STORIES AND MYTHS OF HEAVEN AND HELL === FRLOK
STORIES AND MYTHS OF HEAVEN AND HELL
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"The idea that one can get spiritual liberation through torturing
the body, is not correct. God is internal; what has He to do with
anything external? Standing in water for days, standing on one foot
for months, raising one hand or both hands heavenwards and standing
like that for a long time, burying oneself in the earth for days --
all these things are simply meaningless. They no doubt call for
great physical power and a great capacity of endurance -- but many
people undertake heavy physical labour; don't even animals work very
hard? Will all such people and animals get liberation? It is not
correct.
One cannot get to God through such physical hardship. Neither can
one get to Him through religious sacrificial rituals. Were this
possible, it would be very easy for the rich to find God! And the
poor could never get near to Him! These things are all meaningless,
and represent a very backward stage of humanity." (DISCOURSES ON
TANTRA VOLUME 2, THE DIALOGUES OF SHIVA AND PA'RVATII, June 1967,
Srinagar)
What of pilgrimage and sacred bathing?
"'Here is a place of pilgrimage; if one takes a dip in this
particular sacred pond (a spring, sometimes a hot spring, restricted
to use in religious ritual) or in this particular river, one will
acquire this much virtue -- all this is false.' If one can acquire
virtue by taking a bath in the pong, then all the creatures in the
water of the pond will also get to heaven. And all the ponds which
you see nowadays at different places of pilgrimage are full of
stinking water! Those who take a bath with such ideas are people
dominated by the static principle." (DISCOURSES ON TANTRA VOLUME 2,
THE DIALOGUES OF SHIVA AND PA'RVATII, July 1967, Delhi)
And tales?
"Shiva was depicted in the Puranic Age with Gaunga' tied to His
matted locks of hair. Then a story was concocted in some Purana that
the water discarded after washing the feet of Vis'n'u, flowed down
from heaven, and Shiva supported the flow on His head; then this
flow became the River Gaunga' [Ganges]. That is, Gaunga' the wife of
Shiva became the River Gaunga'. Actually this River Gaunga' has no
relation whatsoever to Shiva. The story continues that from Shiva's
head the river flowed in four directions
One of the flows went towards heaven and became known as
Alaka'nanda; one went to the earth and became known as
Bha'giirathii; the third one went to Pitrloka [Realm of the
Ancestors] and became known as Manda'kinii; and the last one,
flowing to the underworld, became known as Bhoga-vatii. These are
mere tales of the Puranas."
(DISCOURSES ON TANTRA VOLUME 1, The Pervasive Influence of Shiva,
Namah Shiva'ya Sha'nta'ya, Discourse 4, 9 May 1982, Calcutta)
Well, of course one can't believe any of this if you are a practical
spiritual aspirant. Although, some truth may be found in the
educative fiction. One could say:
"I am a follower of Sada'shiva, the brilliance of whose divine
presence outshines even the dazzling brilliance of the jewels of
Kuvera's* treasury; whose unmatched dexterity in creation excels
even that of the Creator God himself; whose unequalled love
surpasses even that of the Dissolver himself; in whose loving
shelter not only humans, but also animals and plants, feel
absolutely secure."
* The mythological treasurer of heaven. --Trans.
(DISCOURSES ON TANTRA VOLUME 1, The Pervasive Influence of Shiva,
Namah Shiva'ya Sha'nta'ya, Discourse 4, 9 May 1982, Calcutta)
In this example, there is some inner sense to the value of a
spiritual preceptor.
"In this sense, the sphere of this sort of heaven transcends the
crude aspects of heaven seen in many stories."
