CHAPTER 6, LIFE BEYOND DEATH IN THE SPIRITUAL WORLD
HEAVEN AND HELL
Some conception of heaven and hell is found universally among the
religions of the world. Descriptions of these abodes are often full of
graphic and fanciful imagery, conveying in metaphor a reality that can
hardly be part of the ordinary experience of mortals. Are these realms
objectively real? The scriptures are unanimous in affirming they are.
Yet they do not have any physical location: "up" or "down" is a matter of
spiritual geography, not of astronomy or geology. The view found in some
texts, that heaven or hell is derived from one's state of mind,1 does not
make it any less real. For the attitudes and desires of people's hearts,
which may be hidden by the external features of mortal life, are the
equivalent of material reality in the realms of spirit.
A number of the Hindu, Buddhist, and Taoist passages speak of Yama,
the Indic god of the dead. Yama is not comparable to the devil or Satan
who, in Christian belief, is the author of evil. In the Vedas, he
presides over the bright realms and is the object of offerings and
supplications for the benefit of the departed. As the lord of hell in
Buddhism, his acts are strictly in accordance with divine law, meting out
punishments according to people's karma, and in one Taoist text reprinted
here he even gives an object lesson to turn people away from evil.
Some ambiguity plagues the descriptions of heaven and hell in the
scriptures of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, which can be interpreted
either to describe the state of the soul upon death or what will be after
the future Resurrection. The Qur'anic passages collected here which
describe the opening of Paradise and hell are a few of many which refer to
the last judgment. Most Muslims, therefore, regard the dead to be sleeping
in the grave awaiting that momentous event. Yet other passages, such as
the hadith describing Muhammad's Night Journey,2 point to the present
reality of Heaven as the dwelling place for the souls of the righteous.
The biblical vision of Heaven from the Revelation and the passage from the
same book about the lake of fire are visions of a future recompense after
the tribulations of the Last Judgment. Those Christians who hold to a
literal interpretation of these verses concur with their Muslim brothers
and sisters that the souls of the dead are asleep in the grave, awaiting
the future opening of Heaven and hell. But another strand of the
Christian tradition, supported by biblical descriptions of the Sheol in
Job 3.17-19, the heavenly Jerusalem in Hebrews 12.22-24, and the story of
Lazarus and the rich man in Luke 16.19-31, teaches that upon death each
person immediately enters his appointed place in Heaven or hell. The
visions in Revelation are often interpreted in this way, and have spawned
such classic descriptions as Dante's Divine Comedy. The concept of the
World to Come in Rabbinic Jewish writings is similarly ambiguous: the
World to Come may be a present Heaven or describe a future redemption on
earth.3
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1. E.g., Tibetan Book of the Dead, p. 343, Madaghishloka, p. 347, Sutra of
Hui Neng 6, p. 348.
2. See Qur'an 2.154, p. 330, and 39.42, p. 333.
3. The resolution of these two doctrines comes at the eschatological time
of redemption, when the realization of the Kingdom of God on earth brings
with it a transformation of heaven: 'a new heaven and a new earth'--cf.
Revelation 21.1-22.5, pp. 1118f; Isaiah 24.18-23, p. 1098; Qur'an
21.104-05, p. 1111; 69.13-17, pp. 1098f. The destruction of evil and the
triumph of good, when God becomes all in all, effects liberation for the
earthly realms and the spiritual realms alike. See also passages which
teach that the words "life" and "death" often refer to a state of grace
rather than physical life or death: Luke 9.60, p. 583; Qur'an 6.122, p.
583; Berakot 18ab, p. 583. In that light we can also understand
resurrection to mean the enlivening and salvation of those in the
spiritual realms as well as on earth.
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HEAVEN
The world's scriptures describe Heaven as a place of rest, or as an
exalted spiritual state, full of divine splendor and communion with the
Absolute. There are also descriptions using more graphic and
materialistic imagery: gardens of delights, with riches and pleasures
abounding. A number of texts describe it as a place of fellowship with
the spirits of the departed or a fellowship of saints. We conclude with
visions or tours of Heaven: the Buddhist description of the Pure Land, the
vision of throngs surrounding the divine throne in the Book of Revelation,
and Muhammad's Night Journey.
There the wicked cease from troubling,
and there the weary are at rest.
There the prisoners are at ease together;
they hear not the voice of the taskmaster.
The small and the great are there,
and the slave is free from his master.
1.
Judaism and Christianity. Bible, Job 3.17-19
Chuang Tzu said, "Were I to prevail upon God to allow your body to
be born again, and your bones and flesh to be renewed, so that you could
return to your parents, to your wife, and to the friends of your youth,
would you be willing?"
