This is a temple the state built with great effort,
And the temple's origin is in the southwest.
Know the heavens!
Above, the indra heaven, blow, the twenty-eight mansions,
The great generals of eight directions, Namong and Muong, all have guarded it.
South of the Yangtze lies the Great Han; east of the sea lies Choson.
The clan site of the founder of Choson is
Yonghŭng, near Tanch'on, in Hamgyong province.
Above, on the hundredth memorial day, I lead the living to paradise.
Below, on the days of offering, I lead the dead to paradise.
Red mountain wine made of red peonies, white mountain wine made of white peonies,
Quietly burning candles, incense fragrance, a cup of wine, and wailing,
Today is the day of hope for the spirits.
Kyonggi has thirty-seven counties, and Yangju is a large one,
Ch'angdok palace, Ch'anghye palace, Kyongbok palace, Kyongdok palace,
The lower palace and upper palace, tablets in the royal ancestral shrine,
Altars of Soil and Grain —
Our king has succeeded to them all.
Their Majesties the king and queen have put on years,
The audience hall is silent, the queen's chamber empty.
The crown prince is fifteen years old.
" Where are the world's great diviners?
Go and ask our fortune, " commands the king.
The ladies-in-waiting reply,
" We have our nameplates, please grant a list of gifts. "
What are the gifts?
Five strings of silver coin and five of gold,
Three toe and three hop of pearls,
One ch'i and five p'un of cloth for the cassock,
Three feet and three inches of silk he bestows.
They go bearing these royal gifts
To shaman Taji of Ch'onha palace, shaman Moran of Chesok palace,
Shamaness Sosil of Chiha palace, and shaman Kangnim of Myongdo palace.
They cast pearls and grains of white rice on the white jade tray:
The first sign yields the shaman's fortunes,
The second tells of upper and lower gates,
The third tells the fortune of two majesties.
" I fear to tell you but cannot deceive you.
If you hold a marriage ceremony in an unlucky year,
You'll have seven princesses.
If in a lucky year, three princes. "
Thus they inform the king.
" One moment is long as three autumns, one day as ten.
How can we await an auspicious year? "
The king calls all his officials
And orders the office of astrologer to choose a day.
On the third day of the third month is the first selection;
On the fifth day of the fifth month, the second selection;
On the seventh day of the seventh month
When the Herdboy and Weaver meet
On the bridge built by crows and magpies,
The chief of royal weddings makes the third selection.
Three thousand troops on the low road,
Five thousand on the high road,
Cavalry in rows of five guard the royal carriage.
Courtiers in black belt prepare the bridal room in a separate palace.
The geese are presented on the jade table, the nuptial cups exchanged.
All the officials cry, " Long live the king! "
His Majesty returns to T'ongmyong Hall,
And the queen to the inner palace.
And the people cry, " Long live the king! "
Time flows like a river, heartless time flows like a stream.
In a gust of wind three summer months have passed,
And strange symptoms appear in the queen
The royal rice tastes raw,
The royal water tastes foul,
Golden glow tobacco tastes like grass,
The royal soup tastes like soy sauce.
" Present the fruits of five hundred bearing trees
Brought through the four great gates to the inner palace. "
Among mandarin duck adorned quilts and pillows,
A breeze at the east window cannot reach the west window.
When ladies-in-waiting inform His Majesty, he orders,
" Consult the shaman of Ch'onha palace! "
Shaman Taji of Ch'onha palace, shaman Moran of Chesok palace,
They cast coral beads on the jade tray.
The first sign yields the shaman's fortune,
The second tells of upper and lower gates,
The third yields the royal fortune:
" When it comes to pass Your Majesty will know —
Had you married next year, a year of auspice,
A prince would've been born to rule with two brothers.
But you married in an unlucky year, so you will have the first princess. "
Ladies-in-waiting report these words to both Their Majesties.
" What do they know? " they retort.
One, two months pass; in the third the fetus forms.
Small bones seem to melt, big bones squeezed.
Five and a half months pass;
" Midwives of the inner and outer chambers,
Royal messengers and servants,
All the officials and three thousand court ladies
Inquire at the inner palace morning, noon, and night. "
After seven months, after nine months,
Black silk supports before, blue silk supports behind,
" Present all fabrics entering the four great gates to the inner palace! "
Prisoners are released in every town, the royal academy closed,
Ten months have passed, the delivery room is ready.
After an easy labor and birth,
The queen turns around — a princess is born.
Ladies-in-waiting and three thousand court ladies
Announce to His Majesty the princess's birth.
His Majesty commands:
" Inquire of the queen her dreams. "
The queen replies, " I dreamed of this one day:
From one shoulder rose the moon,
And from the other rose the sun. "
The king commands:
" To hold and carry, walk and nurse the baby,
The court lady for the royal son-in-law and supervision.
Blue silk supports before, black silk supports behind,
Among silk screens in the inner room,
Raise this baby with utmost care. "
" May we humbly ask you to name this child? "
" Her name is Princess Pink Peach, another name Moon Girl. "
Oh and alas! One soul among the dead,
Upon the first princess's birth
Released from three years' mourning, consoling the spirits in the underworld,
From ancestors' cause of grievance,
From the karma of earthly existence,
The dead man sheds his head cover, the dead woman her yomo cap,
With prayers for rebirth in the Land of Happiness,
Becomes a man and journeys to Amit─übha's Pure Land,
Upon this very day.
Time flows like river, the princess is three years old.
Strange symptoms appear in the queen.
Among mandarin duck embroidered quilts and pillows,
A breeze at the east window cannot reach the west window.
Small bones seem to melt, big bones squeezed.
The royal rice tastes raw,
The royal water tastes foul,
Golden glow tobacco tastes like grass,
The royal soup tastes like soy sauce.
" Present the fruits of five hundred bearing trees
Brought through the four great gates to the inner palace. "
In three months, the fetus forms;
Five and a half months pass;
After seven months, after nine months,
The delivery room and six physicians are ready.
" Ladies-in-waiting and eunuchs
Attend the queen morning, noon, and night. "
In the tenth month, pearl-sewn recliner cast aside,
Labor and birth over, the queen turns around to view the baby:
The second princess is born.
" I've given birth to girls. Surely I'll have a boy soon. "
" To hold and carry, walk and nurse this baby,
The court lady for the royal son-in-law and supervision.
Black silk supports before, blue silk supports behind,
Among silk screens in the inner room,
Raise this baby with utmost care. "
Oh and alas! One soul among the dead,
Upon the second princess's birth,
Pushes open the gates of Knife Mountain Hell,
The gates of Eighty-Four Thousand Hells, and
Journeys to Amit─übha's Pure Land, the Land of Happiness.
Time flows like a dream,
The second princess is three years old.
Strange symptoms appear again in the queen.
Among mandarin duck embroidered quilts and pillows,
A breeze at the east window cannot reach the west window.
Small bones seem to melt, big bones squeezed.
The royal rice tastes raw,
The royal water tastes foul,
Golden glow tobacco tastes like grass,
The royal soup tastes like soy sauce.
" Present the fruits of five hundred bearing trees
Brought through the four great gates to the inner palace. "
In three months, the fetus forms;
Five and a half months pass;
After seven months, after nine months,
The delivery room and six physicians are ready.
" Ladies-in-waiting and eunuchs
Attend the queen morning, noon, and night. "
In the tenth month, pearl-sewn recliner cast aside,
Labor and birth over, the queen turns around to view the baby:
The third princess is born.
" I've given birth to girls. Surely I'll have a boy soon. "
" To hold and carry, walk and nurse the baby,
The court lady for the royal son-in-law and supervision.
Blue silk supports before, black silk supports behind,
Among silk screens in the inner room,
Raise this baby with utmost care. "
Oh and alas! One soul among the dead,
Upon the third princess's birth,
Pushes open the gates of Knife Mountain Hell,
The gates of Eighty-Four Thousand Hells, and
Journeys to Amit─übha's Pure Land, the Land of Happiness.
Time flows like a dream,
The third princess is three years old.
Strange symptoms appear in the queen.
Among mandarin duck embroidered quilts and pillows,
A breeze at the east window cannot reach the west window.
Small bones seem to melt, big bones squeezed.
The royal rice tastes raw,
The royal water tastes foul,
Golden glow tobacco tastes like grass,
The royal soup tastes like soy sauce.
" Present the fruits of five hundred bearing trees
Brought through the four great gates to the inner palace. "
The ladies-in-waiting inform His Majesty.
" Consult the diviner of Ch'onha palace. "
" Please, bestow the gifts, " they ask.
He sends five strings of silver coin, five of gold,
Three toe and three hop of pearls,
One foot and one inch of cloth for the cassock,
Three feet and three inches of silk he bestows.
They go bearing these royal gifts
To shaman Taji of Ch'onha palace, shamaness Sosil of Chiha palace,
Shaman Kangnim of Myongdo palace, and shaman Moran of Chesok palace.
They cast pearls and grains of white rice on the white jade tray:
The first yields the shaman's fortune,
The second tells of upper and lower gates,
The third tells the royal fortune.
" I fear to tell you but cannot deceive you.
You should have married in a year of auspice;
Since you married in an unlucky year,
The fourth princess will be born. "
Ladies-in-waiting report these words to both Their Majesties:
" What do they know? " they retort.
One and two months pass, and in three months
The fetus forms;
Five and a half months pass;
" Midwives of inner and outer chambers,
Royal messengers and servants,
All the officials and three thousand court ladies
Inquire at the inner palace morning, noon, and night. "
After seven months, after nine full months,
Blue silk supports before, black silk supports behind,
" Present all cloths entering the four great gates to the inner palace. "
Ten months have passed, the delivery room is ready,
Labor and birth over, the queen turns around to view the baby:
The fourth princess is born.
" I've given birth to girls. Surely I'll have a boy soon. "
" To hold and carry, walk and nurse the baby,
The court lady for the royal son-in-law and supervision.
Black silk supports before, blue silk supports behind,
Among silk screens in the inner room,
Raise this baby too with utmost care. "
Oh and alas! One among the dead,
Upon this princess's birth
Released from three years' mourning, consoling the spirits in the underworld,
From ancestors' cause of grievance,
From the karma of earthly existence,
The dead man sheds his head cover, the dead woman her yomo cap,
With prayers for rebirth in the Land of Happiness,
Becomes a man and journeys to Amit─übha's Pure Land,
Upon this very day.
Heartless time flows like a stream, like a dream,
The fourth princess is three years old.
Strange symptoms appear in the queen.
Among mandarin duck embroidered quilts and pillows,
A breeze at the east window cannot reach the west window.
Small bones seem to melt, big bones squeezed.
The royal rice tastes raw,
The royal water tastes foul,
Golden glow tobacco tastes like grass,
The royal soup tastes like soy sauce.
" Present the fruits of five hundred bearing trees
Brought through the four great gates to the inner palace. "
In three months, the fetus forms;
Five and a half months pass.
After seven months, after nine months,
She rejects the pearl-sewn bolster.
Ten months pass, and after labor and birth,
The queen turns around to view the baby:
Another princess is born.
" I've given birth to girls. Surely I'll have a boy soon. "
" To hold and carry, walk and nurse the baby,
The court lady for the royal son-in-law and supervision.
Blue silk supports before, black silk supports behind,
Among silk screens in the inner room,
Raise this baby with utmost care. "
Oh and alas! One among the dead,
Upon the birth of the fifth princess,
Released from three years' mourning,
consoling the spirits in the underworld,
From ancestors' cause of grievance,
From the karma of earthly existence,
The dead man sheds his head cover, the dead woman her yomo cap,
With prayers for rebirth in the Land of Happiness,
Becomes a man and journeys to Amit─übha's Pure Land,
Upon this very day.
Time flows like a river, the princess is three years old.
Strange symptoms appear in the queen.
Among mandarin duck embroidered quilts and pillows,
A breeze at the east window cannot reach the west window.
The ladies-in-waiting inform His Majesty.
" Consult the diviner of Ch'onha palace! "
" Please, bestow the gifts, " they ask.
Five strings of silver coin, five of gold,
Three toe and three hop of pearls,
Three feet and three inches of silk,
And one ch'i and one p'un of cloth for the cassock.
They go bearing these royal gifts
To shaman Taji of Ch'onha palace, shamaness Sosil of Chiha palace,
Shaman Moran of Chesok palace, shaman Kangnim of Myongdo palace.
They cast pearls and grains of white rice on the white jade tray:
The first throw yields the shaman's fortune,
The second tells of upper and lower gates,
The third tells the fortune of two majesties.
" Her Majesty is indeed with child;
But since you married in an unlucky year,
The sixth princess will be born. "
" What do they know? " they retort.
One and two months pass, the fetus forms in the third,
Five and a half months pass;
" Midwives of inner and outer chambers,
Royal messengers and servants,
All the officials and three thousand court ladies
Inquire at the inner palace morning, noon, and night. "
After seven months, after nine full months,
Blue silk supports before, black silk supports behind,
" Present all cloths entering the four great gates to the inner palace. "
Ten months have passed, the delivery room is ready,
Labor and birth over, the queen turns around to view the baby:
Another princess is born.
" I've given birth to girls. Surely I'll have a boy soon. "
" To hold and carry, walk and nurse the baby,
The court lady for the royal son-in-law and supervision.
Among silk screens in the inner room,
Raise this baby too with utmost care. "
Oh and alas! One among the dead,
Upon the sixth princess's birth
Released from three years' mourning, consoling the spirits in the underworld,
From ancestors' cause of grievance,
From the karma of earthly existence,
The dead man sheds his head cover, the dead woman her yomo cap,
With prayers for rebirth in the Land of Happiness,
Becomes a man and journeys to Amit─übha's Pure Land,
Upon this very day.
The country of a thousand tricents of mountains and rivers,
Time flows by like a dream.
All six princesses are invested.
The queen again has strange symptoms.
Among mandarin duck embroidered quilts and pillows,
A breeze at the east window cannot reach the west window.
Small bones seem to melt, big bones squeezed.
The royal rice tastes raw,
The royal water tastes foul,
Golden glow tobacco tastes like grass,
The royal soup tastes like soy sauce.
" Present the fruits of five hundred bearing trees
Brought through the four great gates to the inner palace! "
Her face, once fair as lotus,
Is now gaunt, pitiful to view.
With her delicate body how can she endure?
His Majesty asks, " What are your dreams? "
" I saw perched on my right hand a purple falcon,
And on my left hand a white falcon.
I saw a golden turtle resting on my knees,
And the sun and moon rising from my shoulders.
On the main beam of Great Bright Hall,
I saw entwined blue and gold dragons. "
This time the dream portends a prince.
" Ladies-in-waiting, consult the shaman of Ch'onha palace. "
" Please, bestow the gifts, " they ask.
Five strings of silver coin, five of gold,
Three toe and three hop of pearls,
One ch'i and one p'un of cloth for the cassock,
Three feet and three inches of silk he bestows.
They go bearing these royal gifts
To shaman Taji of Ch'onha palace, shamaness Sosil of Chiha palace,
Shaman Moran of Chesok palace, and shaman Kangnim of Myongdo palace.
They cast pearls and grains of white rice on the white jade tray:
The first throw yields the shaman's fortune;
The second tells of upper and lower gates;
The third tells the fortune of two majesties.
" You will find out later,
It is clear that the queen is with child,
But since you married in an unlucky year,
She will give birth to a seventh princess. "
So they report to His Majesty.
" However well they divine, what do they know? "
As her dreams foretold,
In the third month the fetus forms.
Five and a half months pass, seven months pass,
Inner and outer delivery rooms and six physicians stand ready.
" Royal messengers and servants
Inquire after the queen morning, noon, and night. "
Proclaim in the five wards, notify eight provinces,
Post it on the four great gates; he approves
That the prison gates be open and prisoners set free.
After the eighth month, after the ninth month,
Now it's the tenth month, and she rejects the pearl-sewn bolster.
Labor and birth over, she turns around to view the baby:
It's the seventh princess.
Her Majesty the queen weeps royal tears.
His Majesty inquires: " Ladies-in-waiting,
In the deep deep deepest recess of the palace
Why is that sound of a woman wailing? "
The ladies-in-waiting reply,
" We fear to tell you but cannot deceive you . . . "
" Ladies-in-waiting, you too are brazen!
How can you face me? "
He strikes the desk with royal hand:
" What sins of my former lives were so great
Heaven has given me seven daughters? "
He scatters his incense box and stands:
" Who'll worship at the altars of soil and grain?
Who will inherit the state and throne?
Who will inherit the country and people? "
His Majesty commands:
" Ladies-in-waiting, three thousand court ladies,
Take that baby and cast her in the rear garden! "
Her Majesty replies:
" They say the state law ignores blood ties
In the interests of the country,
But how can you cast her out?
One among courtiers and ladies-in-waiting,
Take her as foster-child. "
" The state laws are not so,
There's nothing we can do. "
Dressed in the seventh-day culottes and trousers,
A slip inscribed with the time of birth
Tied to her coat strings,
The baby is cast away in the rear garden.
Mountains are deep and waters still.
A sudden gale arises.
Unexpectedly, crows and magpies descend
And cushion her with one wing, cover her with the other.
It is a warm spring day.
With the royal guard and steward, His Majesty
Goes to view blossoms and willows in the rear garden.
To the east he sees a wondrous light in the air
And hears crows and magpies crying loudly.
" A wondrous light in the air bodes well.
What's over there that makes crows and magpies cry noisily? "
Ladies-in-waiting reply:
" You told us to abandon the baby born this time.
We dared not defy your order,
So we cast her away in the rear garden.
One can still hear her cries faintly. "
Her Majesty the queen commands:
" Carry the baby and bring her here. "
Behold, black ants fill her ears,
Golden ants her mouth,
Small ants her eyes.
On Her Majesty's lotus face she let
Pearl-like tears flow two by two.
" They say the state law ignores blood ties
In the interests of the country.
But why cast her out so heartlessly? "
His Majesty commands: " Courtiers, I shall send her as an offering
To the Dragon Kings of the four seas to atone for my sins.
Let a box maker make a fine jade box. "
The queen lays the baby within it,
At its mouth a jade bottle with milk from her breasts,
And ties to her coat strings a slip
Inscribed with the month and hour of birth.
Her Majesty then pleads:
" How can you cast your own child into the sea?
Let some childless minister adopt her; or,
If she must be abandoned, at least give her a name. "
" Paridogi, the throwaway, Tojidogi, the castaway. "
Loosely she closes the jade box with the golden turtle lock
And engraves in golden letters: " The Seventh Princess. "
The Minister of Rites is called in.
He receives three cups of royal wine and takes the box on his back.
He leaves the palace gate but does not know where to go.
Then crows and magpies bow their heads to lead him,
And grasses and trees bend down.
One thousand tricents, two thousand tricents,
Three thousand tricents they go.
Kalch'i Mount and Kalchi'i Pass, Pulch'i Mount and Pulch'i Pass.
Heave-ho heave-ho, he goes, calling the name of Amit─übha.
He crosses the pass and then moves on,
Before them the River of Yellow Springs,
Behind, the River of Flowing Sands.
He casts her in the magpie shoals in the sea of blood.
First the foams rise; then pillars of waves surge high;
Third, the waters turn blood-red.
Thunder and lightning quake.
Suddenly a golden turtle appears and bearing the box upon its back
Swims off somewhere into the Eastern Sea.
Crows and magpies gather to cushion her with one wing
And cover her with the other.
At night, clouds and fog lay thick,
Daytime clouds and fog lay thick.
World-Honored ┼ø─ükyamuni is touring the four seas
With the honored Maudgaly─üyana and K─ü┼øyapa
And has come to bestow babies on human beings.
" What is it over there,
What makes the crows and magpies cry so long
And a wondrous light shine in the air?
If human, it is one favored by heaven,
If beast, it is one favored by heaven,
If spirit, it is one favored by heaven.
Go and see what it is. "
" Lacking the virtue, we can see nothing. "
Then holding the Yellow Scripture in his hand,
┼ø─ükyamuni looks at west village over the great ocean
As they row their stone boat speedily.
A jade box is left there!
" If this were a boy I would make him my disciple;
But being a girl she is no use to me. "
He hides the box in the hollow of a hazel tree.
Hemp skullcap pulled down,
Purple packs upon their backs,
Singing the songs of hell,
An old man and woman who pray for merits pass by.
World-Honored ┼ø─ükyamuni asks:
" Are you human or are you ghost? "
" We are not ghosts, nor beasts.
We're old man and woman praying for merit
And guarding this mountain. "
World-Honored ┼ø─ükyamuni speaks:
" Tell me, what is merit?
Build a bridge over deep waters to help the traveler,
Build a monastery to save mankind. Clothe the naked,
Feed the hungry, give water to the thirsty.
But to nourish the baby who has no mother's milk
Is the greatest merit of all.
How about taking this child and raising it? "
The old man and woman reply:
" In spring, summer, and fall we live in the fields,
In winter we stay in a cave. "
" If you keep and raise this child,
You will have food to eat and clothes to wear,
And a small thatched cottage will appear. "
In an instant, ┼ø─ükyamuni is gone.
