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Naraka (Buddhism)

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Naraka (Sanskrit: नरक) is a term in Buddhist cosmology[1] usually referred to in English as "hell" (or "hell realm") or "purgatory".[2][3] Another term used for the concept of hell in earlier writings is niraya.[4] The Narakas of Buddhism are closely related to Diyu, the hell in Chinese mythology. A naraka differs from one concept of hell in Christianity in two respects: firstly, beings are not sent to Naraka as the result of a divine judgment or punishment; and secondly, the length of a being's stay in a naraka is not eternal,[5][6] though it is usually incomprehensibly long.[7][8]

Naraka
Naraka in Burmese art
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese地獄
Simplified Chinese地狱
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinDìyù
Bopomofoㄉㄧˋㄩˋ
Gwoyeu Romatzyhdihyuh
Wade–GilesTi⁴-yu⁴
Tongyong Pinyindihyú
Yale Romanizationdihyúm
MPS2díhyú
IPA[tî.iû]
other Mandarin
Xiao'erjingدۆزەخ
Dunganдиюй
Sichuanese Pinyind4 hiyu4
Wu
RomanizationTi平-ku入
Gan
RomanizationTi-ku
Tiku
Xiang
IPATi33-kiɛ24/
Hakka
RomanizationJi24-gouk2
Pha̍k-fa-sṳJi-kguk
Yue: Cantonese
Yale Romanizationdeih yuhk
Jyutpingdei6 juk6
IPA[ji˩.wkʰ] or [ji˩.hʊk̚˩]
Southern Min
Hokkien POJTi-ku
Tâi-lôTi-ky
Eastern Min
Fuzhou BUCTi-guk
Pu-Xian Min
Hinghwa BUCTi-guk
Northern Min
Jian'ou RomanizedTi-guk
Burmese name
Burmeseငရဲ
Nga Yè
Tibetan name
Tibetanདམྱལ་བ་
Transcriptions
WylieDmyal Ba
Tibetan PinyinNung-Wa
Vietnamese name
Vietnamese alphabetĐịa ngục
Chữ Hán地獄
Thai name
Thaiนรก
RTGSNárók
Korean name
Hangul지옥
Hanja地獄
Transcriptions
Revised RomanizationJiok
McCune–ReischauerJio'k
Mongolian name
Mongolian CyrillicТам
Mongolian scriptᠲᠠᠮ
Transcriptions
SASM/GNCTam
Japanese name
Kanji地獄 / 奈落
Transcriptions
RomanizationJigoku / Naraku
Malay name
MalayNeraka
Indonesian name
IndonesianNeraka, Jahannam
Filipino name
TagalogNalaka (ᜈᜀᜎᜀᜃᜀ)
Lao name
Laoນະຮົກ
Na Hok
Spanish name
Spanishinfierno
地狱
Sanskrit name
Sanskritनरक (in Devanagari)
Naraka (Romanised)
Pāli name
Pāli𑀦𑀺𑀭𑀬 (in Brahmi)
Niraya (Romanised)

A being is born into naraka as a direct result of its accumulated actions (karma) and resides there for a finite period of time until that karma has achieved its full result.[9][10] After its karma is used up, it will be reborn in one of the higher worlds as the result of karma that had not yet ripened.[11]

The eight hot naraka appear in Jātaka texts and form the basis of the hell system in Mahayana Buddhism,[12] according to them the hells are located deep under the southern continent of Jambudvīpa denoting India. They are built one upon the other like storeys, the principle is that the more severe kind of damnation is located under the previous one. There are differences in the conception of the naraka's height, breadth, length and depth and distance, meaning that there is not a clear canonic system of naraka at this point of time besides their size.[11]

Historical background

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Dating the idea of hell within Buddhist tradition proves to be difficult, since ideas were orally transmitted until about 100 BCE when the Pali canon was written down in Ceylon.[13]

However, the concept of hell played a significant role since the early stage of Buddhism, since it is closely connected to the concept of karma. Karma determines into which realm a soul is born into. Good actions cause someone to be reborn in heaven or, as a human on earth, while bad actions cause a rebirth as an animal, a hungry ghost, or in hell.[14][15]

In the Kathāvatthu, one of the earliest Buddhist writings written around 250—100 BCE, a version of hell is fully developed, described, and discussed. It is probably one of the earliest religious works offering a presentation of hell imagery.[15] It discusses related topics such as whether hell is the result of particular bad actions or the committed bad actions themselves. It further is argues that hell is a state experienced in another life as the result of a bad action,[16] connecting hell to the concept of the retribution for bad actions and compensation for good actions.[17]

The historical Buddha rejected the reliance upon deities in order to encourage individuals to take responsibility for their own morality. He and other buddhists encouraged this, especially in the laity that demanded a tangible goal, with the comprehensible symbolism of hell. Just as hell served as a symbol, heaven did as well and acted as a temporary imagining that one could progress beyond and achieve enlightenment.[18][19][20] In contrast hell was utilised as a deterrent to actions that would create an opposition to enlightenment.[21]

If the understanding of these dates is correct then the idea of Buddhist hell is prior to the ones in Mediterrenean cultures, however, both communicated with one another over the sea and land.[22]

Descriptions of Narakas

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There are several schemes for counting these narakas and enumerating their torments. Some sources describe five hundred or even hundreds of thousands of different narakas. One of the most common scheme is that of the Eight Great Hot Narakas and Eight Great Cold Narakas. Physically, Naraka is thought of as a series of layers extending below Jambudvīpa. There are also series of isolated and boundary hells called Pratyeka naraka (Pali: Pacceka-niraya) and Lokantarikas

The sufferings of the dwellers in naraka often resemble those of the pretas, and the two types of being are easily confused. The simplest distinction is that beings in Naraka are confined to their subterranean world, while the pretas are free to move about.

