Hungry Ghost – Greedy, selfish people who have been cursed!

The hungry ghost is a man-eating ghost. Mostly it is the spirits of greedy, selfish people who have been cursed (after death) to seek out and eat human corpses. They do this at night and sometimes loot corpses in the process. They lament their condition and hate their constant need for dead human flesh. They are jealous and covetous spiritual beings who have been cursed with an insatiable hunger for a certain substance as punishment for their sins.

 

Contemplation - Hungry Ghost

It, as-it-is, has never moved. Even though defilement and delusion arise from time to time, if you immediately introspect upon yourself with vigilant doubt, then you will not be subject to defilement and delusion. By cultivating in such a way one day the whole bundle of doubt will be destroyed; suddenly right seeing will be manifested.

An analogy to this is the hen sitting continuously on the egg. If the warm energy is not supplied for even one moment, the egg will spoil. However, if the warm energy is adequate, the hen, using her beak, destroys the egg-shell, allowing the baby chick to break through with a sound of "Chirp, chirp." Similarly, the bamboo stalk, when fully mature, explodes forth by itself, "Boom, Boom."

Finally, seeing the true Self-Nature (original Face) will be completed. After that, you should go meet the true master and examine yourself with him hundreds and thousands of times to accomplish the Truth. You should not, however, by naughty judgement, create any idea of being superior. Without seeing the Good-and-Wise One after enlightenment, you would not be able to complete your life task, which is a potential hazard, not just once, but endlessly and limitlessly. (zen master Hye Am)

 

 

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