dmyal ba - Hell Realm

Usually the lower part of the Wheel of Life has the section for dmyal ba - hell realm, in Sanskrit naraka, it's not hard to figure out which part of the image describes this realm.

Anyway, there are many presentations of the sufferings experienced in dmyal ba, for example both lam rim and lam 'bras have deep explanations.

Beings who experience such realms have planted many strong negative las (karmas), often associated with zhes sdang.

For Buddhists, there's the notion of making a connection with these beings and understand their sufferings. Bodhisattvas vow to visit dmyal ba and relieve all those suffering there. Also, interestingly enough, according to the tradition Shakyamuni Buddha initially developed true bodhichitta while being in a hell realm and taking over the hard labor of dragging a big cart from a fellow who was totally exhausted.