As for how beings come into hell, they are not born in these naraka but appear by means of manifestation (Upapāta उपपात) as adults under the influence of the karmic force. The bodies they are manifested in are made out of resilient matter that can withstand even the most extreme pain. In some texts it is reported that the bodies are large to extent the suffering.[23]

Eight Hot narakas

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Hells caused by physical crimes

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1. Sañjīva (等活), the "reviving" naraka, has ground made of hot iron heated by an immense fire. This is the designated realm for those who commit acts of violence and murder with the intent of killing living beings out of a desire to destroy their source of life.[24][25][26] Beings in this naraka appear fully grown, already in a state of fear and misery. As soon as the being begins to fear being harmed by others, their fellows appear and attack each other with iron claws and hell guards appear and attack the being with fiery weapons. As soon as the being experiences an unconsciousness like death, they are suddenly restored to full health as a cold wind revives them and the attacks begin again. This circle of torture continues until their bad karma is exhausted.[11] Other tortures experienced in this Naraka include: having molten metal dropped upon them, being sliced into pieces, and suffering from the heat of the iron ground.[27][28]

Killing that is purely accidental does not lead to this hell. Examples of killing that does not lead to this hell include: accidental crushing of an insect, killing while driving a stake to the ground, a doctor attempting to treat the sick but involuntarily kills his patient, a parent who tries to correct their child's behavior and accidentally kills them and when a flame attracts an insect to its destruction.[29] Consuming meat is also not an act of bad karma in the circumstances that the individual did not see, hear the killing of the animal or let the animal be killed specifically for them. This hell should make the practitioners aware of their dependence with the sentient beings around them. The purpose is to discourage unnecessary suffering of animals but not totally prohibit the consumption of meat.[30]

It is said to be 1,000 yojanas beneath Jambudvīpa and 10,000 yojanas in each direction.[31]

The saddharmasmṛtyupasthānasūtra ("Sutra of the Right Mindfulness") names sixteen subsidiary hells to this one and discusses seven of them in detail.[32] The subsidiary hells are the Region of the Mud Excrement which is full of boiling excrements and insects,[33] the Region of the Wheel of Swords where iron falls from the sky like rain and is covered in a forest of swords, the Region of the Roasting Skillet where people who roasted animals will be done the same to them, the Region of Numerous Sufferings, the Region of Darkness which is a dark space and the people there are burned by opaque fire while a fiery wind blows that tears their skin,[34] the Region of Unhappiness where great fires burn and while the residents are devoured by animals and finally the Region of Extreme Suffering where lazy people who committed murder burn.[32][35]

2. Kālasūtra (黒縄), the "black thread" naraka, includes the torments of Sañjīva. The pains experienced in this hell are ten times more severe than those suffered in Sañjīva.[36] In addition, black lines are drawn upon the body, which hell guards use as guides to cut the beings with fiery saws and sharp axes.[27][31][37] A second version of this hell describes it as a place where black ropes are stretched across the mountains and hot cauldrons are placed underneath. The wardens of this hell force the dwellers to carry heavy iron bundles and walk across the rope until they fall into the cauldrons below.[38] This is the place for those who have committed murder, robbery, or lied and those who were bad sons or two-faced women.[37]

This naraka includes places such as the Chandala hell for those who steal from the sick or take objects that they are not worthy of using.[39] They are tormented by giant evil birds that disembowel them. Other punishments include being forced to eat molten copper and being pierced by spears.[40]

Genshin describes the subsidiary hells within this region in more detail. One example is the Region of Equal Wailing and Reception of Suffering, where the inmates tied to black ropes that are on fire and fall into swords below. Hounds with hot fangs then proceed to take the bodies apart.[41]

3. Saṃghāta (衆合), the "crushing" naraka,[42] is surrounded by huge masses of rock that smash together and crush beings into a bloody jelly. When the rocks move apart again, life is restored to the being, and the process starts again.[27] Within this naraka corpses are eaten by demons, bears, and birds of hell,[43] and Eagles with flaming beaks tear out their organs. The saddharmasmṛtyupasthānasūtra provides another depiction of this hell. The wardens then continue hand them on hooks.[43][44]

The rebirth into this hell is caused by the improper attitude towards love and sexual indulgence combined with acts of murder.[37][45] The residents of this hell are firstly brought to a beautiful woman who reminds them of the woman they once loved sitting upon a tree and who beckons them to climb up. While climbing, hot sword-leaves slice into the body, but the inmate is filled with so much desire that they reach the top, discovering that the woman is below the tree beckoning them down. This is repeated and the prisoner spends hundreds of thousands of years in this cycle.[45][43] This represents the people who stay ignorant in life possess ego-centric love as they have no awareness of being in their own hell of self-deception. They blame their suffering upon their circumstances instead of taking a look at their own prisoned mind.[46]

