Editing Afterlife (section)

==Different metaphysical models==
[[Theism|Theist]] [[immortality|immortalists]] generally believe some afterlife awaits people when they die. Members of some generally non-theistic religions believe in an afterlife without reference to a deity.{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

Religions, such as [[Christianity]], [[Islam]], and various pagan belief systems, believe in the soul's existence in another world, while others, like many forms of [[Hinduism]] and [[Buddhism]], believe in reincarnation. In both cases, these religions hold that one's status in the afterlife is determined by their conduct during life.{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}}

===Reincarnation===
{{main|Reincarnation}}

Reincarnation is the philosophical or religious concept that an aspect of a living being starts a new life in a different [[physical body]] or form after each death. This concept is also known as rebirth or transmigration and is part of the [[Saṃsāra]]/karma doctrine of cyclic existence. Samsara refers to the process in which souls ([[jiva]]s) go through a sequence of human and animal forms. Traditional Hinduism teaches that each life helps the soul (jivas) learn until the soul becomes purified to the point of [[Moksha|liberation]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Aiken |first=Lewis R. |url=https://archive.org/details/dyingdeathbereav0000aike_h4a8 |title=Dying, death, and bereavement |date=2000 |publisher=Lawrence Erlbaum Associates |isbn=0-585-30171-9 |edition=4th |location=Mahwah, NJ |oclc=45729833 |url-access=registration}}</ref> All major [[Indian religions]], namely [[Buddhism]], [[Hinduism]], [[Jainism]], and [[Sikhism]] have their own interpretations of the idea of reincarnation.<!--{{Sfn|Mark Juergensmeyer|Wade Clark Roof|2011|pp=271-272}}{{sfn|Stephen J. Laumakis|2008|pp=90–99}}--><ref name="Gross1993p148">{{cite book|author=Rita M. Gross |title=Buddhism After Patriarchy: A Feminist History, Analysis, and Reconstruction of Buddhism |url=https://archive.org/details/buddhismafterpat00gros |url-access=registration |year=1993|publisher=State University of New York Press|isbn=978-1-4384-0513-1 |page=[https://archive.org/details/buddhismafterpat00gros/page/148 148]}}</ref> The human idea of reincarnation is found in many diverse ancient cultures,<!--{{Sfn|Norman C. McClelland|2010|pp=102–03}}--><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Anakwue |first=Nicholas Chukwudike |date=2018-02-22 |title=The African Origins of Greek Philosophy: Ancient Egypt in Retrospect |journal=Phronimon |volume=18 |pages=167–180 |doi=10.25159/2413-3086/2361 |issn=2413-3086|doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=McClelland |first=Norman |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=S_Leq4U5ihkC |title=Encyclopedia of Reincarnation and Karma |publisher=McFarland |year=2018 |isbn=978-0786456758 |pages=1–320 |language=English}}</ref> and a belief in rebirth/[[metempsychosis]] was held by historic Greek figures, such as [[Pythagoras]] and [[Plato]].<ref>see Charles Taliaferro, Paul Draper, Philip L. Quinn, ''A Companion to Philosophy of Religion''. John Wiley and Sons, 2010, p. 640, [https://books.google.com/books?id=SSCx-67Tk6cC&pg=PA640 Google Books]

For Plato, see Kamtekar 2016 and Campbell 2022.

Kamtekar, Rachana. "The Soul's (After-) Life," ''Ancient Philosophy'' 36 (2016): 1–18.

Campbell, Douglas R. "Plato's Theory of Reincarnation: Eschatology and Natural Philosophy," ''Review of Metaphysics'' 75 4 (2022): 643–665.</ref> It is a common belief of various ancient and modern religions, such as [[Kardecist spiritism|Spiritism]], [[Theosophy (Boehmian)|theosophy]], and [[Eckankar]]. It is found as well in many tribal societies around the world, in places such as Australia, East Asia, [[Siberia]], and South America.<ref>Gananath Obeyesekere, ''Imagining Karma: Ethical Transformation in Amerindian, Buddhist, and Greek Rebirth''. University of California Press, 2002, p. 15.</ref>
[[File:Traditional bhavachakra wall mural of Yama holding the wheel of life, Buddha pointing the way out.jpg|thumb|alt=This Bhavachakra mural depicts the six realms of existence for reincarnation in Buddhism, with Yama holding the Wheel of Life.|The twelve nidanas in Buddhist artwork]]
[[File:Aztec - Mask - Walters 2009201.jpg|thumb|alt=Aztec wooden mask|Aztec mask depicting transformation and rebirth]]

Although the majority of denominations within the [[Abrahamic religions]] of Judaism, Christianity, and [[Islam]] do not believe that individuals reincarnate, particular groups within these religions do refer to reincarnation; these groups include the mainstream historical and contemporary followers of [[Kabbalah]], the [[Catharism|Cathars]], [[Alawites]], the [[Druze]],<ref>Hitti, Philip K (2007) [1924]. ''[[iarchive:originsofdruzepe0000hitt|Origins of the Druze People and Religion, with Extracts from their Sacred Writings (New Edition)]]''. Columbia University Oriental Studies. '''28'''. London: Saqi. pp. 13–14. {{ISBN|0-86356-690-1}}</ref> and the [[Rosicrucians]].<ref name=":1">[[Max Heindel|Heindel, Max]] (1985) [1939, 1908] ''[[iarchive:rosicrucianchris0000hein|The Rosicrucian Christianity Lectures (Collected Works)]]'': [http://www.rosicrucian.com/rcl/rcleng01.htm#lecture1 The Riddle of Life and Death] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100629063357/http://www.rosicrucian.com/rcl/rcleng01.htm#lecture1 |date=29 June 2010 }}. Oceanside, California. 4th edition. {{ISBN|0-911274-84-7}}</ref> The historical relations between these sects and the beliefs about reincarnation that were characteristic of [[neoplatonism]], [[Orphism (religion)|Orphism]], [[Hermeticism]], [[Manicheanism]], and [[Gnosticism]] of the [[Roman era]] as well as the Indian religions have been the subject of scholarly research.<ref>An important recent work discussing the mutual influence of ancient Greek and Indian philosophy regarding these matters is ''[[The Shape of Ancient Thought]]'' by [[Thomas McEvilley]].</ref> [[Unity Church]] and its founder [[Charles Fillmore (Unity Church)|Charles Fillmore]] teach reincarnation.

