Hell
Dean: I saw Hellraiser, I get the gist.
Ruby: Actually, they got it pretty right, except for all the custom leather.
Contents
Characteristics
Hell is a place where demons are born and produced. Production of demons obliviously increases when more souls go to Hell and become demons after centuries of torture3.09 Malleus Maleficarum Meg describes this place as "...a prison, made of bone and flesh and blood and fear"2.14 Born Under a Bad Sign and Ruby said of it "there's a real fire in the pit, agonies you can't even imagine"3.09 Malleus Maleficarum
Alliances and affiliations in Hell exist but they tend to not last for long periods. Hell's hierarchical is there but is not as rigid and controlled as Heaven's.
Lilith was a leader of many demons before her death. Other more specific positions include King of Hell, King of Crossroads demons and also includes demons who torture souls like Alastair and Meg.
Lucifer ruled Hell after being expelled from Heaven for an unknown period. Even after is imprisonment, he was able to continue influencing Hell, exerting some authority. He directed Azazel in the plans involving the Special Children, and the plot to release him from his prison. Following Azazel's death, Ruby took over his plan covertly, while Lilith appeared ostensibly in charge.
After Lucifer's re-imprisonment5.22 Swan Song, Crowley declares himself King of Hell. It is unclear after his death6.10 Caged Heat, who is wielding power in Hell.
Angels can bypass Hell's defenses, allowing them to enter Hell and retrieve human souls while in groups as Castiel and other angels laid siege to Hell to save Dean. Death can enter Hell and bring souls back to Earth, as shown when he retrieves Sam's soul from Lucifer's Cage.
Human souls can get sent to Hell after making deals or agreements with Crossroads Demon or other demons. Hellhounds generally escort human souls to Hell.
- See Deals and Pacts for information on characters who have made demonic deals.
Winchesters in Hell
John Winchester went to Hell after making a deal with Azazel in which he gave the Colt and his soul in order to save Dean's life2.01 In My Time Of Dying According to Alastair, John Winchester spent "for close to a century" 4.16 On The Head Of A Pin on his rack.John escaped through the Devil's Gate in Wyoming during the events of 2.22 All Hell Breaks Loose: Part Two, and as of yet has not been located even in Heaven.
Dean makes a deal with a Crossroads Demon for Sam's life after he is killed by Jake Talley - he gets a year of life before he dies.3.16 No Rest For The Wicked. Dean spends four months of Earth time in Hell, but he reports that time passes differently there: for him it is more like forty years 4.10 Heaven And Hell. This makes 3 days on earth roughly equivalent to a year in hell.
During his time in Hell, Dean is tortured by Alastair and each 'day' his wounds are healed so that the torture can begin again. At the end of each session, Alastair offers to stop the torment if Dean agrees to become a torturer of souls himself. After 'thirty years' in hell (or 3 months on Earth), Dean accepts the offer and starts torturing souls. A righteous man beginning corruption in Hell broke the first of The 66 Seals, starting the process to free Lucifer. Alastair also made the same offer to John Winchester that he made to Dean, but John held out until his escape.
Sam goes to Hell when he is imprisoned in Lucifer's Cage along with Michael and his vessel who at the time was Adam Milligan5.22 Swan Song. He is rescued by Crowley, although his soul remains in the Cage until retrieved and restored to him by Death.
Escape from Hell
Some demons appear to be able to move freely between Hell and the mortal realm, such as Alastair.
Devil's gates
Others are trapped and can only escape through portals connecting Hell and Earth known as Devil's gates.
Samuel Colt built a giant Devil's trap (symbol) and a special lock to try keep the Devil's Gate in Wyoming shut. When Jake Talley uses the Colt to open the scores of demons escape, as do souls including John Winchester.
See also Devil's Gate in Clifton, Devil's Gate in Wyoming
Exorcism
An exorcism will cause a demon to leave its meatsuit and returns to Hell, whereas the Colt and Ruby's Knife can kill a demon, either destroying it permanently . With his psychic abilities Sam exorcises, and eventually is able to kill demons.
Angelic rescue
Castiel reports that angels laid siege to Hell to rescue Dean before he broke the first seal, but did not reach him in time. Eventually, it is Castiel who rescues him. Castiel also says that Lucifer's Cage is too well-guarded for even angels to acccess 6.07 Family Matters
Restriction and Confinement
Powerful demons and entities like Samhain and the Whore Of Babylon can only escape Hell through particular means. Samhain can only leave Hell through a ritual which involves him being summoned to Earth by two powerful witches through three blood sacrifices over three days, the last on the final day of harvest, which is the 31st of October, Halloween. The Whore Of Babylon is confined to Hell until Lucifer walks the Earth to which she then can leave Hell.
Escape from Lucifer's Cage
This Cage was built to contain and secure the Archangel Lucifer. The mouth of the Cage was heavily secured by 66 attachments called The 66 Seals, which when broken, Lucifer will be released. The four individual rings belonging to the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, once merged together, can reopen the Cage. Once secured, not even Archangels can leave the Cage without a door being opened from the outside.
Crowley manages to free part Sam from the Cage and Death, the fourth and most powerful of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, is able to retrieve Sam's soul from the Cage in order to return it to him. 6.11 Appointment in Samarra
Links
- Lucifer
- Demons
- Demonology
- Possession
- Heaven
- Purgatory
- Hell on Wikipedia