The first subsidiary hell, the Region of Evil Views, is described by Genshin as a place for those who have molested children. Those who end up in this hell are forced to watch their children being stabbed by the hell wardens. While this happens they experience unspeakable suffering as they are hung down and molten copper is poured into their bodies through the anus.[47] Another hell is the Region of Suffering Enduring. Men who kidnap the women of others are hung upside down from a tree and roasted under a fire that enters their mouths and burns their insides as they try to scream.[47] Another hell is the Region of Many Suffering and Anguish where men who committed homosexual rape are reborn. These men are embraced by figures of the people who they molested. After being incenerates in this manner they revive and in fear they attempt to flee just to fall off a cliff, ending up being consumed by birds with flaming beaks and foxes.[48][49]

4. Raurava (叫喚), the "screaming"[50] naraka, is where beings screaming run wildly about, looking for refuge from the burning ground as they are scorched by the blazing fires.[27][11] Other descriptions of this hell include that the prisoners beg the demons, that are gold and have long legs that enable them to run as quickly as the wind, for mercy hearing the voices of the dreadful demons.[51] This increases the anger of these demons and they pry open the mouths of the prisoners with pincers to pour molten copper into it that destroys their organs.[52][53][54]

The primary reason for being reborn into this realm of hell is the improper intake and use of intoxicants in combination with acts of killing, stealing and sexual indulgence. The sixteen subsidiary hells to this raurava naraka enumerate a number of cases which involve the giving of alcohol to monks with the purpose of irritating them, the use of intoxicants as a means of seduction, the addition of water to alcohol by merchants with the intention of gaining extra money,[55] the provision of animals with liquor or the utilisation of alcohol in order to kill or rob others.[56] Nevertheless, the consumption of alcohol is only prohibited to the extent that it impedes the proper practice of morality. This hell may be associated with the consumption of alcohol, yet it never condemns the individual who drinks alone or with the company of friends. However, the descriptions of this hell include references to the negative effects of alcohol, such as its detrimental impact on the body and irritating effects on the mind, advising abstinence from liquor.[57]

Hell caused by vocal crimes

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5.Mahāraurava (大叫喚), the "great screaming" naraka, is similar to raurava.[31] The primary causes of this hell are lying and the deployment of inappropriate words in conjunction with the transgressions outlined in the former naraka. This is the initial hell in which the psychological state is of greater consequence than the physical condition in regard to the misdeed.[57] In the minor Hell of Unbearable Pain those who committed perjury or bribery are tormented by having snakes be born inside of their bodies. Each lie creates more snakes as they represent the inner fears like inadequacy, loss of possessions and so on that are perpetuated by further lies.[58] While there is no clear differentiation between truth and falsehood in Buddhism that does not mean that an individual should deliberately deceive others.[58]

Subsidiary hells include the Region for Receiving the Suffering of Being Stabbed by a Spearhead where hot iron needles are thrust into the mouths and tongues of the inmates. In the Region Where One Receives Limitless Suffering wardens pull out tongues with hot iron pincers.[59][60]

Hells caused by mental crimes

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6. Tapana (焦熱; 炎熱) is the "heating"[61] naraka, where hell guards impale the residents on a fiery spear until flames issue from their noses and mouths.[27] Furthermore, they are thrown onto a burning iron surface and are beaten by the wardens until they have been reduced to a mound of flesh or are fried in a skillet. They are impaled from the buttock to the head on a spit and roasted, burning until the flames pierce their bones and marrow. Compared to the flames of this hell, the flames of the former naraka feel like snow to the inmates.[62][63][64]

As the first hell, purely related to mental actions, it addresses the major obstacles to enlightenment. These obstacles include the rejection of the laws of karma and the existence of good and evil, which the historical Buddha considered to be bad for people to take personal responsibility.[65] The key to enlightenment lies within the human mind and in case that mind deceives itself, the possibility of enlightenment vanishes.[66]

One of the places in this hell is the pundarika Region in which everyone is engulfed in flames. A voice beckons them to come closer and drink from a lake of lotus blossoms (pundarika). They follow the voice and fall into hole engulfed in flames that incinerate their bodies. The bodies are revived but burn soon again as this circle continues. Nevertheless, they repeat their attempt of finding the lotus lake to quench their thirst. People who starved themselves in hope of reaching heaven and people who led others to believe in heterodox views will be found in this hell.[67][68][65]

A second place is the Region of Dark Fire Wind. The people here are prisoned in a whirlwind which causes them to tumble around in circles. They are tossed around by a wind that strikes their body as sharply as a sword and cuts it into little pieces. Afterwards they are revived and this is repeated. In this hell the belief that things can be classified into permanent and impermanent.[67][69][70]

These hells showcase that while Buddhism had tolerance for other religions some sutra clearly condemn beliefs and practises that are different from what the historical Buddha taught.[70]

7. Pratāpana (大焦熱; 大炎熱), the "great heating"[71] naraka. In this hell demons with black bellies, flaming eyes and hooked teeth haunt the ones reborn here, grabbing the residents by the throat and dragging them through mountains, cities and across oceans.[72][27][73] Genshin describes when reaching the entrance to this hell they are insulted by Yama for the sins they committed in their former existence. Being prisoned in the ropes of their bad karma, they enter the pratāpana naraka.[73] The hell is totally engulfed by fire and wailing of other beings. The flames of this naraka are the individuals own bad karma which makes them suffer.[73]

This hell destinies those who have sexually defiled religion to torture.[74] This defilement includes seducing monks, nuns and virtuous laywomen. Those who seduce laywomen are made to suffer within the Hell of String-like Worms by being tied and lied down on a blazing floor on which iron hooks are attached. As they cry out in agony the demons put bow-string shaped worms inside the sinners body. This worm burns the inside of their body and devours the innards while it excretes poison that causes excruciating pain. After this procedure it cracks open a hole in the body and slithers out.[72]