Clearly it is the Buddha's power.
They hear the baby's cries
Among green willows and yellow cuckoo,
Between the willows where yellow birds fly.
They find a jade box where the sounds come,
Examine it to find that the golden turtle lock is ajar.
Aejung Scripture for the parents,
Loyalty Scripture for the country,
Love Scripture for the wife and children,
And Ch'onji P'aryang Scripture ,
They chant them all one by one,
And without a key the jade box opens.
They look inside: red ants fill her eyes,
Worms and snakes coil around her waist.
They wash her from bottom to top
In the current of Long Flowing Stream,
Shed their long-sleeved cassock and wash her twice more,
Taking off their long-sleeved fin garments,
And when they carry her and turn around,
A small cottage exquisitely stands there.
Eight, nine years go by.
Untaught, she is versed in the science of the heavens and the earth
As well as all the secret military arts.
One day she asks, " Grandma, Grandpa,
Even flying birds and crawling insects have their own parents.
Where is my own mom, where is my own dad?
Find me my parents, please. "
" Grandpa is your dad and Grandma your mom. "
" Grandma and Grandpa, please don't lie.
How can such old people have a child like me? "
Being childless and lonely, they hoped to rely on her.
" Heaven is your dad, and earth your mom. "
" Heaven and earth give birth to myriad things,
But how can they give birth to a human being?
Grandma and grandpa, please tell me the truth. "
" You cut a bamboo stalk in Cholla province,
Cut both ends to make a staff and hold it
Through three years' mourning for a dead father.
Cholla bamboo is your dad, and
Your mom is the paulownia on the back hill. "
" The Cholla bamboo is far, far away,
I cannot inquire after it three times a day. "
So the child daily sends regards
To the paulownia tree on the back hill.
Time flows like a river, and the girl is now fifteen.
One day they see in the child's washbasin
The sun and moon fallen there.
Thus time flows on like a river.
Their Majesties are gravely ill.
The king commands, " Go consult the shaman of Ch'onha palace. "
" Please bestow the gifts. "
He sends five strings of silver coin and five of gold,
One ch'i and one p'un of cloth for the cassock,
Three toe and three hop of pearls,
Three feet and three inches of silk —
They go bearing these royal gifts
To shaman Taji of Ch'onha palace,
And shaman Moran of Chesok palace.
They cast pearls and grains of white rice on the white jade tray:
The first throw yields the shaman's fortune,
The second tells of upper and lower gates,
The third the fortune of two majesties.
" When it comes to pass Your Majesty will see
As surely as the sun sets in the West Sea
And the moon rises from the East Sea.
Your Majesties will die on the same day and hour.
Go find the seventh princess where you abandoned her. "
Thus they report to the king and queen.
" If only we had left her on level ground,
Our ministers could find her.
But who can find her now? "
Both Majesties dream on the same day and time:
Six azure-clad boys descend from the beam of Great Bright Hall
And bow before them. Their Majesties ask,
" Are you human or are you ghosts?
Even flying birds cannot enter here;
Why did you come in? "
" We are not human beings nor ghosts.
We're the azure-clad boys of heaven,
Who came at the Jade Emperor's bidding
To take Your Majesty's life tablet
To store it in the city of dead. "
" But why is it so?
Did some ministers send a message of grievance?
Or the people complain about me? "
" Neither the people's complaint nor the minister's grievance.
You sinned when you cast out the child sent by heaven,
So you will take ill and die
On the same day and at the same hour. "
" But how can we be saved? "
" Seek the child and take her back.
When you seek the elixir of Three Blessed Mounts,
The sacred water of Peerless Transcendent,
The magic pearl of the Dragon King of the Eastern Sea,
The kayam plant of Mount Pongnae,
And the suru plant of Ana Mountain.
When you eat of these you'll be saved. "
Suddenly they awake; it was an empty dream.
At dawn the king summons his ministers:
" If one of you finds the abandoned child,
We'll reward him a thousand gold coins
And enfeoffment of myriad households.
Indeed, I shall grant him half the kingdom. "
The ministers are silent.
" He who brings only the sacred water
Will be lord of myriad households. "
" The Eastern Sea Dragon palace is a heavenly place,
The Western Sea Dragon palace is also a heavenly place.
Though we die we cannot go there.
We would gladly look for her on flat land,
But who can find an abandoned child among the waters? "
Then the Minister of Rites speaks:
" For many generations my house has served the throne,
How can I sit idly now?
I shall find the princess, even if I perish on the way. "
" What would you like to take with you? "
Bearing letters from the king, queen, and six princesses
And the small clothes of the seventh princess,
Escorted by palace ladies two by two,
They leave through the five garrison gates and palace gate,
But they do not know where to go.
Then crows and magpies bow their heads to guide them,
And grasses and trees bend down to lead them.
A country of a thousand tricents of mountains and rivers,
Mountains rise fold upon fold,
The cuckoo cries sadly.
Golden warblers flit among the willows,
Before the River of Yellow Springs,
Behind the River of Flowing Sands.
Kalch'i Mount and Kalch'i Pass,
Pulch'i Mount and Pulch'i Pass.
Invoking the name of Amit─übha,
At last they come to Taesang Cloister.
An old man and woman praying for merit ask:
" Are you human or are you ghosts?
How have you come where
Flying birds and crawling insects cannot enter? "
" I've come to take you upon the king's orders. "
" If I am indeed the daughter of a king,
Great were my sins to have been cast out the moment I was born. "
" I bring the jacket you wore as a seven-day baby. "
" How am I to recognize it? "
" I bring the record of the month and hour of your birth. "
" How am I to remember it? "
" I bring letters from the king, queen, and six princesses. "
" What do their letters mean to me? Bring me a sign! "
He has a golden vessel with drops of blood
From the thumbs of the king and queen.
He pricks the child's fourth finger:
The bloods blend and blossom like a cloud.
Now the girl agrees to go.
" Shall we await your command with the royal guards?
Shall we await your command with the princess's palanquin? "
" I who was cast out at birth,
What use have I for a palanquin?
Give me a horse, I shall ride alone. "
She follows the Minister of Rites and presents herself at the palace gate.
The king and queen command: " Let the princess come in quickly. "
They grasp each other's hands and shed royal tears.
" Did we abandon you in hatred? No, it was in anger.
We cast you out in anger. How did you bear the cold?
How did you bear the heat?
How did you bear the hunger?
How did you bear the longing for your parents? "
" I lived by the merit of an old man and woman. "
A country of a thousand tricents of mountains and rivers,
Cruel time rushes past.
The illness of Their Majesties is grave.
" All the officials, ladies-in-waiting, and people —
Will you fetch the sacred water of Peerless Transcendent to save the country? "
" That is not a medicine of this world.
How can we obtain it? "
They call the eldest princess: " Will you go to save your parents? "
" How can I go where three thousand court ladies cannot go? "
They call the second princess: " Will you go to save your parents? "
" How can I go where my elder sister cannot go? "
They call the third princess: " Will you go to save your parents? "
" How can I go where my two elder sisters cannot go? "
They call the fourth princess: " Will you go to save your parents? "
" How can I go where my three elder sisters cannot go? "
They call the fifth princess: " Will you go to save your parents? "
" How can I go where my four sisters cannot? "
They call the sixth princess: " Will you go to save your parents? "
" How can I go where my five elder sisters cannot? "
They call the seventh princess: " Will you go to save your parents? "
" I have no debt to this country.
But I'm grateful to my mother who bore me for ten months.
I shall go for my mother's sake. "
" Would you have the royal guards or the princess's palanquin? "
" I shall ride alone, " she says.
She wears a coarse top and bottom and outer coat,
Binds her hair in double knots,
With a bamboo hat and an iron staff,
And a silver backpack with golden straps.
She receives the signatures of the king and queen and binds them to her belt,
She receives the signatures of six princesses and binds them to her belt.
" Six elder sisters, three thousand court ladies,
Even if Their Majesties die on the same day and same hour,
Do not perform a funeral but await my return. "
She bids farewell to the king, queen, and six princesses
And gallops out the palace gate but doesn't know where to go.
Oh and alas, one among the dead,
If it follows the seventh princess,
With prayer for rebirth in the Pure Land of the West,
Then it becomes a man and enters the Land of Happiness
Upon this very day.
She brandishes her staff once and goes a thousand tricents,
She brandishes it twice and two thousand tricents,
She brandishes it thrice and three thousand tricents.
What is the season now? It is the third month of spring, a pleasant time.
Plum and peach are in bloom,
Fragrant flowers and grasses wave gently.
Yellow warblers fly among the willows,
Parrots and peacocks preen, the cuckoo calls its mate.
The sun sets over the western mountain,
And the moon rises from the eastern peak.
She sits and scans far-off a golden rock
Covered with low pines with even branches.
There ┼ø─ükyamuni explains the dharma
To bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha and Buddha Amitābha,
She draws near and bows thrice three times.
" Are you a human being or ghost? "
Here where flying birds and crawling insects cannot enter,
How did you come? "
" I am His Majesty's heir apparent on a mission of filial service.
Now I have lost my way.
Please, guide me by your grace. "
World-Honored ┼ø─ükyamuni replies:
" I have heard that the king has seven girls,
But this is the first I've heard of an heir apparent.
When they cast you out at the west village of the Great Sea,
I saved your wretched life.
But that was then.
You traversed three thousand tricents on level earth,
But how can you go three thousand tricents of steep path? "
" Though I die on the way, I will go. "
" Take this gift of a udumbara flower.
When you come to a great sea, wave this flower
And the sea will become hard ground. "
Before her she sees walls of thorns and iron, reaching to the sky.
She remembers the Buddha's words and waves the flower:
Armless demons, legless demons, eyeless demons,
A hundred million demons jump and croak like frogs,
Open the gates of Hell of Knife Mountain
And Hell of Fire Mountain,
The eight thousand four hundred hells.
Souls headed for ten kings of hell are sent there,
Souls destined for the hell are sent there.
Oh and alas! One soul among the dead,
With rotten ears and rotten mouth,
If it hears prayers and repeats them to all the bodhisattvas,
It follows Princess Pari and enters
The Pure Land of the West, the Land of Happiness,
On this very day.
She views a place afar —
To the east a gate of blue glass,
To the west a gate of white glass,
To the south a gate of red glass,
To the north a gate of black glass,
And in the center the gate of chastity,
And there stands the Peerless Transcendent.
His height seems to reach the sky,
Face like a rice cake, eyes like an oil cup for a lamp,
Nose like a clay bottle, hands large as kettle lids,
Feet three feet and three inches long,
So dreadful and frightful he is.
She backs away and bows three times.
