Birth & Death

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Part-1 The Bondage
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The Bondage of Birth Death

• Ever since the dawn of time, man has been
  seeking to conquer deathhis greatest works, such
  as the pyramids, stand even today in mute witness
  to his attempts to attain life eternal.
  Paradoxically, life means that which
  lastslife on earth being anything but that
  does. It is said that even a speck of dust is
  seeking Moksha- liberation from the gyres of
  time-space-causation. Liberation is jivas very
  birthright. However, under the spell of Maya-
  illusion, jivas remain attached to Jada- the
  inert of this world.
• We live life here in a state of blissful
  cognitive dissonancetoo busy to even ponder
  why we are here. Death alone is, then, our true
  link with the beyond, and it is only when a near
  and dear one passes on that we pause to ponder
  the meaning of life. Yet, saints and seers
  constantly remind us that human birth is a gift,
  too priceless to be squandered away in mundane
  quest of good life, name and fame. And that
  attainment of life eternal is a real possibility
  for us allat least in these times.
• Death is a partial journey into the inner space
  of the Cosmos, which normally ends in return and
  rebirth into the outer world due to the necessity
  of having to settle the residue karmic imprints
  left behind during the previous births here.
  Human death can also be perceived as the least of
  the cosmic dissolutions Nitya Pralaya.
• During the cyclic process of death and birth,
  only the lowest 2.1/2 bodies (out of the 7) are
  brought into play. Death is the discarding of
  Dehatma- physical vest below Shiva-netra. It is
  reversion to the pristine upper mental and
  spiritual vest within the Sutratma- soul-string
  (presently strung at Ashta-dal-kanwal 8 in the
  astral). Since material attachments and desires
  acquired during earthly sojourn remain strong, in
  line with the principle that one goes where
  ones desires lay, a rebirth follows (hence, the
  Buddhist dictum be desireless). This is the
  bondage of Chaurasi- the Cycle of 8.4 mill.
  life-forms.
• The Tibetian Buddhist Tantrists speak of the 4
  bardos- transitions or gaps in-between during
  the life and death cycle as delineated in their
  book, 'Bardo Thodol'- Book of the Dead. The Bardo
  manuals are recited to the deceased in order to
  help the dying recognize that the blinding lights
  and the deitiesboth peaceful and wrathfulare
  but a projection of their own mind, so as be
  liberated hereof.

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The Tibetian Bardo Teachings

• The Zhitro teachings subsume the Bardo Thodol and
  mention Karma Lingpa, terma (hidden teachings)
  and Padmasambhava and list the Six Bardo The
  first bardo of This Life begins when we take
  birth and endures as long as we live. The second
  is the bardo of dreams. The third is the bardo of
  concentration or meditation. The fourth Bardo of
  Dying occurs at the moment of death. The fifth
  Bardo of Dharmata is known as the bardo of the
  luminosity of the true nature. The sixth Bardo of
  Existence is called the bardo of transmigration
  or karmic becoming.
• Kyenay bardo is the bardo of birth and life.
  This bardo commences from conception until the
  last breath, when the mindstream withdraws from
  the body.
• Milam bardo is the bardo of the dream state. The
  Milam Bardo is a subset of the first Bardo. Dream
  Yoga develops practices to integrate the dream
  state into Buddhist sadhana.
• Samten bardo is the bardo of meditation. This
  bardo is generally only experienced by
  meditators, though individuals may have
  spontaneous experience of it. Samten Bardo is a
  subset of the Shinay Bardo.
• Chikhai bardo is the bardo of the moment of
  death. This bardo is held to commence when the
  outer and inner signs presage that the onset of
  death is nigh, and continues through the
  dissolution or transmutation of
  the Mahabhuta until the external and internal
  breath has completed.
• Chönyi bardo is the bardo of the luminosity of
  the true nature which commences after the final
  'inner breath' (prana, vayu). It is within this
  Bardo that visions and auditory phenomena occur.
  In the Dzogchen teachings, these are known as the
  spontaneously manifesting Thödgal visions.
  Concomitant to these visions, there is a welling
  of profound peace and pristine awareness.
  Sentient beings who have not practiced during
  their lived experience and/or who do not
  recognize the clear light at the moment of death
  are usually deluded throughout the fifth bardo of
  luminosity.
• Sidpa bardo is the bardo of becoming or
  transmigration. This bardo endures until the
  inner-breath commences in the new transmigrating
  form determined by the "karmic seeds" within
  the storehouse consciousness.

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The Bardos- transformations during life and
death
if unrecognized, degenerates into peaceful and
wrathful visions.
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The Sciences of the Bonded Sutratma

• Fiat luxLet there be light. Genesis 1. Thus
  began the Biblical creation with a Big Bang
  from the astral Christ plane or astral 8
  petalled Ashta-dal kanwal chakra, the dark
  cataract, Void, Cave, Tunnel or the Womb
  of Shakti, where the deity is Kali, Mary or
  Isis. This light of creation is the Astral
  Light of night, Lucifer. This region of the
  Valley of the Shadow of Death Psalm 243 is
  essentially an Asurya- sunless region. This
  region contains the Holy Trinity
  FatherSonHoly Spirit, containing the 65 or
  10004 petalled lotuses, comprising the fourth
  Quarter (Q-IV) of the astral plane. These are
  also considered to be the Heaven (Swarga or
  Bahisht)Middle region (Pitri Lok or Ehraf)Hell
  (Naraka or Dozakh). The corresponding Hindu
  deities here are Indra-KarikeyaYamaVrittra-Gane
  sha.
• Occult It is the knowledge of the hidden or
  the paranormal, arcane or esoteric, the study of
  a deeper spiritual reality that extends beyond
  pure reason and the physical sciences. It also
  describes the teachings and practices of a number
  of magical organizations or orders such as
  Gnosticism, Hermeticism, Theosophy, Wicca,
  Thelema, Neo-Platonism, Kabbalah etc. Occult
  practices include magic, alchemy, ESP,
  astrology, spiritualism, divination etc.
  Electricity, magnetism, gravity, sound, light,
  heat, cohesion etc. are considered to be occult
  deitiesthe 7 Elohim or Rishi-Prajapatis or Rays
  of Sun. The Builders (Masons, Vishwakarma) or
  Maha-Chohans build the Viraat Creation after
  every Brahmas night. The Leepikas are Wise
  Recorders of Karma, and Devarajas or Lok Paals,
  the 10 Regents of Earth. Maharajas are Guardian
  Angels of the Karmic records (Tree of
  Knowledge) and Dwar- or Dik-Paals, the
  Protectors of the Cardinal Directions.
  Deva-ganas- demi-gods such as Sadhyas, Vasus,
  Adityas, Apsaras, Maruts, Vidyadharas, Kinnaras,
  Gandharvas- Gnomes, Kumbhandhas- Undines, Nagas-
  Sylphs, Yakshas- Salamanders, Sarpas- serpents,
  Suparnas- birds etc. Terrestrial gods such as
  Agni- fire, Soma- moon, Prithvi- earth. Asuras
  are anti-gods of the nether hells, who embody
  destructive energies of nature, but are yet
  essential for evolution.
• Paganism This is considered to express a
  pantheistic, polytheistic or animistic worldview.
  Paganism came to be equated with a sense of
  feminine worship, hedonism, representing those
  who are sensual, materialistic and self-indulgent
  religion. However, Vedic/Christian deities are
  identical to pagan deities.

