A popular stop on Yangtze River cruises has been the Fengdu “Ghost City” for China tourism. It used to be a burial area with scores of temples and shrines and a small ancient town. Due to the construction of the 3 Gorges Dam, the ghostly city is underwater. However, a hill and dozens of temples remain in the big artificial lake behind the dam. So that part can still be visited. It is a large burial and temple area. The area above the “Door of Hell” remains. It is interesting that Chinese have traditional conceptions of hell that are somewhat similar to Western ideas. At the site, people can see statues and frescoes about hell with brightly painted images of demons and etcetera.



Fengd... got its reputation as the 'Ghost City' in the Eastern Han Dynasty (25 A.D. - 220 A.D.) under Chongqing travel guide. Two officials from the imperial court named Wang Fangping and Yin Changsheng, got bored with the political life in the court and came to Mt. Minshan outside the Fengdu City to practice Taoist teachings. Both of them later became immortals by carrying out self-cultivation. This story widely spread and makes Mt. Minshan famous. When combined together, their surnames Yin and Wang, sound very much like 'King of Hell' in Chinese, hence the people began to call Fengdu the 'Ghost City'.

Ghost Torturing Pass of Chongqing Attractions is the second test faced to determine entry to the netherworld. Pass by the 18 ferocious-looking demons to enter the structure where the dead await judgement by Yama, the King of Hell. The Tianzi Palace is over 3,000 years old and covers an area of nearly 2,431 sq m (2,908 sq yd). Composed of a temple gate and the palace itself, it is the nerve center of the Ghost City and the oldest and largest temple on Ming Shan. The third test and last chance to evade hell, here spirits must stand on one foot atop a large stone in front of the palace for three minutes—only the good will manage to complete the challenge, others will be sent to a hellish eternity in the underworld.