Peerless Transcendent asks:
" Are you a human being or ghost that you enter here
Where flying birds and crawling insects cannot?
How did you enter and where do you come from? "
" I am an heir apparent on a mission of filial service. "
" If you came to fetch the water, what payment do you bring?
And for the herbs what payment do you bring? "
" In my haste I forgot to bring anything. "
" Then draw the water for three years,
Tend the fire for three years,
Gather the herbs for three years. "
After thrice three years of life here,
The Peerless Transcendent speaks to her:
" You seem a prince behind, but a woman before.
Why not tie a marriage bond,
Bear me seven sons and then return? How about that? "
" If that's for my parents' sake, I'll do it. "
Heaven and earth for canopy, creepers for a pillow,
Grass for bed, a cloud bank for shade,
The morning star for lamp.
In the first watch she gives her consent,
In the second watch she stays,
And throughout the night they tie the marriage knot.
She bears seven sons, and one day she speaks,
" However great our love may be,
I have delayed my mission for my parents.
I dreamed in the first watch a silver bowl was shattered
And in the second a silver spoon broken.
Surely the king and queen must have died at the same time.
I must hurry now to save them. "
" Take it in your golden crock,
The water you drew is healing water.
Take the herbs you gathered
For they bring flesh and bone to life.
But first, won't you view the sea with me? "
" I don't care to view the sea. "
" Then come view the back hill's flowers. "
" I don't care to see the flowers. "
" I lived alone as a bachelor,
But now, how can eight bachelors live?
Please, take seven boys with you. "
" I'll do that for my parents' sake. "
Big children walk and small ones are carried on backs.
Then the Peerless Transcendent asks her,
" What if I were to follow you? "
" It is said that wife should follow husband;
For my parents' sake let it be so.
I came alone, now nine bodies return. "
Before the River of Yellow Springs,
Behind the River of Flowing Sands.
Princess Pari asks, " What are those boats row on row
Over the Magpie Shoal in the Sea of Blood? "
" Those carry souls that in the former life
Were filial to parents, loyal to the state,
Loved their brothers, and kept harmony in their homes. "
Oh and alas! One among the dead goes forth,
At the first shrine receives the ritual coins,
At the second the preliminary purification ritual
At the third feed to three messengers of the underworld,
The iron gate, the bamboo gate, lotus hall,
The forty-ninth day ritual to the soul of the dead.
He receives gold and silver coins,
Invokes the name of the Buddha, and
Rides the boat to the Pure Land of the West, the Land of Happiness.
She asks, " Those bottomless boats upon the Sea of Blood,
Crying like summer frogs as they go,
What boats are they? "
" Those carry souls who in the former life were unfilial,
Betrayed the state, didn't love their brothers,
Gave with small measure and took with large measure,
Gave bad rice for alms and harmed others.
Now those boats carry their souls crying
To the hundred million four thousand hells. "
" And what are those boats without rowers? "
" Those are the boats of souls
Who in the former life had no offspring,
And now drift on the sea. "
" Herdboys on Mount Ch'o,
In the capital's broad square over there,
Why are the people gathered? "
" We'll tell you if you pay a toll. "
" And what's the toll? "
She gives them seven feet and seven inches of silk
That strapped the baby to her back.
Then the herdboy speaks:
" Unborn babies may not know it,
But those come forth from the womb know
That the king and queen died on the same day
And today is the state funeral.
Are you a human being or ghost?
The seventh princess has gone three thousand tricents to seek the sacred water,
But there is no news whether she is alive or dead. "
Startled, the seventh princess hastens.
Hiding seven sons in a thicket
And the Peerless Transcendent in the forest,
She stares at the funeral flags — indeed, they're the king's,
She sees the dragon robe and dirge — they're the king's.
Loosening their hair, they announce death.
" Ladies-in-waiting, attend within the curtains,
People and ministers, guard outside the curtains,
Lower the small bier, lower the large bier. "
She raises the coffin lid and drives the people back,
Loosens the seven knots that bind each corpse,
Infuses breath into their flesh,
Infuses breath into their bones,
Inserts magic pearls into their eyes,
Pours sacred water into their mouths,
And they revive at the same time.
The king arises, " I've slept deep.
Have we come out to view the sea
Or to view flowers on the back hill? "
" Not to view the sea, nor the flowers;
Your Majesties died, and we're in the funeral procession.
The seventh princess went three thousand tricents
To the Weakwater to obtain the sacred water,
And you have revived on this day and hour. "
His Majesty cancels the funeral, declares it an outing,
And returns to T'ongmyong Hall,
And the queen to the inner palace.
The officials and three thousand court ladies all shout,
" Long live the king! "
Myriad people cry in unison, " Long live the king! "
His Majesty summons the seventh princess:
" All my officials and ministers have inquired after us,
Why has the seventh princess not come? "
" She has sinned, she married the Peerless Transcendent
And bore him seven sons. "
" The sin is not yours but mine.
Should I give you half of my kingdom?
Or all fabric brought through the four great gates? "
" Had I once held the kingdom, I'd now desire it.
Had I once had the clothes, I'd want them.
But I never knew fine food and clothes at my parents' knee,
So I will become the progenitor of shamans. "
Above on the hundredth day, she leads the living to paradise,
Below on the six fast days she leads the dead to paradise.
Above, embroidered jacket made from Chinese silk,
Below, a long skirt, embroidered shoes, and a staff,
A bell at her hand, broad red sash at her waist,
A fifty-ribbed fan in one hand,
She governs all shamans.
" Present the Peerless Transcendent, my son-in-law, " the king commands.
" His gauze cap will catch upon the south gate. "
" Dig out the soil beneath the gate and enter. "
" His waist will hit the sides of the north gate. "
" Pull down the sides and have him enter. "
The Transcendent stands in the broad court before T'ongmyong Hall.
His height is great.
" Messengers, measure the height of the princess and our son-in-law. "
" His height is thirty-three heavens and thirty-three feet.
The princess's is twenty-eight lunar mansions and twenty-eight feet. "
" Then you are indeed a heaven-joined pair,
For the prince who measures to the thirty-three heavens,
Ring the cymbals;
For the princess who measures to the twenty-eight lunar mansions,
Ring the large gong. "
The king grants them food and garments.
" The son-in-law will have offerings on the road
With many dishes on the large table.
World-Honored ┼ø─ükyamuni shall receive
The first, second, forty-ninth, and one hundredth day rites.
Herdboy Kangnim on a hill with peaches and plums
Shall receive the seven feet seven inch silk towel,
Grandma praying for merit shall have hemp cloths
At the gate of thorns and of iron.
Grandpa praying for merit shall have
Offerings of polch'o namhyang .
And seven sons, two ton and one p'un of money offerings. "
In the first court, Great King Kuang of Ch'in,
Hear the prayers of my myriad subjects,
Preach the dharma to ferry all living beings across.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
In the second court, Great King of the First River,
Hear the prayers of my myriad subjects,
Preach the dharma to ferry all living beings across.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
In the third court, Great King Ti of Sung,
Hear the prayers of my myriad subjects,
Preach the dharma to ferry all living beings across.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
In the fourth court, Great King of Five Offices,
Hear the prayers of my myriad subjects,
Preach the dharma to ferry all living beings across.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
In the fifth court, Great King Yama,
Hear the prayers of my myriad subjects,
Preach the dharma to ferry all living beings across.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
In the sixth court, Great King of Transformation,
Hear the prayers of my myriad subjects,
Preach the dharma to ferry all living beings across.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
In the seventh court, Great King of Mount T'ai,
Hear the prayers of my myriad subjects,
Preach the dharma to ferry all living being across.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
In the eighth court, Great Impartial King,
Hear the prayers of my myriad subjects,
Preach the dharma to ferry all living beings across.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
In the ninth court, Great King of the Capital,
Hear the prayers of my myriad subjects,
Preach the dharma to ferry all living beings across.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
In the tenth court, Great King Who Turns the Wheel of Rebirth,
Hear the prayers of my myriad subjects,
Preach the dharma to ferry all living beings across.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
Hear the prayers of my myriad subjects,
Preach the dharma to ferry all living beings across.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
Released from three years' mourning,
Consoling the spirits in the underworld,
Released from ancestors' cause of grievance,
From the karma of earthly existence,
The dead man sheds his head cover, the dead woman her yomo cap,
With prayers for rebirth in the Land of Happiness,
When you go to the Pure Land,
Open the gate of Knife Hell and the gate of Fire Hell,
Open the gate of Poisonous Snakes and the gate of Ice Cold,
When you go to the Land of Happiness.
The wide dark road leads to hell,
The bright narrow road to the Land of Happiness,
The bright large road to heavenly palace on Milky Way.
Leave aside the wide dark road, take the bright large,
When the road spirit detains you,
Offer the straw sandals from your feet;
When the lady of the grave detains you,
Offer seven outer knots and seven inner knots,
Untie fourteen knots and present them to her.
When an evil spirit detains you,
Offer your undershirt.
When the mountain spirit detains you,
Offer your funeral banners and wooden fan.
When you meet the earth spirit,
Give him upper and lower shrouds,
When you come to the great rocks and sharp rocks,
Offer a bag of your toenails, fingernails, and hair.
When you reach the twelve gates,
Offer three thousand monks' caps.
When you reach the great king's hall,
Transmit meditation practice at Chongt'o Monastery
And the cultivator's mystic syllables.
With wet rotten mouth and wet rotten ears,
Invoke the Buddha's name as you go in.
Don't follow the immortal officials robed in blue,
But follow the ones robed in red.
Take the road of the red-robed officials.
Though flourishing rhododendron, azalea, cockscomb, balsam,
Pine, juniper, and cedar thickly line the way,
Don't pluck the flowering twigs,
Don't look behind you,
Go to the high supreme Lotus Terrace,
Seek an immortal lady to become an immortal, and enter the Jasper Lake.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
Word by word, line by line, with rotten ears and mouth,
Recite the prayers as you go:
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
First, I cleanse the east, purifying it to a place of worship,
Second, I cleanse the south and obtain coolness,
Third, I cleanse the west and complete the Pure Land,
Fourth, I cleanse the north and become eternally healthy.
As this place of enlightenment is purified, without flaw or maculation,
I now keep and recite these sublime mystic syllables,
Vowing to bestow love and compassion and secretly watch over everyone.
Bodhisattva Who Observes the Sounds of the World
With a Thousand Hands and Eyes!
Homage to Buddha Amit─übha,
Homage to Buddha Amit─übha,
Homage to Buddha Amit─übha.
I lead the former dead, later dead, all the dead ancestors,
Generation after generation, son after son,
This is the day they go to the Land of Happiness.
And the temple's origin is in the southwest.
