Do You Understand Hell?

Hell is a name of the place which is scary, fearful, frightful, horrible, calamitous etc. Do we really know hell? Or we just know its name and become scary, fearful and frightful. “Yes, I know hell”, some people said. And a question arises again, “Is it one hell? Or are there many hells?” “Yes, I think there are many as in my belief, there is a hell, so in others’ belief, there must be hell as well”, some agreed. But some disagreed, saying, “No, there must be one hell as there is one world. When people die, bad people go to hell and good people go to heaven”. Some disagreed with both, saying, “No there is neither hell nor heaven at all. They are just conventional language. There is no such realm”. A question “How come there is no hell and heaven?” arises, and then they ended up with big argument.

For me, I don’t want to get involved with this argument; it is not worth involving at all. But one day a group of students aged 7-8 visited the temple. I explained them the mural painting, three conventional worlds e.g. heaven, earth and hell. I explained them the concept of the painting ‘do good actions and achieve good results, but do bad actions and achieve bad results. Good cause and good effect, but bad cause and bad effect’. One of students asked me, “Is there real hell in Buddhism?” I answered him, “No, there is no hell in Buddhism”. Another one asked me, “Why is there the painting of hell, then?” I answered him, “Oh, that is for teaching as I have said that is conventional world. It is not real world. Why there is the painting like that. That is because people can understand easily when they see the painting. Therefore, the painting is just for teaching”. One student was still curious to know about the hell and asked me, “Can people come out from hell?” “Yes of course, they can if they change themselves to be good men, they can get out of the hell. Let’s put it in easy words, some people might make mistakes in life and are sentenced to jail which is comparable to hell. When they have finished their time of punishment in jail, they are released out to community which is comparable to heaven. Now they learn a lesson and change their attitude of living; they become good men. Then they live their life happily with the others. But if they never change, they just do the wrong things again. They will end up in jail again”. Now the students seemed to understand about hell in Buddhism.

The teacher said to me, “That is good explanation, now they can understand that people can have second chance if they want to improve their life. Before that, they understand that if anyone goes to hell, they never come out from there”. I just confirmed to the teacher that in Buddhism, there was always chance and opportunity for people who want to improve themselves. Heaven and hell were just like here, on this earth; wherever people are kind, generous, responsible, truthful and mindful, there they live in heaven. On the contrary, wherever people are unkind, selfish, irresponsible, liar and careless, they live in hell. Further more, even in our life, there are heaven and hell inside; anytime people feel happy, generous, kind etc. they are in heaven, but when people feel angry, greedy, selfish, unkind etc. they are in hell. The teacher turned to her students and asked them to check their understanding, “Do you understand what the monk has explained?” They answered all in once, “Yes, we do”. The teacher jus confirmed my words, “Then be good, you will be in heaven”.

And how about you, do you understand heaven and hell? What I can say to you is whatever belief you have. It does not matter. But I am sure that if you are good, you are in heaven. If you are bad, you end up in hell. I say I’m sure because only good people have rights to be in heaven, don’t they?