Hindu Afterworlds: A Journey Across Heaven and Hell

The Puranas, literally "ancient texts", form one of the main genres of Hindu scripture. They feature elaborate narrations on the teachings of the great sages, on the adventures of the great warriors, on the fierce battles of the gods and the demons, along with hosts of other phenomenal tales that defy even the greatest modern works of fantasy and fiction. Such a genre would not be perfect without magnificent afterworlds.

A Glance at Hinduism and Abrahamic Religions

Before embarking for a journey across the Hindu afterworlds, let us look at a base distinction between the concepts of heaven and hell in Hinduism and in the three Abrahamic religions, namely Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

The Abrahamic religions understand time in linear terms. In the beginning there was nothingness, and filling the vast emptiness, God created everything. The creation is sustained for a time, and at the Day of Judgment the world as we know it comes to an end. In the cyclic view of Hinduism, the basic sequence is the same but with a twist at the end - for the end leads to a beginning anew, ad infinitum. All of existence in this world is understood as being in a constant cyclic motion, of which moksha or liberation, rising beyond identification with the matter, is the only exit.

Following this cyclic law of nature, the soul transmigrates across countless species and destinations, life after life, millennium after millennium. In this cycle, he is at times rewarded with a life in heavens for his pious deeds, and again punished with the torments of hell for his sins. Heaven and hell, as all of material existence, are temporary destinations for the eternal soul. As such, there is no eternal suffering in hell or endless flames to keep roasting the sinner - for are not punitive measures only meaningful if there is a law-abiding life that follows?

The Universe of the Puranas

The universe of the Puranas, as in many classical mythologies, is divided into three basic realms: the nether worlds, the middle world and the upper worlds. In the midst are we, the humans, in what is called the martya-loka - the world of the mortals. Below us are the underworlds, the bila-svarga, a subterranean celestial region inhabited by the Asuras, powerful humanoid beings who have turned against the path of dharma, acting in enmity of overlord Vishnu. Above us are the heavens, the svarga, inhabited by the Devas, powerful divine beings in charge of natural phenomena, along with great sages and ascetics, all on the path of righteous dharma. These realms are commonly known as the tri-bhuvana, "the three worlds".

The universe - brahmanda, the "egg of the creator" - is one among millions of universes floating in the cosmic karanarnava, the ocean of causes in which the Great Vishnu, the source of all creation, reclines on Ananta, his serpent bed. With the inhalation of the Great Vishnu, all the universes go ablaze in the fires of destruction and are withdrawn to merge into his being. With his exhalation, the universes, flowing from the pores of his skin, are created anew.

The duration of each universe is equivalent to the 100 year life-span of Brahma, the creator-god. Brahma's day is the equivalent of 1000 cosmic cycles (yugas), and equally long is his night. Then, the duration of his full day adds up to 8,640,000,000 human years, and his 100 years to a grand total of 315,360,000,000,000 human years, or a bit over 315 trillion years. That would be the duration of time following Vishnu's exhalation before his next inhalation, some two seconds in his time; by this estimate, his year would add up to a bit short of five sextillion human years. You'll now find it easier to understand why he is called the Great Vishnu!

Each universe is coated with seven shells made of the seven elements, namely earth, water, fire, air, ether, the sum-total of matter and the sense of identity, each ten times thicker than the earlier. Our journey across heaven and hell begins at the top of the universe, with the planet of Brahma the creator.

The Worlds of Heaven

Satyaloka is the pinnacle of the universe, the planet of Brahma, the creator-god, and the greatest of sages and renunciates. At Satyaloka, there is no misery or anxiety, save and except that born of compassion for the mankind suffering in ignorance. Tapaloka is the second among the great sages' abodes, attained by faultless observance of the life of a vanaprastha, an ascetic forest-dweller. Janaloka is the third of the sages' planets, attained by faultless life-long celibates, and Maharloka the fourth, attained by those who have at one point taken up the practice of celibacy. While other planets are destroyed in the periodical cosmic cataclysms, these four abodes remain intact for the duration of the entire creation.

Below the planets of the sages is the realm of Svarloka or svarga, the heavens, an array of planets presided over by deities such as Indra the king of heaven, Moon-god Chandra and Sun-god Surya. These realms of heaven are filled with countless avenues for pleasures, inhabited by Gandharvas, the celestial bards, Apsaras, the divine nymphs, Siddhas, the masters of mystic powers, and a host of other pious, mythic beings. All of them, as their pious credits are depleted, fall from heaven to the human realm for another life of choices between piety and sin, and opportunities to embark on a quest for liberation from the endless cycle of birth and death.

