What If the Underworld Is Just the Flip Side of Our World?

BudgetPixel Shopping for coffins | hamsterwheel on BudgetPixel Shopping for coffins - Created with BudgetPixel AI budgetpixel.com BudgetPixel Hell’s Fashion Store 😂 | hamsterwheel on BudgetPixel Hell’s Fashion Store 😂 - Created with BudgetPixel AI budgetpixel.com BudgetPixel Hell Beauty Parlour | hamsterwheel on BudgetPixel Hell Beauty Parlour - Created with BudgetPixel AI budgetpixel.com BudgetPixel Corpses herder | hamsterwheel on BudgetPixel Corpses herder - Created with BudgetPixel AI budgetpixel.com BudgetPixel The Bridge to Oblivion Toll Collector | hamsterwheel on BudgetPixel The Bridge to Oblivion Toll Collector - Created with BudgetPixel AI budgetpixel.com BudgetPixel Hell spa - relax in hell | hamsterwheel on BudgetPixel Hell spa - relax in hell - Created with BudgetPixel AI budgetpixel.com BudgetPixel Masseur of the dead | hamsterwheel on BudgetPixel Masseur of the dead - Created with BudgetPixel AI budgetpixel.com When I was a young kid, I was absolutely spooked and terrified to bits by stories about the underworld, ghosts, spirits and all those paranormal things. But strangely enough, while I was scared of them, I was also completely fascinated by them. You know that kind of feeling where you are scared to look, but somehow you still want to peek through your fingers anyway? That was basically me. Most of the stories I was familiar with described the underworld as this dark, terrifying and miserable place where the unfortunate souls arrived, got judged for whatever they had done during their lifetime, and then got punished according to their sins. There were frightening officials, endless dark corridors, bridges, gates, demons, ghosts, rivers and all kinds of horrible places waiting for you. Basically, not exactly somewhere you would find advertised on Booking.com . But as I grew older, my restless and wandering mind started thinking about something else. What does the underworld actually look like when nobody is being judged, punished, chased around or thrown into some horrible pit? Because none of us living people really know. Books don’t know either. