Wisdom Quarterly; Associated Press (ap.org, Dec. 1, 2015); Wiki
The Realm of Hungry Ghosts (peta loka) |
TOKYO, Japan - They drift into
seas near Japan by the dozens every year, ghostly wrecked ships thought
to come from impoverished North Korea.
Japanese authorities said Tuesday they are
investigating nearly a dozen wooden boats carrying decomposing bodies
that were found off the country's northwestern coast over the past
month. In most cases, the bodies are in such bad shape after being at
sea for weeks that it's been impossible to determine their cause of
death, officials say.
Japan has an extraordinary history of "shapeshifters" (kami) and "hungry ghosts" (pretas). |
On Nov. 20, officials found 10 bodies in three
boats off the coast of Ishikawa prefecture. Two days later, another
wooden boat was found off nearby Fukui prefecture with six skulls, one
nearly intact body with a head, and various other bones and remains,
coast guard official Yuka Amao told The Associated Press.
Coast Guard officials said at least 11 shoddy
fishing boats carrying the bodies have arrived since late October. Most
are carrying equipment, nets, and signs written in Korean, including one
carrying a sign saying "Korean People's Army," the North Korean army. More
Ghosts in Buddhism?
Wikipedia edited by Wisdom Quarterly
Some ghosts (pretas) feed on corpses. |
Preta is the Sanskrit (peta in Pali) name for a type of supernatural being described in various Indian religions including Buddhism. Such beings are undergoing suffering greater than that of humans, particularly an extreme level of hunger, thirst, and deprivation.
Preta is often translated into English as "hungry ghost" from the Chinese adaptation. In early sources such as the Buddhist collection of ghost stories (Petavatthu), they are much more varied. Most descriptions apply mainly in this narrower context.
(DrGaborMate.com) |
Pretas are believed to have been jealous, greedy, false, corrupted, compulsive,
or deceitful people in a previous life. As a result of such karma,
they are afflicted with an insatiable hunger for a particular substance
or object.
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