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The Sciences of the Bonded Sutratma

• Astrology  This consists of pseudoscientific
  systems of divination based on the premise that
  there is a relationship between astronomical
  phenomena and events in the human world.
  Jyotisha is the traditional Hindu system of
  astrology based on Rashis zodiacal signs,
  Nak?hatras lunar mansions, Grahas planets,
  Dasa-s planetary periods, Gocharas transits,
  Bhavans houses, D?sh?is aspects etc., and is
  one of the Vedangas. Astrology is said to enable
  one to know the future, to know the auspicious
  and inauspicious times etc. It believes that by
  doing propitiation, the planetary influence can
  be modified, and the intensity of bad effects can
  be pacified and good results follow e.g.
  longevity increased, accidents avoided. It is
  believed that each soul is provided with a
  Prarabdha or fate karma, based upon which its
  body is built, prior to birth. A Janma-kundali or
  birth or natal chart of a person can be drawn up
  based on the time and location of birth, which
  can be used to predict ones fate as well as used
  as a guide to daily life. The chart shows the
  positions of the sun, moon, planets, and
  potentially other celestial objects, all referred
  to as the native's planets.
• Riddhi-Siddhis Riddhi and SiddhiShubha
  (Auspiciousness) and Labha (Profit)are
  considered to be the wives or sons of Lord
  Ganesha. Considered to be 6 in number, Riddhis
  are good fortunes related to prosperity,
  attainment, success, progress, and affluence.
  Siddhis are the 5, 8, 9 or 10 spiritual,
  paranormal, supernatural, or otherwise magical
  powers, abilities, and attainments that are the
  products of spiritual advancement
  through sadhanas such as meditation and yoga or
  by psychic or magical means. These powers include
  powers such as clairvoyance, levitation, bilocatio
  n, becoming as small as an atom, materialization,
  having access to memories from past lives.
• Vastu Shastra Another pseudoscience, this is a
  traditional Hindu system of architecture, which
  literally translates to science of
  architecture. These are texts found on the
  Indian subcontinent that describe principles of
  design, layout, measurements, ground preparation,
  space arrangement and spatial geometry. The
  designs are intended to integrate architecture
  with nature, the relative functions of various
  parts of the structure, and ancient beliefs
  utilizing geometric patterns (yantra), symmetry
  and directional alignments.

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The Sciences of the Bonded Sutratma

• Black Magic This is the malicious, left-hand
  counterpart of benevolent right-hand White
  Magic. Like its counterpart, White Magic, the
  origins of Black Magic can be traced to the
  primitive, ritualistic worship of spirits. Black
  Magic traditionally refers to the use
  of supernatural powers or magic for evil and
  selfish purposes. Unlike White Magic, which has
  parallels with primitive shamanistic efforts to
  achieve closeness with spiritual beings, the
  rituals that developed into modern Black Magic
  are designed to invoke those same spirits to
  produce beneficial outcomes for the practitioner.
  
• The Microcosm Microcosm refers to the limited
  region in the lowest pit of the entire Macrocosm,
  which is accessible to the present Kali-yugi
  human-being, under the bondage of Chaurasi- the
  cycle of 8.4 mill. Life-forms, due to the Law of
  Karma. This comprises not only the physical
  plane (demarcated by the first 6 chakras of the
  Yogisanal to the eyebrows), but also the lowest
  quarter (Q-IV) of the astral plane (the region of
  the 7th chakra) represented by the human
  forehead and brain. The latter comprises the
  Valley of the Shadow of Death, where a jiva
  goes post-death.
• Astral Q-IV The knowledge pertaining to this
  region is provided as default, free education
  to most of the humankind. Most religions consider
  this to be all that there is. The deity atop
  this regionKali, Mary or Isis, the virgin, is
  hence, mistakenly, taken to be our Mother, and to
  be eternity itself. This is the Garden of
  Eden, where the human prototypeAdam (or Manu)
  was created by the gods, along with the Earth,
  as yet astral entities. Progressively, there is a
  fall, ending with the present gross physical.
• Concluding Big Bang is the creation of the
  Jada- inert powers and matter at astral
  Ashta-dal-kanwal or Mahar Lok, from which the
  lower triple regions (Suvah, Bhuvah Bhu or
  Heavens, Earth Underworld) are created. The
  spark of Bijli or Buraaq is the Pranic lightning
  of Indra or Zeus, which provides energy to power
  these worlds. The various Yogas (e.g. Kundalini,
  Kriya, or Raja Yogas), beliefs and practices are
  all based on these Shaktis or inert powers (Jada
  ka Chetan), abjured in Surat-Shabd Yoga, being
  obstacles to higher spirituality, in which,
  during spiritual initiation, the very connection
  of the jiva with this region (incl. Karmic
  records of Chitragupta- Yamas accountant) is
  snapped.

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Part-2 Near-Death Out-of-Body Experiences
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What Happens When You Die?