At this, the skull opened its eyes wide and knitted its brows and
said, "How should I cast aside happiness greater than that of a king, and
mingle once again in the toils and troubles of mortality?" 2.
Taoism. Chuang Tzu 18
He in whom desire has been stilled suffers no rebirth. After death,
having attained to the highest, desiring only the Self, he goes to no
other world. Realizing Brahman, he becomes Brahman.
Freed from the body, he becomes one with the immortal spirit, Brahman, the
Light eternal. 3.
Hinduism. Brihadaranyaka Upanishad 4.4.6-7
When a son of the Buddha fulfils his course,
In the world to come he becomes Buddha.
4.
Buddhism. Lotus Sutra 2
To the highest regions, in due order, to those regions where there is no
delusion, and to those regions which are full of light where the glorious
gods dwell--who have long life, great power, great luster, can change
their shape at will, are beautiful as on their first day, and have the
brilliance of many suns--to such places go those who are trained in
self-control and penance, both monks and householders who have obtained
liberation by absence of passion.
5.
Jainism. Uttaradhyayana Sutra 5.26-28
Not like this world is the World to Come. In the World to Come there is
neither eating nor drinking, nor procreation of children or business
transactions, no envy or hatred or rivalry; but the righteous sit
enthroned, their crowns on their heads, and enjoy the luster of the Divine
Splendor (Shechinah).
6.
Judaism. Talmud, Berakot 17a
In the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are
like angels in heaven.
7.
Christianity. Bible, Matthew 22.30
And those Foremost [in faith] will be Foremost [in the hereafter].
These will be those nearest to God;
In Gardens of Bliss;
A number of people from those of old,
and a few from those of later times.
They will be on thrones encrusted, reclining on them, facing each other.
Round about them will serve youths of perpetual freshness,
with goblets, shining beakers, and cups filled out of clear-flowing fountains;
No after-ache will they receive therefrom, nor will they suffer intoxication;
And with fruits, any that they may select,
And the flesh of fowls, any that they may desire.
And there will be companions with beautiful, big and lustrous eyes,
Like unto pearls well-guarded:
A reward for the deeds of their past life.
No frivolity will they hear therein, nor any taint of ill,
Only the saying "Peace! Peace!"
8.
Islam. Qur'an 56.10-27
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Lotus Sutra 2: The teaching of the Lotus Sutra at this point is paralleled
in Hindu Vedanta, e.g., Mundaka Upanishad 3.2.8-9, p. 586; Chandogya
Upanishad 6.8.7, p. 586, and related passages. To realize one's
Buddhahood is comparable to discerning Brahman--the Absolute and Ultimate.
No longer immersed in temporal phenomena, one becomes joined to eternal
Reality. Berakot 17a: Cf. Hadith, p. 1113. Qur'an 56.10-27: Cf. Qur'an
9.72, p. 199; 69.20-24, pp. 1098f; 98.7-8, p. 581.
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Higher than all stands the Realm of Grace--
None can have access there except heroes of supreme might,
Inspired by God-consciousness.
In that sphere abide numberless heroines like Sita of surpassing praise
And beauty indescribable.
Those to God united suffer not mortality nor delusion.
In that sphere abide devotees assembled from the various universes,
Cherishing the holy Eternal ever in their hearts.
In everlasting bliss.
The formless Supreme Being abides in the Realm of Eternity.
Over His creation He casts His glance of grace.
In that realm are contained all the continents and universes,
Exceeding in number all count.
Of creation, worlds upon worlds abide therein--
All obedient to His Will;
He watches over them in bliss,
And has each constantly in mind.
Saith Nanak, Such is that realm's [glory] that to try to describe it is to
attempt the impossible.
9.
Sikhism. Adi Granth, Japuji 37 M.1, p. 8
Make me immortal in the realm
where the son of Vivasvat [Yama] reigns,
where lies heaven's secret shrine, where
are those waters that are ever young.
For Indra, flow thou on, Indu!
Make me immortal in that realm
where movement is accordant to wish,
in the third region, the third heaven of heavens,
where the worlds are resplendent.
For Indra, flow thou on, Indu!
Make me immortal in that realm
where all wishes and longings go,
where spreads the Radiant One's region,
where holy bliss is, and happiness.
For Indra, flow thou on, Indu!
Make me immortal in that realm
where beatitude and joy and cheer
and transports of delight abound,
where the highest desires have been filled.
For Indra, flow thou on, Indu! 10.
Hinduism. Rig Veda 9.113.8-11
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Rig Veda 9.113.8-11: Cf. Rig Veda 10.14.2,8, p. 332.