The Earthly Plane

Below the heavens is Bhuvarloka, the atmosphere, inhabited by diverse ghosts and spirits, subtle entities trapped in a limbo preceding a birth proper. Down we come to Bhurloka, the human realms, hosting our planet Earth along with other domains sharing is traits. The human worlds feature a cycle of transmigration through 8,400,000 species; the aquatics, the fauna, the insects, the reptiles, the birds and the mammals, and at the top of the ladder 400,000 human species.

While the other species feature only evolution in consciousness, the human being is endowed with a capacity to distinguish right from wrong, to judge between good and evil, and is given a due afterlife in heaven, in hell, in the lower species or in a human form. Then, the human realm is a springboard to diverse destinations across the universe. A human life is also distinct in its opportunities for following the path of dharma that awards freedom from the endless wanderings across the universe.

The Underworlds

The underworlds or the bila-svarga, as heavenly as the svarga or Svarloka itself, are subterranean celestial abodes constructed in imitation of heaven for pleasures that plunge one into total oblivion of dharma. While not hell in that they are not planets of punishment, this realm of intense, dedicated materialism is hellish indeed in looking at the true gain of the soul.

Atala, the first of the seven subterranean heavens, is filled with lascivious women who enchant the visitor and, offering him intoxicating beverages, bind him into a life of endless sexual pursuits that blind him from the impeding death. Below Atala is Vitala that is presided over by Shiva, who along with his wife Bhavani are engaged in perpetual coitus for generating living entities. The mixture of their secretions produces a great river that, in interaction with wind and fire, yields gold that gives joy to the planet's residents. Diverse ghosts and goblins, Shiva's companions, inhabit the world of Vitala.

Below Vitala is Sutala, the abode of Bali Maharaja who, despite his birth among the demons, surrendered his all to Vishnu who came to him in the guise of a young brahmacari seeking alms. His devotion so pleased Vishnu that even now, Vishnu stands at his door as his devoted doorman, holding a club in his hand. Below Sutala is Talatala, presided over by Maya Danava, the master of sorcerers and the architect of the subterranean heaven.

Below Talatala is Mahatala, the abode of many-hooded, angry serpents. Below Mahatala is Rasatala, the abode of many dynasties of Asuras who are powerful, cruel and proud since their very births, ever-opposed to the rule of the gods. Below Rasatala is Patala, the abode of Nagas, powerful many-hooded mystic serpents led by Vasuki; some of the have five hoods, some seven, some hundreds and some a thousand. The jewels on their hoods cast light across the entire region of bila-svarga that would otherwise be in darkness, being in the shadow of the middle planets that block the rays of the sun.

Down Below - Entering Hell

The region of hell, Naraka, is located between the subterranean heavens and the bottom of the universe where Garbhodakasayi Vishnu, an aspect of the Great Vishnu, reclines on his serpent bed as the soul of the cosmos. The worlds of punishment are as countless as the sins of the living beings; the description in the Bhagavata Purana (5.26) features 28 primary hells.

Yama, the god of death and punishment, presides over the hells. Chitragupta, his secretary, keeps meticulous track of everyone's deeds: the gravity of sins, the level of ignorance or knowledge in which they were committed - all the details required for a fair judgment in hell. Yamadutas, Yama's messengers, seize the psyche and the soul of the sinner and, binding the subtle self with ropes, drag him along a long and torturous path into Yama's court for judgment. These very Yamadutas also bear the responsibility for punishing the sinners in the diverse hells.

The 28 Primary Hells

One who steals another's wife, children or property is cast into a dark hell called Tamisra where he is rebuked and beaten, made to starve and quench of thirst. One who through deception enjoys another's wife is cast into a hell called Andhatamisra where he is subjected to extreme miseries, feeling like a tree cut at its roots, losing his intelligence and sight. One who thinks of the body to be the self and works for his maintenance while causing violence to animals is cast into a hell called Raurava where those he hurt during his life appear as horned Ruru-beasts for the sake of his torment.

Those who make the torment of others into their very profession are cast into a hell called Maharaurava where carnivore Ruru-animals torment him as they devour his flesh. Those deplorable, cruel beings who cook birds and animals alive are cast into a hell called Kumbhipaka where they are cooked alive in boiling oil. The killer of a priest is cast into a copper-made hell called Kalasutra where he is scorched from below by fire and from above by the sun, running around in pain without a hope of relief.

If one deviates from the path of the Vedas in absence of emergency, he is cast into a hell called Asipatravana where he is beaten with whips and, in fleeing, runs into palm trees with sword-like leaves. A sinful ruler or administrator who punishes an innocent is cast into a hell called Sukaramukha where he is crushed as sugarcane is crushed for juice; he cries pitifully and faints, just like an innocent man who is punished.

