Ten Courts of Hell: Not for The Faint-Hearted

Have you ever heard about the Haw Par Villa in Singapore? This is a themed park created in the 1930s by the brothers who made Tiger Balm, one of the most famous balms worldwide, known for its powerful benefits for aches and pains.

The park can be reached easily by Singapore MRT and it has a stop with its name, so you definitely won’t forget where to get off. On today’s post, I will dedicate to the most interesting part of the villa, Ten Courts of Hell. However, I should remind you first that this is not for the faint-hearted.

Guarded by the Ox-Head and Horse Face, the Ten Courts of Hell lead you to series of punishment that any wrong-doer may receive based on their karma and actions in life.

The courts of hell are located inside a dark cave where there is very little light, adding more mystery and horror feel into your walk. The courts start with the first one, where there are preliminary trials by King Qinguang.

Here every prisoner is judged according to what they did when they were still alive, to decide if they will go directly to paradise or if they have to receive some punishment first. Certainly, the good ones are distinguished from the evil ones.

From here, the walk becomes scarier and certainly turns your mind upside down after you finish all the courts.

Let’s begin…

Second Court of Hell: King Chujiang

Third Court of Hell: Yama: King Songdi

Fourth Court of Hell: Yama: King Wuguan

Fifth Court of Hell: Yama: King Yanluo

Sixth Court of Hell: Yama: King Piencheng

Seventh Court of Hell: Yama: King Taishan

Eighth Court of Hell: Yama: King Dushi

Ninth Court of Hell: Yama: King Pingdeng

Tenth Court of Hell: Yama: King Zhuanlun

And at the final court, all will pass to the Pavilion of forgetfulness after serving their sentences and after King Zhuanlun gives his final judgment to them.  At the pavilion, the prisoners will meet an old lady named Meng Po, who prepares them a cup of special tea that helps them forget their past life, and certainly, the horrifying punishment in the previous courts too.

When they finish drinking the tea, each will go to the Wheel of Reincarnation. To know if one would be reborn as a human or as an animal, it will depend on his past karma from his previous life. As humans, there are also differences as some could go into family where there is a life of ease and comfort while others might go into family with sorrow and sufferings.

Like I said, this must have completely blown our mind right. It really makes us think if we still want to even do the least evil action (like small or white lie as they often call it or even not finishing food on our plate) while we are still on earth, as we don’t know what’s going to happen when we die. Who knows if this might come true and it is too late to undo our actions.

For me, all I understand is that what goes around comes around and there is always cause-effect relation in every situation of life, whether we want to understand and accept it or not. Beware of our own karma and doing guys.