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What is heaven? Heaven is created by those people who love here on earth
with unselfishness and an absolute, God-centered love. This is the most
basic principle, and all other principles you learn are the expansion of
this basic truth.
11.
Unification Church. Sun Myung Moon, 4-18-77
Behold! between the worlds
of mortals and of gods
There is no difference!
To speak the truth is the world of gods;
To speak untruth, the mortal world.
Good works is heaven,
Bad works is hell;
You are the witness, O Lord.
12.
Hinduism. Basavanna, Vacana 239
Rabbi Joseph, son of Rabbi Joshua ben Levi, was ill and fell into a coma.
When he recovered, his father asked him, "What did you see?" He replied,
"I beheld a world the reverse of this one; those who are on top here were
below there, and vice versa." He said to him, "My son, you have seen a
corrected world. But what is the position of us students of Torah there?"
He answered, "We are the same as here. I heard it stated, 'Happy is he
who comes here possessed of learning;' and I further heard it said that
martyrs occupy an eminence which nobody else can attain."
13.
Judaism. Talmud, Pesahim 50a
Once Hatthaka, son of a deva [one reborn in heaven after death], when
night was waning, lit up the whole of Jeta Grove with exceeding splendor
and approached the Exalted One....
Then said the Exalted One, "Well, Hatthaka, do things go on now
just the same as before, when you were in human shape?"
"Yes, Lord, they do. But there are also some things now going on
which I did not experience when I was in human shape. Just as, Lord, the
Exalted One now dwells surrounded by brethren and sisters, by lay-brothers
and lay-sisters, by royalties and ministers, by sectarians and their
followers--just so do I dwell surrounded by sons of devas. Even from a
distance, Lord, do sons of the devas come saying, 'We'll hear the Norm
from the lips of Hatthaka, son of a deva.'
"Of three things, Lord, I never got enough. I died regretful of
three things. What were they? I never had enough of beholding the
Exalted One. I died regretting it. I never had enough of hearing the
good Norm. I died regretting it. I never had enough of serving the Order
of Brethren. I died regretting it." 14.
Buddhism. Anguttara Nikaya i.279
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Sun Myung Moon, 4-18-77: Cf. Sun Myung Moon, 12-18-85, p. 323. 1
Corinthians 13, p. 237. Vacana 239: Cf. Katha Upanishad 2.1.10, p. 323.
Pesahim 50a: Cf. 1 Samuel 2.4-9, pp. 545f; Hadith of Bukhari, p. 911.
Anguttara Nikaya 1.279: Regret is a powerful emotion in the world beyond;
it can create hell or spur one to self-betterment.
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Where men of goodwill and good deeds rejoice,
Their bodies now made free from all disease,
Their limbs made whole from lameness or defect--
In that heaven may we behold our parents and our sons!
15.
Hinduism. Atharva Veda 6.120.3
All who obey God and the Apostle are in the company of those on whom is
the grace of God--of the Prophets who teach, the sincere lovers of Truth,
the witnesses [martyrs] who testify, and the righteous who do good: Ah!
what a beautiful fellowship!
16.
Islam. Qur'an 4.69
You have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the
heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to
the assembly of the first-born who are enrolled in heaven, and to a judge
who is God of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, and to
Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant.
17.
Christianity. Bible, Hebrews 12.22-24
Komashtam'ho instructed the people in the nature of death, "When you die,
you will be again with those you love who have gone before you. Again you
will be young and strong, though you might have been old and feeble on the
day you died. In the spirit land the corn will grow and all will be
happy, whether they were good or bad when they were alive. So death is
not something to be afraid of."
18.
Native American Religions. Yuma Tradition
For [the ancestors] Soma is purified,
some accept the molten butter;
to the company of those, for
whom the honey flows, let him go!
To the company of those who
are invincible by spiritual discipline (tapas),
and through spiritual discipline have gone to heaven,
to men of great spiritual fire, let him go!
To the company of those who
fight contested battles, heroes
who cast away their lives, to those who
made a thousand gifts, let him go!
To those ancient followers
of the Law, steadfast in the Law,
who furthered the Law, to the Fathers, Yama,
great in their spiritual fire, let him go!
To the sage-poets, the leaders
of thousands, those who protect the sun,
to the Rishis of great spiritual discipline,
born of spiritual discipline, Yama! let him go! 19.
Hinduism. Rig Veda 10.154.1-5
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Atharva Veda 6.120.3: Cf. Atharva Veda 12.2.26-27, p. 543. Qur'an 4.69:
Cf. Gleanings 81, p. 371. Hebrews 12.22-24: Cf. Revelation 21.1-2, pp.