Rosicrucians<ref name=":1" /> speak of a [[life review]] period occurring immediately after death and before entering the afterlife's [[Plane (esotericism)|planes of existence]] (before the [[silver cord]] is broken), followed by a [[Last Judgment#Esoteric Christian traditions|judgment]], more akin to a final review or end report over one's life.<ref>Max Heindel, [http://www.rosicrucian.com/zineen/death5.htm Death and Life in Purgatory] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060711223116/http://www.rosicrucian.com/zineen/death5.htm |date=11 July 2006 }}—[http://www.rosicrucian.com/zineen/death6.htm Life and Activity in Heaven] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060711223133/http://www.rosicrucian.com/zineen/death6.htm |date=11 July 2006 }}</ref>

===Heaven and Hell===
{{Main|Heaven|Hell}}

[[File:Georgin François, The 3 Roads to Eternity, 1825 Cornell CUL PJM 1040 01.jpg|thumb|Georgin François, ''The 3 Roads to Eternity'', 1825]]
[[Heaven]], the heavens, [[Seven Heavens]], [[pure land]]s, [[Tian]], [[Jannah]], [[Valhalla]], or [[the Summerland]], is a common [[Religious cosmology|religious, cosmological]], or [[transcendence (philosophy)|transcendent]] place where beings such as [[Deity|gods]], [[angel]]s, [[jinn]], [[saint]]s, or [[Veneration of the dead|venerated ancestors]] are said to originate, be [[throne|enthroned]], or live. According to the beliefs of some religions, heavenly beings can descend to earth or [[Incarnation|incarnate]], and earthly beings can ascend to heaven in the afterlife, or in exceptional cases, enter heaven alive.

Heaven is often described as a "higher place", the [[Sacred|holiest]] place, a [[paradise]], in contrast to hell or the [[underworld]] or the "low places", and [[Universal reconciliation|universally]] or conditionally accessible by earthly beings according to various standards of [[divinity]], [[good and evil|goodness]], [[piety]], [[faith]] or other [[virtue]]s or [[orthodoxy|right beliefs]] or the [[will of God]]. Some believe in the possibility of a heaven on Earth in a [[world to come]].

In [[Hinduism]], heaven is termed ''[[Svarga|Svarga loka]]''. There are seven positive regions and seven negative regions to which the soul can go after death.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Life After Death Revealed – What Really Happens in the Afterlife |language=en-GB |work=Spiritual Science Research Foundation |url=https://www.spiritualresearchfoundation.org/spiritual-research/afterlife/life-after-death/ |url-status=live |access-date=9 March 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612141042/https://www.spiritualresearchfoundation.org/spiritual-research/afterlife/life-after-death/ |archive-date=Jun 12, 2018}}</ref> After completing its stay in the respective region, the soul is subjected to [[Reincarnation|rebirth]] in different living forms according to its ''[[karma]]''. This cycle can be broken after a soul achieves ''[[Moksha]]'' or ''[[Nirvana]]''. Any place of existence, either of humans, souls or deities, outside the tangible world (heaven, hell, or other) is referred to as [[otherworld]].

[[Hell]], in many religious and [[folklore|folkloric]] traditions, is a place of [[torture|torment]] and [[punishment]] in the afterlife. Religions with a [[Philosophy of history#Philosophy of chronology|linear divine history]] often depict hell as an [[eternal damnation|eternal destination]],<!--(for example, see [[Christian views on hell]])--> while religions with a [[Reincarnation|cyclic history]] often depict a hell as an intermediary period between incarnations.<!--(for example, see Chinese [[Diyu]])--> Typically, these traditions locate hell in another dimension or under the Earth's surface and often include entrances to hell from the land of the living. Other afterlife destinations include [[purgatory]] and [[limbo]].

Traditions that do not conceive of the afterlife as a place of punishment or reward merely describe hell as an [[Bosom of Abraham|abode of the dead]], the grave, a neutral place (for example, [[Sheol]] or [[Hades]]) located under the surface of Earth.<ref name="EECO 2018">{{cite encyclopedia |author-last=Somov |author-first=Alexey |year=2018 |title=Afterlife |editor1-last=Hunter |editor1-first=David G. |editor2-last=van Geest |editor2-first=Paul J. J. |editor3-last=Lietaert Peerbolte |editor3-first=Bert Jan |encyclopedia=Brill Encyclopedia of Early Christianity Online |location=[[Leiden]] and [[Boston]] |publisher=[[Brill Publishers]] |doi=10.1163/2589-7993_EECO_SIM_00000067 |issn=2589-7993}}</ref>