Bubble of faith

Re: “No hell below us, above us only sky”, (Opinion, April 5).

It is very true that those who grow up inside the bubble of faith will believe in whatever doctrines they are exposed to. It is just like being exposed to a contagious infection. Those pious men and women who believe there is something beyond the blue sky or something below the surface of the earth are missing out on the opportunity to fully enjoy their life in the most beautiful place we know — the planet Earth.

Fortunately, we also know a lot about the geology of the Earth but we know very little about the cosmos. Buddha once said, “When the average ignorant person makes an assertion to the effect that there is a hell [patala] under the ocean, he is making a statement which is false and without basis. The word hell is a term for painful sensations. The idea of one particular ready-made place or a place created by God as heaven and hell is not acceptable as a concept.”

Since we are living in a Buddhist country, we should appreciate the fact that we are already in heaven. So far, nobody has come back from hell or heaven to share their wisdom with us. In other words, hell and heaven are within our existence. As far as we know, the Earth is the only place with fauna and flora. The rest of the cosmos is made of freezing dark spaces, black holes, asteroids and burning infernos. KULDEEP NAGI