Panel: TRANSFORMATIONS OF HELL(S): CULTURAL AND DOCTRINAL DYNAMICS OF A CONTESTED IDEA



96.1 - HINDU HELLS IN VEDĀNTA

AUTHORS:
Völker F. (University of Vienna ~ Vienna ~ Austria)
Text:
It is widely believed that there are seven main hells in Hinduism. However, according to the Brahma-, Śiva- and Viṣṇu-Purāṇa, there are altogether twenty-eight hells, whereas the Garuḍa-Purāṇa knows of more than eight million hells that vividly demonstrate the possibility of an intensification of suffering and pain in the afterlife. The paper explores the different notions of hell in Hinduism and its theological interpretations in the Vedānta of Śaṅkara, Rāmānuja, and Madhva.