Page:Eminent Authors of Contemporary Japan, volume 2.pdf/83



Once upon a time Shakya Buddha was walking alone by the Lotus Pond in Paradise.

The lotus flowers were all of a pearly whiteness and in full bloom, and there floated from their golden pistils an indescribably delicious fragrance. It was morning in Paradise.

Suddenly Buddha paused, and walking to the edge of the Pond, he happened to peep into the water which sparkled between the green leaves which covered the surface.

Beneath the Lotus Pond of Paradise lay the depths of Hell, and through the crystal water he could plainly see the River Styx and the Hill of Needles.

At the bottom of Hell he saw a man writhing and struggling amidst numberless other sinners. His name was Kandatta.

Kandatta had been a notorious robber during his life, and had committed murder, incendiarism, and many other shameful crimes, but once during his life on earth he had performed one good act. Once, when he had been passing through a dense forest, he noticed a small spider crawling along the ground. Immediately a feeling of cruelty awoke in him, and he wanted to crush it to death with his foot. But something held him back, and after a moment’s hesitation he decided to spare its small life. He murmured to himself: