The Christian Cosmic Realms as a Map of the Human Mind

This image can be understood not only as a depiction of heaven, earth, and hell, but also as a representation of the different states of the human soul and mind. Each realm symbolizes a level of consciousness, reflecting how closely a person aligns with truth, virtue, love, and God.

At the highest level is God's Throne and the Empyrean Heaven. Symbolically, this represents the highest state of human awareness: complete unity with truth, wisdom, love, and purpose. In this state, a person is guided by conscience, humility, compassion, and self control. The mind is clear because it is oriented toward what is good and eternal rather than temporary desires.

Below this are the Nine Choirs of Angels, which can represent the virtues and higher qualities of human character. Courage, wisdom, justice, discipline, mercy, and devotion act as guides that help elevate the soul. When people practice these virtues, they move closer to a heavenly mindset.

The New Jerusalem can symbolize spiritual harmony. It represents the condition of a person who lives according to divine principles. Such a person experiences inner peace because their actions, beliefs, and conscience are aligned. They are not perfect, but they are striving toward goodness.

The Earthly Realm is where every person lives daily. This is the realm of choice. Here, individuals constantly decide whether to move upward toward virtue or downward toward selfishness. Every thought, word, and action becomes part of this spiritual movement.

The image suggests that heaven and hell are not only future destinations but also present realities experienced within the soul.

When a person chooses kindness, honesty, forgiveness, and self sacrifice, they elevate themselves toward higher states of consciousness. Their mind becomes more peaceful, rational, and connected to others. They rise toward heaven.

When a person commits acts of evil whether through hatred, cruelty, greed, dishonesty, pride, or selfishness they begin to descend. Each evil action creates separation from truth and from God. The mind becomes clouded by anger, fear, guilt, resentment, or obsession. In this sense, the fall from heaven is not always a single event but a gradual movement downward.

Purgatory can be understood as the struggle to correct oneself after failure. It represents repentance, self reflection, and personal growth. Everyone makes mistakes, but growth occurs when a person recognizes their faults and seeks to change.

At the lowest level is Hell or Gehenna, which symbolically represents a state of complete separation from God and from one's highest nature. Here the soul becomes dominated by destructive impulses. Pride replaces humility. Hatred replaces love. Selfishness replaces service. A person trapped in this mindset may experience spiritual darkness even while living on Earth.

From this perspective, every immoral act is a small descent from the divine nature within us. Whenever we knowingly choose evil, we temporarily move away from our highest potential. We lower ourselves from the mindset of heaven toward the mindset of hell. Conversely, whenever we choose truth, compassion, and righteousness, we begin the ascent again.

The image therefore illustrates a profound spiritual principle: human beings are constantly moving upward or downward through their choices. Heaven and hell are not merely places but states of being. The closer one lives to God's will, the more heavenly the mind becomes. The farther one moves from God through evil actions, the more one descends into spiritual darkness.

The Last Judgment at the bottom of the image can be interpreted as the ultimate revelation of who we have become through our choices. It is the moment when all masks are removed and the true condition of the soul is revealed. In that sense, every day contains a small judgment, because every decision contributes to the person we are becoming.

We are always ascending or descending. Every thought matters. Every action matters. Every choice shapes the soul.