The Difference Between The Heaven And Hell And Which One Is Steemit

When talking about heaven and hell, we are often thinking about two different places. One is somewhere there above the clouds, in bright and shiny azure hights while the other is somewhere deep down in some scary and flamy burning darkness.

But what if the heaven and hell are, in fact, the same place?

If you think I'm some arrogant heretic when I can question something like that in such a horrible way by placing those two entirely different environments at the same place, keep reading.

^{_{Image Source: Pixabay. Credits to ZERIG for stairs-heaven-hell, used under the CC0 Creative Commons license.}}

This past Sunday when I was finishing the preparations for our family Easter lunch and waiting for our kids to arrive, I overheard from the radio that was playing aside, in some short news report, how Pope Francis in his Easter preaching said that human egoism is killing the world and it's a main threat to the humanity.

WOW! I shockingly stopped whatever I was doing at that moment to think for a moment about that thought. Unfortunately, I had to admit, he is right. He hit it right in the middle!

I would only add to that the 'vanity.' The egoism and the vanity will destroy us entirely!

We are in fear of terrorist attacks, war, atomic bombs, bio-weapons and who knows what else, but none of it can act and happen by itself without being driven by some human being or a smaller or bigger group of people powered by some narrow, selfish interests and goals.

We, in fact, don't need any of those highly developed weapons or some new tactics. They are anyway, although maybe more advanced but still, just the tools. The old rusty chains and/or a kitchen knife is good enough the same if they are in the hands of an egoistic and full of vanity person. Because only those two (egoism and vanity) can produce the amount of hate, envy, jealousy, desire for power and supremacy significant enough to harm and destroy the other human being.

All of that reminded me of some moral tale brought to me even as some kind of joke by someone I don't recall anymore who it was, and which tale started with a simple question.

^{_{Image Source: Pixabay. Credits to Alexas_Fotos for sky-hell-contrary, used under the CC0 Creative Commons license.}}

What's the difference between the heaven and hell?

A man got a chance to meet St. Peter and to ask him whatever he wanted to know. He was full of questions for many aspects of life on all of which St. Peter was patiently answering.

At the end when the man exhausted almost all the questions he had, and when his curiosity get fulfilled he asked St. Peter one last thing, to show him how the heaven and hell genuinely look like.

St. Peter took him down a long hallway at the end of which were big wooden doors, opened it, and they entered into some vast room. In the room were placed two big tables, each on one side of the room and both equally, beautifully served and full with all sorts of most delicious food. People were sitting around both tables.

^{_{GIF Source: Own derivative work with the images from Pixabay. Credits to Engin_Akyurt for food-invite, to Samueles for sea-​​salad, to superyyl for gourmet-delicious, to CranberryWine for smorgasbord-food, to Beeki for feast-buffet, and to menglei for seafood-feast, all used under the CC0 Creative Commons license.}}

At first glance, man didn't get it. What's the difference? What St. Peter is showing him exactly? Noticing man's confusion St. Peter told him to take a better look.

Now the man realized that people around one table were very cheerful, laughing and joking, kindly addressing each other. They all appeared very beautiful and in good shape while the people around the other table were heavily quarreling, yelling and throwing accusations and curses at each other with such anger and hatred that their faces distorted in ugly grimaces. He also noticed they all had starved and skinny bodies.

The man throws a look to St. Peter with a question mark in his eyes. Knowing what man would like to ask him, St. Peter started to explain.

- You see, on both tables, they have plenty of food which is available to all of them, and just seemingly the problem is the cutlery.

^{_{Image Source: Pixabay. Credits to nachovallejo65 for pearl-drop-metal, used under the CC0 Creative Commons license.}}

St. Peter continued to explain.
- They had only those giant spoons to grab the food and feed themselves, but one can't reach own mouth with any of those spoons. Realizing that, those around the first table know the only way not to stay hungry in front of the table full of food is by supporting and helping each other. That's why the person on one side of the table is feeding the other person across the table. And as you may see they have a lot of fun helping each other that way.
- That's, my friend, how the heaven looks like, concluded St. Peter.

A man throws a look at the first table to grasp that peaceful and warming but joyful atmosphere once again while St. Peter started to talk about the second table.

