What is Hell?

If we compare the dream of human society with the description of hell that religions all around the world have promulgated, we find they are exactly the same. Religions say that hell is a place of punishment, a place of fear, pain, and suffering, a place where the fire burns you. Fire is generated by emotions that come from fear. Whenever we feel the emotions of anger, jealousy, envy, or hate, we experience a fire burning within us. We are living in a dream of hell....

If you consider hell as a state of mind, then hell is all around us...

We are already in hell, including the people who tell us that. No human can condemn another to hell because we are already there. Others can put us into a deeper hell, true. But only if we allow this to happen...

Every human has his or her own personal dream, and just like the society dream, it is often ruled by fear. We learn to dream hell in our own life , in our personal dreams.....those are anger, jealousy, hate, envy, and other negative emotions...

Taken from The Four Agreements: A Toltec Wisdom Book P. 14

I spent many years in hell....the hell and insanity of alcoholism. Only I never knew it was hell and for a long time I thought it was normal and that everyone lived as I did. No longer do I want to be ruled by anger, fear, jealousy, hate, envy and the like.....Life is too short and there is way to much wonderful in it. I still fall short of that dream at times, but the difference today is that they are moments and they pass. I am making a new dream today, it's a work in progress, but it is already more than I ever dreamed possible and I know it's only gonna get better.