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What do you do if you go to hell?
What do you do if you go to hell? You probably don't get this question asked very much. But I want to know.
Peace!
Peace!
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Then other type of hell that is spoken of in the buddhist scriptures if I am not mistaken is that there is a realm of the hungry ghosts. I just googled realm of the hungry ghosts and found out that there is actually a hell realm as well.. Well I will paste what I found out about the hungry ghost realm and then also about the hell realm.
Hungry Ghosts (Pretas) are pitable things. They are wasted creatures with huge, empty stomachs. Their necks are too thin to allow food to pass. So, they are constantly hungry.
Greed and jealousy lead to rebirth as a Hungry Ghost. The Hungry Ghost Realm often, but not always, is depicted between the Asura Realm and the Hell Realm. It is thought the karma of their lives was not quite bad enough for a rebirth in the Hell Realm but not good enough for the Asura Realm.
Psychologically, Hungry Ghosts are associated with addictions, compulsions and obsessions. People who have everything but always want more may be Hungry Ghosts.
Hell Realms
The lowest among the realms of existence is the hell realm. Buddhists believe that there are about 136 hells which are divided into “hot hells” and “cold hells”. The hell realms are looked upon as journey full of suffering; one born into this realm must not only endure suffering in their respective hell but also pass through each of lesser hells. This journey is supposed to take years to complete. In the course of which, even the Dharma is forgotten and even if it was remembered, the anguish is such that it makes practice impossible. The hell realm is characterized by acute aggression.
Buddhists believe that each person is reborn in accordance with their respective actions (Karma) in their previous lives.
You die. And die. And then die. And then die. And then the bad karma gets used up or something and then you get reborn elsewhere.
see, we're telling you what our impressions are, but nobody knows what you do if you go to hell.
Look to improve your thoughts, words and actions, I suppose, in order to climb out of it.
As Tom correctly points out, Hell isn't a place, anywhere, it's what we voluntarily put ourselves through, day in and day out.... we create our own.
Here's a famous Buddhist story I posted in another thread, not long ago....
An enlightened lama sat on his zafu and one of his disciples came to him.
"Master," he said, as he bowed, "there is a soldier at the gate who states he has travelled many months to seek an audience with you. He declares himself to be a great Overlord, but to look at him, well..... I'm not sure....."
The master bade his disciple admit the soldier.
When the door opened, a tall imposing man walked in, his sword by his side.
But he was filthy, dishevelled, was distinctly malodorous and had obviously been keeping the company of a good but well-ridden horse....his clothes carried a pervasive stench, and he had obviously not washed either them - or himself - for some time.
He stood before the Guru, and bowed, lightly.
"Master!" he boomed,"I have been travelling for many months to find you. I have sought you far and wide, and have journeyed for many weeks, without stopping, because, I seek the answer to a question posed to me by a prisoner I captured. My manservant, who had heard of your fame, informed me you have the answer I seek.
Tell me - What is Hell? and what is Heaven?"
The guru gazed up at him, with a calm countenance, then began his reply.
"You filthy, stinking disgusting creature....! You dare to come before me, your sword by your side, smelling worse than a rotten pigsty, in this hallowed temple, and demand to know things which your empty, ignorant and stupid head cannot possibly ever comprehend?!? Get out of my sight! you are not even worthy to keep a dog company as it forages for scraps in garbage, such is your offensive stench!"
the Overlord, incensed and enraged by such an insolent and arrogant welcome, instinctively drew his sword, and swung it above his head, ready to strike a fatal blow.
"That, " quietly spoke the Guru, without flinching, "is Hell."
The Overlord was so stunned by this calm riposte, in the face of certain, swift and sudden death, that he was brought to a sudden halt, in mid-swing, so profound was his astonishment. He calmly bought the sword down to his side....
"and that, "continued the Guru, a flicker of a smile fleeting across his face, "is Heaven."
Best we can do.
if you want to know for sure, watch your days, and how your Mind perceives the events that befall you.
How do you view them?
How do you evaluate them?
what do you think of their effect on you?
Only then, will you know.
but they're states of being, not locations.....
Until i see it as a place for myself, i'm prepared to accept i create my own every day.
If you re otherwise convinced - Point me to it.
http://www.dhammatalks.net/Books2/Bhikkhu_Buddhadasa_Keys_to_Natural_Truth.htm#TWO KINDS OF LANGUAGE
All interpretation, no one really knows.
I like the Islamic interpretation which is basically that those who wasted the opportunity to do good in this life will have to taste of their bad deeds in this life and the next. This life takes the form of suffering, crime and punishment and the hell place is a form of purging in the next life. It is like a necessary stage of advancement for makind.
Like cleaning out the impurities of gold through fire. But it is interpreted as TEMPORARY.
God created men for mercy... (11:119)...although mankind may bring down their punishment through bad deeds, God's fullfilled and ultimate plan in his divine scheme is that all beings will one day be fit to serve Him.
51:56
Hell is called "maula "...patron of the sinners 57:15 and "mother " in another verse 101:9.
The spiritual seed of man, ie...the soul is so valuable to God, that he has plans for it...to enter hell is to be only purified of the impurities to enter a higher state.
Heaven is a place of unending progress to higher stages of life and the idea of hell is not meant to torture but to purify, in order to make Mankind fit for spiritual advancement.