- You see those around the second table are too selfish and greedy to share anything with anyone. Everyone wants everything just for him/herself, and with those giant spoons, they continuously try to reach only their own mouths.

- As well, blaming everybody else around the table for their constant failures with every next attempt they get more and more furious. That's why they are yelling, throwing accusations and curses at each other. Being possessed and ruled by own egoism and vanity they don't want even to consider changing their behavior, so they continue starving in front of the full of the food table. That's, my friend, how the hell looks like.

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From the above story, we can see that heaven and hell don't have to be two different places.

It could be the same place which only we have the power of choice to turn it into one or another through own behavior, thoughts and actions!

So, what does it have to do and how we would know...

Which one is Steemit, the heaven or the hell?

^{_{Image Source: Own derivative work with the images from Pixabay. Credits to geralt for beyond-sky, to code404 for nebula-apocalypse-disaster, and to terimakasih0 for buddhist-hell, all used under the CC0 Creative Commons license.}}

According to the moral of the just told tale, there is not an unambiguous definition or answer to this question, but if you say to me at what 'Steemit table' you are sitting, I will tell you if Steemit is the heaven or the hell for you.

• If you are following thousands of members but hardly giving some upvote to any of them and if your Voting Power never dropped to 80% or is continuously at 90% or even 100%;
• If you are leaving left and right dozens or even hundreds of meaningless generic comments like, "Nice post! Great photo! Visit my blog! Follow me," and similar, producing them like some robot on the production line;
• If you are chasing fame, recognition, followers, and upvotes only for yourself (no matter by which tactic) and never giving anything in return to your upvoters and commentators;
• If you never return the visit (with at least a comment if not an upvote) to your upvoters;
• If you never reward your commentators with an upvote;
• If you are creating one-photo, one-meme, one-somebody-else's-video posts;
• If you are producing tens of posts per day just to squeeze every possible tiny coin from Steem Reward Pool;
• If you are posting the same content on several different accounts or platforms all of which are using the same Steem Reward Pool;
• If you are publishing (more or less) blatantly obvious copied/pasted or plagiarized content (text and images) stolen or just borrowed from around the web;
• If you have a more significant amount of Steem Power but rarely or never vote, grudgingly counting every single percentage of it like you are truly giving something from your own pocket even it's not the case;
• If you are spreading the votes only among your closed circle never giving a chance to anyone else especially not some newcomer;
• If your selfishness, conceit, egoism and vanity list goes on,

I'm sorry my dear, you are sitting at the wrong table, and sooner or later you will realize that you have created own Steemit hell.

^{_{Image Source: Own derivative work with the images from Pixabay. Credits to code404 for nebula-apocalypse-disaster, and to terimakasih0 for buddhist-hell, all used under the CC0 Creative Commons license.}}

In contrary to all of that and...

• If you selflessly and devotedly spread around every day 20% of your Voting Power among good content providers and community supporters (no matter if they are old or new members, big or small fishes in this Steemit ocean);
• If you cherish the network of your followers, upvoters, and commentators, help them and support them back (especially when their overall work and contribution deserves that);
• If you are helping other members (especially the new ones) with your advice and guidance to help them faster and easier learn and adopt Steemit community rules, teach them how the whole system works and showing them vast and various available possibilities among which they may choose and determine their own future Steemit path;
• If you are publishing own original and quality content with no more than four posts per day (avoiding to rape the reward pool and abuse the platform);
• If you are leaving quality, meaningful, contributing and topic related comments under the posts you have been upvoted (or not, in the case when you already spend all your available upvotes for the day);
• If in between conflict, argue and criticism on one side you would always rather choose helping and supportive kindness from the other side;
• If you are willing to share your knowledge and skills, and if you are are the giver who (at least not always) expect something in return,

I'm happy to say my dear fellow Steemian, you have joined the right table, and sooner or later you will realize that Steemit became a joyful and heavenly place for you with numerous opportunities!

^{_{Image Source: Own derivative work with the image from Pixabay. Credits to geralt for beyond-sky, used under the CC0 Creative Commons license.}}

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Posted on Wednesday, April 4, 2018

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