Know the heavens!
Above, the indra heaven, blow, the twenty-eight mansions,
The great generals of eight directions, Namong and Muong, all have guarded it.
South of the Yangtze lies the Great Han; east of the sea lies Choson.
The clan site of the founder of Choson is
Yonghŭng, near Tanch'on, in Hamgyong province.
Above, on the hundredth memorial day, I lead the living to paradise.
Below, on the days of offering, I lead the dead to paradise.
Red mountain wine made of red peonies, white mountain wine made of white peonies,
Quietly burning candles, incense fragrance, a cup of wine, and wailing,
Today is the day of hope for the spirits.
Kyonggi has thirty-seven counties, and Yangju is a large one,
Ch'angdok palace, Ch'anghye palace, Kyongbok palace, Kyongdok palace,
The lower palace and upper palace, tablets in the royal ancestral shrine,
Altars of Soil and Grain —
Our king has succeeded to them all.
Their Majesties the king and queen have put on years,
The audience hall is silent, the queen's chamber empty.
The crown prince is fifteen years old.
" Where are the world's great diviners?
Go and ask our fortune, " commands the king.
The ladies-in-waiting reply,
" We have our nameplates, please grant a list of gifts. "
What are the gifts?
Five strings of silver coin and five of gold,
Three toe and three hop of pearls,
One ch'i and five p'un of cloth for the cassock,
Three feet and three inches of silk he bestows.
They go bearing these royal gifts
To shaman Taji of Ch'onha palace, shaman Moran of Chesok palace,
Shamaness Sosil of Chiha palace, and shaman Kangnim of Myongdo palace.
They cast pearls and grains of white rice on the white jade tray:
The first sign yields the shaman's fortunes,
The second tells of upper and lower gates,
The third tells the fortune of two majesties.
" I fear to tell you but cannot deceive you.
If you hold a marriage ceremony in an unlucky year,
You'll have seven princesses.
If in a lucky year, three princes. "
Thus they inform the king.
" One moment is long as three autumns, one day as ten.
How can we await an auspicious year? "
The king calls all his officials
And orders the office of astrologer to choose a day.
On the third day of the third month is the first selection;
On the fifth day of the fifth month, the second selection;
On the seventh day of the seventh month
When the Herdboy and Weaver meet
On the bridge built by crows and magpies,
The chief of royal weddings makes the third selection.
Three thousand troops on the low road,
Five thousand on the high road,
Cavalry in rows of five guard the royal carriage.
Courtiers in black belt prepare the bridal room in a separate palace.
The geese are presented on the jade table, the nuptial cups exchanged.
All the officials cry, " Long live the king! "
His Majesty returns to T'ongmyong Hall,
And the queen to the inner palace.
And the people cry, " Long live the king! "
Time flows like a river, heartless time flows like a stream.
In a gust of wind three summer months have passed,
And strange symptoms appear in the queen
The royal rice tastes raw,
The royal water tastes foul,
Golden glow tobacco tastes like grass,
The royal soup tastes like soy sauce.
" Present the fruits of five hundred bearing trees
Brought through the four great gates to the inner palace. "
Among mandarin duck adorned quilts and pillows,
A breeze at the east window cannot reach the west window.
When ladies-in-waiting inform His Majesty, he orders,
" Consult the shaman of Ch'onha palace! "
Shaman Taji of Ch'onha palace, shaman Moran of Chesok palace,
They cast coral beads on the jade tray.
The first sign yields the shaman's fortune,
The second tells of upper and lower gates,
The third yields the royal fortune:
" When it comes to pass Your Majesty will know —
Had you married next year, a year of auspice,
A prince would've been born to rule with two brothers.
But you married in an unlucky year, so you will have the first princess. "
Ladies-in-waiting report these words to both Their Majesties.
" What do they know? " they retort.
One, two months pass; in the third the fetus forms.
Small bones seem to melt, big bones squeezed.
Five and a half months pass;
" Midwives of the inner and outer chambers,
Royal messengers and servants,
All the officials and three thousand court ladies
Inquire at the inner palace morning, noon, and night. "
After seven months, after nine months,
Black silk supports before, blue silk supports behind,
" Present all fabrics entering the four great gates to the inner palace! "
Prisoners are released in every town, the royal academy closed,
Ten months have passed, the delivery room is ready.
After an easy labor and birth,
The queen turns around — a princess is born.
Ladies-in-waiting and three thousand court ladies
Announce to His Majesty the princess's birth.
His Majesty commands:
" Inquire of the queen her dreams. "
The queen replies, " I dreamed of this one day:
From one shoulder rose the moon,
And from the other rose the sun. "
The king commands:
" To hold and carry, walk and nurse the baby,
The court lady for the royal son-in-law and supervision.
Blue silk supports before, black silk supports behind,
Among silk screens in the inner room,
Raise this baby with utmost care. "
" May we humbly ask you to name this child? "
" Her name is Princess Pink Peach, another name Moon Girl. "
Oh and alas! One soul among the dead,
Upon the first princess's birth
Released from three years' mourning, consoling the spirits in the underworld,
From ancestors' cause of grievance,
From the karma of earthly existence,
The dead man sheds his head cover, the dead woman her yomo cap,
With prayers for rebirth in the Land of Happiness,
Becomes a man and journeys to Amit─übha's Pure Land,
Upon this very day.
Time flows like river, the princess is three years old.
Strange symptoms appear in the queen.
Among mandarin duck embroidered quilts and pillows,
A breeze at the east window cannot reach the west window.
Small bones seem to melt, big bones squeezed.
The royal rice tastes raw,
The royal water tastes foul,
Golden glow tobacco tastes like grass,
The royal soup tastes like soy sauce.
" Present the fruits of five hundred bearing trees
Brought through the four great gates to the inner palace. "
In three months, the fetus forms;
Five and a half months pass;
After seven months, after nine months,
The delivery room and six physicians are ready.
" Ladies-in-waiting and eunuchs
Attend the queen morning, noon, and night. "
In the tenth month, pearl-sewn recliner cast aside,
Labor and birth over, the queen turns around to view the baby:
The second princess is born.
" I've given birth to girls. Surely I'll have a boy soon. "
" To hold and carry, walk and nurse this baby,
The court lady for the royal son-in-law and supervision.
Black silk supports before, blue silk supports behind,
Among silk screens in the inner room,
Raise this baby with utmost care. "
Oh and alas! One soul among the dead,
Upon the second princess's birth,
Pushes open the gates of Knife Mountain Hell,
The gates of Eighty-Four Thousand Hells, and
Journeys to Amit─übha's Pure Land, the Land of Happiness.
Time flows like a dream,
The second princess is three years old.
Strange symptoms appear again in the queen.
Among mandarin duck embroidered quilts and pillows,
A breeze at the east window cannot reach the west window.
Small bones seem to melt, big bones squeezed.
The royal rice tastes raw,
The royal water tastes foul,
Golden glow tobacco tastes like grass,
The royal soup tastes like soy sauce.
" Present the fruits of five hundred bearing trees
Brought through the four great gates to the inner palace. "
In three months, the fetus forms;
Five and a half months pass;
After seven months, after nine months,
The delivery room and six physicians are ready.
" Ladies-in-waiting and eunuchs
Attend the queen morning, noon, and night. "
In the tenth month, pearl-sewn recliner cast aside,
Labor and birth over, the queen turns around to view the baby:
The third princess is born.
" I've given birth to girls. Surely I'll have a boy soon. "
" To hold and carry, walk and nurse the baby,
The court lady for the royal son-in-law and supervision.
Blue silk supports before, black silk supports behind,
Among silk screens in the inner room,
Raise this baby with utmost care. "
Oh and alas! One soul among the dead,
Upon the third princess's birth,
Pushes open the gates of Knife Mountain Hell,
The gates of Eighty-Four Thousand Hells, and
Journeys to Amit─übha's Pure Land, the Land of Happiness.
Time flows like a dream,
The third princess is three years old.
Strange symptoms appear in the queen.
Among mandarin duck embroidered quilts and pillows,
A breeze at the east window cannot reach the west window.
Small bones seem to melt, big bones squeezed.
The royal rice tastes raw,
The royal water tastes foul,
Golden glow tobacco tastes like grass,
The royal soup tastes like soy sauce.
" Present the fruits of five hundred bearing trees
Brought through the four great gates to the inner palace. "
The ladies-in-waiting inform His Majesty.
" Consult the diviner of Ch'onha palace. "
" Please, bestow the gifts, " they ask.
He sends five strings of silver coin, five of gold,
Three toe and three hop of pearls,
One foot and one inch of cloth for the cassock,
Three feet and three inches of silk he bestows.
They go bearing these royal gifts
To shaman Taji of Ch'onha palace, shamaness Sosil of Chiha palace,
Shaman Kangnim of Myongdo palace, and shaman Moran of Chesok palace.
They cast pearls and grains of white rice on the white jade tray:
The first yields the shaman's fortune,
The second tells of upper and lower gates,
The third tells the royal fortune.
" I fear to tell you but cannot deceive you.
You should have married in a year of auspice;
Since you married in an unlucky year,
The fourth princess will be born. "
Ladies-in-waiting report these words to both Their Majesties:
" What do they know? " they retort.
One and two months pass, and in three months
The fetus forms;
Five and a half months pass;
" Midwives of inner and outer chambers,
Royal messengers and servants,
All the officials and three thousand court ladies
Inquire at the inner palace morning, noon, and night. "
After seven months, after nine full months,
Blue silk supports before, black silk supports behind,
" Present all cloths entering the four great gates to the inner palace. "
Ten months have passed, the delivery room is ready,
Labor and birth over, the queen turns around to view the baby:
The fourth princess is born.
" I've given birth to girls. Surely I'll have a boy soon. "
" To hold and carry, walk and nurse the baby,
The court lady for the royal son-in-law and supervision.
Black silk supports before, blue silk supports behind,
Among silk screens in the inner room,
Raise this baby too with utmost care. "
Oh and alas! One among the dead,
Upon this princess's birth
Released from three years' mourning, consoling the spirits in the underworld,
From ancestors' cause of grievance,
From the karma of earthly existence,
The dead man sheds his head cover, the dead woman her yomo cap,
With prayers for rebirth in the Land of Happiness,
Becomes a man and journeys to Amit─übha's Pure Land,
Upon this very day.
Heartless time flows like a stream, like a dream,
The fourth princess is three years old.
Strange symptoms appear in the queen.
Among mandarin duck embroidered quilts and pillows,
A breeze at the east window cannot reach the west window.
Small bones seem to melt, big bones squeezed.
The royal rice tastes raw,
The royal water tastes foul,
Golden glow tobacco tastes like grass,
The royal soup tastes like soy sauce.
