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Kanji for Hell
The kanji most commonly used for "Hell" is 獄.
獄
Kanji that mean Hell
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獄
prison, hell
Also associated with litigation.
Onyomi: goku 14 strokes Jōyō
地獄 (jigoku) is hell — “the earth prison” — and 獄 (goku) is its load-bearing character: a word 言 flanked by two dogs 犭犬, guarding either side. Alone it means prison (監獄, 獄中); under the earth 地 it becomes the Buddhist hells, where King Enma judges the dead and sinners are recycled through torments until their karma is spent — a temporary, bureaucratic hell rather than an eternal one.
The imagery is vivid folk culture: 地獄絵 hell-scrolls terrified and entertained for centuries; 血の池地獄, the Pool of Blood, and 針の山, the Mountain of Needles, are its famous stations — and today 地獄 names the volcanic “hells” toured pleasantly at Beppu’s hot springs.
Daily Japanese uses hell exactly as English does: 通勤地獄 is commuting hell. The proverb keeps its economics: 地獄の沙汰も金次第 — “even hell’s verdicts go to the highest bidder”.
Words using Hell kanji
Everyday Japanese vocabulary built from the characters above.
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地獄
じごく
hell realm; Naraka; Hell
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獄中
ごくちゅう
during imprisonment; while in jail
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疑獄
ぎごく
bribery scandal; graft case
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監獄
かんごく
prison
Before you use Hell kanji
獄 alone means "prison" before it means hell — a harsh character with dogs guarding a confession; be sure that is the statement you want. 地獄 in full is unmistakably "hell" and reads as folklore-dark rather than satanic. For the underworld with more poetry and less penitentiary, 冥 (the dark beyond) or 奈落 (the abyss) are the literary alternatives.