Buddhist Hell Temple- Part 1 (GRAPHIC)

This is likely going to be the more interesting of the 2 parts. I had heard that places like this existed in some temples but have never actually seen one. The best I can tell from the little bit that I have found out from my Thai Buddhist friends is that this is a depiction of "hell" as it exists in a Buddhist sense.

The part of the temple that had the "good" side of the park depicting how a virtuous life can get you good things was another article, and considerably less gorey

For someone that has lived in a primarily Buddhist country for over a decade, I know shockingly little about the religion. I never knew they had a "hell" as I was under the impression it was a reincarnation based religion. I'm not going to make assumptions but let's just get to the pics because wow, what a place this was for people that appreciate the macabre.

punishment hot tub

This was one of the centerpieces where i guess these folks lived really bad lives because they are being stabbed and cooked at the same time. Of course they are under the watch of plenty of demons while this is taking place.

Another exciting activity awaiting those who lived bad lives. Again, i have no idea what sort of crime needs to be accomplished in life to earn this punishment. It was explained in Thai, which i can read, but at the pace and comprehension-level of an 8-year old, so I didn't bother trying.

These might be thieves? I found this one to be the most creepy. Probably because of the eyes.

It is important to note that this park doesn't have any sort of age restriction or warnings about entering. I think it might be intended to shock youngsters into acting "correctly." Of course this all seems very strange to a westerner that this would exist - there is even an elementary school across the street from this very temple.

This last one might be an ominous warning to students that misbehave in class. The "good students" were in front of these guys, sitting quietly and doing their lessons in front of an obviously angelic teacher of sorts. Haha. As a previous elementary-level school teacher in Thailand, I can attest to the fact that this particular lesson about the afterlife didn't have a very lasting effect on the kids.

This was a completely random find while traveling the city on my bicycle. I had never heard of the place, nor did I even know it was there. I was just riding along and saw an ominous statue that was very tall and scary looking. Lucky for me, it was only 10 Baht to get into the park and I was the only person in there. Despite the fact that I am an adult, 200 pound, 6-foot tall dude with martial arts training..... I was scared while I was in here.

location including GPS coords
ทางหลวงแผ่นดินหมายเลข 1001 ตำบล ป่าไผ่ อำเภอ สันทราย เชียงใหม่ 50210