• Reliving the life During this time when you are
  in your afterlife, you relive all your best and
  worst moments. People have stated that they have
  seen their past lives flash all before their eyes
  in near death or even post death experiences.
  They claimed to see their activities and their
  memories play out like a video slideshow before
  their eyes.
• The Light People always report seeing a light
  when they die. The light appears off in the
  distance, and you will slowly be pulled towards
  it, almost as if you are being pulled by a
  magnet. The light is always accompanied by a
  sense of love and peace. This is your transition
  phase back to your home in the spirit world.
• You Can See Your Body Many people have this
  "out of body experience" and see their lifeless
  body beneath them when they are technically dead.
  That means they are an incorporeal spirit
  floating above their body. They can see
  everything that is going on in the room and who
  is in it. Any attempt to restore connectivity
  between the consciousness and physical body
  fails, leaving the person frantic for several
  moments.
• Dead relatives During your afterlife, you get
  to see all your dead relatives in a large number.
  Many people who have died and then came back to
  life have claimed that they have seen their dead
  relatives around them. Perceptibly, they have
  seen them greeting each other and enjoying a
  large party during their afterlife.
• Hear and see everyone You can see and hear
  everyone. A number of people have narrated about
  their ability to see a lot of people in their
  room with them where they were lying unconscious.
  Their attempt to interact with them went in vain
  as their body is lifeless but their consciousness
  or their spirit remains awake throughout the
  session.

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What Happens When You Die?

• Calmness Most of the dead people that have been
  brought back to life after death stated that they
  felt an overpowering sense of peace and calmness
  when they were unconscious. It is so irresistible
  and loving that the conscious soul doesnt know
  how to state in simple words about the calming
  experience they had. According to them, it is a
  sense of tranquility that none could ever
  experience before dying.
• Angels An ample of people has asserted that
  they have seen at least one Angel or Holy Spirit
  looking at them. They seemed to take care of them
  during their end time. They were supposed to help
  them to come out of their pain in deaths grasp.
  Some even say that they are being succored by the
  spirit through the afterlife before they were
  sent back to their original body.
• You still feel like yourself Even though you
  dont have your body anymore, you still feel like
  an individual. Actually, you feel more like
  yourself than you did when you were alive.
  Theres so much influence from others while
  youre on earth that in a way you dont get to be
  you.
• Life review People report seeing their entire
  life as a sort of movie film in front of their
  eyes or on the pages of a book. You may have to
  see some things that make you feel ashamed and
  like you failed, but this is not a time of
  judgment. This is a time of review, and
  discussion about what needs to be improved upon
  as a soul. After you see your whole life, you may
  come to an agreement with your guides to come
  back to Earth to work on things after a certain
  period of time in the spirit world.
• On a lighter side! During this life, we may
  never truly know what happens once we pass away.
  Perhaps there will be a bright light and many
  loved ones... or maybe we will just feel happy,
  loved and warm. But one thing is certain... if a
  person passed away and felt like they were in
  heaven, only to be expelled and brought back?
  Well, that would feel like hell.

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Near-Death Experience (NDE)

• No two near-death experiences are identical, but
  within a group of experiences a pattern becomes
  evident. The pattern includes one or more of
  these things
• Feeling that the "self" has left the body and is
  hovering overhead The person may later be able
  to describe who was where and what happened,
  sometimes in detail.
• Moving through a dark space or tunnel
  Experiencing intensely powerful emotions, ranging
  from bliss to terror.
• Encountering a light This light is usually
  described as golden or white, and as being
  magnetic and loving occasionally it is perceived
  as a reflection of the fires of hell.
• Receiving some variant of the message, "It is
  not yet your time Meeting others may be
  deceased loved ones, recognized from life or not
  sacred beings unidentified entities and/or
  Beings of Light sometimes symbols from ones
  own or other religious traditions.
• A life-review Seeing and re-experiencing major
  and trivial events of ones life, sometimes from
  the perspective of the other people involved, and
  coming to some conclusion about the adequacy of
  that life and what changes are needed. Having a
  sense of understanding everything, of knowing how
  the universe works.
• Reaching a boundary A cliff, fence, water, some
  kind of barrier that may not be crossed if one is
  to return to life. In some cases, entering a city
  or library. Rarely, receiving previously unknown
  information about ones lifei.e. adoption or
  hidden parentage, deceased siblings.
• Decision to return This may be voluntary or
  involuntary. If voluntary, usually associated
  with unfinished responsibilities. Returning to
  the body. Most near-death experiences are
  pleasant, but others are deeply frightening.

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Experiences Between Lives

• This outline of the experience between lives is
  based on extensive research of those who have NDE
  or OOB experiences, under hypnotic states under
  which, clients are known to never lie and only to
  describe what they are actually seeing.
  Regardless of whatever religious or cultural
  background they come from, clients have reported
  such similar experiences.
• 1. Death and departure Most clients recall
  looking down at their body and seeing people
  mourning over their death. Some people reported
  staying around their loved ones until after their
  funeral. During this time clients could feel a
  pull towards a light, and described a tunnel of
  sorts to get there.
• 2. Gateway to the spirit world Clients report
  moving through the tunnel and reaching the light
  at the end. Location of the tunnel varies, as
  some say it appears right above their bodies, and
  others say they have to travel above the Earth to
  reach it. After reaching the end of the tunnel,
  they almost always describe in varying ways
  beautiful visions, music and scenery.
• 3. Homecoming Here we are greeted by souls who
  are close to us. They appear as luminous beings
  who sometimes project faces of people who are
  still alive in a physicality. The soul begins
  to remember more about the afterlife and also
  their previous lives, feeling more at ease with
  the process.
• 4. Orientation During the orientation stage, a
  soul will shed any regret/doubt/sadness/traumatic
  memories from its previous life by going through
  what clients describe as a shower of light.
  This renews the souls vibrancy and restores it
  to its original vibration.
• 5. Transition Here we see a mega-hub of souls at
  the same stage, all moving through beautiful
  tunnels of light to their destination. This
  moment is exciting because there is no darkness,
  just pure light, and we are also on our way to
  meet up with our soul family. These are souls
  that we keep reincarnating with over and over
  again, playing various roles with each other such
  as partners, brothers/sisters, parents, children,
  etc.

