Eighteen layers of hell According to Eighteen Mud Plows translated by An Shigao in the Eastern Han Dynasty, hell is divided into eighteen layers, which are collectively called eighteen layers of hell. The "layers" of eighteen layers of hell don't refer to the up and down of space, but to time and content, especially above time. Eighteen layers of hell determine the length of pain according to the severity of crimes committed before death. Each layer of hell is 20 times more bitter and 2 times longer than the previous one, and it is all punishments such as sword killing soldiers, fire and heat, cold and freezing, pits and valleys. On the eighteenth floor of hell, the pain is indescribable, and the date of release from prison cannot be calculated.