The 10 Courts of Hell and other Myths at the Singapore Haw Par Villa
by Jehpin Liew
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The 10 Courts of Hell and other Myths at the Singapore Haw Par Villa by Jehpin Liew |
The Haw Par Villa of Singapore, or Tiger Balm Gardens, is one of the most underrated attraction in Singapore. Built in 1937, The Haw Par Villa is home to hundreds of statues and figurines of the characters in Chinese mythology and legends. Non-Chinese will find this place tremendously interesting, although some might find some of the scenes hard to swallow, especially the Crime and Punishment section of the Villa. Admission is free. Map of the location.
Warning: This page contains images of torture and gore. You can skip this initial section depicting the 10 Courts of Hell.
Traditionally,
Chinese believe that when they die, they go through judgement according to what
they have done in their previous lives. Through the Courts of Hell, they will
be judged and rewarded/punished accordingly. After this, they will proceed to
drink a potion that will make them forget about their previous lives before
they are reincarnated. At the Haw Par Villa, you travel the journey of the 10
Courts of Hell, starting from the mouth of the great dragon, to see what punishments
are awarded to wrong doers.
First Court of Hell
In
the First Court of Hell, King Qinguang conducts preliminary trials and each
prisoner is judged according to this deeds in his past life. The good
are distinguished from the evil and the King recommends appropriate reward
or punishment. Punishment is then carried out in the various courts, which gets
harsher as it goes from Second to Nine. Those with virtuous conduct in their
past life will be led over the Golden Bridge to reach paradise. Those
who are evil doers in their past life will be sent to repent before the Mirror
of Retribution and then taken to a subsequent Court of Hell to be punished.
Second Court of Hell
You come here if you
For this, you get
Third Court of Hell
For those who are ungrateful, disrespectful to elders and escape from prison, your heart will be dug out. For drug addicts and traffickers, tomb robbers and those who coerce others into crime and social unrest, you will be tied to a red hot copper pillar and grilled.
Fourth Court of Hell
If you dodge tax, refuse to pay your rent or conduct business fraud, you will be pounded by a stone mallet. If you are disobedient to your siblings or lack filial piety, you get a larger stone.
Fifth
Court of Hell
If you plotted someone's death to get his property or money, or if you are a money lender charging exorbitant interest rates, you will be thrown onto a hill of knives.
Sixth Court of Hell
If you cheat, curse or abduct others, your punishment is to be thrown onto a tree of knives. If you are found guilty of misuse of books, in possession pornographic material, breaking written rules and regulations or waste food, your body will be sawn into halves, either vertically or horizontally.
Seventh Court of Hell
If you are a rumour monger sowing discord among family members, your tongue will be pulled out.
Eighth Court of Hell
If you drive someone to his grave, you will be thrown into a wok of boiling oil and fried.
Nineth Court of Hell
This court is reserved for the worst offenders. If you commit robbery, murder or rape, your head and arms will be chopped off. If you neglect the old and the young, you will be crushed under boulders.
Tenth Court of Hell
Once
you have completed the earlier stages of hell, you will be sent here to be recycled
as something. You drink the broth of forgetfulness, wiping your memory clean
to start your new life again. You can be recycled into a human being born into
a rich family or a rat, depending on what you did in your past life.
Phew!
Finally I reached the tail of the dragon.
The rest of Haw Par Villa
The
entrance of the Villa showcases some of the most famous characters in Chinese
Mythology. With a good camera, you can take a picture of the grand entrance
on the overhead bridge adjacent to it, like this photographer who came real
prepared with 2 cameras. He stood there so long that I decided to take close-ups
of the entrance instead.
There is a short section of the Villa that has statues of characters that are obviously not from Chinese mythology, or at least I do not recognise it.
Water Myths
Dragons are spirits of the waters. The Dragon Kings live under the sea in palaces where they feed on pearls and opals. There are five of them, one in the center and the other four in one of the directions north, south, east, and west. When the Dragons surface, the ocean surges, causing floods and Tsunamis in the process. When they fly, winds howl, rain descends and hurricanes are initiated. Generally, the Dragons are immortals and remain in the ocean in their palaces, which are said to be seen in the early morning by people looking into the deep waters. Maybe these 2 young ladies just saw it.
Journey to the West
Begging
for food one day, Xuanzang met some beautiful women, the Spider Spirits, who
invited him to their home, the cave of Silky Threads. The women were really
seven spider demons in disguise. They bound Xuanzang in spider webs, intending
to eat him the next day, believing that this would turn them into immortals.
This scene shows Xuanzang being seduced by the Spider Women, another trial during
the Journey to the West.
Jiang Tai Gong
The
story of Jiang Taigong has been used on many levels in China. The story is about
an old man who fishes at a pond with the hook above the surface of the water.
Naturally, he won't be catching anything anytime soon. At its simplest it may
be said to be an example of patience, or the philosophy that if you wait long
enough things will come your way. A more sophisticated message applicable in
military and political strategy is: Wait until circumstances ripen.
The Laughing Buddha
Matreiya,
or the Invincible, is also popularly known as the Laughing Buddha. In Sanskrit,
Matreiya means gentleness or kindness. Followers of Matreiya believe that he
controls the fate of man, guiding the world to greater tranquillity and purity.
Matreiya appears in lengend as Bodhisattava, one who postpones his own entry into Nirvana in order to help others. Believed to be one of Sakyamuni Buddha's desciples, Matreiya was appointed his successor and it was believed that he would assume the identity of Buddha and would then have the power to save the world. According to Buddhist texts, Matreiya did not take his incarnation and now presides over the Tushita heaven.
Matreiya is famous for this big tummy and laughing expression which has led to his nickname.
Goddess of Mercy
Interestingly,
someone has put a small alter just in front of this Goddess, and many people
are seen praying to her at the Villa. The Goddess of Mercy is present in almost
all Chinese temples.
The famous Wusong beating the tiger. He's supposed to be bare handed.
Romance of the Three Kingdoms
Kuan
Yu (left) is also known as Lord Kuan or Kuan the Noble. He had a huge frame,
long beard, dark brown face and deep red lips. He swore an oath of blood brothers
with Liu Bei and Zhang Fei in the Peach Garden and fought around China to restore
the Han family to power. His unswerving loyalty and strength were crucial to
Liu Bei's efforts. He was beheaded by Sun Quan in the year 219 AD. Zhang
Fei is also part of the blood brothers, usually gets in trouble because
of this hot-tempered nature. He lost a city to Lu Bu when he got drunk and flogged
his officers. He fought along Liu Bei and became one of Shu's Five Tiger Generals
and the commander of chariots. He was the bravest of the Tiger Generals. For
Zhang Fei, action and brawn were what mattered on the battlefield. Romance of
the Three Kingdoms has become the theme of many computer and arcade games.
Others
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Reader's Comments
Hi There,
I read your page and I wondering that this Haw Par Villa is not recommended
in my tourist guide. I am here for 4 month and I definetly want to see this!
You pages are really good!!!
~ bigtiny@web.de January 24. 2002