Twelve Halls

Twelve Halls

The Twelve Halls is a cultural tourism attraction.

The Twelve Halls consist of the Ten Yama Halls and the East and West Halls. The Ten Yama Kings can be considered the powerful ghost kings of the central authority in the underworld, serving directly under King Yama. How do they divide their responsibilities? What are their duties? The "Collected Explanations and Verifications" records the following:

The First Hall is presided over by King Qin Guang, Jiang, whose birthday is the first day of the second lunar month. He is in charge of human life spans, both short and long, and governs the fortunes and misfortunes of the underworld. For those who die naturally with good deeds, he guides them to transcend life; for those whose merits and faults are equal, he sends them to the Tenth Hall for processing before returning them to the human world—men reborn as women, and women as men. Those who have committed more evil than good are escorted to the high platform on the right side of the hall, known as the Mirror of Sins Platform, where they are made to see the true nature of their hearts during their lifetimes. They are then immediately dispatched to the Second Hall to suffer torment in prison.

Appearance: Leopard-like eyes, lion-like nose, long beard, wearing a square crown, holding a tablet in his right hand at chest level.

The Second Hall is presided over by King Chujiang, Li, whose birthday is the first day of the third lunar month. He governs the Living Great Hell, also called the Stripping Pavilion or Cold Ice Hell, along with sixteen smaller hells. Those who injure others’ limbs or steal and kill living beings in the mortal world are cast into this hell, and further assigned to one of the sixteen smaller hells to suffer. Upon completing their sentence, they are transferred to the Third Hall to face additional punishment.

Appearance: Short-faced with a wide mouth, wearing a crown, a long robe, and holding a tablet in his right hand.

The Third Hall is presided over by King Songdi, Yu, whose birthday is the eighth day of the second lunar month. He governs the Black Rope Great Hell, along with sixteen smaller hells. Those who disobey or insult their elders or incite lawsuits in the mortal world are sent here, then assigned to various smaller hells to suffer. Once their sentence is complete, they are transferred to the Fourth Hall for further imprisonment and punishment.

Appearance: Furrowed brows, glaring eyes, holding a tablet with both hands at chest level.

The Fourth Hall is presided over by King Wuguan, Lü, whose birthday is the eighteenth day of the second lunar month. He governs the Combined Great Hell, also called the Flaying and Blood Pool Hell, along with sixteen smaller hells. Those who resist grain taxes, withhold rent, or commit fraud in trade are cast into this hell, then further assigned to smaller hells to suffer. After their sentence, they are sent to the Fifth Hall for review.

Appearance: Wrinkled brows, glaring eyes, long ears, wearing a square crown, a long robe, holding a rosary in his left hand in front of his knee, and a tablet in his right hand resting between his knees.

The Fifth Hall is presided over by King Yama, Bao, whose birthday is the eighth day of the first lunar month. Originally residing in the First Hall, he was demoted to this hall due to his compassion for the wrongfully dead, whom he often sent back to the living world to seek justice. Here, he governs the Screaming Great Hell and the sixteen Heart-Piercing Small Hells. Those sent here are first taken to the Soul-Calling Platform to witness the misfortunes their families suffer due to their sins. They are then pushed into hell, where their past evils are investigated before being sent to the sixteen Heart-Piercing Small Hells. Their hearts are hooked out and fed to snakes. After serving their sentence, they are transferred to other halls.

Appearance: Fair-skinned face, wearing a royal crown with tassel-shaped ear protectors hanging on both sides, a lotus-petal-edged, wide-sleeved, high-collared robe, boots on his feet, holding a tablet with both hands at chest level, sitting upright and solemn.

The Sixth Hall is presided over by King Biancheng, Bi, whose birthday is the eighth day of the third lunar month. He governs the Great Screaming Hell and the City of the Wrongfully Dead, along with sixteen smaller hells. Those who complain about heaven and earth or weep while facing north are sent here. Depending on their sins, they are assigned to various smaller hells to suffer. After their sentence, they are transferred to the Seventh Hall to check for any additional wrongdoings.

The Seventh Hall is presided over by King Taishan, Dong, whose birthday is the twenty-seventh day of the third lunar month. He governs the Hot Brain Hell, also called the Meat Grinder and Sauce Hell, along with sixteen smaller hells. Those who prepare medicine using human remains or harm close relatives in the mortal world are sent here, then further assigned to various smaller hells. After serving their sentence, they are transferred to the Eighth Hall for imprisonment and further punishment.

Appearance: Flat nose, sunken face, wearing a square crown, holding a tablet with both hands inside his robe.

The Eighth Hall is presided over by King Dushi, Huang, whose birthday is the first day of the fourth lunar month. He governs the Great Bustling Hell, also called the Hot Agony Cauldron Hell, along with sixteen smaller hells. Those who are unfilial in life, causing distress to their parents or grandparents, are thrown into this hell and then subjected to additional torture in the smaller hells. After enduring all the pain, they are sent to the Seventh Hall to be reborn as animals, forever stripped of human form.

Appearance: Fair-skinned face, holding a tablet with both hands.

The Ninth Hall is presided over by King Pingdeng, Lu, whose birthday is the eighth day of the fourth lunar month. He governs the Iron Net and Avici Hell of Fengdu City, along with sixteen smaller hells. Those who commit murder or arson, or are executed by strangulation or beheading in the mortal world, are brought here. They are bound with hollow steel pillars, forced to embrace them, and burned. Their hearts and livers are scorched until they are cooked, after which they are sent to the Avici Hell to suffer until every victim is reborn. Only then may they be released and sent to the Tenth Hall for rebirth into the Six Paths (Heaven, Earth, Humans, Demons, Hell, and Animals).

Appearance: Long sideburns and beard, wearing a square crown, a long robe, hands clasped inside his sleeves, holding a tablet in his arms.

The Tenth Hall is presided over by King Zhuanlun, Xue, whose birthday is the seventeenth day of the fourth lunar month. He is responsible for the souls sent from all the other halls, determining their good or evil deeds, assigning them grades, and sending them to be reborn in the Four Great Continents. He records the lifespan, fortune, poverty, and status of each man and woman in detail, reporting monthly to the First Hall for registration. Extremely wicked souls are transformed into creatures with extremely short lifespans—born in the morning and dying by night—before being allowed to return to the human world, but only to be reborn in barbarian lands. Those destined for rebirth are first sent to the Lethe Platform under the Goddess Mengpo to drink the potion of forgetfulness, erasing all memories of their past lives.

Appearance: With short beard, holding a tablet with both hands.