Hell’s Paradise has been a wild ride full of action with many mysteries yet to unfold, but the story has been sprinkled throughout with a lot of symbolism. I think it’s time we tackle the many influences the series draws from to build the world of Kotaku, the supposed Shinsenkyo — a “paradise” the characters are trapped in — and look at all the symbols we have seen so far and their meanings. From Japanese mythology, folklore and religion, to Buddhism, Taoism and even Hinduism, Yuji Kaku knows no bounds when it comes to incorporating elements to enrich the dissonant nature of the Island. Yeah, the jarring mix of symbols seen in the statues and wildlife of the island serves a purpose, but at the same time, like Yamada Asaemon Senta said in Episode 4, it makes it truly hard to believe the island is Paradise. This mismatch of religious symbols also works as a reference to one of the original manga influences, The Island of Doctor Moreau , something Yuji Kaku mentioned in the Q&A reproduced on the official fanbook Jigokuraku Kaitai Shinsho . The weird flora and fauna of the island paradise seem like the chimeras of the H.G. Wells novel, a twisted combination of creatures that, in this case, carry objects and attire with religious tones. So, without further ado, let’s explore all the different symbols shown so far in Hell’s Paradise , shall we? The Creatures Soshin Vishnu as Matsya The Soshin are the lower-class monsters that protect the Eishu area of the island of Kotaku. They vary in appearance, and in most cases have a mixture of human and animal characteristics and are a mismatch of deities or demons. They are intended to represent gods and can be seen carrying a shakujo (a staff with metal rings also known as khakkhara in sanskrit), commonly used by monks in eastern asian religions, but we’ll talk more about them later. Let’s use the fish god as an example. There are a couple of examples of Fish Gods that come to mind when seeing this bizarre creature on the island. The obvious one is Matsya , the Fish Avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu. Usually depicted as a huge fish, it is also common to see it as a creature with a human head and torso and the lower body of a fish. There’s also Dagon , a “father of Gods” in what is Syria today. He was associated with prosperity and also had a human torso and a fish lower body. The one we encounter in Kotaku goes the other way around and has a fish head and a humanoid body with multiple arms like the Hindu god, it carries prayer beads for each of its three sets of hands. There are plenty of other examples, like a deformed Buddha, an Oni armed with a kanabo, a frog god as the one from the chinese tale , and several others. The Soshin ( 竈神) are named after Zao Shen, the chinese reading of those kanji, also known as the Kitchen God , a protector of the hearth and the family. In Chinese folklore and Taoist tradition, once a year the god returns to heaven and reports on the activities of the people to the Jade Emperor, who then decides to reward or punish families according to what was reported by Zao Shen. In the image above, you can see the more direct representation of this god on the right, but his beard looks like tentacles, unlike his original inspiration, below. Zao Shen Monshin Just like the Soshin, the Monshin (門神) are tasked with guarding the island from trespassers. Unlike the previous ones, there’s no variation in their appearance. They are huge monsters that look like emaciated women with hands protruding from their eye sockets and incredibly long tongues, whose necks are pierced by a shakujo. They also hold another, bigger shakujo that they use as a weapon. Like with the other creatures, the kanji for their name 門神, is read as Menshen in chinese, and the Menshen are door gods common in all of eastern Asia, starting of course, in China. They are door keepers whose origin story is explained in the Chinese classic Journey to the West . These divine guardians of doors and gates in Chinese folklore are used to protect places against evil influences or to encourage the entrance of positive ones. Central area of Wang Saen Suk But like I said before, in Hell’s Paradise , everything is a mismatch, so although the Monshin role and concept is that of a guardian deity, their appearance is a call-back to hell. They look like the Nai Ngean and Nang Thong statues that can be found in the famous Wang Saen Suk, a buddhist temple located in Thailand that is famous for its Hell Garden . Does that ring a bell? To be honest, I wouldn’t be surprised if Yuji Kaku visited this place when conceiving the setting of the story, because the place is eerily similar to his own hellish paradise. The author certainly did his research and the story benefits from it. Other symbolic elements Statues The statues are pretty straightforward. We get a mix of Buddhas, Japanese onis and Hindu gods. Once again citing what Senta said in Episode 4 of Season 1 , they are all weird and poorly executed, a mixture of religious elements thrown together without an apparent purpose. I would like to provide more context to this, but considering there are many mysteries yet to be explained in the story, I don’t want to spoil the fun. Shakujo One of the most commonly seen weapons used by the creatures of the island, the Shakujo, also known as Khakkhara in Sanskrit , is a staff with several metal rings on the upper part. It’s used by monks in Eastern Asia and its use differs in the different traditions. It could be used to announce the arrival of a monk without using their voices, thus protecting their vow of silence. The noise they can generate is also used to scare away animals, or as an instrument when reciting sutras. It symbolizes authority in some monasteries or is a regular part of the attire of a wandering monk. Image from the Met Museum The Yin and Yang When the Doshi — the disciples and servants of Lord Tensen — are introduced, we also get to know about the concept of Tao, the energy form that we have seen Mei and Lord Tensen use, and now also pretty much all of the cast of characters. But it is through the Doshi that we get to actually see the symbol that represents “the Way” of Tao, if you catch my drift. The Yin and Yang is a universally known symbol and it’s used to crown the Disciples of Lord Tensen, who are trying to ascend like their masters by reaching the balance represented by the symbol. The Yin is the moon, the darkness, the feminine energy. The Yang is the sun, the light, the masculine energy. This symbol lies at the heart of the story and is probably the most significant one. It is because of their use of Tao and the duality of Yin and Yang that Lord Tensen can change genders. It is also by embracing duality, male and female, strong and weak, hard and soft, that a new strength can be achieved. The yin and yang symbol shows a balance between two opposites with a portion of the opposite element in each half of the symbol. As described by the Japanese educator George Ohsawa in his 1931 book The Unique Principle , the duality of Yin and Yang that includes the presence of a portion of one element in the other, means this is not an ordinary dualism , as there's nothing that is purely one element or the other. The relevance of this concept is emphasized in Episode 10 of Season 1 , but it was present early on, for example when Sagiri was capable of balancing mind and heart, her desire to be a samurai and a woman in order to kill Rokurota in Episode 6 , a sort of middle path. It's also exemplified in the need for Gabimaru to embrace his own weaknesses. Heck, if you take a look at how every episode is titled so far, you’ll see how duality is constantly brought up. We can expect more symbolism related to both duality and Taoism in every episode of this show so you all should keep in mind that there's more than meets the eye under the surface of Hell's Paradise . Maybe you should rewatch Season 1 to discover more interesting stuff!
