Throughout the Ages, Good is Rewarded While Evil Provokes Karmic Retribution (Part 2)
 
Imperiousness Leads to Karmic Retribution
 
The mayor of Huating (in today’s Shanghai) was greedy and violent. Whenever he departed office, his guards rode on horses ahead of him. They would whip any pedestrians in their path who did not get out of the way in time.
 
One day the mayor was returning home and a porter was standing on the left side of the road carrying two baskets of paper on his shoulders. The mayor got angry because the porter did not put down his baskets. He ordered his servant to bring the porter in front of his carriage and scolded him. The porter was a simple and straightforward person. He replied, “I was not in the way so what crime did I commit?” The mayor became furious because the porter talked back. He ordered his servant to beat the porter savagely and asked him again, “Do you know your crime?” The porter replied, “I truly do not know what crimes I have committed that deserve such a beating.”
 
Being contradicted in public, the arrogant mayor flew into a rage out of humiliation. He ordered his men to flog the porter with clubs hundreds of times until his blood and flesh were smeared together. They dragged the porter to the Huating County government to charge him with blocking the road. The county officials took advantage of the opportunity and extorted a lot of money from the porter's boss, the owner of a paper shop. The county magistrate, seeing that the porter was badly injured, did not punish him and let him go after a few days. After the porter returned to the paper shop, his boss blamed him for making trouble and kicked him out. Having been tortured for no reason and fired from his job, the porter died two days later.
 
Several days later, five deep-rooted ulcers appeared on the mayor’s back, causing him great pain. The doctor said that there was hope for recovery because the ulcers had not festered. One night, the mayor saw in his dream the porter carrying baskets of paper tearing the ulcers with his hands. The enormous pain woke him up from his dream. He summoned a servant and saw under candlelight that all of his ulcers had now festered. The pus and blood soaked his bedding. The doctor gave up on his treatment. The mayor prayed every day but nothing worked. He could not lie down on his back anymore, only on his front or side. The slightest movement would cause him excruciating pain. He suffered like this for dozens of days before he died.
 
Wang Daoding of the Qing Dynasty commented on this event, “It is truly pathetic that officials with power in their hands tend to do whatever they want without considering others' difficult situations. We are all human. Why show off your ruthlessness at will just to please yourself? When you beat the porter until his flesh and blood flew in all directions, he could not do anything to you. But when the puss and blood came out of your ulcers, there was nothing you could do to him. Please be cautious, all officials with power in your hands, do not do something that you will regret later but can do nothing about.”
 
A man should always be kind and follow the course of nature to help others. This way he will have good opportunities and a good future. The Heavens know exactly our deeds. Everything that happens to us is a result of our thoughts and actions. It is the manifestation of gods' will that evil deeds must be punished.
 
(Stories are based on two Chinese books, Tai Shang Gan Ying Pian and Zuo Hua Zhi Guo.)
 
善恶各有报 (下)
 
骄横欺人遭恶报
 
某太守，性情贪婪而暴戾，每次出府，骑马在前开道的卫队所过处，路上行人躲避稍有迟缓，就遭鞭挞。
 
有一天太守从城西回府，有一个为纸店担纸的挑工，担著担子立在路的左边。太守嫌他不放下担子就生气了，命轿旁的役夫把他拖到轿前，呵责他。他性格憨直，说：“我没有冲道。不放下担子，有什么罪？”太守大怒说：“你是什么东西，竟敢顶撞。”大声叱令役夫把他痛打一顿，打完，又命把他拖到轿前，说：“你知罪不？”他回答说：“小民有什么罪而遭责打，真不知道。”太守本性很傲慢，现在竟然在街市广众之中被人顶撞，恼羞成怒之极，又下令打了几百棍，打得他血肉横飞，还不放他，命令役夫把他押送到华亭县府，治他冲道之罪。吏役乘机勒索纸店店主数十千钱。幸亏华亭县令见他伤的很重，没有再责打他，只关了几天就放了出来。他回到店里，老板埋怨他惹出事来牵连老板，把他赶了出去。他无缘无故遭到酷刑，回到店上又被逐出，两天后就死了。
 
不到十天，太守背上生了五个疽痈，疼痛难忍。医生说这种疮名百鸟朝凤，幸好没有溃烂，还有救治的希望。有天夜里，太守梦见担纸的人，用手揭他的疽疮，痛极大叫而醒，呼来侍婢拿烛火一照，全部溃烂，脓血四溢，被褥都湿透了。医生已束手无策。他想尽办法祈祷消灾，都归无效。太守不能仰面平躺，只有用肘撑住床板翘著头，俯伏在床上，稍一转动身体，就痛入心肺。就这样痛苦号叫了几十天，才断气。
 
清代的汪道鼎对此事评论说：“当官掌权的士大夫，当你威福在手之时，任意妄行，一点不考虑别人的难堪处境，可悲啊！大家都是人，难道可以随意逞显自己的凶狠残忍，以求自己快意吗？你把他打得血肉横飞之时，他固然把你无可奈何！而当自己疮溃脓溢时，你也就无可奈何他了！我但愿世上当官掌权的士大夫们，谨慎小心，不要把事情弄到‘无可奈何’的地步，就后悔莫及了！”
 
人能一心向善，遵循天理，济人利人，才会有好的机遇和前程。天地神明鉴察，丝毫不爽。境由心造，境随心转，人的命运与祸福，都是取决于自己心念行为的结果，因为天道对于善恶的果报，必定是如影随形！
 
（资料来源《太上感应篇汇编》、《坐花志果》）