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Experiences Between Lives
6. Placement This stage is almost like a school
where larger groups of soul families (up to
thousands) who incarnate around each other in
cycles learn about their previous experiences.
Here clients report projecting into specific
scenes from their previous life and into other
peoples minds to gain a full understanding of
the larger picture. Here we feel what others felt
to learn how we hurt people in certain
situations. 7. Life selection We move to a
large sphere of light where we then choose our
next life path and are able to see multiple paths
and are able to temporarily project into these
lives to feel which one would be most
appropriate. We also have the ability to fast
forward through the timelines to see critical
events that will happen. Some souls will choose
greater challenges to experience such as a
disability or premature death. 8. Choosing a new
body This process is a part of the previous life
selection stage, but has a separate
categorization because it focuses on the physical
appearance that we will possess in the next life.
This choice vastly affects our experience, so it
usually takes much thought as to what it will be.
If you were obese in one life, chances are you
will choose to be skinny the next, etc. 9.
Preparation and embarkation After choosing our
life path, next we meet up with our soul group,
the people who will play roles in the next life,
to do extensive planning and to create
synchronicities and cues that will guide us
throughout our life. After the synchronicities
are decided, we once again meet with a counsel to
go over our goals and plans for the next life.
10. Rebirth Clients report travelling back to
Earth through the same tunnel they left in,
entering the mothers womb. Until the age of 5,
the soul is able to leave the babys body to
travel and meet up with other souls if it wishes,
but will snap back to the body if the baby is in
any turmoil. During the first few years the soul
will work to integrate its energy with the brain.
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Part-3 The Process of Death
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The Grief Cycle

• In refusing to face death, we close off a part
  of life. In Western thinking, the answer to the
  problem of death is to try to postpone its
  arrival as long as possible, whereas, in ancient
  and non-western cultures, there is the
  recognition of the utmost importance of dying as
  an integral aspect of life. In these cultures,
  the theme of death has had a deep influence on
  religion, ritual, life, mythology and philosophy.
  Dying is sometimes seen as a step up in the
  spiritual hierarchy, a promotion into the world
  of revered ancestors, powerful spirits or as an
  upward transition from the complicated earthly
  life fraught with suffering and problems.
• Without a coping mechanism a persons life could
  spin out of control and come to a disastrous end.
  The coping mechanism is called the Grief Cycle.
  It is normally accepted that there are 5 stages
  that individuals experience as they walk through
  their personal tragedies.
• 1. Denial No way! It is not cancer, I am just
  losing weight. A clear sign of denial is when a
  grieving person continues to have conversations
  with a loved one that has died. Nothing is thrown
  out and the house is kept in the same condition
  as if there has been no death.
• 2. Anger Once the denial begins to wear off then
  irrational anger begins to settle in. It could be
  anger towards loved ones, strangers, the one who
  is dying, and it could even be against objects.
  The expression is simply a way to cope through
  this stage of irrational anger.
• 3. Bargaining Many times this may include trying
  to make a deal with God. If you get me through
  this I will . Or it may be take me and not my
  child.
• 4. Depression The expression of depression can
  have many different faces. It could range from,
  Why didnt I spend more time with . It could
  include, How will I ever afford a nice funeral?
  to What am I going to do now that I am alone?
• 5. Acceptance Not everyone arrives at this
  stage. It is when the reality of the loss is
  accepted and ones sanity and daily life is not
  lost. Changed but not a total loss.

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The Process of Death

• The painful experience of discarding the
  physical body at death has been described in
  Shrimad Bhagwad as being akin to being bitten
  simultaneously by a lakh of scorpions, which is
  why the dictum that we should learn to die even
  while living. It is a paradox of Spirituality
  that the so-called life is death and death
  lifefor one finds life eternal only by
  simulating death through meditation.
• Akaal Mrityu- untimely death occurs during
  certain sudden death by accidents, wars, murders,
  suicides etc. due to some bad karma in previous
  lives, when the Pranas- vital energies still
  remain. The soul remains caged in the Etheric
  Double body and with its mental apparatus
  in-tact, undergoes torments until it overcomes
  its attachments to the physical world. Since life
  was given on the basis of a fixed number of
  breaths, the being has yet to exhaust remaining
  Pranas. Such beings are at times take an
  immediate rebirth from their previous Etheric
  body itself. Children dying young do not have a
  purgatorial existence and are often reborn with
  their old mind in-tact and can thus retain
  previous birth memories.
• But for one accustomed to 'dying before death'
  i.e. rising above body-consciousness, dying is a
  routine affair. The disciples of a perfect Master
  die invariably a peaceful death, shorn of earthly
  worries and leave with good cheer. Their string
  of Nirat- the invisible string controlling the
  soul has been taken over by the Satguru from
  Yamaraj- Angel of Death during the spiritual
  initiation instead of Yama-doots- Yamas
  assistants, they are received at death by the
  Satguru himself in his radiant form. Death
  carries a sting no longer, but is now an Urs-
  divine wedding celebration of soul with Over-soul
  in the form of the perfect Master or Murshid. The
  tables have been turned, at long last, upon the
  last enemydeath!
• The Satguru takes the initiate to Sahasrara 14
  lotus in the astral plane, or beyond depending on
  his spiritual advancement. He himself decides his
  fate, giving him further human birth in case
  attachments remain or taking him onward toward
  Sach Khand in stages in his own company, while
  completing the requisite meditations in the
  inner planes. The middle path of Sushumna is
  reserved for the journey. Those who meditate
  regularly are aware of the day and time of their
  impending departure well in advance and are well
  practiced in Kundalini release and voluntarily
  leaving body-consciousness.