1112f; Isaiah 51.11, p. 1117. Yuma Tradition: Cf. Zuni Prayer, p. 246;
Hopi Tradition, p. 348, Ghost Dance, p. 1117.
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O Ananda, the world called Sukhavati (the Pure Land), which is the
world system of the Lord Amitabha, is rich and prosperous, comfortable,
fertile, delightful, and crowded with many gods and men. And in this
world, Ananda, there are no hells, no animals, no ghosts, no devils, and
no inauspicious places of rebirth. And there do not appear in this world
such gems as are known in the world Sukhavati.
And that world Sukhavati, Ananda, is fragrant with many
sweet-smelling odors, rich in manifold flowers and fruits, adorned with
jewel trees, and frequented by flocks of various birds with sweet voices,
which have been produced by the miraculous power of the Tathagata. The
jewel trees have various colors, many colors, many hundreds of thousands
of colors. They are composed of varying combinations of the seven
precious things: gold, silver, beryl, crystal, coral, red pearls, and
emerald... Their roots, trunks, branches, leaves, flowers, and fruits are
pleasant to touch, and fragrant. And when these trees, are moved by the
wind, a sweet and delightful sound proceeds from them, which one never
tires of hearing. Such jewel trees, and clusters of banana trees and rows
of palm trees, all made of precious gems, grow everywhere in this
Buddha-land. On all sides it is surrounded with golden nets, and all
round covered with lotus flowers made of all the precious things. Some of
the lotus flowers are half a mile in circumference, others up to ten
miles. And from each jewel lotus issue thirty-six hundred thousand
billions of rays of light. And at the end of each ray issue thirty-six
hundred thousand billions of Buddhas, with golden-colored bodies, who bear
the thirty-two marks of the great man, and who, in all the ten directions,
go into the countless [lower] realms and there teach the Law.
And many kinds of rivers flow along in this Pure Land. There are
great rivers there, one mile broad, and up to fifty miles broad and twelve
miles deep. All these rivers flow along calmly; their water is fragrant
with manifold agreeable odors, and in them are bunches of flowers to which
various jewels adhere, and they resound with various sweet sounds. And
the sound which issues from these great rivers is as pleasant as that of a
musical instrument consisting of hundreds of thousands of billions of
parts, and which, skillfully played, emits a heavenly music. It is deep,
commanding, distinct, clear, pleasant to the ear, touching the heart,
delightful, and one never tires of hearing it, as if it always said,
"Impermanent, peaceful, calm, and not-self." Such is the sound that
reaches the ears of those beings. And, Ananda, both banks of those great
rivers are lined with variously scented jewel trees, and from them bunches
of flowers, leaves, and branches of all kinds hang down. And if those
beings wish to indulge in sports full of heavenly delights on those
river-banks, then, after they have stepped into the water, the water in
each case rises as high as they wish it to--up to the ankles, or to the
knees, or to the hips, or to their sides, or to their ears. And heavenly
delights arise. Again, if beings wish the water to be cold, for them it
becomes cold; if they wish it to be hot, for them it becomes hot; if they
wish it to be hot and cold, for them it becomes hot and cold, to suit
their pleasure. And those rivers flow along, full of water scented with
the best perfumes, covered with lilies, lotus, and all manner of beautiful
flowers, resounding with the sounds of peacocks, sparrows, parrots, ducks,
geese, herons, cranes, swans, and others, with small islands inhabited by
flocks of birds, easy to ford, free from mud, and with golden sand on the
bottom. And all the wishes those beings may think of, they will be
fulfilled, as long as they are rightful. 20.
Buddhism. Larger Sukhavativyuha Sutra 15-18
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Rig Veda 10.154.5: This is a prayer to Yama, the judge of the dead, to allow
the deceased to enter the higher realms. Cf. Tibetan Book of the Dead, p.
347.
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After this I looked, and lo, in heaven an open door! And the first voice,
which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, "Come up hither,
and I will show you what must take place after this." At once I was in
the Spirit, and lo, a throne stood in heaven, with One seated on the
throne! And he who sat there appeared like jasper and carnelian, and
round the throne was a rainbow that looked like an emerald. Round the
throne were twenty-four thrones, and seated on the thrones were
twenty-four elders, clad in white garments, with golden crowns upon their
heads. From the throne issue flashes of lightning, and voices and peals
of thunder, and before the throne burn seven torches of fire, which are
the seven spirits of God; and before the throne there is as it were a sea
of glass, like crystal.