Another hell that can be found here is the Place of Painful Hair. Women who have attempted to beguile monks into sexual temptation. Such women are made to suffer by having their skin pared off by demons until only her bones remain. The skin recovers again and this is repeated. Sometimes the demons peel only peel off small parts and then roast them. Fleeing from this torture they run into the hands of the monk who they seduced and their vision transforms into a searing flame. It is almost impossible that such a woman can be reborn as a human again, however, if she is reborn as a human she will end up ugly and disabled, forced to clean excrement and beaten by even her own children.[75]

8. Avīci (阿鼻; 無間) is the "uninterrupted"[76] naraka. Beings are roasted in an immense blazing oven with terrible suffering.[27] The Avici naraka is located at the bottom of the Realm of Desire and as the ones are in states between rebirths and destinied to go into this hell, they cry out:

There is nothing but flames.
They fill the sky and there is no space (between the flames).
In the four directions, in the four intermediate directions
And on the ground, there is no place which is free (of flames).
Every place on the ground is filled with evil people.
I can't rely on anything.
I am alone, with no companion.
I am within the darkness of this evil realm
And will (soon) enter the mass of flames.
In the sky, I can
See neither the sun, the moon nor the stars.[77][78]

Until they reach the Avici hell, they will fall for two thousand years in an upside-down posture as it symbolises their own reversed views (viparyāsa).[79][80]

The sufferings in these hells are a thousand times more severe than the ones encountered in the former hells, making the inhabitants of the former hells seem as happy as the most blessed deva. Every sinner's odor smells like foul stench and the sounds of this naraka would make those who hear it die of terror.[80] The Avici Hell is surrounded by seven iron walls and seven iron nets and in each corner a huge bronze dog with eyes like lightning, fangs like swords and teeth like mountain knives is positioned. Below there are eighteen forests with sharp leaves.[79] There are seven walls and banners from which flames are shot out within the hell. Moreover, placed here are eighteen cauldrons out of which molten bronze flows and there are snakes that spit venom and fire everywhere. The sounds that they make are like a hundred thousand thunders that attract iron balls from the sky. Other animals that reside here are worms that spew fire.[79][81]

Another description of this hell is that there are flames everywhere that pierce, burn, sever the tendons and crack the bodies of those residing there. There is nothing but flames and the only signal that there are beings existing within it are the screams. All beings are forced to climb up a scorching hot iron mountain. Additional sufferings consist of pulling out the tongues and letting them swallow an iron ball and molten bronze while forcing the mouth open with pincers. This results in their throat and viscera being burned.[82][83]

In his Ōjōyōshū Genshin describes a couple of subsidiary hells to this one, starting with the depiction of the Region where Iron Foxes are Fed. All beings here are on fire. On top of that, iron tiles rain from the sky in a thunderstorm, crushing everything below. Foxes with scorching teeth make their way to the crushed bodies and feast on them. All those who have damaged Buddhist properties by setting them on fire will be punished in this hell.[84][85] In the Region of the Black Belly all beings are consumed by their own hunger to the extent of being forced to eat their own flesh. Black bellied snakes attack them here as well. Those who have eaten the things offered to Buddha will suffer in this place.[84][86] Another place is the Region Where Iron Mountains Fall like Rain. In this place, falling iron mountains crush the bodies of sinners into lumps of flesh. There are eleven fires in the shape of towers that burn anyone who comes close and wardens with swords that slash sinners in this region while they put molten pewter into the wounds. Those who stole and ate the food of pratyekabuddha are destined to go here.[87][88] The next subsidiary hell is the Region of the Bird, which is inhabited by a bird as big as an elephant that has a sharp fire-spewing beak. It grabs the ones in this region and drops them from the sky, leaving them shattered on the ground. The roads have knives that stick out and pierce the ones walking on them. Additionally, they are attacked by dogs with fangs on fire.[87][89]

This hell is the destined place for those who have committed one of the Five sins of Buddhism (Ānantarya Karma) that include the murder of one's biological mother or father, evil intention of causing harm to the Buddha or the Buddhist community and the murder of Arhats. To be worthy of the Avici hell, these sins need to be carried out with deliberate intentions as they have consciously ignored the good within themselves and are fully aware of their sin.[80] This sin also consists of taking the chance of others to reach enlightenment[90] and destroying part of oneself under the working of the Dependent Origination (Pratītyasamutpāda).[91]

Eight Great Cold Narakas

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There are eight great cold hells (Chinese: 八寒地獄) located on one Cakkavāla in Buddhist sutras. Residents of these hells are tormented by unbearable cold.

