Hell Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ===Hinduism=== {{Main|Naraka (Hinduism)}} [[File:Yama's Court and Hell.jpg|thumb|Yama's Court and Hell. The Blue figure is [[Yamaraja]] (The Hindu god of death) with his consort [[Yami]] and [[Chitragupta]] <br /> 17th-century painting from Government Museum, [[Chennai]].]] Early [[Historical Vedic religion|Vedic religion]] does not have a concept of hell. The ''[[Rigveda]]'' mentions three realms, ''bhūr'' (the [[earth]]), ''svar'' (the [[sky]]) and ''[[Loka|bhuvas]]'' or ''antarikṣa'' (the middle area, i.e. air or [[atmosphere]]). In later Hindu literature, especially the law books and the ''[[Puranas]]'', more realms are mentioned, including a realm similar to hell, called ''[[Naraka]]''. [[Yama]] as the first born human (together with his twin sister [[Yamuna in Hinduism|Yamī]]), by virtue of precedence, becomes ruler of men and a judge on their departure. In the law-books (the ''[[Smriti]]''s and the [[Dharmaśāstra|''Dharmashashtra''s]]), ''Naraka'' is a place of punishment for misdeeds. It is a lower spiritual plane (called ''naraka-loka'') where the spirit is judged and the partial fruits of [[karma]] affect the next life. In the ''[[Mahabharata]]'', there is a mention of the [[Pandavas]] and the [[Kauravas]] both going to [[Svarga|heaven]]. At first [[Yudhishthira]] goes to heaven, where he sees [[Duryodhana]] enjoying the realm; [[Indra]] tells him that Duryodhana is in heaven as he had adequately performed his [[Kshatriya]] duties. Then he shows Yudhishthira hell, where it appears his brothers are. Later it is revealed that this was a test for Yudhishthira and that his brothers and the Kauravas are all in heaven, and live happily in the divine abode of the [[Deva (Hinduism)|devas]]. Various hells are also described in various ''Puranas'' and other scriptures. The ''[[Garuda Purana]]'' gives a detailed account of each hell and its features; it lists the amount of punishment for most crimes, much like a modern-day penal code. It is believed{{by whom|date=July 2019}} that people who commit misdeeds go to hell and have to go through punishments in accordance with the misdeeds they committed. The god [[Yama (Hinduism)|Yama]], who is also the god of death, presides over hell. Detailed accounts of all the misdeeds committed by an individual are kept by [[Chitragupta]], who is the record keeper in Yama's court. Chitragupta reads out the misdeeds committed and Yama orders appropriate punishments to be given to individuals. These punishments include dipping in boiling oil, burning in fire, torture using various weapons, etc. in various hells. Individuals who finish their quota of the punishments are reborn in accordance with their balance of [[karma]]. All created beings are imperfect and thus have at least one misdeed to their record; but if one has generally led a meritorious life, one ascends to [[Svarga]], a temporary realm of enjoyment similar to Paradise, after a brief period of expiation in hell and before the next reincarnation, according to the law of [[karma]].{{citation needed|date=July 2019}} With the exception of Hindu philosopher [[Madhva]], time in hell is not regarded as eternal [[damnation]] within Hinduism.<ref name="glasenapp">[[Helmuth von Glasenapp]]: Der Hinduismus. Religion und Gesellschaft im heutigen Indien, Hildesheim 1978, p. 248.</ref> According to [[Brahma Kumaris]], the Iron Age (''[[Kali Yuga]]'') is regarded as hell. Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page