Hall Of Justice - Interior

Taman Gili, Semarapura, Bali

The paintings that cover the ceiling date from 1960, replacing earlier versions. They illustrate a story from the Mahabharata in which the hero Bhima, on his way into Heaven, is horrified to witness his friends and family being punished in Hell. It all seems terribly unfair, but the workings of karma cannot be avoided. The story has a happy ending, though, when Bhima breaks into the netherworld and rescues the people who are trapped there.

Since Hell is always more interesting than Heaven, the following pages show some of the hell punishments that are painted around the lower edge of the ceiling.