The first four names reflect the cries uttered by sufferers in these hells because of the intolerable cold. The latter four hells are named for the changes one's flesh is said to undergo when exposed to the intense cold there. For instance, in the hell of the crimson lotus the cold is said to be so severe that one's back breaks open and bloody flesh emerges, resembling a crimson lotus flower. Dharma Analysis Treasury describes the eight cold hells as:

  • Arbuda (頞部陀), the "blister" naraka, is a dark, frozen plain surrounded by icy mountains and continually swept by blizzards. Inhabitants of this world arise fully grown and abide lifelong naked and alone, while the cold raises blisters upon their bodies. The length of life in this naraka is said to be the time it would take to empty a barrel of sesame seeds if one only took out a single seed every hundred years.[27]
  • Nirarbuda (刺部陀), the "burst blister" naraka, is even colder than Arbuda. There, the blisters burst open, leaving the beings' bodies covered with frozen blood and pus.[27]
  • Aṭaṭa (頞听陀) is the "shivering" naraka. There, beings shiver in the cold, making an aṭ-aṭ-aṭ sound with their mouths.[27]
  • Hahava (臛臛婆;) is the "lamentation" naraka. There, the beings lament in the cold, going haa, haa in pain.[27]
  • Huhuva (虎々婆), the "chattering teeth" Naraka, is where beings shiver as their teeth chatter, making the sound hu, hu.[27]
  • Utpala (嗢鉢羅) is the "blue lotus" naraka. The intense cold there makes the skin turn blue like the colour of an utpala waterlily.[27]
  • Padma (鉢特摩), the "lotus" naraka, has blizzards that crack open frozen skin, leaving one raw and bloody.
  • Mahāpadma (摩訶鉢特摩) is the "great lotus" naraka. The entire body cracks into pieces and the internal organs are exposed to the cold, also cracking.

According to the Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra, they are:

  1. the Hahava hell,
  2. the Atata hell,
  3. the Alala hell,
  4. the Ababa hell,
  5. the Utpala hell (the hell of the blue lotus),
  6. the Padma hell (the hell of the crimson lotus),
  7. the Kumuda hell (the hell of the scarlet lotus),
  8. the Pundarika (the hell of the white lotus).

In the first hell, the intense cold produces chilblains all over one's body. In the second hell, one's chilblains worsen and finally burst. The following three hells are named for the shrieks of sufferers who inhabit them. In the sixth hell, one's flesh turns blue from the intense cold. In the last two hells, the cold makes one's flesh crack open, resembling a crimson lotus.[92]

In Buddhist literature

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The Dīrghāgama or Longer Āgama-sūtra (Ch. cháng āhán jīng 長阿含經),[93] was translated to Chinese in 22 fascicles from an Indic original by Buddhayaśas (Fotuoyeshe 佛陀耶舍) and Zhu Fonian 竺佛念 in 412–13 CE.[94] This literature contains 30 discrete scriptures in four groups (vargas). The fourth varga, which pertains to Buddhist cosmology,[95] contains a "Chapter on Hell" (dìyù pǐn 地獄品) within the Scripture of the Account of the World (shìjì jīng 世記經). In this text, the Buddha describes to the sangha each of the hells in great detail, beginning with their physical location and names:

佛告比丘: 「此四天下有八千天下圍遶其外.復有大海水周匝圍遶八千天下.復有大金剛山遶大海水.金剛山外復有第二大金剛山.二山中間窈窈冥冥.日月神天有大威力.不能以光照及於彼.彼有八大地獄.其一地獄有十六小地獄.第一大地獄名想.第二名黑繩.第三名堆壓.第四名叫喚.第五名大叫喚.第六名燒炙.第七名大燒炙.第八名無間.其想地獄有十六小獄.小獄縱廣五百由旬.第一小獄名曰黑沙.二名沸屎.三名五百丁.四名飢.五名渴.六名一銅釜.七名多銅釜.八名石磨.九名膿血.十名量火.十一名灰河.十二名鐵丸.十三名釿斧.十四名犲狼.十五名劍樹.十六名寒氷.[96]

The Buddha told the bhikṣus, there are 8,000 continents surrounding the four continents [on earth]. There is, moreover, a great sea surrounding those 8,000 continents. There is, moreover, a great diamond mountain range encircling that great sea. Beyond this great diamond mountain range is yet another great diamond mountain range. And between the two mountain ranges lies darkness. The sun and moon in the divine sky with their great power are unable to reach that [darkness] with their light. In [that space between the two diamond mountain ranges] there are eight major hells. Along with each major hell are sixteen smaller hells.

The first major hell is called Thoughts. The second is called Black Rope. The third is called Crushing. The fourth is called Moaning. The fifth is called Great Moaning. The sixth is called Burning. The seventh is called Great Burning. The eighth is called Unremitting. The Hell of Thoughts contains sixteen smaller hells. The smaller hells are 500 square yojana in area. The first small hell is called Black Sand. The second hell is called Boiling Excrement. The third is called Five Hundred Nails. The fourth is called Hunger. The fifth is called Thirst. The sixth is called Single Copper Cauldron. The seventh is called Many Copper Cauldrons. The eighth is called Stone Pestle. The ninth is called Pus and Blood. The tenth is called Measuring Fire. The eleventh is called Ash River. The twelfth is called Iron Pellets. The thirteenth is called Axes and Hatchets. The fourteenth is called Jackals and Wolves. The fifteenth is called Sword Cuts. The sixteenth is called Cold and Ice.