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The Exiting of Pranas

• The Tanmatras or subtle elements form the base
  for the moving Pranas or vital forces and the
  sense-organs. They remain quite inoperative for
  accompanying the departing soul at the time of
  death. Prana is manifestation of Prakritis.
  Subtle Prana is vital force gross Prana or Vayu-
  wind is breath. Prana moves the Indriyas or
  senses. It generates thoughts, moves the body and
  causes locomotion. It digests the food,
  circulates the blood, excretes urine and faeces,
  causes respiration. It is thru Prana one sees,
  hears, feels, tastes and thinks. The sum total of
  all Pranas is Hiranyagarbha or Lord Brahma.
• In a normal persons death, the Pranas or vital
  forces are drawn upwards from the feet and hands,
  and simultaneously, the spiritual currents also
  withdraw towards the heart, then throat and then
  to the Third eye, from where the soul withdraws
  from the body. The breathing from the mouth
  begins as the death process begins to proceed. He
  becomes a cadaver when the eyes turn upwards and
  then come down, and the Pranas exit in the form
  of breath.
• At the time of death, breathing becomes
  difficult while the Prana departs, and the jiva
  goes out making creaking noises as it is
  afflicted by pain as the vital parts are being
  slashed. Helpless state of mind and loss of
  memory is caused due to this excruciating pain.
  Garuda and Atma Puranas say, the pangs of death
  are tantamount to being stung by 72,000
  scorpions.
• The departure of the soul is immediately
  followed by the departure of the Prana. When a
  man is about to die, the various organs withdraw
  themselves into their original sources, and no
  longer help the functioning of the organs. Every
  organ becomes united with the subtle body
  (Etheric Double). He loses his understanding,
  memory and waking consciousness. The external
  world becomes void for him.
• Udana Vayu draws out the subtle body from the
  gross body at the time of death. It is the
  vehicle of transport for all Pranas. Its abode is
  the throat and it helps deglutition or swallowing
  of food. When the subtle body rises up, the
  self-luminous Atman also seems to go with it.
  When the jiva departs, the chief Prana departs
  after him, and when the Prana thus departs, all
  the other Pranas depart after it. They cannot
  stay without the basis or substratum or support
  of the elements.

24
The Journey beyond Death

• The soul which passes out of the body after
  death is termed Preta, one that is bound on its
  onward march to the Beyond. The soul in its
  disembodied form hovers about its original and
  familiar places for ten days. It is in the form
  of a ghost during these ten days. On the eleventh
  day, it starts on its journey to the judgement
  seat of Lord Yama, the God of death which takes
  one full year from the time of death to reach.
  The path is beset with obstacles, distress and
  difficulties. The wicked person suffers more.
• The passage of the self from the body varies
  according to the good actions done by the jiva
  and the knowledge gained by him. If he has a good
  store of virtuous deeds and knowledge that would
  take him to the Sun, the self leaves the body
  through the eye. It leaves through the head if he
  is entitled to the world of Hiranya-garbha. It
  leaves through other passages according to its
  past work and knowledge.
• Chitragupta, the recorder of Karmas, the
  Accountant-General in the Kingdom of Lord Yama,
  informs the soul of his good and bad actions
  during his earthly life after the end of one full
  year. The soul leaves off its Pretatva or the
  garb of a traveller and is raised to the status
  of a Pitri or Ancestor.
• Desire is the root-cause of transmigration. A
  person attains whatever he thinks of at the
  moment of death. Everybody has at the moment a
  consciousness which consists of impressions in
  the form of particular modification of the mind
  and goes to the body related to that
  consciousness. Virtuous persons doing Simran
  (Japa) and meditation will remember Gods Name at
  death-point by sheer force of habit.
• The phenomenon of Near-Death Experience (NDE) is
  only a partial 'death' experience, since the NDEr
  scarcely crosses the threshold of the physical
  plane and enters the astral plane (as does a
  truly dead person, whose 'Silver Cord' connecting
  the first two bodies has snapped fully), but is
  provided a mere glimpse of the inner worlds.
  NDErs vividly describe experience of Pranamayi
  kosha, the ghost body in which the NDEr can see
  his gross body from above. Even this invisible
  physical body needs to die (i.e. the second
  death needs to occur) in order for the soul to
  proceed to full death at Shiva-netra. Last moment
  injections, shocks or drugs, as also deep worldly
  attachments can prevent an early release from
  this state of limbowhich is why it is common to
  light a lamp, so as to guide the soul to the
  light beyond.

25
It is only those exiting through the 10th door,
opened by the grace of a perfect Master, who are
liberated or at worst, get another human rebirth.
The rest DO NOT. Depending on which orifice
jiva leaves by, the class of rebirth khani is
determined for instance, Guda door takes one
to Narak Urinary to fish khani Eyes to birds
khani Ears to bhoot khani.
26
The Pathways after Death

• There are two paths by which the jivas go
  Devayana and Pitriyanaabove and below astral
  Ashta-dal-kanwal chakra
• -- The Path of Light (Devayana) The Uttara
  Marga- Northern path is the path by which the
  Yogins go to Brahman. This path leads to
  salvation in Brahmaa Loka (Satyam). Having
  reached the path of the gods he comes to the
  world of Agni, to the world of Vayu, to the world
  of Varuna, to the world of Indra, to the world of
  Prajapati, to the world of Brahman. They go to
  light, from light to day, from day to the waxing
  half of the moon, from the waxing half of the
  moon to the six months when the Sun goes to the
  North, from those six months to the year, from
  the year to the Aditya. When the person goes away
  from this world he comes to Vayu. Then Vayu makes
  room for him like the hole of a wheel and through
  it he mounts higher till he comes to Aditya. From
  the moon to the lightning there is a person, not
  a man (Amanava Purusha), who leads him to
  Brahman. The bright path is the path, to the
  Devas, Devayana, of the devotees the bright path
  is open to the devotees.
• -- The Path of Darkness (Pitriyana) The path of
  ancestors leads to rebirth. Those who do
  sacrifices to gods and other charitable works
  with expectation of fruits go to the Chandra Loka
  through this path and come back to this world
  when their fruits of Karmas are exhausted. There
  are smoke and dark-coloured objects throughout
  the course. There is no illumination when one
  passes along this path. It is reached by Avidya
  or ignorance. Hence it is called the path of
  darkness or smoke. The dark path is to the Pitris
  or forefathersPitriyana or the Karmins who do
  sacrifices or charitable acts with expectation of
  fruits.
• The Yogi who knows that the path of Devayana or
  the path of light leads to Moksha (Karma Mukti)
  and the path of darkness to Samsara or the world
  of births and deaths, is no longer deluded. The
  bright path is open to the devotees and the dark
  path to the Karmins. Samsara is eternal and so
  the paths also are eternal. The Pranas of
  Jivana-muktas who have attained knowledge of the
  Self do not depart. They are absorbed in Brahman.
  The Jivana-muktas who attain Kaivalya-Moksha or
  immediate salvation have no place to go to or
  return from. They become one with the
  All-pervading Brahman.