(DISCOURSES ON TANTRA VOLUME 1, THE ACOUSTIC ROOTS OF THE INDO-
ARYAN ALPHABET, Kha, 1984-1985, Calcutta)
But one can't say:
"People say that ambrosia is found in heaven; not so, it is the
fruit of the mango tree." (SHABDHA CAYANIKA' PART 1, DISCOURSE 3,
AUNKA TO AKS'A, Amrta, 29 September 1985, Calcutta)
And regarding the concept of hell, psychologically educative fiction
can be useful to describe mental conditions. For example, many
stories convey something like:
"That whose bottom is too deep to be found, or the colloquial
meaning of a level down in the successive order of crudeness or to
be considered the crudest is more descriptive of the worst kind of
hell." (SHABDHA CAYANIKA' PART 1, DISCOURSE 3, AUNKA TO AKS'A Atala,
29 September 1985, Calcutta)
Or a moral fable may conclude:
"One can earn huge amounts of money and in the process I sell their
humanity in exchange for a few gold coins. So the person goes hell-
bound step by step, transforming oneself from a conscious human
being into no better than an inert stone. With no remnant left of
any common sense." (SHABDA CAYANIKÁ PART 2, DISCOURSE 9, UI TO
ULUKA, Upadesha, 10 November 1985, Calcutta)
This shows the degrading effects of about inflated-ego, self-
aggrandizement and fame. It is said:
"An inflated ego is like drinking wine, self--aggrandizement leads
one into the deepest hell, and social status / fame is like the
excrement of a pig. Give up all three of these and only sing the
glories of the Lord.
An inflated ego is no better than drinking wine. Self-aggrandizement
is truly like deep hell - the lowest realm. One who suffers from a
superiority complex is converted into stone -- he or she will be
crudified to this extent.* This is the result of the feeling of a
superiority complex. And social status is like the excrement of a
pig. "I will be at the pinnacle of society and people will respect
me" -- this sense is like a desire for the excrement of a pig. So
give up these three mental ailments -- inflated ego, self-
aggrandizement and social status / fame -- and then engage yourself
in contemplation on the Lord."
* Mental crudification is the actual phenomenon of which deep hell
is the mythological representation.
(DISCOURSES ON TANTRA VOLUME 2, THE DIALOGUES OF SHIVA AND
PA'RVATII, July 1967, Delhi)
But remember always, that God is impartial.
"Microcosms (eg human beings), confined as they are within the
relative factors, have very little controlling authority. The
Macrocosm, however, is the controller of heaven and hell. It is
worthwhile to mention here that the tendency of the human mind to
degenerate towards matter in the path of negative evolution is
called hell, and the movement of the unit mind towards the Supreme
Non-attributional Stance in the flow of positive evolution is called
heaven. A unit mind which accepts gold or silver as the goal of life
gradually becomes transformed into gold or silver. The psychic
waves, as a result of constant ideation are first transformed into
the waves of gold or silver and finally into crude gold or silver
itself as a result of inanimate absorption. Later on it is reborn as
a gold or silver, and spends its days confined within the safe of a
money-minded merchant! This undesirable situation is called life in
hell.
This type of degradation is not possible for creatures other than
human beings, because they cannot perform original actions
independently. With the development of intellect, and with the
expansion of freedom in the field of action, human beings can either
elevate themselves or degrade themselves. Prior to the attainment of
this freedom they moved along the path of development in the flow of
positive evolution. On acquiring this freedom, however, they have to
make a tremendous effort to progress, or else they will certainly
regress. Those people who move towards heaven or hell are not the
controller of either. But the Macrocosm is the controller of both
because the movement from hell to heaven is nothing but the direct
result of the application of His divine energy." (MACROCOSM AND
MICROCOSM -- 1, Paos'ii Pu'rn'ima' 1959, Darbhaga, Bihar,
Subha's'ita Sam'graha Part 7)
"The Supreme Consciousness - God - is unbiased. He is equal to
everyone because He sees everyone in the same way. He sees an ant in
the same way He sees a small mosquito. He understands an ant in the
same way that He understands a mosquito. He doesn't make any undue
fuss over a giant serpent (python or "elephant of the jungle")
because of its great size. He sees a python or "elephant of the
jungle" in the same way that He sees an ant or a mosquito, and they
also see Him in that same way. Nor does He make any special fuss
over this universe, the three worlds of heaven, earth and hell,
because of their vastness, and they look at Him in this same way. In
other words, everyone is equal to God -- a mosquito, an ant, a
python, a mammoth, even the three worlds. He remains with everyone
equally through His intimate / individual association and also
pervasive / collective association. He is impartial under all
conditions."