And round the throne, on each side of the throne, are four living
creatures, full of eyes in front and behind: the first living creature
like a lion, the second living creature like an ox, the third living
creature with the face of a man, and the fourth living creature like a
flying eagle. And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings,
are full of eyes round about and within, and day and night they never
cease to sing,
Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty,
who was and is and is to come!
After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no man
could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and tongues,
standing before the throne and before the Lamb [Christ], clothed in white
robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud
voice, "Salvation belongs to our God who sits upon the throne, and to the
Lamb!"...
Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, "Who are these,
clothed in white robes, and whence have they come?" I said to him, "Sir,
you know." And he said to me, "These are they who have come out of the
great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the
blood of the Lamb.
Therefore they are before the throne of God,
and serve him day and night within his temple;
and he who sits upon the throne will shelter them with his presence.
They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more;
the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat.
For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd,
and he will guide them to springs of living water;
and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes." 21.
Christianity. Bible, Revelation 4.1-8; 7.9-17
Glory be to Him, who carried His servant by night from the Holy Mosque to the
Further Mosque, the precincts of which We have blessed, that We might show him
some of Our signs.
22.
Islam. Qur'an 17.1
Anas ibn Malik said, "Abu Dharr recounted that the Messenger of God
said, 'While I was at Mecca, the roof of my house opened and Gabriel
entered. He opened my chest, washed me with the water of Zamzam, brought
a golden basin full of faith and wisdom and emptied all of it into my
chest. After that he closed it, took me by the hand and raised me towards
the lowest heaven. When I arrived at the lowest heaven, Gabriel said to
the door-keeper "Open." "Who is there?" he asked. "Gabriel," the angel
replied. "Is there anyone with you?" responded the door-keeper. "Yes,"
replied Gabriel, "Muhammad is with me." "Has he been commanded?" added
the door-keeper. "Yes," said the angel. When the door-keeper had opened
to us, we rose up within the lowest heaven, and suddenly we saw a man
sitting, having some spirits on his right and others on his left. Every
time he looked to the right he smiled, but as soon as he looked to the
left he wept. He said, "Welcome virtuous prophet and virtuous son." "Who
is this?" I asked Gabriel. "This man," he replied, "is Adam, and those
spirits on the right are destined to Paradise, while the spirits on his
left are destined to hell. That is why, when he looks to the right, he
smiles, and when he looks to the left, he weeps."
"'Then Gabriel raised me up to the second heaven and said to the
door-keeper, "Open." He asked the same questions as the first, and then
opened to us.'" Anas recounted that Abu Dharr said that the Prophet found
in the various heavens Adam, Idris, Moses, Jesus, and Abraham, but he was
not certain which were the positions they occupied. What he does say is
that Muhammad found Adam in the lowest heaven and Abraham in the sixth
heaven.
Anas adds, "When Gabriel came with the Prophet into the presence of
Idris, the latter said, 'Welcome virtuous prophet.'" "When I asked 'Who is
this?'" the Prophet went on, "Gabriel answered me, 'It is Idris.' Then I
went into the presence of Moses, who said, 'Welcome virtuous prophet and
virtuous brother.' 'Who is this?' I asked. 'Moses' replied the angel. I
then went into the presence of Jesus, who exclaimed, 'Welcome virtuous
prophet and virtuous brother.' 'Who is it?' I said. 'Jesus' replied
Gabriel. I went after that into the presence of Abraham, who said,
'Welcome virtuous prophet and virtuous brother.' 'Who is it?' I asked.
'It is Abraham,' the angel said to me."
Ibn Hazm records that Ibn `Abbas and Abu Habba al-Ansari said that
the Prophet used the following words, "Then the angel raised me until he
brought me to a height where I heard the beating of wings.... Then
Gabriel led me away and brought me to the lote-tree of the Boundary, which
is covered with unspeakably beautiful colors. Next I entered Paradise.
There are domes of pearls, and the sun there is made of musk." 23.
Islam. Hadith of Bukhari
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Revelation 7.9-17: Cf. Revelation 21-22, pp. 1118f; Ezekiel 1.3-28, pp. 100f;
Doctrine and Covenants 76.54-93, p. 322. Qur'an 17.1: This is the Night
Journey (Mi`raj) of Muhammad, where he was transported from the 'Holy
Mosque' at Mecca to the 'Further Mosque' in Jerusalem, and then taken on a
tour of the seven heavens, even to the throne of God. The following
hadith gives details of the latter part of the journey. Hadith of
Bukhari: An episode from this description of the Mi`raj where God
prescribes for Muslims fifty prayers a day and Muhammad, on Moses' advice,
bargains with God to reduce their number to five, omitted here, may be
found on pp. 785f.
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