Definition of Hell
Written by Roc Sherrell (BMTM Founder)
Tweet from Ankur Warikoo: “The last day you have on earth, the person you became will meet the person you could have become. Definition of hell.”
Might this be considered a satisfactory definition of hell? For many individuals, such a description is sufficient for the intended purpose - which is perhaps why the tweet was composed and disseminated to the public, as a cautionary tale to the great multitude amongst us who continually demonstrate a meager level of proficiency in harnessing the full potential of their being and molding it into something that makes a positive contribution to the world.
As I contemplate the tweet through this lens, I am inclined to lend my voice to Ankur's, and join in agreement with the sentiments expressed; to entirely and ruinously fail to attain the version of oneself in question, and then to be confronted with that person on the final day of one's existence in this earthly realm, in this mortal coil, would amply qualify as hell in my estimation.
Yet, does the declaration put forth by Ankur only pertain to the concept of hell? It would be a gross oversimplification to suggest that it does.
What if, on the final day of their earthly existence, the individual has evolved into a being of superior production, resourcefulness, influence, and impact, far surpassing the limitations of their potential and the person they could have become?
The concept of hell, with its eternal attendants suffering and torment, seems an inadequate descriptor for such attributes. Rather, the individual described appears to have achieved (most likely through suffering and sacrifice) a state of accomplishment, reward, and fulfillment - qualities which, to my mind, are more evocative of a paradise-like existence, rather than the infernal depths of hell.
Pray tell, through what prism do you view this imagined encounter between two realized versions of oneself in order to absorb the essential lesson at the core of the tweet - that is, do not depart from the world without having attained the most optimal, resourceful, and impactful version of oneself, for it is on the day when one becomes aware that they have fallen short in this regard, that the full extent of hell's agony, a searing pain that consumes the soul, is truly experienced.
Definition of Hell