" Present the fruits of five hundred bearing trees
Brought through the four great gates to the inner palace. "
In three months, the fetus forms;
Five and a half months pass.
After seven months, after nine months,
She rejects the pearl-sewn bolster.
Ten months pass, and after labor and birth,
The queen turns around to view the baby:
Another princess is born.
" I've given birth to girls. Surely I'll have a boy soon. "
" To hold and carry, walk and nurse the baby,
The court lady for the royal son-in-law and supervision.
Blue silk supports before, black silk supports behind,
Among silk screens in the inner room,
Raise this baby with utmost care. "
Oh and alas! One among the dead,
Upon the birth of the fifth princess,
Released from three years' mourning,
consoling the spirits in the underworld,
From ancestors' cause of grievance,
From the karma of earthly existence,
The dead man sheds his head cover, the dead woman her yomo cap,
With prayers for rebirth in the Land of Happiness,
Becomes a man and journeys to Amit─übha's Pure Land,
Upon this very day.
Time flows like a river, the princess is three years old.
Strange symptoms appear in the queen.
Among mandarin duck embroidered quilts and pillows,
A breeze at the east window cannot reach the west window.
The ladies-in-waiting inform His Majesty.
" Consult the diviner of Ch'onha palace! "
" Please, bestow the gifts, " they ask.
Five strings of silver coin, five of gold,
Three toe and three hop of pearls,
Three feet and three inches of silk,
And one ch'i and one p'un of cloth for the cassock.
They go bearing these royal gifts
To shaman Taji of Ch'onha palace, shamaness Sosil of Chiha palace,
Shaman Moran of Chesok palace, shaman Kangnim of Myongdo palace.
They cast pearls and grains of white rice on the white jade tray:
The first throw yields the shaman's fortune,
The second tells of upper and lower gates,
The third tells the fortune of two majesties.
" Her Majesty is indeed with child;
But since you married in an unlucky year,
The sixth princess will be born. "
" What do they know? " they retort.
One and two months pass, the fetus forms in the third,
Five and a half months pass;
" Midwives of inner and outer chambers,
Royal messengers and servants,
All the officials and three thousand court ladies
Inquire at the inner palace morning, noon, and night. "
After seven months, after nine full months,
Blue silk supports before, black silk supports behind,
" Present all cloths entering the four great gates to the inner palace. "
Ten months have passed, the delivery room is ready,
Labor and birth over, the queen turns around to view the baby:
Another princess is born.
" I've given birth to girls. Surely I'll have a boy soon. "
" To hold and carry, walk and nurse the baby,
The court lady for the royal son-in-law and supervision.
Among silk screens in the inner room,
Raise this baby too with utmost care. "
Oh and alas! One among the dead,
Upon the sixth princess's birth
Released from three years' mourning, consoling the spirits in the underworld,
From ancestors' cause of grievance,
From the karma of earthly existence,
The dead man sheds his head cover, the dead woman her yomo cap,
With prayers for rebirth in the Land of Happiness,
Becomes a man and journeys to Amit─übha's Pure Land,
Upon this very day.
The country of a thousand tricents of mountains and rivers,
Time flows by like a dream.
All six princesses are invested.
The queen again has strange symptoms.
Among mandarin duck embroidered quilts and pillows,
A breeze at the east window cannot reach the west window.
Small bones seem to melt, big bones squeezed.
The royal rice tastes raw,
The royal water tastes foul,
Golden glow tobacco tastes like grass,
The royal soup tastes like soy sauce.
" Present the fruits of five hundred bearing trees
Brought through the four great gates to the inner palace! "
Her face, once fair as lotus,
Is now gaunt, pitiful to view.
With her delicate body how can she endure?
His Majesty asks, " What are your dreams? "
" I saw perched on my right hand a purple falcon,
And on my left hand a white falcon.
I saw a golden turtle resting on my knees,
And the sun and moon rising from my shoulders.
On the main beam of Great Bright Hall,
I saw entwined blue and gold dragons. "
This time the dream portends a prince.
" Ladies-in-waiting, consult the shaman of Ch'onha palace. "
" Please, bestow the gifts, " they ask.
Five strings of silver coin, five of gold,
Three toe and three hop of pearls,
One ch'i and one p'un of cloth for the cassock,
Three feet and three inches of silk he bestows.
They go bearing these royal gifts
To shaman Taji of Ch'onha palace, shamaness Sosil of Chiha palace,
Shaman Moran of Chesok palace, and shaman Kangnim of Myongdo palace.
They cast pearls and grains of white rice on the white jade tray:
The first throw yields the shaman's fortune;
The second tells of upper and lower gates;
The third tells the fortune of two majesties.
" You will find out later,
It is clear that the queen is with child,
But since you married in an unlucky year,
She will give birth to a seventh princess. "
So they report to His Majesty.
" However well they divine, what do they know? "
As her dreams foretold,
In the third month the fetus forms.
Five and a half months pass, seven months pass,
Inner and outer delivery rooms and six physicians stand ready.
" Royal messengers and servants
Inquire after the queen morning, noon, and night. "
Proclaim in the five wards, notify eight provinces,
Post it on the four great gates; he approves
That the prison gates be open and prisoners set free.
After the eighth month, after the ninth month,
Now it's the tenth month, and she rejects the pearl-sewn bolster.
Labor and birth over, she turns around to view the baby:
It's the seventh princess.
Her Majesty the queen weeps royal tears.
His Majesty inquires: " Ladies-in-waiting,
In the deep deep deepest recess of the palace
Why is that sound of a woman wailing? "
The ladies-in-waiting reply,
" We fear to tell you but cannot deceive you . . . "
" Ladies-in-waiting, you too are brazen!
How can you face me? "
He strikes the desk with royal hand:
" What sins of my former lives were so great
Heaven has given me seven daughters? "
He scatters his incense box and stands:
" Who'll worship at the altars of soil and grain?
Who will inherit the state and throne?
Who will inherit the country and people? "
His Majesty commands:
" Ladies-in-waiting, three thousand court ladies,
Take that baby and cast her in the rear garden! "
Her Majesty replies:
" They say the state law ignores blood ties
In the interests of the country,
But how can you cast her out?
One among courtiers and ladies-in-waiting,
Take her as foster-child. "
" The state laws are not so,
There's nothing we can do. "
Dressed in the seventh-day culottes and trousers,
A slip inscribed with the time of birth
Tied to her coat strings,
The baby is cast away in the rear garden.
Mountains are deep and waters still.
A sudden gale arises.
Unexpectedly, crows and magpies descend
And cushion her with one wing, cover her with the other.
It is a warm spring day.
With the royal guard and steward, His Majesty
Goes to view blossoms and willows in the rear garden.
To the east he sees a wondrous light in the air
And hears crows and magpies crying loudly.
" A wondrous light in the air bodes well.
What's over there that makes crows and magpies cry noisily? "
Ladies-in-waiting reply:
" You told us to abandon the baby born this time.
We dared not defy your order,
So we cast her away in the rear garden.
One can still hear her cries faintly. "
Her Majesty the queen commands:
" Carry the baby and bring her here. "
Behold, black ants fill her ears,
Golden ants her mouth,
Small ants her eyes.
On Her Majesty's lotus face she let
Pearl-like tears flow two by two.
" They say the state law ignores blood ties
In the interests of the country.
But why cast her out so heartlessly? "
His Majesty commands: " Courtiers, I shall send her as an offering
To the Dragon Kings of the four seas to atone for my sins.
Let a box maker make a fine jade box. "
The queen lays the baby within it,
At its mouth a jade bottle with milk from her breasts,
And ties to her coat strings a slip
Inscribed with the month and hour of birth.
Her Majesty then pleads:
" How can you cast your own child into the sea?
Let some childless minister adopt her; or,
If she must be abandoned, at least give her a name. "
" Paridogi, the throwaway, Tojidogi, the castaway. "
Loosely she closes the jade box with the golden turtle lock
And engraves in golden letters: " The Seventh Princess. "
The Minister of Rites is called in.
He receives three cups of royal wine and takes the box on his back.
He leaves the palace gate but does not know where to go.
Then crows and magpies bow their heads to lead him,
And grasses and trees bend down.
One thousand tricents, two thousand tricents,
Three thousand tricents they go.
Kalch'i Mount and Kalchi'i Pass, Pulch'i Mount and Pulch'i Pass.
Heave-ho heave-ho, he goes, calling the name of Amit─übha.
He crosses the pass and then moves on,
Before them the River of Yellow Springs,
Behind, the River of Flowing Sands.
He casts her in the magpie shoals in the sea of blood.
First the foams rise; then pillars of waves surge high;
Third, the waters turn blood-red.
Thunder and lightning quake.
Suddenly a golden turtle appears and bearing the box upon its back
Swims off somewhere into the Eastern Sea.
Crows and magpies gather to cushion her with one wing
And cover her with the other.
At night, clouds and fog lay thick,
Daytime clouds and fog lay thick.
World-Honored ┼ø─ükyamuni is touring the four seas
With the honored Maudgaly─üyana and K─ü┼øyapa
And has come to bestow babies on human beings.
" What is it over there,
What makes the crows and magpies cry so long
And a wondrous light shine in the air?
If human, it is one favored by heaven,
If beast, it is one favored by heaven,
If spirit, it is one favored by heaven.
Go and see what it is. "
" Lacking the virtue, we can see nothing. "
Then holding the Yellow Scripture in his hand,
┼ø─ükyamuni looks at west village over the great ocean
As they row their stone boat speedily.
A jade box is left there!
" If this were a boy I would make him my disciple;
But being a girl she is no use to me. "
He hides the box in the hollow of a hazel tree.
Hemp skullcap pulled down,
Purple packs upon their backs,
Singing the songs of hell,
An old man and woman who pray for merits pass by.
World-Honored ┼ø─ükyamuni asks:
" Are you human or are you ghost? "
" We are not ghosts, nor beasts.
We're old man and woman praying for merit
And guarding this mountain. "
World-Honored ┼ø─ükyamuni speaks:
" Tell me, what is merit?
Build a bridge over deep waters to help the traveler,
Build a monastery to save mankind. Clothe the naked,
Feed the hungry, give water to the thirsty.
But to nourish the baby who has no mother's milk
Is the greatest merit of all.
How about taking this child and raising it? "
The old man and woman reply:
" In spring, summer, and fall we live in the fields,
In winter we stay in a cave. "
" If you keep and raise this child,
You will have food to eat and clothes to wear,
And a small thatched cottage will appear. "
In an instant, ┼ø─ükyamuni is gone.
Clearly it is the Buddha's power.
