Supernal Abode: Heaven & Hell

The promise of heaven and the threat of hell have been played upon
strongly by orthodox and fundamental forms of Christianity, which propose
that those who believe in the Savior will receive eternal life in a heavenly abode and those who
do not believe will suffer eternal damnation in hell. Typically, eternal damnation would include
the righteous of every other faith apart from Christianity. In Gnostic Christianity, however,
heaven and hell assume a very different meaning, for a soul attaining an ascent into the heavens
is not necessarily enlightened, and a soul experiencing hell is not bound there forever – heavens
and hells are the product of dualistic consciousness and form the karmic matrix of creation.

Both in the Gospel of St. Matthew and Gospel of St. Thomas there are interesting comments
regarding the heavens. In the Gospel of St. Matthew, as part of the Sermon on the Mount we find
this saying: “Do not think I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have not come to
abolish but to fulfill. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one
stroke of a letter, will pass away from the law until all is accomplished.” (Gospel of St. Matthew
5:17-18) First of all, according to these verses, heaven, like the earth, is not eternal, but exists for
a limited duration. Even if the heavens are forever, they are not the Eternal Abode. Secondly,
like the earth, the heavens are bound to the law, specifically the law of karma (causality), and
thus are the karmic matrix under the Dominion of Cosmic Ignorance. Thus, even the attainment
of the highest heaven would not represent the attainment of a Supernal or Messianic
Consciousness, or a full and complete Enlightenment and Liberation.

This is reflected in the Gospel of St. Thomas as well, where it is written: Jesus said, “This
heaven will pass away, and the one above it will pass away. And the dead are not alive, and the
living will not die. In the days when you consumed what is dead, you made it what is alive.
When you come to dwell in the light, what will you do? On the day you were one, you became
two. And when you become two, what will you do?” (Logion 11) This saying clearly speaks of
the impermanence of the heavens, as well as the earth, and alludes to them as the product of
dualistic consciousness. It also alludes to something beyond the heavens – the source of the
Light.

In the Epistle to the Ephesians something quite remarkable is said of the heavens. There it is
written: “For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against
the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against spiritual forces of evil
in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6:12) Here the apostle speaks directly of the Dominion of
Cosmic Ignorance, and even alludes to Satan having a heavenly root. Thus, not only are the
heavens bound by the law, but however subtle and sublime, dualism remains present in them and
they are a phenomenon of consciousness conditioned by karma. From these few verses we must
conclude that what Yeshua calls the “kingdom of heaven” and “kingdom of God” is something
that transcends the heavens and the hells completely, for he speaks of the Divine Kingdom in
terms of eternal life, yet he clearly speaks of the heavens as impermanent and finite.

There is a very interesting teaching in the Kabbalah concerning the source of light in the heavens
and fire in the hells. First of all, the Kabbalah says that the light of the heavens and fire of the
hells are both the manifestation of the Holy Spirit, not for the sake of reward and punishment,
but rather for the sake of the education of souls – hence Divine Illumination. Likewise, in one
cosmological myth the Kabbalah speaks of the highest class of angels in the Order of the
Seraphim, which worship God and Godhead in the Supernal Abode and which stand in the inner
Shekinah of God. According to the Kabbalah, these great angels perspire when they worship and
their perspiration flows down to become the light of the heavens and fire of the hells. As you
may know from other teachings in the Tradition, both the Seraphim and the Holy Spirit often
indicate the Serpent Power, or what in Eastern Schools is called “Kundalini.” Thus, on the one
hand, the source of the heavens and hells lies beyond, in the Supernal Abode; and on the other
hand, the heavens and hells are the product of the radiant nature of our own consciousness or
soul.

In the teachings of the Tradition on death, dying and the afterlife states, this is made perfectly
clear, for according to these teachings all that appears, whether heavens or hells or realms in
between, or angels or demons, all is the radiance of the soul or consciousness and must be
recognized as such. According to these teachings the initiate should neither accept a place in a
heavenly abode, nor accept any descent into the hells; he or she should neither attach him or
herself to heavenly visions nor be averse to hellish visions. Instead, the initiate is directed to
recognize everything that appears as the radiant nature of his or her own soul and to seek
unification with the Light-Presence.

This is reflected in teachings on the Threefold Body of Melchizedek as well. For the Body of
Emanation is that which appears on earth and the Body of Glory is that which appears in the
heavens, but the Body of Truth (Amet), from which these arise, transcends the heavens and the
earth – its Holy Root is in the Supernal Abode.

