罗刹鸟

In a certain region lived a man of great wealth who was greedy and base贪鄙 tān bǐAvaricious and despicable. "贪" means insatiably greedy; "鄙" means narrow-minded and vulgar. Yuan Mei uses these two characters to define such figures — not merely money-grubbing, but willing to lose their humanity for gain.. His entire life was devoted to exploitation — seizing others' lands, oppressing tenants, stopping at nothing. The villagers loathed him to the bone, but fearing his wealth and power, none dared speak.

One day he died suddenly. After death, he transformed into a giant bird巨鸟 jù niǎoA massive bird. The "Raksha Bird" is Yuan Mei's invention — combining the Buddhist "Raksha" (demon) with "bird" to create a monster that specifically pecks out human eyes. Eyes symbolize "greedy gazes"; losing them is punishment for one's lifetime of "eyes lighting up at profit." with a wingspan of over ten feet and eyes red as fire. It flew exclusively to wealthy households' gates and pecked out their eyes. Those blinded saw their family fortunes decline.

The villagers told each other: "This is the Raksha Bird罗刹鸟 luó chā niǎoA compound coined by Yuan Mei — "Raksha" (Buddhist demon) + "bird." The greedy, after death, become monstrous birds that peck out the eyes of other greedy people. A karmic loop: those who begin with greed end with greed; those who peck eyes were blinded by eyes to begin with. — the greedy become birds that feast on the eyes of the greedy." From then on, many wealthy households kept their eyes shut while hiding their gold.

Yuan Mei's Aesthetics of Karma

"The Raksha Bird" is the most ingenious karmic tale in Yuan Mei's collection. The act of "pecking eyes" is itself a perfect metaphor — the greedy see profit with their "eyes" (eyes light up at gain), and after death become birds that pluck out others' "eyes." Yuan Mei doesn't simply say "good begets good"; he uses a visual image to transform abstract karma into a terrifying picture.

The ending — "shut eyes while hiding gold" — is bitterly ironic. Wealthy households close their eyes against the bird but cannot release their gold. This image of "counting money with eyes shut" is the ultimate satire of "refusing to repent": even facing punishment, the greedy's first instinct is protecting property, not reflecting on their faults.

The Antithesis of "The Master Does Not Speak"

The title Zibuyu derives from the Analerta: "The Master did not speak of prodigies, feats of strength, disorders, or spirits." Yuan Mei uses this title to do precisely what Confucius would not: use "prodigies and spirits" to critique contemporary society. The Raksha Bird is not superstition but social criticism wrapped in a supernatural shell.