What did humanity imagine beneath the grave?
The Book of the Seven Hells is a dark and fascinating history of the underworlds, punishment realms, shadow lands, infernal courts, and afterlife geographies created by the world's great religious and mythological traditions.
From the silent pit of Sheol to the burning valley of Gehenna, from the seven gates of Jahannam to the karmic punishments of Naraka, this book explores how different cultures gave death a shape, gave evil a destination, and gave justice a world below.
Inside this atmospheric study, you will discover:
Sheol, the ancient Hebrew pit beneath the earth Gehenna, the valley of fire outside Jerusalem Jahannam, the Islamic hell of seven gates, angels, bridges, scales, and flame Naraka, the Hindu and Buddhist realms of karma, punishment, fire, ice, and rebirth Hades, Tartarus, Yama, Chitragupta, infernal judges, demon guardians, punishment worlds, and the weighing of souls The seven recurring patterns of underworld belief: journey, judgement, threshold, torment, hierarchy, duration, and deliverance
Written for readers of occult history, comparative religion, mythology, folklore, demonology, and dark spiritual symbolism, The Book of the Seven Hells examines hell as one of humanity's most powerful and revealing ideas.
This is a history of the places people feared after death, and what those places reveal about guilt, justice, punishment, morality, fear, and the human soul.