Ki no omi Umakai was a man from the village of Kibi, Ate district, Kii province. Nakatomi no muraji Ojimaro was a boy from the village of Hamanaka, Ama district in the same province. Kinomaro no asomi lived at a port in Hidaka district in the same province, using a net to catch fish. Umakai and Ojimaro were given an annual payment for their labor by Maro no asomi, and both were driven hard day and night to catch fish by net.

In the reign of Emperor Shirakabe, on the sixth of the sixth month in the summer of the second year of the hare, the sixth year of the Hōki era, it suddenly blew hard and rained in torrents, so that the water flooded the port and floated various timbers and logs into the sea. Maro no asomi sent Umakai and Ojimaro to collect driftwood. Both man and boy made the collected timber into a raft on which they rode, trying to row against the current. The sea was extremely rough, breaking the ropes that held the raft together, and immediately the raft broke apart and drifted out of the port into the sea. The man and the boy each got hold of a piece of wood and drifted to sea on it. Both of them were ignorant, but they never ceased wailing, “Śākyamuni Buddha, please deliver us from this calamity!”

After five days, the boy was eventually cast by the waves onto the beach at a salt makers’ village, Tamachino no ura, in the southwestern part of Awaji province, in the evening. The other man, Umakai, was cast onto the same spot early in the morning on the sixth day. The local people, having asked them why they had been cast by the waves onto the shore, learned what had happened and took care of them out of pity, reporting it to the provincial magistrate. When he heard, he came to see them and gave them food because he was sympathetic.

In grief, the boy said, “As I have followed a man who kills, my suffering is immeasurable. If I go home, I shall be driven to begin killing again and never be able to stop.” Thus he stayed at the provincial temple in Awaji province becoming a follower of the monk of that temple.

Umakai, however, went home after two months. When his family saw his face and protruding eyes, they wondered and said, “He was drowned in the sea. The seventh seventh day has passed, and we have already offered a vegetarian feast to thank the Buddha for his benevolence. How could he come back alive so unexpectedly? Is it a dream, or is he a ghost?” Thereupon, Umakai told his family in detail what had happened, and they were sorrowful as well as happy. Awakened and disillusioned with the world, he entered the mountains to practice dharma. Those who saw or heard of him could not but marvel at the event.

The sea being full of danger, it was owing to the power of Shakanyorai and the deep faith of those who drifted on the sea that they could survive the peril. The immediate repayment of our deeds is as sure as in this instance, and how much more certain repayment in future lives will be! (Page 255-257)

Osada no toneri Ebisu was a man of the village of Atome, Chisagata district, Shinano province. He was very rich, and would lend money and rice. He copied the Hoke-kyō twice, and each time he held a ceremony to recite it. After further thought, he was not satisfied with this; he reverently copied it once again but did not hold another ceremony.

At the end of the fourth month in the summer of the tenth year of the ox, the fourth year of the Hōki era, Ebisu died suddenly. His family conferred and said, “Since his birth was in the year of fire, we won’t cremate him.” Instead they consecrated the ground on which to build a tomb, while providing temporary burial.

Seven days had passed after his death when he was restored to life and related a story as follows: “There were four messengers who accompanied and guided me. At first we crossed in a field and then came to a steep hill. When we had climbed the slope, I saw a tall zelkova tree. Standing there and looking over the path ahead, I saw many men sweeping the road with brooms and heard them saying, ‘We are sweeping and purifying the road along which a man who copied the Hoke-kyō will pass.’ When I reached them, they stood by and bowed to me. In front of me there was a deep river about a hundred and twenty yards wide. There was a bridge over the river. Many men were repairing it, saying, ‘We are repairing the bridge which a man who copied the Hoke-kyō will cross.’ When I reached them, they stood by and bowed to me.

“Having crossed the bridge to the other side, I saw a golden palace, in which a king was seated. Near the bridge, the road was three-forked. The first way was wide and flat; the second was somewhat overgrown with grass; the third was obstructed by thick bushes. The messengers forced me to take the third one, and one of them entered the palace, saying, ‘We have brought him.’ The king saw me, and said, ‘This is the man who copied the Hokke-kyō.’ Pointing to the second way, he said to the messengers, ‘Take him that way.’

“The four men accompanied me to a hot iron pillar, which they made me hold while they pushed a scorching iron net against my back. After three nights, they made me hold a copper pillar, pushing a scorching copper net against my back. After three days, the objects were still as hot as burning charcoal. Though the iron and copper were hot, they were not unbearable, merely uncomfortable. Though they were heavy, they were not unbearable, but certainly not light. Led by my past evil deeds, I was attracted to them, only wanting to hold them and bear the burden.

“When six days had passed, I left the place. Three monks asked me, ‘Do you know why you suffered?’ I replied, ‘No, I don’t.’ Then they asked me, ‘What good did you perform?’ I said, ‘I made three copies of the Hoke-kyō, one of which has not yet been dedicated.’ They took out three tablets, two made of gold, one of iron. Then they took out two scales; one weighed on the heavy side by one quart of rice, the other on the light side by one quart. Then they said to me, ‘Checking our tablets, we have learned that you made three copies of the Hoke-kyō. Though you copied a Mahayana scripture, you committed a grave sin. You were summoned here because you used the lighter-weight scale for lending rice, but the heavier-weight scale for collecting debts. Now, go home immediately.’

“On my way back, I saw many men sweeping the road with brooms and repairing the bridge as before and heard them saying, ‘The man who copied the Hoke-kyō will return from the palace of King Yama.’ When I had crossed the bridge, I realized that I had been restored to life. ”

After that he paid homage to the copied scripture and recited it with greater faith in the service. Indeed, we learn that doing good brings luck and doing evil brings disaster. The effects of good and evil never disappear, and the repayment of these two takes place at the same time. One should only practice good and never do evil. (Page 250-251)