The Buddha confirms Venerable Mahāmoggallāna's clairvoyant vision of a flayed man suffering in a ghostly incarnation, formerly a sheep butcher in Rājagaha, illustrating the inescapable results of unwholesome kamma.
“Idhāhaṁ, āvuso, gijjhakūṭā pabbatā orohanto addasaṁ nicchaviṁ purisaṁ vehāsaṁ gacchantaṁ. Tamenaṁ gijjhāpi kākāpi kulalāpi anupatitvā anupatitvā vitacchenti virājenti. So sudaṁ aṭṭassaraṁ karoti …pe…
eso, bhikkhave, satto imasmiṁyeva rājagahe orabbhiko ahosi …pe….
Catutthaṁ.
Reference Translation by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0).
“Idhāhaṁ, āvuso, gijjhakūṭā pabbatā orohanto addasaṁ nicchaviṁ purisaṁ vehāsaṁ gacchantaṁ.
“Just now, reverend, as I was descending from Vulture’s Peak Mountain I saw a flayed man flying through the air.
Tamenaṁ gijjhāpi kākāpi kulalāpi anupatitvā anupatitvā vitacchenti virājenti.
Vultures, crows, and hawks kept chasing it, pecking and clawing
So sudaṁ aṭṭassaraṁ karoti …pe…
as he screamed in pain. …” …
eso, bhikkhave, satto imasmiṁyeva rājagahe orabbhiko ahosi …pe….
“That being used to be a sheep butcher right here in Rājagaha. …”
Catutthaṁ.
Sign in to mark this page as read
Last updated on July 27, 2026