Youdu
Youdu () in Chinese mythology is the capital of Hell, or Diyu. Among the various other geographic features believed of Diyu, the capital city has been thought to be named Youdu. It is generally conceived as being similar to a typical Chinese capital city, such as Chang'an, but surrounded with and pervaded with darkness. Name "You" () in Chinese means "dark". "Du" () means "capital". Thus, Youdu is the Dark Capital (Yang 2005: 236). Among other meanings, ''You'' can mean "hidden", "secluded", and is in particular used to indicate the underworld. Location Youdu is located under the earth, in the Region of Darkness, also known as Diyu, or the Yellow Springs. The general ruler of this realm is Houtu, but there are many other functionaries which have been believed to inhabit this region, and with the more important individuals being located in Youdu, as the capital city and seat of government. Description Youdu has been described in various texts, as well as being depicted in art. S ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Heibai Wuchang
The Heibai Wuchang, or Hak Bak Mo Seong, literally "Black and White Impermanence", are two deities in Chinese folk religion in charge of escorting the spirits of the dead to the underworld. As their names suggest, they are dressed in black and white respectively. They are subordinates of Yanluo Wang, the Supreme Judge of the Underworld in Chinese mythology, alongside the Ox-Headed and Horse-Faced Hell Guards. They are worshiped as fortune deities and are also worshiped in City God Temples in some countries. In some instances, the Heibai Wuchang are represented as a single being – instead of two separate beings – known as the Wuchang Gui, literally "Ghost of Impermanence". Depending on the person it encounters, the Wuchang Gui can appear as either a fortune deity who rewards the person for doing good deeds or a malevolent deity who punishes the person for committing evil. Alternative names In folklore, the White Guard's name is Xie Bi'an (), which can be interpreted a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Fengdu Ghost City
Fengdu Ghost City (, originally ) is a large complex of shrines, temples and monasteries dedicated to the afterlife located on the Ming mountain, in Fengdu County, Chongqing municipality, China. It is situated about downstream of Chongqing on the north bank of the Yangtze River. The city consists of buildings, structures, dioramas, and statues related to Diyu and Naraka, concepts from Chinese mythology and Buddhism that signifies the underworld or hell. It is modeled to resemble Youdu, the capital of Diyu. After the building of the Three Gorges Dam and the rising of the water level of the river it became separated from the city of Fengdu, which was rebuilt higher up the mountainside on the south side of the river. In recent years, Fengdu Ghost City has become a tourist attraction. Cruise boats carrying tourists up or down the river stop at the docks and tourists are taken in vehicles halfway up the mountain. From there, there is an open-air escalator up to the complex or t ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Tu Bo
Tubo is the warden of Youdu, the capital of Hell in Chinese mythology. He is a vassal under Houtu, but some scholars also suggest that he was the primordial overlord of the Diyu. Body According to Chu Ci Zhao Hun, Tubo has a tiger head, a cow body, three bulging eyes, a pair of sharp horns, a pair of blood-stained hands that banishes the poor ghost and regard people as delicious food. Regional differences Sichuan In Sichuan mythology, Tubo is the first Emperor of Ghost. In ancient times Sichuan Basin was resided by two different ethnic groups, Ba people and Shu people. With the continuous exchanges in terms of religion, culture and ideologies, some common beliefs and identities were formed and shared. And Tubo is one of such common gods worshiped by both ethnic groups, as the first Emperor of Ghost. Some historians argue that Tubo was a tribe leader of the Ba people, because in Eastern Zhou dynasty, Youdu where Tubo lives was the capital of Ba (state), while some tribes of ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Diyu
''Diyu'' () is the realm of the dead or "hell" in Chinese mythology. It is loosely based on a combination of the Buddhist concept of Naraka (Buddhism), Naraka, traditional Chinese beliefs about the afterlife, and a variety of popular expansions and reinterpretations of these two traditions. The concept parallels purgatory in certain Christian denominations. Diyu is typically depicted as a subterranean maze with various levels and chambers, to which souls are taken after death to atone for the sins they committed when they were alive. The exact number of levels in Diyu and their associated deities differ between Buddhist and Taoist interpretations. Some speak of three to four "courts"; others mention "Ten Courts of Hell", each of which is ruled by a judge (collectively known as the Ten Yama (East Asia)#Yama in Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, and Japanese mythology, Yama Kings); other Chinese legends speak of the "Eighteen Levels of Hell". Each court deals with a different aspect of ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Zhong Kui
Zhong Kui (; ; ; ) is a Taoist deity in Chinese mythology, traditionally regarded as a vanquisher of ghosts and evil beings. He is depicted as a large man with a big black beard, bulging eyes, and a wrathful expression. Zhong Kui is able to command 80,000 demons to do his bidding and is often associated with the five bats of fortune. Worship and iconography of Zhong Kui later spread to other East Asian countries, and he can also be found in the folklores and mythologies of Korea, Japan, and Vietnam. In art, Zhong Kui is a frequent subject in paintings and crafts, and his image is often painted on household gates as a guardian spirit as well as in places of business where high-value goods are involved. He is also commonly portrayed in popular media. King of ghosts According to folklore, Zhong Kui travelled with Du Ping (), a friend from his hometown, to take part in the state-wide imperial examinations held in the capital city Chang'an. Though Zhong Kui attained great academic ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Yanluo Wang