Further evidence supporting the importance of these texts discussing hells lies in Buddhists' further investigation of the nature of hell and its denizens. Buddhavarman's fifth century Chinese translation of the Abhidharma-vibhāṣā-śāstra (Ch. āpídámó pípóshā lùn 阿毘曇毘婆沙論) questions whether hell wardens who torture hell beings are themselves sentient beings, what form they take, and what language they speak.[97] The Abhidharma-kosa (Treasure House of Higher Knowledge) is the root text that describes the most common scheme, as the Eight Cold Narakas and Eight Hot Narakas.[98] The translation of it by Xuanzang's 玄奘 seventh century Chinese too is concerned with whether hell wardens are sentient beings, as well as how they go on to receive karmic retribution, whether they create bad karma at all, and why are they not physically affected and burned by the fires of hell.[99]

Descriptions of the naraka are a common subject in some forms of Buddhist commentary and popular literature as cautionary tales against the fate that befalls evildoers and an encouragement to virtue.[100]

The Mahāyāna Sūtra of the Bodhisattva Kṣitigarbha (Dìzàng or Jizō) graphically describes the sufferings in naraka and explains how ordinary people can transfer merit in order to relieve the sufferings of the beings there.[101] One example being Kṣitigarbha statues that are supposed to shorten the period of time children have to endure the suffering in the underworld.[102]

Genshin, a monk of the Pure Land Buddhism, began his Ōjōyōshū with a description of the suffering within the eight hot naraka. It is a seminal work within the Pure Land Buddhism movement and outlines some thoughts in regard to the cosmology and practice.[103] Genshin assumes the general Buddhist position that life within the six paths is characterised by dukkha and should thus be rejected.[104] The purpose of his descriptions of the extreme suffering in Naraka could be to convince people of the teachings and practices of Pure Land Buddhism and stop their clinging onto the transmigratory existence in samsara.[105] Tibetan Lamrim texts also included a similar description.

Chinese Buddhist texts considerably enlarged upon the description of naraka (Diyu), detailing additional Narakas and their punishments, and expanding the role of Yama and his helpers, Ox-Head and Horse-Face. In these texts, Naraka became an integral part of the otherworldly bureaucracy which mirrored the imperial Chinese administration.

Interpretation of the Buddhist concept of hell

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Matsunaga argues that the concept of Naraka was created to move people in the period these concepts were created towards action in their daily lives that would lead towards enlightenment.[106] The naraka do not give a specific outline of moral behavior that leads to enlightenment, however, it acted as a guideline for it. Otherwise, Matsunaga states, the individual would be deprived of their own responsibility. Each individual has to walk their own path which is depended on time, place and their karma from past actions. Buddhism advocates that people have the ability to create themselves and therefore mold their own heaven and hells.[107]

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    A scene of punishment with boiling, at a hell scenery in Wat Muang, Thailand
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    Thorn tree with climbing it as a punishment, at a hell scenery in Wat Muang, Thailand
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    A mural from a temple in northern Thailand depicting naked beings climbing thorn-covered trees, pecked by birds from above, and attacked from below by hell guards armed with spears. There are icy mountains in the background, and Phra Malaya watches from above.
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    A mural from a temple in northern Thailand. Human-animal figures are dismembered and disemboweled by hell guards and birds, while Phra Malaya watches from above.
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    A mural from a temple in northern Thailand. The unclothed spirits of the dead are brought before Yama for judgement. Phra Malaya watches from above as beings are fried in a large oil cauldron.
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    Currently held in the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, this Japanese scroll is illustrated in the style of Jigoku Zoshi. Originally drawn during the Heian period in the 12th century depicting the 8 great hells and the 16 lesser hells in both text and painting. The specific fragment of the scroll being shown shows a demon stirring a heated cauldron full of people in the Hell of the Single Copper Cauldron.