Essentially, according to the teachings, the heavens and hells are the product of attachments and
aversions in consciousness; hence they arise due to the impurity of desire and fear in
consciousness (karmic conditioning.) As long as these attachments and aversions remain, the
soul remains bound to the gilgulim (the potentially endless transmigrations of the soul.) The
cause of impure desire and fear is the ego-illusion, thus heavens and hells are projections of a
fundamental state of ignorance and self-grasping. In this light one may contemplate the Gospels
and the actual teachings of Yeshua Messiah, all of which aim at the cessation of the ego-illusion,
and the desire and fear that are the natural products of it. Such sayings as “do not resist evil”
begin to make sense in conjunction with these teachings on heaven and hell – for attachments to
what one desires and aversion to what one fears hold the soul in bondage to Cosmic Ignorance.

Thus, in the teachings it is said, “The sinner will go to hell and the saint will go to heaven, yet
neither will attain Enlightenment and Liberation.” Essentially, a true state of Divine Illumination
is beyond the concepts of saint and sinner, and for this reason it is said in the Kabbalah that a
Tzaddik (Righteous Person) is beyond either the saint or the sinner. This teaching is reflected in
the story of Cain and Abel, and Seth who comes after them. Cain (the sinner) slays Abel (the
saint), neither of whom are the image and likeness of Adam (the Human One.) Cain murdered
Abel and, thus, lost his humanity, and therefore Adam and Eve are blessed with the birth of Seth
who is said to be the image and likeness of Adam – hence a true Human Being. In the Gospels
the most common title give to Yeshua Messiah is the Son of Adam (Son of the Human One),
which in essence means Seth. Essentially, Seth represents the prototype of the Supernal Human
Being; hence one who transcends saint and sinner, and who is established in the Supernal Image.

In Sophian teachings, however, the heavens and hells are not merely spoken of in terms of
afterlife states, but rather they are related to states of consciousness experienced in life – what
may be called psychological states and the spiritual forces with which our thoughts, emotions,
words and deeds link us. Heaven or hell in this regard represents our attachments and aversions
in life, as well as positive and negative emotional states we experience from day to day. This is
reflected, for example, in a traditional teaching of the Kabbalah which says “the Holy Shekinah
cannot come to rest upon a depressed person,” and that “Ruach Ha-Kodesh cannot enter where
darkness is allowed to dwell.” Thus, seeking to invite and to welcome the Shekinah and Holy
Spirit we are taught to cultivate joy, and specifically to cultivate the fear of the Lord and love of
the Lord.

It is said, “Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (Hokmah.)” Quite obviously it is not the
fear of punishment and Gehenna that is meant, but rather what is meant by “fear” is holy awe
and wonder – awe and wonder of the Mystery of the One Life-Power. What is implied by the
word fear (Pachad) is the Holy Awareness of the Sacred Unity underlying all of creation and all
levels of consciousness; hence the Awareness of Supernal Being. This Presence of Awareness
naturally leads to love, which is a state of yearning for a conscious unification – Mystical Union
with God and Godhead being the natural fruition of Spiritual Love.

Love is the light of the law, and transcends the law, thus the “fulfillment of the law and the
prophets” of which Yeshua speaks. Firstly, where there is love no instruction in righteousness or
how to be an authentic human being is necessary, and therefore no commandments, such as “Do
not kill” or “Do not steal.” Basically, the law is for the lawless and those who are lacking in love.
Secondly, where there is love there is unity and harmony, and all dualism is put to an end, for the
fruition of love is cessation in the embrace of the Beloved, which is the fulfillment of the law and
prophets.

In the process of the development and evolution towards Supernal or Messianic Consciousness
we may certainly speak of the heavens as respites between incarnations in which the progress of
the soul is integrated. Likewise we may speak of the hells as regressions in evolution through
which the obstructions to the next progress in the evolution of the soul are worked out. However,
neither heaven nor hell represents Enlightenment and Liberation. Therefore, at the heart of
Gnostic Christian teachings is the aim to attain repose in the Supernal Abode and thus to “ascend
beyond the heavens” altogether; hence our aim is a conscious unification with the Light-Presence
and the Light-Continuum of Supernal Being.

Again and again as one approaches Gnostic Christian teachings one must bear in mind that we
use exoteric terms with esoteric and mystical meaning, in order to understand what the teachings
are actually saying. Always we speak with more subtle and sublime meaning than our orthodox
and fundamental counterparts, though, indeed, we use many of the same terms. Therefore one
needs to listen and hear with more subtle and sublime ears. We study and contemplate many of
the same Scriptures, but we seek the mystical meaning and secret wisdom they contain. Here,
through our dialogue on heaven and hell, a good example is given.

If one learns to look and see the inner mystical meaning of Scriptures, one will find a whole new
Holy Book before one’s eyes and a true guide to Enlightenment and Liberation. It is the aim of
the Sophian Tradition to train our initiates to look and see in this way, and thus to study and
contemplate sacred texts as a vehicle of Mystical Union with the Light-Presence.

Blessings & shalom!