A Small Story of Retribution
 
In the Ming Dynasty, there was a scholar who lived in the mid-Chu area. He was an honest and straightforward man. He had the supernormal capability of visiting hell and returning to the human world. In hell he discovered that the saying, "Good will be rewarded with good and evil will receive retribution," was true. He saw a book in hell that documented all the good and bad deeds everyone on earth had done, and saw that everyone will receive their rewards or retribution accordingly. He saw those being punished by climbing mountains and trees made of swords and knives at their own peril. He wanted to save them, yet those people did not accept his help, and continued climbing even more anxiously. There was no way to save them at all.
 
In the context of this article, "creating karma" is the opposite of "accumulating virtue" that is often talked about by older folks in China. One will be rewarded with good fortune when one does good deeds, and receive punishment when one does bad deeds. "Karma" and "virtue" are substances of real material existence. Many cultivators and persons with supernormal capabilities have seen this.
 
One day, that student saw on the record book in hell that his wife had stolen a chicken from their neighbor; the chicken weighed 1 Jin 12 Liang (ancient China measuring unit, about 2 pounds). The person folded that page to make a mark in the book.
 
When he came back to the world of the living, he asked his wife about the chicken she stole and she denied it. He told his wife what he saw in the book, and she then told him the truth. The incident with the chicken had come about because their neighbor's chicken ate the grains his wife was drying in the sun. The wife accidentally killed the chicken. Afraid that the neighbor would be upset with her, she did not tell anyone and hid the dead chicken.
 
The couple was surprised that the book in hell had a record about this. They found the dead chicken and weighed it, and it was exactly 1 Jin 12 Liang. The couple immediately paid their neighbor for the loss and apologized.
 
Several days later, the scholar went to hell again to check the book. He found where he had folded that page, but the record about his wife stealing the chicken had disappeared.
 
This story shows us that gods are watching, and any bad deeds will eventually lead to painful retribution. This story also shows that as long as we correct our mistakes, we have the opportunity to avoid retribution. It all depends on our own choices.
 
善恶有报小故事
 
明朝时，楚中地区有一个书生，他心地正直，可能是先天的缘份和带来的功能所致，他能够经常自由往来于冥间地府，他发现世上人们所说的“善恶有报”果然是千真万确的，因为地府有记录世间人一切善恶的文簿，他发现世上之人根据每人造业的大小，或者得到福报，或者受到惩罚；他看到那些正在受罚上刀山剑树的人，于心不忍，想去抢救他们，结果没想到那些人反而自己爬的更急了，根本没有办法能救他们。
 
这里的“造业”与中国的老人们常挂在嘴边的“积德”是对应的，做了好事会积德有福报，做了坏事就会造业遭到惩罚，“德”和“业”都是真实物质存在的，这在有功能的人中和修炼界中都早已得到证实。
 
有一天，书生在文簿上发现记录有其妻子的一条罪状，说其偷了邻居一只鸡，连毛重一斤十二两，书生于是在文簿的这一页折了个记号。
 
回到阳间后，书生责问其妻子，妻子一口否认有此事。书生于是将在地府所见一五一十的告诉她，妻子这才说了实话。原来，邻居家的鸡偷吃她所晒的粮食，她一不小心失手将鸡打死了，因为害怕邻居的指责和辱骂，所以便将鸡藏了起来，此事谁都没有告诉。
 
夫妻两人在吃惊的同时，赶快将鸡找出来一称，更惊讶不已，居然连斤两都丝毫不差。两人赶紧将鸡折价赔偿了邻居，并向他们道歉。
 
没过几天，书生再次来到地府，再翻看前次记录其妻子的那本文簿，发现自己的折痕尚在，只是记录的罪状已经消失无踪了。
 
看来，真的是“神目如电，报应不爽”啊！所以为人切莫做恶造业，否则因果报应害的还是自己。也说明一个道理，那就是如果做了坏事，如果能够及时改过并弥补，还是有机会的，就看人自己的选择了。