Avici Hell's Fivefold Endlessness

["There are five karmic conditions that account for its name 'Avici' (Uninterrupted)."]

There are five aspects that define the Avici Hell. Why is it called the Uninterrupted Hell? Because the suffering experienced there never ceases.

["What are these five? First, beings suffer day and night for eons on end, with no break in time, hence the name 'Uninterrupted'."]

This is the first form of uninterruptedness: uninterrupted time. What does this refer to? It means there is no break in time whatsoever. Beings residing in the Avici Hell experience no single moment free from suffering; their torment is continuous and eternal. How long does this last? "Day and night they suffer, for eons on end." As referenced earlier, an eon is an immeasurably vast span of time. But not all beings in hell suffer for a full eon; the length of their suffering varies according to the heaviness of their karma.

In the human world, criminal penalties range from minor to severe: ten years, fifteen, twenty. Some countries even issue sentences of one or two hundred years—one might well wonder who could possibly live long enough to serve them? You may think such sentences defy reason, yet they do exist. By contrast, the punishments of Avici Hell are perfectly aligned with the reality of karma: they are not limited to a mere century or two, but are sentences you pass on yourself through your own actions.

This is what is called "time-uninterrupted". There is not even a single moment free from pain unless your karmic debt is fully exhausted and the punishment ceases. Once your karmic debts are repaid, the suffering stops; until that point, suffering is uninterrupted, with no breaks in time.

["Second, the hell is full whether one being suffers in it or a thousand, hence the name 'Uninterrupted'."]

This is the second form of uninterruptedness: uninterrupted form. When a single being undergoes suffering there, the entire hell is fully occupied by that being. If a thousand beings suffer, the situation is no different. If ten thousand suffer, it is the same. Even if a hundred thousand beings undergo torment there, the hell remains entirely full. As the sutra states: "One being fills it, many beings fill it, hence the name Uninterrupted." This is called "form-uninterrupted": the hell’s space is entirely filled, and every part of this prison is a site of suffering.

["Third, the instruments of torture: iron forks and clubs, eagles, snakes, wolves, and hounds, mortars and mills, saws and drills, chopping blocks and cauldrons of boiling oil, iron nets and iron chains, iron donkeys and iron horses, raw hides wrapped around the head, molten iron poured over the body, iron balls eaten when hungry, molten iron drunk when thirsty. From years to eons beyond counting, suffering is linked without end, with no interruption, hence the name 'Uninterrupted'."]

This is the third form of uninterruptedness: uninterrupted suffering. Countless implements of torture are present here. When beings undergo karmic retribution, they are burned by fire, mauled by wild beasts, pierced by iron forks, and thrown into vats of boiling oil. When hungry, they are forced to swallow molten iron balls; when thirsty, they drink molten iron. This agony continues for an immeasurably long duration.

When I first heard the Earth Store Sutra, I felt deeply distressed: why describe such things in such vivid detail? I have no desire to go to hell, nor do I wish to analyze the nature of hell, let alone go there to study it. But it is vital that we understand this suffering: it is profound, severe, and entirely real. It serves as a warning to guard our minds: we must never create unwholesome karma. Once unwholesome karma is created, suffering follows you as closely as your own shadow. Whatever suffering you have sown through your actions, you will inevitably reap. That suffering is continuous and unbroken—this is what is called "uninterrupted suffering".

["Fourth, there is no distinction between men and women, between the Qiang, Hu, Yi, and Di (terms for various ethnic groups in ancient China), between old and young, noble and lowly, between dragons and spirits, heavenly beings and ghosts. All who create unwholesome karma and experience its consequences receive the same punishment, hence the name 'Uninterrupted'."]

This is the fourth form of uninterruptedness: uninterrupted karmic fruit. Once you fall into this hell, all distinctions between beings vanish: there is no male or female, no privileged or lowly status. The terms Qiang, Hu, Yi, and Di refer to racial categories used in ancient China. What is more, hell is not the only destination for unwholesome karma: after hungry ghosts exhaust their suffering, they are reborn in hell; after animals complete their lifespans, they are reborn in hell as well. Yakshas, heavenly beings, dragons, and humans all fall into hell too if they create the relevant unwholesome karma. Whatever unwholesome karma you create, you will reap its corresponding karmic fruit. Once you have finished experiencing the retribution for one unwholesome action, you move on to experience the retribution for the next, and when that concludes, you move on to the one after that. This process too is uninterrupted, which is why it is called "uninterrupted karmic fruit": there is no distinction in the retribution received, and no breaks in the process.

