Fengdu
FENGDU
Ming Mountain, Chongqing province
The history of Fengdu Ghost City
Fengdu Ghost City is 700 steps up from the river Yangtze. It originates back to the Han Dynasty. Two civil servants of the Emperor, Yin Changsheng and Wang Fangping, went up to the Ming Mountain to practise Taoism. During the complicated process they became immortal:
Their names combined is “YingWang” meaning “King of Hell”. Here was the beginning of the creation of the Underworld. The many temples and memorials show images of people who are being tortured because of their sins. Only a purified soul can move on to the Afterlife, in other words, Heaven.
Yin-Yang surrounded by the Zodiac
Diyu: the Underworld
All the buildings and dioramas in Fengdu are related to Diyu. Diyu is a Confucianist, Taoist, and Buddhist mythological representation of the Underworld, in other words, Hell:
This Fengdu complex resembles the capital of the Underworld. Fengdu shows up in documents of over 2000 years ago.
According to Chinese mythology, the dead have to pass 3 tests before being allowed into the Afterlife.
Wizard at entrance
The first test
The 1st test is to cross the Modoribashi: the Bridge of helplessness. This stone bridge was built during the Ming Dynasty and is a test for Good and Evil. It has three identical arcs. The dead are put to the test at the 2nd arc:
There are several procedures to cross the bridge. These depend on sex, age and marital status. The demons on the bridge will let you pass or they’ll stop you.
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The good and pure are allowed to the next test, but the evil dead will be thrown into the water. Today, this ritual is imitated by actors dressed as demons.
The second test
During the second test, the dead will have to face Yama, the King of Hell (see header pic). The 18 demon statues will make them undergo different types of torture to pay for their sins:
Various dioramas show what happens to the dead. These images aren’t for the faint hearted:
The final test
The 3rd and final test is executed at the entrance of the Tianzi Palace. This is the oldest building in Fengdu. All dead have to balance on one leg on a certain stone. They have to keep this up for three minutes. Only the good and pure can fulfill this task. The evil dead will fail and go straight to Hell.
