Nov 30

go to hell :-)

what is hell, really?

we tend to imagine hell as a kind of wasteland of the untouchables — lakes of fire, eternal torment, the whole mythic spectacle, yadda badda boom and so on. and maybe it is all of that.

but maybe it’s also the smaller, quieter evils: jealousy, greed, lust, anger, the urge to control, shame, fear, the lies, the betrayals, the nervous ticks, the agitations big and small. honestly, who can say what counts as a “lesser” or “greater” evil? who can even tell where the fine line between good and evil even is?

when we get right down to the ashes of the matter, hell is simply a state of mind.

now, please don’t misunderstand: pain is real. bodies break, hearts stop, and the world can wound us in ways we never asked for. none of this is your ‘fault.’ but suffering — the inner clinging, the belief that “this pain is me” — is something entirely different. pain belongs to the world, but suffering is what happens when the mind insists the pain is an identity.

the devil isn’t some authoritarian punishing you — he’s just the part of you enslaved to this mistaken identity, suffering in your self-imposed prison. but here's the thing: no matter what happens, inside or out, you decide whether you suffer. suffering is never the event itself — it is the identification with the event. who would any of us be if no one ever reminded us that we were holding the key to our jail cell all along?

liberation only comes if we’re willing to believe liberation is possible — and we have to be willing to go to hell in order to give ourselves that key, to become aware of our illusory attachments. suffering only has power when we treat it as fundamentally real. when we see it for what it is — a misidentification — its grip dissolves. and in any case, whatever identity we may think we have, we are surely mistaken.

the underlying wisdom remains — when suffering arises in myself or in “others,” i have a choice: cling to it and prolong it, run from it and prolong it, or accept it exactly as it is, tenderly. acceptance dissolves hell like water dissolves the wicked witch of the west. yes, it’s exactly that simple. no need to keep feeding the flames — simply see hell for what it is and let the punishment end itself.

of course, if someone needs urgent medical attention, don’t just stand there — get them to a doctor! but remember: beneath every pain is a center of compassion, so speak to that compassion, not to the pain. a wise high priest once told me that.

if we have truly spent our time in hell with loving, joyful detachment, all the supposed demons soon join us in heaven — which is to say, that sweet bliss of unidentified nothingness. and if i truly become this heaven, then i see there never was anything else.

and so i say with complete affection and sincerity: go to hell and get the hell out. wherever hell is for you, go there, gently. and when you find yourself surrounded by the fire, the fear, and dreadful circumstances, don’t panic. just be there. you don’t have to do anything — simply witness, accepting all as-is, and see what difference your loving presence makes.

and if you don’t agree — go to hell anyway. it may do you some good.

may scorsby with you always,
general scorsby