Heavens

In Hinduism, there are believed to be
many additional planes of existence
besides the visible earthly realm. These
other planes of existence include the
heavens, which are realms of reward,
pleasure, and enjoyment. Beings are
born in heaven as a reward for their past
good deeds, and the life of the gods living in these heavens is invariably
described as long and pleasurable. Yet
heaven is not permanent, and when
one’s karmic merit is exhausted and
one’s stay in heaven is done, one
inevitably descends from heaven to take
birth in a lower form.
In general, heaven is viewed as a distraction to serious religious life. Birth in
heaven comes only through accumulating and expending an enormous
amount of religious merit generated by
past good deeds, and thus is a tremendous drain on one’s accumulated spiritual resources. Furthermore, once one
has been born in heaven, life is so easy
and carefree that people generally feel
no inclination to engage in religious life.
For both reasons, life in heaven is considered a goal to which people should
not aspire.