LIFE AFTER DEATH IN HINDUISM

The Soul Has No Death

Hindus believe that humans are in a cycle of death and rebirth . When a person dies, the atman is reborn in a different body.

Some believe rebirth happens directly at death, others believe that an atman may exist in other realms. Hindus believe that an atman may enter swarga or naraka for a period before rebirth.

Hindus believe in karma or ‘intentional action’. Many believe good or bad actions in life leading to positive or negative merit, determines the atman’s rebirth.

 Hindus believe that humans may be reborn in animal form, and that rebirth from human to animal form only occurs if an atman has repeatedly failed to learn lessons in human form.

Manikarnika Ghat

Living life according to teachings in the scriptures will eventually lead to moksha. Some Hindu scriptures describe moksha as the atman becoming absorbed with Brahman, from where each atman is believed to originate. Other Hindu scriptures describe moksha as living in the realm of a personal God. The Maitri Upanishad states:

Even as water becomes one with water, fire with fire, and air with air, so the atman becomes one with the Infinite Atman (Brahman) and thus attains final freedom.

Maitri Upanishad 6.24

Ancient Hindu scriptures refer to the atman being reborn many times. The Bhagavad Gita states:

वासांसि जीर्णानि यथा विहाय
नवानि गृह्णाति नरोऽपराणि।
तथा शरीराणि विहाय जीर्णा
न्यन्यानि संयाति नवानि देही।।2.22।।  

As a person casts off worn-out clothes and puts on new ones, so does the atman cast off worn out bodies and enter new ones.

Bhagavad Gita 2:22

The Bhagavad Gita also explains that death is something that we can neither stop nor grieve about:

जातस्य हि ध्रुवो मृत्युर्ध्रुवं जन्म मृतस्य च।
तस्मादपरिहार्येऽर्थे न त्वं शोचितुमर्हसि।।2.27।।

For certain is the death of all that comes to birth, certain is the birth of all that dies. So in a matter that no one can prevent do not grieve.

Bhagavad Gita 2:27

Hindus believe that good merit is achieved by following your dharma. The Bhagavad Gita details four different ways that moksha can be achieved:

karma yoga
bhakti yoga
jnana yoga
Dhyana yoga

What happens after moksha?

There are two main beliefs about what happens after moksha:

Advaita Hindus believe that the atman is absorbed into Brahman. This is because the atman and Brahman are the same.
Other Hindus believe that the atman and Brahman are different and that after moksha they remain separate. They believe that the atman will be in the presence of Brahman, as a personal God, but will remain unique and individual.