The terms Qiang, Hu, Yi, and Di were used by classical sutra translators to refer to ethnic minority groups of ancient China; these groups no longer exist as distinct, recognized categories today. In Avici Hell, all races, all castes—whether you are Black, White, or East Asian, regardless of your country of origin—are reduced to the same status the moment you arrive. Suffering there is completely unbroken: it does not spare nobles from pain, nor does it single out lowborn people for harsher punishment. All beings experience suffering without interruption, and all are equal before it.

["Fifth, if one falls into this hell, from the moment of first entry until hundreds or thousands of eons have passed, in a single day and night one dies and is reborn ten thousand times. It is impossible to find even a single moment of rest, unless one's karma is exhausted, at which point one may be reborn elsewhere. Because this cycle continues without cease, it is called 'Uninterrupted'."]

This is the fifth form of uninterruptedness: uninterrupted life. Life in this hell continues without any break. You might wish for a long life, even one lasting billions of eons, but a long life in Avici Hell is a terrible fate: all beings there wish for a short life, not a long one. If you have ever been incarcerated, ask prisoners about their views on death: particularly those convicted of serious crimes have no fear of it. Everyone knows that these serious offenders have committed grave wrongs, and may be sentenced to life in prison or decades of incarceration. They feel there is no joy in living, yet they cannot die, as if their karmic debts have not yet been fully settled. It is the same for beings in Avici Hell: you cannot find even a single moment to pause your suffering, and you cannot escape. Why? Because we are bound by our karma, trapped by the weight of our karmic consequences, and cannot break free on our own. There are two ways to escape: one is through spiritual power, the other is when your karmic debt is fully exhausted and the karmic force dissipates. At that moment, if your wholesome roots are activated, even reciting the name of "Namo Buddha" can resolve the situation. Even reciting a single line of a Mahayana sutra can be enough.

There is a well-known karmic account of a person suffering in hell who recited the following line: "If one wishes to know thoroughly / All Buddhas of the past, present, and future." He had only recited half a verse when the hell realm vanished instantly, his suffering ceased immediately, and he was reborn in a heavenly realm, free from all pain. The problem is, when that critical moment arrives, can you still remember even half a verse? Even three words are sufficient: even a single recitation of "Namo Buddha" can cause the hell to empty. The only risk is that you will forget when the time comes, that you will be unable to recall anything at all. When personal gains arise, we often "forget righteousness"—this is what is meant by "forgetting righteousness for the sake of gain," and we are blinded by profit, unable to remember what is right. Why are we unable to remember? Because we are deluded by our karmic afflictions.

From the moment you first enter this hell until hundreds or thousands of eons have passed, even a single day and night consists of dying and being reborn ten thousand times. This birth by transformation is unbroken, life itself is unbroken: you die, then are reborn, then die again, then are reborn again. You cannot find even a single moment of rest unless your karmic debt is fully exhausted, at which point you are reborn into another realm—it is not certain which realm you will be reborn into. This cycle continues without cease, link after unbroken link, so it is called "uninterrupted life".

["Earth Store Bodhisattva said to Queen Maya: 'This is a rough description of the Avici Hell. If I were to describe in full all the names of the torture implements, all the details of the suffering, I could not finish speaking of them even in the space of one eon.'"]

This is a rough, general overview of the Avici Hell that Earth Store Bodhisattva provided to Queen Maya. If he were to describe in full all the names of the torture implements and every detail of the suffering there, even a single eon would not be enough to recount them all. The torture devices, instruments, and forms of suffering are all infinite in number.

["When Queen Maya heard this, she was filled with sorrow and worry. She pressed her palms together in respect, bowed, and withdrew."]

Why was Queen Maya filled with sorrow and worry? She grieved for the suffering of all sentient beings, and wondered when it would ever come to an end. What skillful means could be used to rescue sentient beings from their suffering? This requires observing the karmic conditions of all beings: whatever karmic conditions you create will lead you to the corresponding hell realm, and you will reap the corresponding karmic fruit. If you have not created such karma and the corresponding conditions do not arise, you cannot be reborn there no matter how much you might wish to go.

Venerable Master Mengcan, Commentary on the Earth Store Bodhisattva's Vow Sutra