Drinking with Yommaban

Drinking with Yommaban, the King of the Dead

There was a man who loved to drink whiskey every day until he became so drunk that he did not know what was going on around him. He did not even see the mosquitos flying around him!

This man had a wife and children. He would always say “all I want before I die is to see my son ordained as a monk”. He only cared about this and his whiskey. He told his wife: “When I die don’t forget to put a bottle of whiskey in my coffin with me. That is the most important thing”.

When his son was old enough to become a monk the man told his wife to prepare for the ceremony. But the man died before he could watch the ceremony. His wife was very sad but she put a bottle of whiskey in his coffin as he had asked. And when the man’s spirit left the coffin he snatched the bottle of whiskey and took it with him to hell. When he arrived in hell he met Yommaban, the King of the Dead. Yommaban asked him, “Have you done many good deeds in your life?” The man shook his head and said, “It was not important to me to do good things. It was more important to drink whiskey.” The man took a sip out the bottle.

Yommaban could smell the whiskey and he was curious. “Why do you love to drink whiskey? Is it delicious?” The drunk man nodded and gave Yommaban a glass. “Why don’t you try some ? Whiskey is a man’s best friend. Whiskey is always truthful to a man. The more you drink, the more drunk you become. If you drink you will need to run to the toilet often. You always know what will happen when you drink whiskey.”

Yommaban wanted to see if the man was telling the truth so he drank the whiskey. It tasted terrible but he kept drinking. They sat talking and drinking until the bottle was empty.

When the man remembered what a bad man he was he started to cry. Yommaban was confused and asked him, “Why are you crying when you have been drinking the whiskey that