They hear the baby's cries
Among green willows and yellow cuckoo,
Between the willows where yellow birds fly.
They find a jade box where the sounds come,
Examine it to find that the golden turtle lock is ajar.
Aejung Scripture for the parents,
Loyalty Scripture for the country,
Love Scripture for the wife and children,
And Ch'onji P'aryang Scripture ,
They chant them all one by one,
And without a key the jade box opens.
They look inside: red ants fill her eyes,
Worms and snakes coil around her waist.
They wash her from bottom to top
In the current of Long Flowing Stream,
Shed their long-sleeved cassock and wash her twice more,
Taking off their long-sleeved fin garments,
And when they carry her and turn around,
A small cottage exquisitely stands there.
Eight, nine years go by.
Untaught, she is versed in the science of the heavens and the earth
As well as all the secret military arts.
One day she asks, " Grandma, Grandpa,
Even flying birds and crawling insects have their own parents.
Where is my own mom, where is my own dad?
Find me my parents, please. "
" Grandpa is your dad and Grandma your mom. "
" Grandma and Grandpa, please don't lie.
How can such old people have a child like me? "
Being childless and lonely, they hoped to rely on her.
" Heaven is your dad, and earth your mom. "
" Heaven and earth give birth to myriad things,
But how can they give birth to a human being?
Grandma and grandpa, please tell me the truth. "
" You cut a bamboo stalk in Cholla province,
Cut both ends to make a staff and hold it
Through three years' mourning for a dead father.
Cholla bamboo is your dad, and
Your mom is the paulownia on the back hill. "
" The Cholla bamboo is far, far away,
I cannot inquire after it three times a day. "
So the child daily sends regards
To the paulownia tree on the back hill.
Time flows like a river, and the girl is now fifteen.
One day they see in the child's washbasin
The sun and moon fallen there.
Thus time flows on like a river.
Their Majesties are gravely ill.
The king commands, " Go consult the shaman of Ch'onha palace. "
" Please bestow the gifts. "
He sends five strings of silver coin and five of gold,
One ch'i and one p'un of cloth for the cassock,
Three toe and three hop of pearls,
Three feet and three inches of silk —
They go bearing these royal gifts
To shaman Taji of Ch'onha palace,
And shaman Moran of Chesok palace.
They cast pearls and grains of white rice on the white jade tray:
The first throw yields the shaman's fortune,
The second tells of upper and lower gates,
The third the fortune of two majesties.
" When it comes to pass Your Majesty will see
As surely as the sun sets in the West Sea
And the moon rises from the East Sea.
Your Majesties will die on the same day and hour.
Go find the seventh princess where you abandoned her. "
Thus they report to the king and queen.
" If only we had left her on level ground,
Our ministers could find her.
But who can find her now? "
Both Majesties dream on the same day and time:
Six azure-clad boys descend from the beam of Great Bright Hall
And bow before them. Their Majesties ask,
" Are you human or are you ghosts?
Even flying birds cannot enter here;
Why did you come in? "
" We are not human beings nor ghosts.
We're the azure-clad boys of heaven,
Who came at the Jade Emperor's bidding
To take Your Majesty's life tablet
To store it in the city of dead. "
" But why is it so?
Did some ministers send a message of grievance?
Or the people complain about me? "
" Neither the people's complaint nor the minister's grievance.
You sinned when you cast out the child sent by heaven,
So you will take ill and die
On the same day and at the same hour. "
" But how can we be saved? "
" Seek the child and take her back.
When you seek the elixir of Three Blessed Mounts,
The sacred water of Peerless Transcendent,
The magic pearl of the Dragon King of the Eastern Sea,
The kayam plant of Mount Pongnae,
And the suru plant of Ana Mountain.
When you eat of these you'll be saved. "
Suddenly they awake; it was an empty dream.
At dawn the king summons his ministers:
" If one of you finds the abandoned child,
We'll reward him a thousand gold coins
And enfeoffment of myriad households.
Indeed, I shall grant him half the kingdom. "
The ministers are silent.
" He who brings only the sacred water
Will be lord of myriad households. "
" The Eastern Sea Dragon palace is a heavenly place,
The Western Sea Dragon palace is also a heavenly place.
Though we die we cannot go there.
We would gladly look for her on flat land,
But who can find an abandoned child among the waters? "
Then the Minister of Rites speaks:
" For many generations my house has served the throne,
How can I sit idly now?
I shall find the princess, even if I perish on the way. "
" What would you like to take with you? "
Bearing letters from the king, queen, and six princesses
And the small clothes of the seventh princess,
Escorted by palace ladies two by two,
They leave through the five garrison gates and palace gate,
But they do not know where to go.
Then crows and magpies bow their heads to guide them,
And grasses and trees bend down to lead them.
A country of a thousand tricents of mountains and rivers,
Mountains rise fold upon fold,
The cuckoo cries sadly.
Golden warblers flit among the willows,
Before the River of Yellow Springs,
Behind the River of Flowing Sands.
Kalch'i Mount and Kalch'i Pass,
Pulch'i Mount and Pulch'i Pass.
Invoking the name of Amit─übha,
At last they come to Taesang Cloister.
An old man and woman praying for merit ask:
" Are you human or are you ghosts?
How have you come where
Flying birds and crawling insects cannot enter? "
" I've come to take you upon the king's orders. "
" If I am indeed the daughter of a king,
Great were my sins to have been cast out the moment I was born. "
" I bring the jacket you wore as a seven-day baby. "
" How am I to recognize it? "
" I bring the record of the month and hour of your birth. "
" How am I to remember it? "
" I bring letters from the king, queen, and six princesses. "
" What do their letters mean to me? Bring me a sign! "
He has a golden vessel with drops of blood
From the thumbs of the king and queen.
He pricks the child's fourth finger:
The bloods blend and blossom like a cloud.
Now the girl agrees to go.
" Shall we await your command with the royal guards?
Shall we await your command with the princess's palanquin? "
" I who was cast out at birth,
What use have I for a palanquin?
Give me a horse, I shall ride alone. "
She follows the Minister of Rites and presents herself at the palace gate.
The king and queen command: " Let the princess come in quickly. "
They grasp each other's hands and shed royal tears.
" Did we abandon you in hatred? No, it was in anger.
We cast you out in anger. How did you bear the cold?
How did you bear the heat?
How did you bear the hunger?
How did you bear the longing for your parents? "
" I lived by the merit of an old man and woman. "
A country of a thousand tricents of mountains and rivers,
Cruel time rushes past.
The illness of Their Majesties is grave.
" All the officials, ladies-in-waiting, and people —
Will you fetch the sacred water of Peerless Transcendent to save the country? "
" That is not a medicine of this world.
How can we obtain it? "
They call the eldest princess: " Will you go to save your parents? "
" How can I go where three thousand court ladies cannot go? "
They call the second princess: " Will you go to save your parents? "
" How can I go where my elder sister cannot go? "
They call the third princess: " Will you go to save your parents? "
" How can I go where my two elder sisters cannot go? "
They call the fourth princess: " Will you go to save your parents? "
" How can I go where my three elder sisters cannot go? "
They call the fifth princess: " Will you go to save your parents? "
" How can I go where my four sisters cannot? "
They call the sixth princess: " Will you go to save your parents? "
" How can I go where my five elder sisters cannot? "
They call the seventh princess: " Will you go to save your parents? "
" I have no debt to this country.
But I'm grateful to my mother who bore me for ten months.
I shall go for my mother's sake. "
" Would you have the royal guards or the princess's palanquin? "
" I shall ride alone, " she says.
She wears a coarse top and bottom and outer coat,
Binds her hair in double knots,
With a bamboo hat and an iron staff,
And a silver backpack with golden straps.
She receives the signatures of the king and queen and binds them to her belt,
She receives the signatures of six princesses and binds them to her belt.
" Six elder sisters, three thousand court ladies,
Even if Their Majesties die on the same day and same hour,
Do not perform a funeral but await my return. "
She bids farewell to the king, queen, and six princesses
And gallops out the palace gate but doesn't know where to go.
Oh and alas, one among the dead,
If it follows the seventh princess,
With prayer for rebirth in the Pure Land of the West,
Then it becomes a man and enters the Land of Happiness
Upon this very day.
She brandishes her staff once and goes a thousand tricents,
She brandishes it twice and two thousand tricents,
She brandishes it thrice and three thousand tricents.
What is the season now? It is the third month of spring, a pleasant time.
Plum and peach are in bloom,
Fragrant flowers and grasses wave gently.
Yellow warblers fly among the willows,
Parrots and peacocks preen, the cuckoo calls its mate.
The sun sets over the western mountain,
And the moon rises from the eastern peak.
She sits and scans far-off a golden rock
Covered with low pines with even branches.
There ┼ø─ükyamuni explains the dharma
To bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha and Buddha Amitābha,
She draws near and bows thrice three times.
" Are you a human being or ghost? "
Here where flying birds and crawling insects cannot enter,
How did you come? "
" I am His Majesty's heir apparent on a mission of filial service.
Now I have lost my way.
Please, guide me by your grace. "
World-Honored ┼ø─ükyamuni replies:
" I have heard that the king has seven girls,
But this is the first I've heard of an heir apparent.
When they cast you out at the west village of the Great Sea,
I saved your wretched life.
But that was then.
You traversed three thousand tricents on level earth,
But how can you go three thousand tricents of steep path? "
" Though I die on the way, I will go. "
" Take this gift of a udumbara flower.
When you come to a great sea, wave this flower
And the sea will become hard ground. "
Before her she sees walls of thorns and iron, reaching to the sky.
She remembers the Buddha's words and waves the flower:
Armless demons, legless demons, eyeless demons,
A hundred million demons jump and croak like frogs,
Open the gates of Hell of Knife Mountain
And Hell of Fire Mountain,
The eight thousand four hundred hells.
Souls headed for ten kings of hell are sent there,
Souls destined for the hell are sent there.
Oh and alas! One soul among the dead,
With rotten ears and rotten mouth,
If it hears prayers and repeats them to all the bodhisattvas,
It follows Princess Pari and enters
The Pure Land of the West, the Land of Happiness,
On this very day.
She views a place afar —
To the east a gate of blue glass,
To the west a gate of white glass,
To the south a gate of red glass,
To the north a gate of black glass,
And in the center the gate of chastity,
And there stands the Peerless Transcendent.
His height seems to reach the sky,
Face like a rice cake, eyes like an oil cup for a lamp,
Nose like a clay bottle, hands large as kettle lids,
Feet three feet and three inches long,
So dreadful and frightful he is.
She backs away and bows three times.
Peerless Transcendent asks:
" Are you a human being or ghost that you enter here
Where flying birds and crawling insects cannot?