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Thakur, Upendra (1992). India and Japan, a Study in Interaction During 5th Cent. – 14th Cent. A.D. Abhinav Publications. ISBN 8170172896.
  2. ^ Braavig (2009), p. 257. Early translators of the Buddhist Canon seem to have preferred using the term purgatory instead of hell for Naraka because, unlike the Christian imagination of hell, it is not eternal.
  3. ^ Laut, Jens Peter (2013). "Hells in Central Asian Turkic Buddhism and Early Turkic Islam". Tra Quattro Paradisi: Esperienze, Ideologie e Riti Relativi Alla Morte Tra Oriente e Occidente: 20. ISBN 978-88-97735-10-6 – via Università Ca' Foscari Venezia.
  4. ^ Braavig (2009), p. 259. "Niraya" (Sanskrit: निरय, Pali: 𑀦𑀺𑀭𑀬) was used in earlier Hindu writings that depicted hells. nir-r means "to go out" or "to go asunder" referring to hell as a place where the bad deeds, therefore their bad karma, are destroyed.
  5. ^ "Naraka – iSites" (PDF). isites.harvard.edu. 2015.
  6. ^ Braavig (2009): p. 257.
  7. ^ Saddharmasmṛtyupasthānasūtra, T 84, 33b (translated by Rhodes (2000) on page 30). One example to illustrate the long time one spends in just one Naraka (in this instance the Revival Naraka) is described in the Saddharmasmṛtyupasthānasūtra as: "Fifty years of a human life equals one day and night in the heaven of the Four Heavenly Kings. The life span there is five hundred years. The life span (of the beings) in the Heaven of the Four Heavenly Kings equals one day and night in this hell.... [End. The life span is based upon the Abhidharmakosa.... The same is true of the following six (hells).] The Yu p 'o sai chieh ching holds that one year in the first heaven (i. e., the Heaven of the Four Heavenly Kings) equals one day and night of the first hell (i. e., Revival Hell)."
  8. ^ Braavig (2009), p. 272. In Buddhist tradition the age of the universe was not counted in millenia but in kalpas. Kalpas are eternally recurring and are "[...] long. It is not easy to calculate how many years it is, how many hundreds of years it is, how many thousand of years it is, how many hundred thousands of years it is."
  9. ^ Braarvig, Jens (2009). "The Buddhist Hell: An Early Instance of the Idea?". Numen. 56 (2–3): 254–281. doi:10.1163/156852709X405008. JSTOR 27793792.
  10. ^ Laut (2013), p. 20.
  11. ^ a b c d Laut (2013), p. 21.
  12. ^ Kirfel, Willibald (1920): Die Kosmographie der Inder nach den Quellen dargestellt. Bonn and Leipzig: K. Schroeder. p. 201.
  13. ^ Braavig (2009), p. 259.
  14. ^ Braavig (2009), p. 256. Bad actions cause one to be reborn in "bad states" (duggati) like animals, hungry ghosts and as a hell resident. There is barely dharma within these existences and a rebirth in a higher realm is very difficult.
  15. ^ a b Braavig (2009), p. 254.
  16. ^ Braavig (2009), p. 260. The author describes that matricide, patricide, killing a perfected saint, wounding the Buddha with evil intent, creating schism in the sangha all lead to hell.
  17. ^ Braavig (2009), p. 261.
  18. ^ Matsunaga, Alicia; Matsunaga, Daigan (1971): The Buddhist concept of hell. New York: Philosophical Library. p. 22.
  19. ^ Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 23. This kind of teaching was called "The Two Levels of Teaching" which were two different types of religious awareness. First they would employ a simplified understanding of Buddhist teachings to the laity and then they would be able to progress their understanding to the abstract doctrines.
  20. ^ Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 78.
  21. ^ Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 27.
  22. ^ Braavig (2009), p. 280.
  23. ^ Laut (2013), p. 27.
  24. ^ Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 81.
  25. ^ Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 82. The murders that let people appear in this hell are caused by an unfeeling and spontaneous emotional reaction. It is not a carefully planned out murder as it would entail a mental rather than physical crime and would lead to the Avici Naraka.
  26. ^ Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 81. There is no real distinction between the killing of an animal or human since all creatures have an equal right to life in Buddhism.
  27. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Alexander, Jane (2009). The Body, Mind, Spirit Miscellany: The Ultimate Collection of Fascinations, Facts, Truths, and Insights. London: Duncan Baird Publishers. pp. 150–151. ISBN 978-1844838370.
  28. ^ Malik, Akhtar (2007). Survey of Buddhist Temples and Monasteries. New Delhi: Anmol Publications. p. 50. ISBN 978-8126132591.
  29. ^ Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 82.
  30. ^ Matsunaga; Mastunaga (1971): p. 84.
  31. ^ a b c Morgan, Diane (2010). Essential Buddhism: A Comprehensive Guide to Belief and Practice. Santa Barbara, California: Praeger. p. 73. ISBN 978-0313384523.
  32. ^ a b Saddharmasmṛtyupasthānasūtra. The list of the sixteen subsidiary hells is found at T 17, 27 a—b and the description of the seven subsidiary hells can be found at T 17, 27b—29b.
  33. ^ Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 81. For more detail, in this subsidiary hell those who have killed birds or deer without feeling regret are tormented by being placed in a pit of hot dung mixed with molten copper. The people who end up at this place stumble through the filth and are forced to eat it while maggots with sharp beaks enter their mouth and consume the person.
  34. ^ Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 82. In this hell those who have slaughtered sheep by smothering them or murdered turtles by crushing them with roof tiles suffer from a opaque fire that slowly incenerates them while the surroundings consisting of diamond mountains in this hell crumbles. The crumbling mountains tear the residents of this hell apart as they attempt to scream out loud but their voice fails them just like the sheep and turtles that could not scream while they killed them.
  35. ^ Rhodes (2000), p. 31.
  36. ^ Rhodes (2000): p. 32.
  37. ^ a b c Laut (2013): p. 21.
  38. ^ Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 85. The second version is described in the Sutra of the Remembrance of the True Law.
