Heaven and hell are created by us. It is our perception. Some quotes which will make you ponder.

I sent my Soul through the Invisible,
Some letter of that After-life to spell:
And by and by my Soul
return’d to me,
And answered: I Myself am Heav’n and Hell. – Omar Khayyam

The mind is a universe and can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven. – John Milton.

Svarga and Naraka are mentioned in the Vedas and Puranas. We think of Svarga as being heaven and Naraka as being hell. Svarga is derived from Su and varga which means simply a good and pleasant state of being. Naraka means beneficial suffering. According to the Puranas it is a temporary state in which our Karmas overwhelm us and it can be good or bad. It is as if we have exhausted our credit and we return to earth to continue our spiritual evolution.

Svarga (heavenly realms) is the temporary abode of the Devas and Indra and this is attained through the performance of tremendously good deeds. However, we must remember that we have to be serious about our actions and deeds.

The Hindu hell is where we are punished for our misdemeanors. According to Vedanta both heaven and hell are metaphorical states which are cited so that one is restrained from committing evil acts.

So, what is the solution

Working on our karma and this means working on our thoughts. Remain constantly aware of our speech and the origin of what emerges. Instead of brooding on this subject, we can become aware of our breath. Our prana is responsible for our existence. Our prana remains healthy when we are aware of our breath. If our nostrils are blocked, then the Ida and Pingala nadis are blocked and the Sushumna nadi through which the prana flows is blocked. We must practice Anuloma Viloma.

Visualize breath flowing through the left nostril for a while (count backwards from 27 to 0), then visualize breath flowing in and out through the right nostril (count backwards from 27 to 0). Now visualize breath flowing in and out through both nostrils, meeting at the eyebrow centre and descending from the eyebrow centre through both nostrils. It is called triangular breathing (count backwards from 54 to 0). This simple sadhana enables us to become indifferent to our thoughts. We are now neutral in our perspective. If we can do this, we will create our svarga on earth.

Aim Hrim Klim

Photo by Louis Maniquet on Unsplash