Christianity and World ReligionChristianity and World Religion forum gives Christians and non-Christians the opportunity to come together to better understand and learn about different religions.
Chinese folk religion describes in great detail how the various underworld dimensions of Diyu will "process" the deceased prior to their reincarnation: disembowelment, swallowing boiling liquid and being ripped to pieces are but a few examples of the ingenuity with which the afterlife purges the souls of the departed of their acquired karmic imperfections.
Clearly, every person in their right mind must live in constant fear of what the Yama kings have in store for them. In fact, I'd go so far as to hold that those who proclaim that they do not believe in Diyu must suppress their better knowledge out of sheer terror, not wanting to face the consequences of their actions yet deep down knowing fully well what's in store for them.
Furthermore, this also means that people who do not believe in Diyu are morally void, for why should they act ethically or keep any laws if there are no metaphysical consequences for their actions? If I didn't believe in Diyu, I'd constantly be intoxicated on wine, sex and the blood of my neighbours, and I can only conclude that those who suppress their better knowledge are just like that.
Thoughts?
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There is no greater threat to freedom than a happy slave.
"Liberty means responsibility. This is why most people dread it." G.B. Shaw
I agree. Without the fear of Diyu to keep me on the straight and narrow, I too would be eager to do all that stuff. The wine, the sex, the coveting of asses. I might be tempted to curse now and then. Or even forget to shake the dust off my feet when faced with stubborn unbelief. It is indeed only the knowledge that a very thorough disembowelling would be my certain fate that saves me from completely un-regenerate living.
And thank you for reminding me Jane, coz it is so easy to lose our guard sometimes.
edit: I would add that I am weak and quite incapable and have a naturally tendency to want to do bad, bad things. I have met some who endeavour to live good lives without seeming to need the threat of punishment. Personally, I don't know how they manage it. But hey, it takes all sorts.
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Last edited by hikersong; 8th February 2012 at 09:55 AM.
Yes, hell is simply a place and/or state of suffering, regardless of how it's described (beatings- Jesus, lake of fire- Rev, etc).
__________________ "I took my stand in the midst of the world, and in flesh I appeared to them. I found them all drunk, and I did not find any of them thirsty. My soul ached for the children of humanity, because they are blind in their hearts and do not see, for they came into the world empty, and they also seek to depart from the world empty. But meanwhile they are drunk. When they shake off their wine, then they will change their ways." -Jesus of Nazareth
I agree. Without the fear of Diyu to keep me on the straight and narrow, I too would be eager to do all that stuff. The wine, the sex, the coveting of asses. I meet be tempted to curse now and then. Or even forget to shake the dust off my feet when faced with stubborn unbelief. It is indeed only the knowledge that a very thorough disembowelling would be my certain fate that saves me from completely un-regenerate living.
And thank you for reminding me Jane, coz it is so easy to lose our guard sometimes.
edit: I would add that I am weak and quite incapable and have a naturally tendency to want to do bad, bad things. I have met some who endeavour to live good lives without seeming to need the threat of punishment. Personally, I don't know how they manage it. But hey, it takes all sorts.
So Christianity is simply about being a good boy?
__________________ "I took my stand in the midst of the world, and in flesh I appeared to them. I found them all drunk, and I did not find any of them thirsty. My soul ached for the children of humanity, because they are blind in their hearts and do not see, for they came into the world empty, and they also seek to depart from the world empty. But meanwhile they are drunk. When they shake off their wine, then they will change their ways." -Jesus of Nazareth
It's about different things to different people in my experience. But this thread is about the Chinese concept of Diyu, and how it helps people, like myself, to live moral lives through the use of fear of punishment.
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There is quite a blend of Chinese folk religions and Buddhism. For example, Mu Lien saves his mother from hell legend. Basically, after Mulien became a buddha, he realized his mother is suffering in hell for committing sins in order to raise him. He travelled down to hell and saved her. Funny, how religions always defined hell as some place below ground. It's a touching story of sacrifices, redemption etc.
I would say a majority of Chinese were not living in fear of DiYu. Most of them would be there anyway, either the first or the eighteenth level. Only the selected few that did not violate the "Thou Shall Not Kill" and other restrictions would go to Nirvana. We didn't have the "Get out of Hell" card like the Christians.
After a person paid his dues, he will be given a "forget about it" porridge before reborn. His rebirth is basically depended on his previous life's activities. I have no idea of who would be keeping the scores nor while this person still being penalized, ie lower birth status, if he already paid his dues.
I think the concept of DiYu is totally smashed by a grade 5 science class. It's hard to have a hell situated inside the Earth's core. We can't really modified hell to be just a place without God. The "Thou Shall Not Kill" became unattenable by Grade 8 microbiology class where we learn that living creatures are being killed with every breath one takes.
Lol! Has anyone tried following the citation bits? Indeed, one writer in the talk forum notes:
I have never heard of Feng Du as the realm of death in any Chinese mythology. Doing a google search on the name only turns out one reference which was basically the source of this article. On the other hand, 豐都 is a ghost town in China that turns into a tourist attraction recently. So from a ghost town to a realm of the death is a big jump.
Another says:
None of these chambers seem to get any Google hits beyond this page and its mirrors. They all seem to have been added by one editor and have been barely edited since then. Can someone verify that these are from actual mythology, and if so, can they identify some of the specific myths and writings they're mentioned in so we can note them in the article?
Moreover, "The Buddhist text Wen Diyu Jing" is nowhere to be found (and the book isn't cited in Wiki). While one would be able to research beatings and images of such by tracing to Jesus, or the lake of fire to Revelation, good luck with the Wen Diyu Jing.
__________________ "I took my stand in the midst of the world, and in flesh I appeared to them. I found them all drunk, and I did not find any of them thirsty. My soul ached for the children of humanity, because they are blind in their hearts and do not see, for they came into the world empty, and they also seek to depart from the world empty. But meanwhile they are drunk. When they shake off their wine, then they will change their ways." -Jesus of Nazareth
God said nothing nothing about coveting your own donkey. 
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