Yay ascension...now, I took a shot at it, don't Murder me. I also tend to agree that if a merciful all encompassing God or Creator exists than he would not eternally condemn anyone to a permanent hell.
Buy this is in my opinion and I am coming from an Abrahamic monotheist perspective. My two cents...myopic at best.
God never intended human souls to go there.
This idea was perpetuated later by dogmatic Theistic elders, in order to counteract the teaching of reincarnation, which was regularly accepted within christian circles up to then....
from here..
http://www.blueletterbible.org/faq/hell.cfm#why
Eh, that's another forum and another thread. Back to topic.
From what I learned, hell is a mental plane. The beings can't die in hell doesn't matter what is do to them. They experiences pain as a way to remove bad karma until it's time to reborn in other 5 realms. Hell's size can automatically adjusted according to number of beings in there.
i have.
worth the read.... though I'd combine part one and two into one thread......
http://newbuddhist.com/discussion/14373/master-kwang-and-the-hungry-ghost
I can never be convinced that some good, kind, generous, considerate people exist through such hell and torment from day to day, that if they are also people who do not believe in God they are then further condemned to exist in a real, solid location in an afterlife, where further torment will be heaped upon them for all eternity, simply because they don't believe in the Creator who permits them to be consigned to that place, simply for not believing in him.
I hope that clarifies it.
Because some Christians are utterly convinced that such an end befalls such people as i have described.
However this is not the Buddhist concept of a real hell. Birth in hell is a result of negative actions not a punishment for lack of faith and its not eternal.
Dr. Schambaugh, of the University of Oklahoma School of Chemical Engineering, Final Exam question for May of 1997. Dr. Schambaugh is known for asking questions such as, "why do airplanes fly?" on his final exams. His one and only final exam question in May 1997 for his Momentum, Heat and Mass Transfer II class was: "Is hell exothermic or endothermic? Support your answer with proof."
Most of the students wrote proofs of their beliefs using Boyle's Law or some variant. One student, however, wrote the following:
"First, We postulate that if souls exist, then they must have some mass. If they do, then a mole of souls can also have a mass. So, at what rate are souls moving into hell and at what rate are souls leaving? I think we can safely assume that once a soul gets to hell, it will not leave.
Therefore, no souls are leaving. As for souls entering hell, let's look at the different religions that exist in the world today. Some of these religions state that if you are not a member of their religion, then you will go to hell. Since there are more than one of these religions and people do not belong to more than one religion, we can project that all people and souls go to hell. With birth and death rates as they are, we can expect the number of souls in hell to increase exponentially.
Now, we look at the rate of change in volume in hell. Boyle's Law states that in order for the temperature and pressure in hell to stay the same, the ratio of the mass of souls and volume needs to stay constant. Two options exist:
1. If hell is expanding at a slower rate than the rate at which souls enter hell, then the temperature and pressure in hell will increase until all hell breaks loose.
2. If hell is expanding at a rate faster than the increase of souls in hell, then the temperature and pressure will drop until hell freezes over.
So which is it? If we accept the quote given to me by Theresa Manyan during Freshman year, "that it will be a cold night in hell before I sleep with you" and take into account the fact that I still have NOT succeeded in having sexual relations with her, then Option 2 cannot be true...Thus, hell is exothermic."
The student, Tim Graham, got the only A.
I used to spend a lot of time in Hell ....and occasionally still get a wiff of sulfur. It's a great spur to practice.
thank you, thank you, thank you!!!
The times - countless, upon countless times - that so many people have given the translation as "Abandon hope all ye who enter here."
It makes me scream!
the difference is subtle, but it makes it whopping!
"Lasciate ogni speranza voi ch' entrate".
Bravo, bravissimo, Riccardo!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hell
@AstralProjectee said: What do you do if you go to hell?
You dwell.
So look around.
Be in hell.
Maybe you are a demon.
Perhaps you have simply died and experienced the six realms of the Bardo - the gap between rebirth - the hell realm being the sixth domain.
In Buddhism there ain't no per omnia saecula saeculorum - if you are in hell it don't have to be for all eternity.
The Tibetan Book of the Dead teaches that you dwell in the hell realm until negative karma is used up - then you're reborn into another realm.
Whatever.
Like I said - you get to hell - look around - take notes - tell the rest of us what to expect when you get back......
My answer is: "If hell is a place 'to go to' then I would say the question is probably a moot point. Be what you are where you are as anything else is self-delusion."
As to where hell is to be found, I would venture that hell is where suffering is. Therefore, if you are not suffering then you are not in hell and need not worry. As the old "hellish" earworm-creating song by Bobby McFerrin says "Don't worry, Be Happy."
Nanimo :rarr: :om:
....Got it right now though.
:thumbup:
Help all beings. Even in Hell, help all beings. If you find yourself in any of the countless realms, help all beings. It's as simple as that.
How do we do this in Hell? How should I know. If I get to Hell, I'll discover the answer to that question and let you know.
http://www.newbuddhist.com/discussion/13661/hell-realms-debate
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/ptf/dhamma/sagga/loka.html
You realize the causes and conditions that brought you to hell.
You actively abandon said causes and conditions.
Tread the Noble Eightfold Path.
"It is a plain fact that our external environment is a product of our sense organs."
Agree or Disagree?