27
The Valley of the Shadow of Death
The brain, though a physical entity, essentially
represents the unseen lowest quarter of the
astral region above the physical, where jivas go
in-between livesonly to return once again. This
is the pyramid shaped (Mt. Meru) sunless region
of bondage, where the entities taking birth in
the physical plane under Chaurasi- cycle of 8.4
mill. life-forms during Kali-yuga, are governed
from birth to death, as well that of the
Unconscious mind or Antah-karan- inner apparatus.
The Trinity here contains mental
heavenin-betweenhell regions, while the
Turiya or the fourth region (Ashta-dal-kanwal,
Garden of Eden, Christ plane) beyond is
considered (falsely) to be Eternity itself, and
its deityKali, Durga, Mary or Isis (falsely)
taken to be the mother of jivas. Those reaching
here through various Kundalini Kriyas at best
achieve Riddhi-Siddhis- supernatural powers and a
temporary respite from rebirth lasting merely
until the end of the current Age.
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29
The Pathways after Death

• Those who perform good Karmas become serviceable
  companions to the gods. They enjoy themselves in
  the Chandra Loka (Swarga) and return to the earth
  at the end of their store of merit. The souls
  that descend from heaven have a remnant of Karma
  which determines their birth. The souls return to
  the earth by the force of some un-enjoyed
  remnants of Karma.
• Hells are places of torture for the evil-doers.
  The temporary abodes are Raurava, Maharaurava,
  Vahni, Vaitarani and Kumbhika. The two eternal
  hells are Tamisra (darkness) and Andha-tamisra
  (blinding darkness). Yama is the chief ruler in
  those seven hells also and Chitragupta the
  superintendent. The sinners go to Naraka Loka or
  the world of punishment and after having
  experienced the results of their evil deeds, come
  down to the earth. Those who do not go by means
  of Vidya along the path of Devayana to Brahmaa
  Loka or by means of Karma along the path of
  Pitriyana to Chandra Loka are born often in low
  bodies and die often. They become those small
  creatures, flies, worms, etc.
• Jivas without a Satguru go alone and are
  entrusted to Kaal and Yama. They are judged
  without prejudice according to their Karmas. They
  are sent to heavens or hells accordingly for a
  fixed period of time to settle these. The jivas
  exiting the hells enter the life-forms of
  vegetation, then crawler-creepers, then birds,
  then beasts and finally human-beings.
• Jivas having a Satguru who have not put in
  sufficient effort in meditation are received by
  the Satguru, leaving aside attachment of the
  world. Their Karmas are settled by the Satguru
  Himself and are given another birth, not below
  the human life-form, if necessary. Those
  altogether without attachment are not reborn. The
  seed of Naam never goes unfructified.
• Jivas of the Saints, who have sincerely followed
  their teachings, but are yet to be perfected,
  know the time of their departure in advance and
  leave the body like a worn-out garment. They
  continue their progress in the inner planes.
• The perfected beings directly return to the Lord
  joyously.

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31
Part-4 Heavens Hells
32
Heavens Hells

• The astral world is the world of spirits of
  disembodied soulssouls having cast off the
  physical body and yet enfolded in the subtle and
  mental coverings. It is called Pitri Lok, the
  place of the manes of the souls of the departed
  ancestors. Here the souls are imprisoned in the
  7-shelled encasement of the astral world, drawing
  subtle material from each of the sub-planes
  existing therein. Here they work out the causes
  which they set going on the earth-plane, by
  undergoing certain purificatory processes so as
  to make them worthy of the Land of the Shining
  Ones after the dross is burnt off.
• Kama Lok is a lower sub-plane in the astral
  world. It is a place of desires and is said to
  contain seven sub-divisions in it, each peopled
  by persons of varying natures and temperaments.
  Life in Kama Lok is said to be more active, forms
  more plastic and the spirit-matter more highly
  charged and more subtle, and intangible and
  imperceptible though transparent or translucent.
  The thought-forms here appear and disappear with
  kaleidoscopic rapidity because of the great
  velocity of the vibrations generated by
  sensations, feelings and emotions.
• Deva Lok is the abode of the Devas or the
  shining onespeople highly enlightened in their
  time and greatly advanced in their researches, in
  the mental world. Here are located the Swargas
  and Vaikunths of the Hindus, the Sukh-vati of the
  Buddhists the heavens of the Zoroastrians and
  Christians, the Arsha, of the less materialised
  Muslims and the Supernal Paradises or
  Pleasure-grounds of the later Jews. Here lies the
  Garden of Eden from where man was expelled and
  excluded by God for his first disobedience of His
  commandments.
• Everything thought of, every aspiration worked,
  frustrated, struggles and defeats, sorrows and
  errors during life on earth now find fruition in
  one of the 7 sub-planes or heavens in the Land
  of Midnight Sun where self-consciousness
  awakening, makes one fully conscious of his
  non-self surroundings. The past, the present and
  the future now present to him an integrated view
  of life, like an open book, with nothing to hide
  and withhold. Here he develops for himself an
  all-seeing eye and becomes a perfect seer so far
  as his individuality is concerned, in the true
  sense of the word.

33
The Hells (Dr. Annie Besant)

• The scum of the society, the vilest of the vile,
  the murderers and marauders ruffians and
  profligates and persons with bestial tastes and
  brutish appetites who, while living on earth,
  shaped for themselves beastial astral bodies, now
  appear, after death, in savage forms in their
  natural likenesses and native hideousnesses, in
  the lowest strata of the infernal region, roaming
  about, roaring, raving and raging, fiercely and
  furiously, Pret-like wandering in search of means
  for the gratification of their insatiate desires.
  
