, father, brother, or sister. It wasn’t done by friends and colleagues, by relatives and kin, by ascetics and brahmins, or by the deities. That bad deed was done by you alone, and you alone will experience the result.’

Then King Yama questions them about the second messenger of the gods. ‘Mister, did you not see the second messenger of the gods that appeared among human beings?’ He says: ‘I saw nothing, sir.’

Then King Yama says: ‘Mister, did you not see among human beings an elderly woman or a man—eighty, ninety, or a hundred years old—bent double, crooked, leaning on a staff, trembling as they walk, ailing, past their prime, with teeth broken, hair grey and scanty or bald, skin wrinkled, and limbs blotchy?’ He says: ‘I saw that, sir.’

Then King Yama says: ‘Mister, did it not occur to you—being sensible and mature— “I, too, am liable to grow old. I’m not exempt from old age. I’d better do good by way of body, speech, and mind”?’ He says: ‘I couldn’t, sir. I was negligent.’

Then King Yama says: ‘Mister, because you were negligent, you didn’t do good by way of body, speech, and mind. Well, they’ll definitely punish you to fit your negligence. That bad deed wasn’t done by your mother, father, brother, or sister. It wasn’t done by friends and colleagues, by relatives and kin, by ascetics and brahmins, or by the deities. That bad deed was done by you alone, and you alone will experience the result.’

Then King Yama questions them about the third messenger of the gods. ‘Mister, did you not see the third messenger of the gods that appeared among human beings?’ He says: ‘I saw nothing, sir.’

Then King Yama says: ‘Mister, did you not see among human beings a woman or a man, sick, suffering, gravely ill, collapsed in their own urine and feces, being picked up by some and put down by others?’ He says: ‘I saw that, sir.’

Then King Yama says: ‘Mister, did it not occur to you—being sensible and mature— “I, too, am liable to become sick. I’m not exempt from sickness. I’d better do good by way of body, speech, and mind”?’ He says: ‘I couldn’t, sir. I was negligent.’

Then King Yama says: ‘Mister, because you were negligent, you didn’t do good by way of body, speech, and mind. Well, they’ll definitely punish you to fit your negligence. That bad deed wasn’t done by your mother, father, brother, or sister. It wasn’t done by friends and colleagues, by relatives and kin, by ascetics and brahmins, or by the deities. That bad deed was done by you alone, and you alone will experience the result.’

Then King Yama questions them about the fourth messenger of the gods. ‘Mister, did you not see the fourth messenger of the gods that appeared among human beings?’ He says: ‘I saw nothing, sir.’

Then King Yama says: ‘Mister, did you not see among human beings when the rulers arrested a bandit, a criminal, and subjected them to various punishments— whipping, caning, and clubbing; cutting off hands or feet, or both; cutting off ears or nose, or both; the ‘porridge pot’, the ‘shell-shave’, the ‘demon’s mouth’, the ‘garland of fire’, the ‘burning hand’, the ‘grass blades’, the ‘bark dress’, the ‘antelope’, the ‘meat hook’, the ‘coins’, the ‘acid pickle’, the ‘twisting bar’, the ‘straw mat’; being splashed with hot oil, being fed to the dogs, being impaled alive, and being beheaded?’ He says: ‘I saw that, sir.’

Then King Yama says: ‘Mister, did it not occur to you—being sensible and mature— that if someone who does bad deeds receives such punishment in the present life, what must happen to them in the next? I’d better do good by way of body, speech, and mind”?’ He says: ‘I couldn’t, sir. I was negligent.’

Then King Yama says: ‘Mister, because you were negligent, you didn’t do good by way of body, speech, and mind. Well, they’ll definitely punish you to fit your negligence. That bad deed wasn’t done by your mother, father, brother, or sister. It wasn’t done by friends and colleagues, by relatives and kin, by ascetics and brahmins, or by the deities. That bad deed was done by you alone, and you alone will experience the result.’

Then King Yama questions them about the fifth messenger of the gods. ‘Mister, did you not see the fifth messenger of the gods that appeared among human beings?’ He says: ‘I saw nothing, sir.’

Then King Yama says: ‘Mister, did you not see among human beings a woman or a man, dead for one, two, or three days, bloated, livid, and festering?’ He says: ‘I saw that, sir.’

Then King Yama says: ‘Mister, did it not occur to you—being sensible and mature— “I, too, am liable to die. I’m not exempt from death. I’d better do good by way of body, speech, and mind”?’ He says: ‘I couldn’t, sir. I was negligent.’

Then King Yama says: ‘Mister, because you were negligent, you didn’t do good by way of body, speech, and mind. Well, they’ll definitely punish you to fit your negligence. That bad deed wasn’t done by your mother, father, brother, or sister. It wasn’t done by friends and colleagues, by relatives and kin, by ascetics and brahmins, or by the deities. That bad deed was done by you alone, and you alone will experience the result.’