One who punishes animals that are unaware of their inflicting pain to others is cast into a hell called Andhakupa where he is attacked by all the birds, beasts, reptiles and insects he harmed; he wanders in darkness, unable to sleep. If a miser does not give of his food to the needy, he is cast into a hell called Krimibhojana, a vast lake filled with worms, where he becomes a worm among the worms who feed on each other. One who in the absence of an emergency steals the wealth of another is cast into a hell called Sandamsa where he is cut to pieces as his skin is torn off with heated iron tongs and balls.

One who has sex with a forbidden partner is cast into a hell called Taptasurmi where he is whipped and forced to embrace a red-hot iron statue of the opposite sex. One who has indiscriminate sex with anyone and anything is cast into a hell called Vajrakantaka-salmali where he is hung to a tree full of thorns strong as thunderbolts, and of which he is dragged down again and again. A man born into a high family who neglects his religious duties is cast into a hellish river called Vaitarani where he floats amidst stool, urine, pus and blood and is eaten on by diverse aquatic beasts, unable to die.

The husbands of low-caste women who forsake all principles of purity and behave shamelessly like animals are cast into a hell called Puyoda, an ocean of pus, stool, urine, mucus and so forth with these substances as their edibles. If a man of higher caste is fond of hunting and killing animals without a reason, he is cast into a hell called Pranarodha where he becomes an object of the Yamadutas' target practice, pierced with arrows again and again.

One who, for the sake of his prestige, arranges for animal sacrifices is cast into a hell called Visasana and is slain after having suffered infinite pains. If a man forces his wife to drink his semen, he is cast into a hell called Lalabhaksa, a flowing river of semen he is forced to drink. Thieves who poison and set houses to fire, or rulers who plunder the citizens, are cast into a hell called Sarameyadana where they are devoured by 720 fierce, strong-teethed dogs.

One who lies or bears false witness in business or charity is cast to a hell called Avicimat where he is thrown again and again off a mountain 800 miles high onto waves of stone and shattered to pieces. The priests who drink liquor and others who drink Soma are cast to a hell called Ayahpana where hot, molten iron is poured into their mouths. A lowly man who, due to his false pride, fails to respect one of a higher birth, knowledge or spiritual practice is seen as dead even while living and is cast head over heels into a hell called Ksarakardama where he suffers great tribulations.

Those who sacrifice humans and eat their flesh are cast into a hell called Raksogana-bhojana where their victims, taking the forms of cannibal demons, cut them into slices and feast on them. Those who first give shelter to animals and then torture them are cast into a hell called Sulaprota where they are pierced with sharp lances, attacked by sharp-beaked birds tearing them apart, and keep suffering from hunger and thirst. Those who are envious like serpents, angry and causing pain to others, are cast into a hell called Dandasuka where many-hooded serpents devour them like mice.

Those who throw living entities into wells, caves or ditches are cast into a hell called Avata-nirodhana where they find themselves in similar circumstances, afflicted by fire and poisonous fumes. Householders who receive their guests with cruel and unwelcoming glances are cast into a hell called Paryavartana where they are gazed by vultures, herons and crows that suddenly swoop, plucking out his eyes with force. One who is bewitched by greed for money and sins to augment his wealth is cast into a hell called Sucimukha where his body is stitched throughout with needles and threads.

In this way, there are hundreds and thousands of hells of which the above are examples. After undergoing their due punishments, the sinners are again given access to human forms of life.

The World Beyond

The purpose of life is not to revolve across the countless heavenly and hellish abodes forever. A soul is to claim its true spiritual nature, forsaking the misidentification with diverse material forms it has fostered since beginningless time. This illusion is shred through the practice of sadhana, spiritual discipline aimed at redeeming the soul from the shackles of maya into its pure, untainted position glory.

The practice of cultivating jnana, knowledge of the nature of the soul and its unity with the Brahman, the all-pervading spirit, leads to the attainment of moksha or liberation and unity with Brahman and a position in the Paravyoma, in the all-encompassing spiritual sky, filled with eternal peace and unity in spiritual realization.

The practice of bhakti, worship with devotion directed to Vishnu, leads one to Vaikuntha, the eternal spiritual abode sustained by his infinite power, to realms in the spiritual sky where the soul assumes a form of pure spirit as an associate and a servant of Vishnu's. Worship of Krishna leads one to Goloka Vrindavana to forever take part in the ever-new and felicitous sports and adventures of Krishna and his dear companions.

Then, may we not spend the rest of our eternity revolving in the mythical cycles of the universe, crossing heavens and hells - let us aim for a goal that is permanent, a destination that remains forever!