• To the next sub-plane go such souls as quit
  their bodies with some deep anxiety weighing
  heavily on them or such who had implacable
  appetites or desires for self-enjoyment and
  gratification.
• Then there are two sub-planes for those who are
  educated and thoughtful people chiefly occupied
  with worldly affairs during their lifetime on
  earth. Their attention is directed more onwards
  than backwards because they belong to the
  progressive types.
• From the fifth sub-plane onwards the environ
  changes considerably, becoming astral in the true
  sense of the word i.e., truly starry, studded as
  it is with stars, and the surroundings are
  cheerfully inspiring. These three sub-planes are
  euphemistically termed heavensheavens of a lower
  type, sometime spoken of, as by the later Jews,
  as infernal heavens, being situated in the
  infernal world as distinguished from supernal
  heavens.
• The religious and the philosophic busy-bodies
  find their way to the materialised heavens in the
  fifth region which they desired and coveted while
  on earth like the Happy Hunting Grounds, the
  Valhalla (the final resting place of the
  illustrious dead and theheroes slain in
  battles), the joy-filled Bahisht or paradise of
  the Muslims, the golden Jewelled-Gated New
  Jerusalem or the Lyceum-filled Heaven.
• The souls of the more advanced type like artists
  find a place in the sixth sub-division. The
  seventh or the highest sub-division is entirely
  for the materialistically-oriented intellectuals
  like politicians and administrators and men of
  science who were pronouncedly materialistic on
  earth and wedded to the ways of the world in
  acquiring knowledge.

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35
Heavens (Dr. Annie Besant)

• In the heaven-world, the lowest part is assigned
  to the least developed souls with sincere and
  unselfish love for their families and friends, an
  admiration for nobler, purer and better persons
  than themselves. The measure of their meed is
  accordingly narrow and shallow, the cup of their
  receptivity being small but still bubbling over
  to the brim with joy, purity and harmony and
  they are reborn after a while on this plane with
  improved powers and faculties.
• Next, come in men and women of religious faith
  with hearts and minds turned towards Godthe
  personal God of their own choice, with any name
  and any form they had faith in, and to them the
  Nameless and the Formless appears in the said
  likeness in which they lovingly worshipped Him,
  overwhelming them with devotional ecstasy
  according to their mental and emotional capacity.
  The Divine veils Himself in the form familiar to
  His devotee.
• To the third plane, come devoted and earnest
  souls who see and serve God in man and worship
  Him in His manifested creation. At this place
  they are perfected into great philanthropists of
  times yet unborn, and endowed with a rich power
  of unselfish love for mankind.
• The souls of Master-minds in fine arts, like
  music, sculpture and painting the researchers
  and discoverers of the laws of nature eager and
  reverent students delving into the depths of
  knowledge, get an opportunity in the 4th
  sub-plane for developing into perfect Teachers of
  mankind in the ages to come and when they do
  come, they serve as torch-bearers and leave their
  footprints on the sands of time.
• Next, there are three lofty regions of formless
  heavens. A large number of souls simply reach the
  lowest reaches, have but a brief stay, and a
  flash of insight, according to their sowing and
  then they come back to the earth-plane with a dip
  into the great unknown. But souls with deep
  thinking and noble living correctly and
  immediately perceive truths, see the fundamental
  causes and the under lying unities and learn of
  the changeless working of the divine law in all
  harmony in the midst of the most incongruous
  effects as appear to untrained eyeand where,
  though all things differ, all agree.

36
Heavens (contd.)

• More advanced souls with memory perfect and
  unbroken, find their way to the sixth sub-plane
  and after garnering the riches of the divine mind
  (Brahmand), return as great pioneers of mankind
  to justify the ways of God to man and to glorify
  God. The mighty dead of ages gone by here get a
  taste of the glorious living, seeing and
  witnessing as they do, the working of the Will of
  Brahman in its fullness with no link missing in
  the chain of causation.
• In the loftiest sub-plane come the souls of the
  Masters of Brahma Vidya and their initiates
  (Brahmacharis) for none but an initiate can find
  the strait gate and the narrow path that
  leadeth unto life and so the chosen few enter
  into the land and life of Brahman, They enjoy
  their self-consciousness to the highest point but
  are not yet endowed with cosmic consciousness.
• Death is only a change that gives the soul a
  partial liberation, releasing him from the
  heaviest of his chains. It is but a birth into a
  wider lifea return after brief exile on earth to
  the souls true Home (Home of the universal
  mind), passing from a prison into the freedom of
  the upper air. Death is the greatest of earths
  illusions there is no death, but only changes in
  life conditions. Life is continuous, unbroken,
  unbreakable unborn eternal, ancient, constant,
  it perishes not with the perishing of the bodies
  that clothe it.
• The run of mankind after death finds no rest in
  the three worlds the physical, the astral and
  the mental. The souls freed from the physical
  vesture are carried on, up and down, in the giant
  Brahmanic wheel of life by the momentum of their
  own thoughts, words and deeds. It is all a play
  of the individual mind with its vast field of
  ramifications spreading out from the lowest, the
  physical, to the mental worlds wherein one builds
  his own tabernacles in the hereafter, for a
  temporary stay, long or short, according to ones
  needs for learning the lessons of Brahman as he
  advances on the path towards Perfection, and each
  soul gathers as rich a harvest as he can before
  exhausting the causes set in motion through the
  external stimuli from powers that be in his
  surroundings in the various planes in the three
  worlds thus described.

37
Part-5 The Rebirth Process
38
4.
2.
3.
1.
7.
5.

1. Sperm in the Fallopian Tube
2. Will they have a date?
3. Two sperms are contacting with the egg cell.
4. A sperm gets to the egg.
5. The egg gets fertilized and a new life begins.
6. 8 days The human embryo is attached to a wall of
   the uterus.
7. The brain starts to develop in the human embryo.
8. 24 days No skeleton yet. only a heart that
   starts beating on the 18th day.
9. At 4 weeks.
10. 5 weeks The face with holes for eyes, nostrils
    and mouth.

6.
10.
9.
8.
How life is created inside womb
39
13.
14.
12.
11.
11. 40 days Embryonic cells from the placenta.
12. 8 weeks Rapidly-growing embryo is well
protected in the foetal sac. 13. 10 weeks The
eyelids are semi-shut. 14. 16 weeks Foetus uses
hands to explore own body and surroundings. 15.
A network of blood vessels is visible . 16. 18
weeks Foetus can now perceive sounds from the
outside world. 17. 24 weeks Lungs are developing
"branches" of the respiratory tree. 18. 26
weeks Eyes start to open. With increased brain
activity, will respond to noises. 19. 6 months
Getting ready to leave the uterus, turns upside
down. 20. 26 weeks will see the world in 4
weeks.
15.
17.
16.
18.
19.
20.
How life is created inside womb
40