(SHABDA CAYANIKÁ PART 2, DISCOURSE 9, UI TO ULUKA, Ui, 10 November
1985, Calcutta)
To conclude, one can see the irrationality of heaven and hell in the
extract from the story below:
A certain Mr. Chamru Sao, another rich merchant, was organising a
memorial ceremony for his deceased father. One day he happened to
meet a famous Kashmiri pundit whom, it was rumoured, could find a
place in heaven for even the worst sinner. Chamru Sao was quick to
seize his opportunity. "Punditji," he said, "my illustrious father
violated the moral code of conduct once or twice to make a little
more money - times were hard, you know. I was wondering if you have
any places left in heaven where he can remain in eternal peace. It
would be very unfortunate if he was denied entry to heaven. I'd be
put in a very embarrassing position if he returned to earth and
checked the business accounts."
"That service costs fifty asrafis (1)," said the pundit.
"That seems to be a little excessive," said Chamru Sao. "Won't forty
asrafis be enough, punditji?"
"With forty asrafis," replied the pundit, "I can construct a palace
for your father in heaven using a few mantras, but I can't provide
any servants. He'll have to cook, wash the dishes, clean the beds
and do all the other household chores himself. Won't that be too
difficult for a frail old man?"
"Well punditji," continued Chamru Sao after a pause, "what will I
get for thirty asrafis?"
"For thirty asrafis I can get your father into heaven but I can't
promise a palace," relied the pundit.
"And if I only give you twenty asrafis?" asked Chamru Sao.
"Well, I'll probably be able to get him through the gates, but he'll
have to travel to the centre of heaven by his own means."
"And for ten asrafis?" persisted Chamru Sao. "Your father will have
to wait outside the gates just like King Trishanku. (2)"
"Fifty rupees ?" asked Chamru Sao
"Fifty rupees!" exclaimed the pundit. "It's hardly worth
contemplating."
Khya't'anda's had overheard the entire conversation and felt duty-
bound to free Chamru Sao from the evil influence of the
pundit. "Chamru Sao you don't need to pay for the services of a
pundit while I'm here. I'll get your father into heaven without
asking for a single rupee. I'll perform your father's memorial
ceremony and prove that it can be done. Be sure to invite the most
distinguished guests, though."
The memorial ceremony was well under way. Chamru Sao was in a jolly
mood because his father was going to heaven and would never ask to
see the business accounts again. "The auspicious moment has
arrived," declared Khya't'anda's. "It's time for your father to go
to heaven. Let me see what the conditions are like in heaven at the
present time... My goodness, the place is an arid desert, there's
not a tree in sight. Your father will die in the heat. Moreover
there's nothing to eat. I can't see a single chocolate tree or cake
tree. If he doesn't die of heat-stroke, starvation will certainly
finish him off. Chamru Sao, are your accounts ready for inspection?"
"Isn't there any other option?" asked Chamru Sao nervously.
"There's always another option," said Khya't'anda's
optimistically. "It shouldn't be difficult to find. Let me see...
Ah, there's a desert of chickpea sweets about twelve miles north of
the place where your father is waiting. If your father crosses the
desert - but it won't be easy - he'll reach a mountain range of milk
sweets as high as the snow-capped Himalayas. If he man ages to cross
the treacherous mountain pass he'll see a vast ocean of milk to the
west and another monotonous desert of chick pea sweets to the east.
There's another snow-capped mountain range of milk-sweets beyond the
desert and a cream lake beyond that. Would you like your father to
travel east or west? It's up to you. But remember, being so old and
frail he won't be able to walk that far. The only other way to
travel around heaven is by chartered rocket. A single ticket costs
fifty asrafis. I think it's your only option."
Chamru Sao could hardly refuse to pay for his father's comfort in
front of so many distinguished ladies and gentlemen. He handed over
fifty asrafis to Khya't'anda's. "Will your father be able to climb
into and out of the rocket himself, or should we send a young man
along to assist him ?" asked Khya't'anda's.
"Yes, we should definitely send along an assistant," agreed Chamru
Sao.
"So, we'll need another fifty asrafis for his ticket," said
Khya't'anda's. Chamru Sao gave him another fifty asrafis.
"Well, we can't send a ghost to heaven, can we? We'll have to send
someone from earth who will have to return after his mission is
over. That'll be an extra fifty asrafis for his tick et." Chamru Sao
was obliged to hand over another fifty asrafis.
1. The asrafi is a gold coin that was legal tender in India in the
nineteenth century. 2. See The Plight of King Trishanku.
THE DESIRES OF KHYA'T'ANDA'S, Sarkar's Short Stories Part 1
from works of Shrii Shrii Anandamurti
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