Heaven and Hell: A Mental Perspective
I do not think Heaven and Hell are real, tangible places as described in the Bible. Instead, I like to think of them as mental, metaphysical planes, here on this earth, domiciled in our heads — within our minds.
Of course, with this sort of mindset, it is easy to live nonchalantly, evilly even, with no care for eternal punishment or reward. However, I’m careful not to fall prey to such a relatively nihilistic mindset — that nothing exists after here, therefore I am free to act out my desires, no matter how cruel or good they are.
On the contrary, Hell is here. Take, for example, Adolf Hitler. You may think he’s burning in some eternal cauldron of oil, screaming “Had I known” for all eternity, and maybe you may not be wrong. However, I like to think the true representation of Hitler’s hell is that he’ll forever be loathed by many. He’ll cut a divisive figure, a scion of Lucifer, the manifestation of deep-rooted evil in this world. Those who feel the hatred towards him is unjust will find themselves unable to publicly express their support for him without being utterly and unanimously condemned, and worse, cancelled.
As for me, if I died today, my Hell would be that I died without achieving my potential. I would always be remembered, if at all I am, as that guy who died so young, unable to realize his dreams and ambitions. That will be my Hell and might well be yours.
The same holds true for those whose good deeds we think granted them passage into Heaven. Take, for example, Oskar Schindler, a German man who refused to adopt the Nazi stance on the extermination of Jews and instead chose to save some 2,000 Jews from death at the concentration camps. You might think that with such an eternally laudable act, he should be in Heaven, singing hosanna in the highest, sitting beside God, eternally praised for his service to humanity, and you might not be entirely wrong.
However, I prefer to think of his Heaven differently. I believe his Heaven exists is our minds. As evidenced by how quickly I thought of him when attempting to write this, to give the perfect example of one whose service was so significant, so positively significant, that it granted him a quick and permanent access to the Pearly Gates. And it’s not just me who holds him in the highest regard; countless others do, which explains why a book was written about his courageous and selfless service, Schindler’s Ark, and also why a movie was made as a result, Schindler’s List.
And so on and so forth.