Then, after questioning them about the fifth messenger of the gods, King Yama falls silent. Then the wardens of hell punish them with the five-fold crucifixion. They drive red-hot stakes through the hands and feet, and another in the middle of the chest. And there they feel painful, intense, severe, acute feelings—but they don’t die until that bad deed is eliminated. Then the wardens of hell throw them down and hack them with axes. … They hang them upside-down and hack them with hatchets. … They harness them to a chariot, and drive them back and forth across burning ground, blazing and glowing. … They make him climb up and down a huge mountain of burning coals, blazing and glowing. … Then the wardens of hell turn them upside down and throw them in a red-hot copper pot, burning, blazing, and glowing. There they’re seared in boiling scum, and they’re swept up and down and round and round. And there they feel painful, intense, severe, acute feelings—but they don’t die until that bad deed is eliminated. Then the wardens of hell toss them into the Great Hell. Now, about that Great Hell:

‘Four are its corners, four its doors,
divided into measured parts.
Surrounded by an iron wall,
of iron is its roof.

The ground is even made of iron,
it burns with fierce fire.
The heat forever radiates
a hundred leagues around.’

Now in the Great Hell, flames surge out of the walls and crash into the opposite wall: from east to west, from west to east, from north to south, from south to north, from bottom to top, from top to bottom. And there they feel painful, intense, severe, acute feelings—but they don’t die until that bad deed is eliminated.

There comes a time when, after a very long period has passed, the eastern gate of the Great Hell is opened. So they run there as fast as they can. And as they run, their outer skin, inner skin, flesh, and sinews burn and even their bones smoke. Such is their escape; but when they’ve managed to make it most of the way, the gate is slammed shut. And there they feel painful, intense, severe, acute feelings—but they don’t die until that bad deed is eliminated.

There comes a time when, after a very long period has passed, the western gate … northern gate … southern gate of the Great hell is opened. So they run there as fast as they can. And as they run, their outer skin, inner skin, flesh, and sinews burn and even their bones smoke. Such is their escape; but when they’ve managed to make it most of the way, the gate is slammed shut. And there they feel painful, intense, severe, acute feelings—but they don’t die until that bad deed is eliminated.

There comes a time when, after a very long period has passed, the eastern gate of the Great Hell is opened. So they run there as fast as they can. And as they run, their outer skin, inner skin, flesh, and sinews burn and even their bones smoke. Such is their escape; and they make it out that door.

Immediately adjacent to the Great Hell is the vast Dung Hell. And that’s where they fall. In that Dung Hell there are needle-mouthed creatures that bore through the outer skin, the inner skin, the flesh, sinews, and bones, until they reach the marrow and devour it. And there they feel painful, intense, severe, acute feelings—but they don’t die until that bad deed is eliminated.

Immediately adjacent to the Dung Hell is the vast Hell of Hot Coals. And that’s where they fall. And there they feel painful, intense, severe, acute feelings—but they don’t die until that bad deed is eliminated.

Immediately adjacent to the Hell of Hot Coals is the vast Hell of the Red Silk-Cotton Wood. It’s a league high, full of sixteen-inch thorns, burning, blazing, and glowing. And there they make them climb up and down. And there they feel painful, intense, severe, acute feelings—but they don’t die until that bad deed is eliminated.

Immediately adjacent to the Hell of the Red Silk-Cotton Wood is the vast Hell of the Sword-Leaf Trees. They enter that. There the fallen leaves blown by the wind cut their hands, feet, both hands and feet; they cut their ears, nose, both ears and nose. And there they feel painful, intense, severe, acute feelings—but they don’t die until that bad deed is eliminated.

Immediately adjacent to the Hell of the Sword-Leaf Trees is the vast Acid Hell. And that’s where they fall. There they are swept upstream, swept downstream, and swept both up and down stream. And there they feel painful, intense, severe, acute feelings—but they don’t die until that bad deed is eliminated.

Then the wardens of hell pull them out and place them on dry land, and say: ‘Mister, what do you want?’ They say: ‘I’m hungry, sir.’ The wardens of hell force open their mouth with a hot iron spike—burning, blazing, glowing—and shove in a red-hot copper ball, burning, blazing, and glowing. It burns their lips, mouth, tongue, throat, and stomach before coming out below dragging their entrails. And there they feel painful, intense, severe, acute feelings—but they don’t die until that bad deed is eliminated.

Then the wardens of hell say: ‘Mister, what do you want?’ They say: ‘I’m thirsty, sir.’ The wardens of hell force open their mouth with a hot iron spike—burning, blazing, glowing—and pour in molten copper, burning, blazing, and glowing. It burns their lips, mouth, tongue, throat, and stomach before coming out below dragging their entrails. And there they feel painful, intense, severe, acute feelings—but they don’t die until that bad deed is eliminated. Then the wardens of hell toss them back in the Great Hell.

Once upon a time, King Yama thought: ‘Those who do such bad deeds in the world receive these many different punishments. Oh, I hope I may be reborn as a human being! And that a Realized One—a perfected one, a fully awakened Buddha—arises in the world! And that I may pay homage to the Buddha! Then the Buddha can teach me Dhamma, so that I may understand his teaching.’ Now, I don’t say this because I’ve heard it from some other ascetic or brahmin. I only say it because I’ve known, seen, and realized it for myself.”

That is what the Buddha said. Then the Holy One, the Teacher, went on to say:

“Those people who are negligent,
when warned by the gods’ messengers:
a long time they sorrow,
when they go to that wretched place.

But those good and peaceful people,
when warned by the god’s messengers,
never neglect
the noble teaching.

Seeing the danger in grasping,
the origin of birth and death,
they’re freed by not grasping,
with the ending of birth and death.

Happy, they’ve come to a safe place,
extinguished in this very life.
They’ve gone beyond all threats and perils,
and risen above all suffering.”