The concept of heaven and hell is taught in all religions - from Hinduism,Buddhism,Zoroastrianism,the Abrahamic religions (Judaism,Christianity,Islam) - among many others.
A painting of the Buddhist concept of Hell
A painting of the Buddhist concept of Hell
In the eastern philosophies (Hinduism,Jainism,Buddhism,and etc) Hell is a temporary place of cleansing to rid themselves of excess negative karma.
In Christianity the concept of Hell tends to be elitist and not reserved merely for unrepentant sinners but for anyone (good or bad) who isn't a Christian. As a friend of mine used to say - "with a god like that, who needs a devil?"
Sadly, we're led to believe that these stories are literal as opposed to being metaphorical. Jesus was known to speak in parables. Yet for some reason the fundamentalists think they can pick and choose which parts of scripture are to be taken at face value and what's symbolic.
Quotes:
“It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles. Then the victory is yours. It cannot be taken from you, not by angels or by demons, heaven or hell.” - Prince Sidhartha Gautama (the Buddha)
"Hell has three gates: lust, anger, and greed." - Sri Krishna (the Bhagavad Gita)
"Without stirring abroad, One can know the whole world; Without looking out of the window One can see the way of heaven. The further one goes The less one knows." -Lao Tzu
"I want to make it clear to everybody that i am not a christian or a jew or a muslim or a hindu or even a buddhist...... im not even John Carlo... that is just a name given to me at birth..... I AM THE UNIVERSE....I AM GOD... I AND THE FATHER ARE ONE..... I AM HIS SON... AND I CAN DO ANYTHING......
I do not need Jesus, I do not need Muhammad, I do not need Moses , i do not need Buddha and i dont need Khrisna.... the same God that was in them is in me.... I will sit under my tree and if they come and sit with me.. i will tell them to leave and find there own. I would tell them i have no time to chat with them... because i am meditating....." - John Carlo
Mr.Carlo said it right. Fundamentalist dogma tends to be the most divisive. Until such frozen mindsets can be transcended we'll never progress towards a more cohesive and unified planet.
Click here to read about a friendship between a lion and a lamb.
“The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.” - Isaiah 11:6
Heaven and Hell are right here and now. It's a state of mind. Heaven is achieving a full state of being whether one is here or yonder. Hell on the other hand can mean an unfulfilled life, excessive attachment,or simply never being satisfied with life. Since there's no way of knowing for sure, we might as well live a full life and make the best of it while we're here because if an afterlife exists we'll know when we get there.