How did you enter and where do you come from? "
" I am an heir apparent on a mission of filial service. "
" If you came to fetch the water, what payment do you bring?
And for the herbs what payment do you bring? "
" In my haste I forgot to bring anything. "
" Then draw the water for three years,
Tend the fire for three years,
Gather the herbs for three years. "
After thrice three years of life here,
The Peerless Transcendent speaks to her:
" You seem a prince behind, but a woman before.
Why not tie a marriage bond,
Bear me seven sons and then return? How about that? "
" If that's for my parents' sake, I'll do it. "
Heaven and earth for canopy, creepers for a pillow,
Grass for bed, a cloud bank for shade,
The morning star for lamp.
In the first watch she gives her consent,
In the second watch she stays,
And throughout the night they tie the marriage knot.
She bears seven sons, and one day she speaks,
" However great our love may be,
I have delayed my mission for my parents.
I dreamed in the first watch a silver bowl was shattered
And in the second a silver spoon broken.
Surely the king and queen must have died at the same time.
I must hurry now to save them. "
" Take it in your golden crock,
The water you drew is healing water.
Take the herbs you gathered
For they bring flesh and bone to life.
But first, won't you view the sea with me? "
" I don't care to view the sea. "
" Then come view the back hill's flowers. "
" I don't care to see the flowers. "
" I lived alone as a bachelor,
But now, how can eight bachelors live?
Please, take seven boys with you. "
" I'll do that for my parents' sake. "
Big children walk and small ones are carried on backs.
Then the Peerless Transcendent asks her,
" What if I were to follow you? "
" It is said that wife should follow husband;
For my parents' sake let it be so.
I came alone, now nine bodies return. "
Before the River of Yellow Springs,
Behind the River of Flowing Sands.
Princess Pari asks, " What are those boats row on row
Over the Magpie Shoal in the Sea of Blood? "
" Those carry souls that in the former life
Were filial to parents, loyal to the state,
Loved their brothers, and kept harmony in their homes. "
Oh and alas! One among the dead goes forth,
At the first shrine receives the ritual coins,
At the second the preliminary purification ritual
At the third feed to three messengers of the underworld,
The iron gate, the bamboo gate, lotus hall,
The forty-ninth day ritual to the soul of the dead.
He receives gold and silver coins,
Invokes the name of the Buddha, and
Rides the boat to the Pure Land of the West, the Land of Happiness.
She asks, " Those bottomless boats upon the Sea of Blood,
Crying like summer frogs as they go,
What boats are they? "
" Those carry souls who in the former life were unfilial,
Betrayed the state, didn't love their brothers,
Gave with small measure and took with large measure,
Gave bad rice for alms and harmed others.
Now those boats carry their souls crying
To the hundred million four thousand hells. "
" And what are those boats without rowers? "
" Those are the boats of souls
Who in the former life had no offspring,
And now drift on the sea. "
" Herdboys on Mount Ch'o,
In the capital's broad square over there,
Why are the people gathered? "
" We'll tell you if you pay a toll. "
" And what's the toll? "
She gives them seven feet and seven inches of silk
That strapped the baby to her back.
Then the herdboy speaks:
" Unborn babies may not know it,
But those come forth from the womb know
That the king and queen died on the same day
And today is the state funeral.
Are you a human being or ghost?
The seventh princess has gone three thousand tricents to seek the sacred water,
But there is no news whether she is alive or dead. "
Startled, the seventh princess hastens.
Hiding seven sons in a thicket
And the Peerless Transcendent in the forest,
She stares at the funeral flags — indeed, they're the king's,
She sees the dragon robe and dirge — they're the king's.
Loosening their hair, they announce death.
" Ladies-in-waiting, attend within the curtains,
People and ministers, guard outside the curtains,
Lower the small bier, lower the large bier. "
She raises the coffin lid and drives the people back,
Loosens the seven knots that bind each corpse,
Infuses breath into their flesh,
Infuses breath into their bones,
Inserts magic pearls into their eyes,
Pours sacred water into their mouths,
And they revive at the same time.
The king arises, " I've slept deep.
Have we come out to view the sea
Or to view flowers on the back hill? "
" Not to view the sea, nor the flowers;
Your Majesties died, and we're in the funeral procession.
The seventh princess went three thousand tricents
To the Weakwater to obtain the sacred water,
And you have revived on this day and hour. "
His Majesty cancels the funeral, declares it an outing,
And returns to T'ongmyong Hall,
And the queen to the inner palace.
The officials and three thousand court ladies all shout,
" Long live the king! "
Myriad people cry in unison, " Long live the king! "
His Majesty summons the seventh princess:
" All my officials and ministers have inquired after us,
Why has the seventh princess not come? "
" She has sinned, she married the Peerless Transcendent
And bore him seven sons. "
" The sin is not yours but mine.
Should I give you half of my kingdom?
Or all fabric brought through the four great gates? "
" Had I once held the kingdom, I'd now desire it.
Had I once had the clothes, I'd want them.
But I never knew fine food and clothes at my parents' knee,
So I will become the progenitor of shamans. "
Above on the hundredth day, she leads the living to paradise,
Below on the six fast days she leads the dead to paradise.
Above, embroidered jacket made from Chinese silk,
Below, a long skirt, embroidered shoes, and a staff,
A bell at her hand, broad red sash at her waist,
A fifty-ribbed fan in one hand,
She governs all shamans.
" Present the Peerless Transcendent, my son-in-law, " the king commands.
" His gauze cap will catch upon the south gate. "
" Dig out the soil beneath the gate and enter. "
" His waist will hit the sides of the north gate. "
" Pull down the sides and have him enter. "
The Transcendent stands in the broad court before T'ongmyong Hall.
His height is great.
" Messengers, measure the height of the princess and our son-in-law. "
" His height is thirty-three heavens and thirty-three feet.
The princess's is twenty-eight lunar mansions and twenty-eight feet. "
" Then you are indeed a heaven-joined pair,
For the prince who measures to the thirty-three heavens,
Ring the cymbals;
For the princess who measures to the twenty-eight lunar mansions,
Ring the large gong. "
The king grants them food and garments.
" The son-in-law will have offerings on the road
With many dishes on the large table.
World-Honored ┼ø─ükyamuni shall receive
The first, second, forty-ninth, and one hundredth day rites.
Herdboy Kangnim on a hill with peaches and plums
Shall receive the seven feet seven inch silk towel,
Grandma praying for merit shall have hemp cloths
At the gate of thorns and of iron.
Grandpa praying for merit shall have
Offerings of polch'o namhyang .
And seven sons, two ton and one p'un of money offerings. "
In the first court, Great King Kuang of Ch'in,
Hear the prayers of my myriad subjects,
Preach the dharma to ferry all living beings across.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
In the second court, Great King of the First River,
Hear the prayers of my myriad subjects,
Preach the dharma to ferry all living beings across.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
In the third court, Great King Ti of Sung,
Hear the prayers of my myriad subjects,
Preach the dharma to ferry all living beings across.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
In the fourth court, Great King of Five Offices,
Hear the prayers of my myriad subjects,
Preach the dharma to ferry all living beings across.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
In the fifth court, Great King Yama,
Hear the prayers of my myriad subjects,
Preach the dharma to ferry all living beings across.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
In the sixth court, Great King of Transformation,
Hear the prayers of my myriad subjects,
Preach the dharma to ferry all living beings across.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
In the seventh court, Great King of Mount T'ai,
Hear the prayers of my myriad subjects,
Preach the dharma to ferry all living being across.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
In the eighth court, Great Impartial King,
Hear the prayers of my myriad subjects,
Preach the dharma to ferry all living beings across.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
In the ninth court, Great King of the Capital,
Hear the prayers of my myriad subjects,
Preach the dharma to ferry all living beings across.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
In the tenth court, Great King Who Turns the Wheel of Rebirth,
Hear the prayers of my myriad subjects,
Preach the dharma to ferry all living beings across.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
Hear the prayers of my myriad subjects,
Preach the dharma to ferry all living beings across.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
Released from three years' mourning,
Consoling the spirits in the underworld,
Released from ancestors' cause of grievance,
From the karma of earthly existence,
The dead man sheds his head cover, the dead woman her yomo cap,
With prayers for rebirth in the Land of Happiness,
When you go to the Pure Land,
Open the gate of Knife Hell and the gate of Fire Hell,
Open the gate of Poisonous Snakes and the gate of Ice Cold,
When you go to the Land of Happiness.
The wide dark road leads to hell,
The bright narrow road to the Land of Happiness,
The bright large road to heavenly palace on Milky Way.
Leave aside the wide dark road, take the bright large,
When the road spirit detains you,
Offer the straw sandals from your feet;
When the lady of the grave detains you,
Offer seven outer knots and seven inner knots,
Untie fourteen knots and present them to her.
When an evil spirit detains you,
Offer your undershirt.
When the mountain spirit detains you,
Offer your funeral banners and wooden fan.
When you meet the earth spirit,
Give him upper and lower shrouds,
When you come to the great rocks and sharp rocks,
Offer a bag of your toenails, fingernails, and hair.
When you reach the twelve gates,
Offer three thousand monks' caps.
When you reach the great king's hall,
Transmit meditation practice at Chongt'o Monastery
And the cultivator's mystic syllables.
With wet rotten mouth and wet rotten ears,
Invoke the Buddha's name as you go in.
Don't follow the immortal officials robed in blue,
But follow the ones robed in red.
Take the road of the red-robed officials.
Though flourishing rhododendron, azalea, cockscomb, balsam,
Pine, juniper, and cedar thickly line the way,
Don't pluck the flowering twigs,
Don't look behind you,
Go to the high supreme Lotus Terrace,
Seek an immortal lady to become an immortal, and enter the Jasper Lake.
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
Word by word, line by line, with rotten ears and mouth,
Recite the prayers as you go:
Homage to Buddha Amitābha and Bodhisattva Kṣītigarbha.
First, I cleanse the east, purifying it to a place of worship,
Second, I cleanse the south and obtain coolness,
Third, I cleanse the west and complete the Pure Land,
Fourth, I cleanse the north and become eternally healthy.
As this place of enlightenment is purified, without flaw or maculation,
I now keep and recite these sublime mystic syllables,
Vowing to bestow love and compassion and secretly watch over everyone.
Bodhisattva Who Observes the Sounds of the World
With a Thousand Hands and Eyes!
Homage to Buddha Amit─übha,
Homage to Buddha Amit─übha,
Homage to Buddha Amit─übha.
I lead the former dead, later dead, all the dead ancestors,
Generation after generation, son after son,
This is the day they go to the Land of Happiness.
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