Yánluó

Tibetan representation by Yánluó ( Field Museum of Natural History , Chicago ).

A headless ghost of a recently deceased awaits Yánluó's verdict at the “earth judgment”. The plaque held by the bailiff reads: "Qin Hui's ten devious crimes" (Chinese underworld scroll, 19th century).

Yánluó ( listen ^?^/^I ) ( Chinese 閻羅王 [simplified: 阎罗王], Pinyin : Yánluówáng , in German also King Yan or Yan Wang [ listen ^?^/^I ] or English romanized Yin Low [ listen ^?^/^I ]) is the god of death and as the "king of hell" the ruler of the hereafter ( Diyu ) as well as overseer of the "ten kings of hell". Hell money is offered as a burnt offering in his honor . He is a central deity in Daoism and Chinese mythology and under the name "(Great) King Enma" ( Japanese 閻魔大王 , Enma Dai-Ō [ listen ^?^/^I ]) part of Japanese mythology .

Appearance and function

Yánluó is traditionally depicted in Daoism as a tall man who often has a red face with bulging eyes and / or an angry look . He has a long black beard . He is dressed in traditional Chinese red robes . On his head he wears either a Chinese judge's hat or a crown with the characters for “king” ( Chinese 王 , Pinyin Wáng ). He has a book (depending on the representation, a tablet , scroll or nothing like that) with the dates of death for each soul . Depending on the region , the representations of Yánluó may vary; in Tibet he is therefore provided with all the attributes mentioned , but not in Chinese clothing. Occasionally he is shown riding a buffalo .

Yánluó rules over the Diyu, the afterlife . There he holds the “earth judgment” for all deceased. After its judgment judgment they are either in the sky or in a maze of levels and chambers of the underworld directed ( " Buddhist Hell ") to there for their sins to atone . There are eight, ten or eighteen lower courts, depending on the interpretation of the faith, with the last one being for thieves and murderers under Judge Chujiang . Good deeds in life are rewarded with rebirth in a higher form of life, while wrongdoing is atoned for through torture and torment or a lower form of rebirth .

According to some Daoist views, Yánluó sends messengers from the Diyu to the living in order to dissuade them from a dissolute, hedonistic way of life and to warn of the dramatic consequences that otherwise threaten them in the earth judgment.

In addition, there is an isolated view in Daoism that a deceased needs a certain amount of hell money at the “earth judgment” in the hereafter to pay a (partial) indulgence for his transgressions in his earthly life. The front of hell money bills therefore usually shows a portrait of the jade emperor Yu Di , who according to Taoist understanding is the “ruler of heaven”, his signature (romanized as “Yu Wong” or “Yuk Wong”) and the signature of Yánluó as that "King of Hell" (romanized as "Yin Low").

Yánluó in other Buddhist currents and in Hinduism

The death god Yánluó is known under other names in other currents of Buddhism, as Daoism spread from China to Korea and Japan, mixing it with regional peculiarities. In Japan he is called "Enma" (閻魔, also Yenma ), "King Enma" (閻魔王, Enma-ō ) and "Great King Enma" (閻魔大王, Enma Dai-Ō ). According to a proverb , Enma tears out the tongue of liars while still on earth (嘘をつけばと閻魔様に舌を抜かれる). In Korea, Yánluó is known as “Yeomna” (염라) and “Great King Yeomna” (염라 대왕, Yŏmna Daewang). In Vietnam the Buddhist deity exists as "Diêm La" or "Diêm Vương".

In Hinduism , its equivalent is the god of death "Yama" ( listen ^?^/^I ).

literature

GJ Bellinger: Knaur's Lexicon of Mythology. Weltbild , Augsburg 2001, ISBN 3-8289-4154-0 .
C. Blunden, M. Elvin: World Atlas of Ancient Cultures: China. 2nd Edition. Christian Verlag , Munich 1985, ISBN 3-88472-091-0 .
R. Cavendish, TO Ling: Mythology. An illustrated world history of mythical-religious thought . Christian Verlag, Munich 1981, ISBN 3-88472-061-9 .
F. Comte: Myths of the World. Scientific Book Society , Darmstadt 2008, ISBN 978-3-534-20863-0 .
Livia Kohn, Harold D. Roth: Daoist Identity: History, Lineage and Ritual. University of Hawaii Press , Pearl City 2002, ISBN 0-8248-2504-7 .
Wolfgang Münke: The classical Chinese mythology . Klett Group , Stuttgart 1976, ISBN 3-12-906010-3 .
Monika Tworuschka, U. Tworuschka (Hrsg.): Religions of the world in past and present . Bertelsmann , Gütersloh 1992, ISBN 3-8094-5005-7 .
Yang Yang: "The Origin of Chinese Jade Culture". In: Ancient China. People and gods in the Middle Kingdom. Exhibition catalog. Kulturstiftung Ruhr , Essen 1995, ISBN 3-7774-6640-9 .

Web links

Commons : Yánluó - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

^ Entry in the PONS dictionary on "Yánluó", accessed on January 10, 2018.
^ ^A ^b Oxford Illustrated Encyclopedia: Index and Ready Reference. Volume 9, Chapter 9.38: "Yánluó" (Harry Judge). Oxford University Press , 1993. ISBN 978-0-19-869223-2 .
↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Wolfgang Münke: The classical Chinese mythology . Stuttgart (Klett): 1976. ISBN 978-3-12-906010-0 .
^ ^A ^b William H. Nienhauser: Tang Dynasty Tales. A guided reader. Page 68. University of Wisconsin-Madison , World Scientific , Singapore 2010. ISBN 978-981-4287-28-9 .
↑ Anna Saradha, Lee Mandy Ong Shikai and Jeremy Yeow: Project: The Burning Question about a Dying Practice . Module HH4014: A Global History of Death (Instructor: Dr. Song-Chuan Chen). Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 2015.

[1] Entry in the PONS dictionary on "Yánluó", accessed on January 10, 2018.

[Oxford-2] A ^b Oxford Illustrated Encyclopedia: Index and Ready Reference. Volume 9, Chapter 9.38: "Yánluó" (Harry Judge). Oxford University Press , 1993. ISBN 978-0-19-869223-2 .

[Münke-3] ↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Wolfgang Münke: The classical Chinese mythology . Stuttgart (Klett): 1976. ISBN 978-3-12-906010-0 .

[Tang-4] A ^b William H. Nienhauser: Tang Dynasty Tales. A guided reader. Page 68. University of Wisconsin-Madison , World Scientific , Singapore 2010. ISBN 978-981-4287-28-9 .

[Singapur-5] Anna Saradha, Lee Mandy Ong Shikai and Jeremy Yeow: Project: The Burning Question about a Dying Practice . Module HH4014: A Global History of Death (Instructor: Dr. Song-Chuan Chen). Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 2015.