• HUMAN BIRTH 
• Mrityu kanwal Astral Shad-dal chakra-
  6-petalled lotus comprises the Six Powers
• Janma tUe Combines the male-female
  (sperm-egg) elements.
• Asti vfLr Makes the various bfUnzk sensory
  organs.
• Parinam ifj.kke Makes a thin film around the
  embryo.
• Vriddhi of¼ Enhances the embryo by wind or
  energy.
• Ksheena kh.k Divides the body into its
  various parts.
• Mritu eRq Ejects the infant from the womb
  at the time of birth.
• Antah-karan Astral Chatur-dal chakra-
  4-petalled lotus comprises the Four-fold Mind
• Manas eul Cognition
• Chitta fpÙk Feelings
• Buddhi cqf¼ Intellect
• Ahankar vgadkj Ego
• The human body comprises of 5 Tattwas (Earth,
  Water, Fire, Air Ether), 3 Gunas (Sato, Rajo
  Tamo) Maya. The soul comes to reside after
  about 5 months 10 days of conception in it at the
  10th Door of the Physical plane or Third or
  Single eye between and behind the eyebrows, where
  the soul is knotted-up with Tattwas Gunas.
• The stream of Spirit remains in 2-petalled Ajna
  chakra during tkxr Wakefulness state. During
  LoIu Dream state, it descends to the
  16-petalled Kantha or throat chakra, and during
  lq"kqfIr Deep-sleep state, to the 12-petalled
  Hridya or heart chakra. It ascends to Sahasrara
  or Jyoti in the Subtle plane during meditation,
  known as rqjh Turiya- fourth state. When it
  reaches Trikuti in the Causal plane, it is known
  as rqjhkrhr state beyond Turiya.

41
Reincarnation

• The Sukshma sharira or subtle body within the
  physical body does not perish when the physical
  body perishes. It moves to heaven to enjoy the
  fruits of its good actions done here. It perishes
  only when the soul attains the final
  emancipation. The Samskaras- impressions,
  Vasanas- tendencies/desires are carried in the
  subtle body. Therefore, Samsara- phenomenal
  existence is without beginning and an end. There
  is no Samsara for a Jivan-mukta- liberated sage,
  who is resting in his own Sat-Chit-Ananda
  Swarupa.
• After death this physical body composed of 5
  elements is cast off like a slough or the coil of
  a snake. The Linga Sharira or inner astral body,
  which consists of 19 Tattwas, viz., 5 Karma
  Indriyas, 5 Jnana Indriyas, 5 Pranas, and
  Antah-karan (Manas, Buddhi, Chitta and Ahankara)
  goes to heaven, comes back to the physical plane,
  puts on another physical body and reincarnates.
  Linga sharira that contains the impressions of
  all past Karmas. This body remains till one gets
  knowledge and realization of the Self, and
  consequent emancipation. Then, it disintegrates
  and the components get involved in the ocean of
  Tanmatras.
• When the jiva along with Pranas, the mind and
  the senses leaves his former body, he obtains a
  new body. He takes with himself Avidya-
  nescience, virtues and vicious actions and the
  impressions left by his previous births. The soul
  goes from the body accompanied by the mind,
  Prana, senses, and Sukshma bhutas or subtle
  elements, which are the seeds of the new body.
  The jiva gets his future birth according to his
  past work, knowledge and so forth. He goes from
  one body to another, only for the unfoldment of
  the vital force. It is by this vital force, that
  he fulfils his object viz., the enjoyment of the
  fruits of his work.
• From the first moment at our birth until the
  last breath at death, as are for all things
  material on earth, there are six changes
  represented by the 6 petalled astral lotus
  (Water element, The Water of Life) Janma-
  birth, Vriddhi- growth, Asti- maintenance,
  Kshaya- disease, Jara- old age and Mrityu- death.
  The 4 petalled lotus (Earth element, The Bread
  of Life) represents the Antah-karan- inner
  mental apparatus comprising Manas- cognition,
  Buddhi- intellect, Chitta- feelings and Ahankara-
  ego. The human Adam or Manu is made of the clay
  formed by mixing this water and earth.

42
The Process of Rebirth

• The vital seed thrown by the father into the
  womb of the mother is mixed with blood and
  enveloped in the outer skin of the embryo. The
  jiva becomes Kalal in one day. On the
  expiration of 5 nights, he becomes a budbud
  (bubble). At the end of 7 nights, he attains the
  condition of a lump of flesh (Maansa-peshi). At
  the end of a fortnight this becomes filled with
  blood, and after 25 nights, it sprouts forth.
• At the end of one month are produced in it the
  neck, the head, the shoulder, the spine and the
  belly. Each of these five organs is produced one
  after the other. In 2 months are produced in due
  order, and not otherwise, the hands, the feet,
  the sides, the hips, the thighs and knees. In 3
  months are produced gradually the joints of the
  body. All the fingers are produced gradually in 4
  months. The nose, the ears and the eyes and the
  rows of the teeth, the nails, the secret organs
  are also produced in 5 months.
• After the 6th month are produced the holes in
  the ears, the anus, the organs of generation-
  male and female, and the navel. In the 7th month
  are produced hair on the body as well as on the
  head. In the 8th month, all organs of the body
  become divided. In the 5th or 7th month, the
  embodied being becomes possessed of intelligence
  on all sides. Through a small hole in the navel
  cord the creature derives its sustenance in the
  womb from the essence of what the mother eats.
• Remembering all his former births and his former
  actions, burning in the fire of the digestive
  organs, he thinks, Having suffered misery of
  diverse kinds through my own Karma, when shall I
  get out of this womb which is like unto hell,
  henceforth, I will worship no one else but God.
  Thinking thus, the jiva, pained by the pressure
  of the mothers organs, comes out with great
  trouble, like a sinner from hell.
• There is a bridge called Al Sirat by Mohammed,
  which is on the road to heaven. This bridge is
  thrown over the abyss of hell. This bridge is
  finer than hair and sharper than the edge of a
  sword. Those Mohammedans, who have done good
  deeds, will easily cross this bridge and Mohammed
  will lead them. The evil-doers will miss their
  footing and fall down headlong into the hell,
  which is gaping beneath them. The Jews speak of
  the bridge of hell which is not broader than a
  thread. The Hindus speak of Vaitarni. The
  Zoroastrians teach that all men will have to pass
  over the bridge called Pul Chinavat on the last
  day.

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