  39. ^ Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 86. Taking the ownership of an object is not just limited to stealing but encompasses the meaning of taking something the individual is undeserving of. Gratitude for objects in the world is necessary to realise that one is not entitled to possession.
  40. ^ Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 86.
  41. ^ Rhodes (2000): p. 33. Genshin bases his descriptions on the saddharmasmṛtyupasthānasūtra (T 17, 29c).
  42. ^ There are different translations of saṃghāta. Possible translations include "Crowded Hell" (Matsunaga, p. 87) or the "Assembly Hell" (Rhodes, p. 33).
  43. ^ a b c Rhodes (2000): p. 34.
  44. ^ Saddharmasmṛtyupasthānasūtra, T 17, 31b–32b.
  45. ^ a b Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 88.
  46. ^ Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 89.
  47. ^ a b Rhodes (2000): p. 35.
  48. ^ Rhoden (2000): p. 35.
  49. ^ Saddharmasmṛtyupasthānasūtra: T 17, 34b–c.
  50. ^ Rhoden (2000): p. 36. Another possible translation is the "Wailing Hell".
  51. ^ Rhoden (2000): p. 37. Genshin paraphrases the Ta chih tu lun (T 25,176a) in the description that the prisoners beg the demons for mercy.
  52. ^ Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 90.
  53. ^ Rhoden (2000): p. 36.
  54. ^ Rhoden (2000): p. 37. The description of the prisoners being forced to drink molten copper is based on the saddharmasmṛtyupasthānasūtra (T 17, 41a).
  55. ^ Rhodes (2000): p. 37. These merchants end up in the Region of the Worms at the End of Fire. In this place they are subjected to four-hundred and four kinds of diseases.
  56. ^ Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): pp. 90—91.
  57. ^ a b Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 92.
  58. ^ a b Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 93.
  59. ^ Rhoden (2000): p. 38.
  60. ^ Saddharmasmṛtyupasthānasūtra: T 17, 53a.
  61. ^ Other possible translations include "Hell of Burning Heat" (Matsunaga, 94) or "Scorching Heat Hell" (Rhoden, 39).
  62. ^ Rhoden (2000): p. 39.
  63. ^ Yogācārabhūmi (T 30, 296a). This work describes the part in which they are beaten, fried and roasted on a spit.
  64. ^ Saddharmasmṛtyupasthānasūtra: T 17, 55c. This sutra includes the descriptions of the intensity of the flame in this naraka.
  65. ^ a b Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 94.
  66. ^ Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 96.
  67. ^ a b Rhoden (2000): p. 40.
  68. ^ Saddharmasmṛtyupasthānasūtra: T 17, 56 a-b.
  69. ^ Saddharmasmṛtyupasthānasūtra: T 17, 61 b–c. This text argues that while the body might be impermanent the four elements are permanent.
  70. ^ a b Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 95.
  71. ^ Possible translations include "Great Scorching Heat Hell" (Rhoden, p.40) or "Hell of Great Burning Heat" (Matsunaga, p. 97).
  72. ^ a b Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 97.
  73. ^ a b c Rhoden (2000): p. 41.
  74. ^ Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 98. It also emphasises that the ones who take the chance from monks and nuns to reach enlightenment through sexual seduction or improper beliefs are to be punished.
  75. ^ Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 98. That she ends up ugly and disabled is a description aimed at the laity.
  76. ^ (Other possible translations include the "No-interval Hell" Matsunaga, p. 99)
  77. ^ Rhoden (2000): p. 42.
  78. ^ Saddharmasmṛtyupasthānasūtra: T 84, 35 c)
  79. ^ a b c Rhoden (2000): p. 43.
  80. ^ a b c Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 100.
  81. ^ Kuan fo san mei hai ching: T 15, 668c.
  82. ^ Yogācārabhūmi: T 30, 296b.
  83. ^ Rhoden (2000): p.43—44.
  84. ^ a b Rhoden (2000): p. 44.
  85. ^ Saddharmasmṛtyupasthānasūtra: T 17, 84c–85b.
  86. ^ Saddharmasmṛtyupasthānasūtra: T 17 85b—c.
  87. ^ a b Rhoden (2000): p. 45.
  88. ^ Saddharmasmṛtyupasthānasūtra: 87a—b.
  89. ^ Saddharmasmṛtyupasthānasūtra: T 17 87—88a.
  90. ^ Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 101.
  91. ^ Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): p. 102.
  92. ^ "eight cold hells".
  93. ^ Taisho vol. 1, no. 1, 1a–149c
  94. ^ "長阿含經," Digital Dictionary of Buddhism, www.buddhism-dict.net/cgi-bin/xpr-ddb.pl?q=長阿含經, accessed 5 May 2014 (can be accessed by logging in with username "guest" and leaving password blank)
  95. ^ "長阿含經," Digital Dictionary of Buddhism, www.buddhism-dict.net/cgi-bin/xpr-ddb.pl?q=長阿含經
  96. ^ T1, no. 1, p. 121, b29-c13
  97. ^ 《阿毘曇毘婆沙論》卷7〈2 智品〉Abhidharma-vibhāṣā-śāstra, fascicle 7, "Chapter on Wisdom," T28, no. 1546, p. 48, a5-25
  98. ^ Buswell, Robert E. (2003). The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. p. 86. ISBN 9781400848058.
  99. ^ 《阿毘達磨俱舍論》卷11〈3 分別世品〉Abhidharmakośa śāstra, fascicle 11, "Chapter on Discerning the World," T1558, no. 29, pp. 1–160
  100. ^ 诸经佛说地狱集要 (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 2010-02-10.
  101. ^ Zhiru (2007). The making of a savior bodhisattva: Dizang in Medieval China ([Online-Ausg.]. ed.). Honolulu (T.H.): University of Hawai'i press. p. 68. ISBN 978-0824830458.
  102. ^ Hearn, Lafcadio (1910): Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan. Leipyig: Bernhard Tauchnitz. pp. 16-18.
  103. ^ Rhodes, Robert. F. (2000). "Imagining Hell: Genshin's Vision of the Buddhist Hells as found in the "Ōjōyōshū"". The Eastern Buddhist. 32 (1): 23. JSTOR 44362242.
  104. ^ Rhodes (2000), p. 23.
  105. ^ Rhodes (2000), p. 24.
  106. ^ Matsunaga; Matsunaga (1971): 72.
  107. ^ Matsunaga; Matsunage (1971): 73. Matsunaga argues that this way of using the Buddhist hell imagery advocates for a moral relativity within Buddhism.

Further reading

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  • Matsunaga, Alicia; Matsunaga, Daigan (1971). The Buddhist concept of hell. New York: Philosophical Library.
  • Teiser, Stephen F. (1988). "Having Once Died and Returned to Life: Representations of Hell in Medieval China". Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies. 48 (2): 433–464. doi:10.2307/2719317. JSTOR 2719317.
  • Law, Bimala Churn; Barua, Beni Madhab (1973). Heaven and hell in Buddhist perspective. Varanasi: Bhartiya Pub. House.
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