"Hell is to be away from God. Hell for a child is to be away from its mother. Most people are so consumed by earthly concerns and possessions that they never get to feel the love of God. God wants us, above all, to be happy and to enjoy inner peace. God is not a tyrant who pesters and intimidates us, but instead he wants us to be free. The devil is very crafty. He is constantly trying to find a weak spot in everybody. Guarding your mind and your thoughts is the most important thing. Satan's handiwork is to constantly put malicious and damaging thoughts in people's minds." – Saint Paisios of Mt. Athos
Hell is a state of consciousness
Hell is separation from God
Hell is to live as the ego.
Wandering Lost, Homeless, Alone, Fearful…
“Without the world he made [he thinks he is] an outcast; homeless and afraid. He does not realize that it is here he is afraid indeed, and homeless, too; an outcast wandering so far from home, so long away, he does not realize he has forgotten where he came from, where he goes, and even who he really is [on top of being homeless, he is mentally ill—he has amnesia].... ....He wanders on, aware of the futility he sees about him everywhere, perceiving how his little lot but dwindles, as he goes ahead to nowhere. Still he wanders on in misery and poverty, alone though God is with him, and a treasure his so great that everything the world contains is valueless before its magnitude.”
“Everyone is looking for himself and for the power and glory he thinks he has lost.”
“The world you see...has disappointed you since time began. The homes you built have never sheltered you. The roads you made have led you nowhere, and no city that you built has withstood the crumbling assault of time.” - ACIM
Sin, Guilt, Fear,…
“The result of sin was a massive sense of guilt, which we denied and so pushed into the unconscious.” - ACIM
“Guilt gives rise to fear, which really is the expectation of punishment. Fear is the dominant emotion of this world.” - ACIM
“We thought that we had separated ourselves from all that we loved and consequently experienced a state of lack.” - ACIM
Fear
“Fear is nothing more than the illusion you have chosen to value in order to experience what it is like to feel separate from love.”
- Way of Mastery