Hell

Lore & Background

The modern English word hell is derived from Old English hel, helle (first attested around 725 AD to refer to a nether world of the dead) reaching into the Anglo-Saxon pagan period. The word has cognates in all branches of the Germanic languages, including Old Norse hel (which refers to both a location and goddess-like being in Norse mythology), Old Frisian helle, Old Saxon hellia, Old High German hella, and Gothic halja. All forms ultimately derive from the reconstructed Proto-Germanic feminine noun *xaljō or *haljō ('concealed place, the underworld'). In turn, the Proto-Germanic form derives from the o-grade form of the Proto-Indo-European root *kel-, *kol-: 'to cover, conceal, save'. Indo-European cognates include Latin cēlāre ('to hide', related to the English word cellar) and early Irish ceilid ('hides'). Upon the Christianisation of the Germanic peoples, extensions of the Proto-Germanic *xaljō were reinterpreted to denote the underworld in Christian mythology (see Gehenna). Related early Germanic terms and concepts include Proto-Germanic *xalja-rūnō(n), a feminine compound noun, and *xalja-wītjan, a neutral compound noun. This form is reconstructed from the Latinized Gothic plural noun *haliurunnae (attested by Jordanes; according to philologist Vladimir Orel, meaning 'witches'), Old English helle-rúne ('sorceress, necromancer', according to Orel), and Old High German helli-rūna 'magic'. The compound is composed of two elements: *xaljō (*haljō) and *rūnō, the Proto-Germanic precursor to Modern English rune. The second element in the Gothic haliurunnae may however instead be an agent noun from the verb rinnan ('to run, go'), which would make its literal meaning 'one who travels to the netherworld'. Proto–Germanic *xalja-wītjan (or *halja-wītjan) is reconstructed from Old Norse hel-víti 'hell', Old English helle-wíte 'hell-torment, hell', Old Saxon helli-wīti 'hell', and the Middle High German feminine noun helle-wīze. The compound is a compound of *xaljō (discussed above) and *wītjan (reconstructed from forms such as Old English witt 'right mind, wits', Old Saxon gewit 'understanding', and Gothic un-witi 'foolishness, understanding').

Reader's Guide

The idea of retribution for evil thoughts and evil deeds features almost universally in human cultural history. Accordingly, justice may be carried out post-mortem, whereby positing a place of punishment in the afterlife. As early as 1500 BCE, the Egyptians asserted that the dead will be judged and, if found guilty, punished and tortured for their crimes. One of the oldest detailed descriptions of Hell, however, are probably found in the Kathāvatthu, one of the earliest Buddhist writings written around 250—100 BCE. It argues that Hell is a state as the result of a bad action, connecting Hell to the concept of the retribution for bad actions and compensation for good actions. Such concept of Hell did not require the existence of a God and does not depend on deities. Within the context of Persian dualism, which posits the existence of the embodiment of good and evil, Hell was considered to be the abode of the principal Devil called Angra Manyu. According to Mazdaist eschatology, the dead are not condemned to Hell, but freely choose paradise or Hell determined by their actions in life, which either corresponds to the values of God or the Devil. In the mythological narrative, Hell is believed to be in the middle of Earth, a bridge spans over it, and the dead must pass over Hell, but those who did evil in life will fall down. In Hell, the souls are tormented by the inhabitants of Hell; demons, and tortured according to their crimes and sins. However, their torment is not eternal, as eventually God would triumph over the Devil and his demons, destroy Hell, restore cosmic order, and redeem the lost souls. In the New Testament, part of the Christian sacred scripture, references to Hell are sparse. The Septuagint understanding of Hades is similar to the Hebrew Sheol, a place for the dead to await resurrection. Gehenna, on the other hand, is portrayed differently, as containing 'unquenchable fire' and 'worms that never die' where body and soul can be destroyed. As evident from apocrypha, such as Ethiopic Book of Enoch, the idea of the underworld and Hell begin to conflate: In the Ethiopic Book of Enoch, the apostate Jews will suffer in Gehenna and for the Rabbis, it was a temporal punishment for Jews, but eternal for the Gentiles. Closely after the composition of the New Testament, the idea arose that the Devil is also a prisoner to Hell. Punishment in Hell typically

Did You Know?

• The ancient Mesopotamian, Greek, Roman, and Finnic religions include entrances to the underworld from the land of the living.
• The Sumerian afterlife was a dark, dreary cavern located deep below the ground, where inhabitants were believed to continue 'a shadowy version of life on earth'.
• In Egyptian mythology, the person taken by the devourer Ammit is subject first to terrifying punishment and then annihilated; there is no suggestion of eternal torture.

Notable Quotes (Wikiquote)

"Hell is the wrath of God — His hate of sin." — Hell "Now BURN ! You will BURN ! You will BURN ! burn in Hell yeah you'll burn, burn in Hell ! you'll burn, burn in Hell yeah you'll burn, burn in Hell ....... for your sins..................!!" — Hell "Let heaven exist, though my own place may be in hell. Let me be tortured and battered and annihilated, but let there be one instant, one creature, wherein thy enormous Library may find its justification." — Hell "The heart of man is the place the devil dwells in; I feel sometimes a hell dwells within myself." — Hell