In Chinese culture and religion, Yanluo Wang (simplified Chinese: 阎罗王; traditional Chinese: 閻羅王; pinyin: ''Yánluó Wáng'') is the god of death and the ruler of Diyu, overseeing the "Ten Kings of Hell" in its capital of Youdu. The name is a transcription of the Sanskrit for " King Yama" (/, ). He is also known by the shortened form of the name: Yan Wang (阎王; 閻王; ''Yán Wáng''). Yanluo Wang is the fifth judge in the court of underworld. In both ancient and modern times, Yan is portrayed as a large man with a scowling red face, bulging eyes, and a long beard. He wears traditional robes and a judge's cap or a crown which bears the Chinese character for "king" (). He typically appears on Chinese hell money in the position reserved for political figures on regular currency. ''Journey to the West'' Yanluo Wang is featured in the classic Chinese novel ''Journey to the West''. One day, Sun Wukong invited his friends, the six demon kings and the Bull Demon Ki ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Yama (Buddhism)
In East Asian and Buddhist mythology, Yama ( zh, c=閻魔/閻摩, p=Yánmó, w=Yen-mo) or Yanluo Wang ( zh, c=閻羅王, p=Yánluó Wáng, w=Yen-lo Wang), also known as Yan Wang ( zh, c=閻王, p=Yánwáng, w=Yen-wang), Master Yan Wang ( zh, c=閻王爺, p=Yánwángyé, w=Yen-wang-yeh), Lord Yan ( zh, c=閻君, p=Yánjūn, w=Yen-chün), and Yanluo, Son of Heaven ( zh, c=閻羅天子, p=Yánluó Tiānzǐ, w=Yen-lo T'ien-tzu), is the King of Hell and a dharmapala (wrathful god) said to judge the dead and preside over the Narakas and the cycle of saṃsāra. Although based on the god Yama of the Hindu Vedas, the Buddhist Yama has spread and developed different myths and different functions from the Hindu deity. He has also spread far more widely and is known in most countries where Buddhism is practiced, including China, Nepal, Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Vietnam, Bhutan, Mongolia, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos. In Theravāda Buddhism In the Pali canon, the Buddha ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ox-Head And Horse-Face
Ox-Head () and Horse-Face () are two guardians or types of guardians of the underworld in Chinese mythology. As indicated by their names, both have the bodies of men, but Ox-Head has the head of an ox while Horse-Face has the face of a horse. They are the first beings a dead soul encounters upon entering the underworld; in many stories they directly escort the newly dead to the underworld. Role In their duties as guardians of Diyu, the realm of the dead, their role is to capture human souls who have reached the end of their earthly existence and bring them before the courts of Hell. Souls are then rewarded or punished based on the actions performed in their lifetime. Ox-Head and Horse-Face also play the role of messengers of the king of hell, Yanluo Wang (閻羅王). In one legend, Ox-Head was created by the king when he took pity on a recently deceased ox who had worked hard all his life, so the king made him one of his faithful servants. Chinese mythology In the Chinese ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Meng Po
Meng Po () is the goddess of oblivion in Chinese mythology, who serves Meng Po Soup on the Bridge of oblivion or Naihe Bridge (). This soup wipes the memory of the person so they can reincarnate into the next life without the burdens of the previous life. She awaits the dead souls at the entrance of the 9th round Fengdu (). Legends According to Chinese mythology, there exist several realms beneath the Earth. Meng Po serves in Diyu, the Chinese realm of the dead, in the 10th court. It is her task to ensure that souls who are ready to be reincarnated do not remember their previous life or their time in hell. To this end she collects herbs from various earthly ponds and streams to make her Five Flavored Soup of oblivion (). This is given to each soul to drink before they leave Diyu. The brew induces instant and permanent amnesia, and all memory of other lives is lost. Having been purged of all previous sins and knowledge, the dead spirit is sent to be reborn in a new earthly in ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Chinese Mythology
Chinese mythology () is mythology that has been passed down in oral form or recorded in literature throughout the area now known as Greater China. Chinese mythology encompasses a diverse array of myths derived from regional and cultural traditions. Populated with engaging narratives featuring extraordinary individuals and beings endowed with magical powers, these stories often unfold in fantastical mythological realms or historical epochs. Similar to numerous other mythologies, Chinese mythology has historically been regarded, at least partially, as a factual record of the past. Along with Chinese folklore, Chinese mythology forms an important part of Chinese folk religion and Taoism, especially older popular forms of it. Many narratives recounting characters and events from ancient times exhibit a dual tradition: one that presents a more historicized or euhemerized interpretation, and another that offers a more mythological perspective. Numerous myths delve into the creation ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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City God (China)
A City God (), is a tutelary deity in Chinese folk religion who is believed to protect the people and the affairs of the particular village, town or city of great dimension, and the corresponding location in the afterlife. City God cults appeared over two millennia ago, and originally involved worship of a protective deity of a town's walls and moats. Later, the term came to be applied to deified leaders from the town, who serve in authority over the souls of the deceased from that town, and intervene in the affairs of the living, in conjunction with other officials of the hierarchy of divine beings. City Gods are considered above ''tudigongs'' ('lords of local land'), which themselves are above landlord deities. Name In the name ''Chenghuangshen'' (), the first character ''cheng'' () means "defensive wall, city wall" (a "defensive rampart"; or, by extension, "walled city") and the second character, ''huang'' (), literally means "moat". ''Shen(Chinese religion), Shen'' () means ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |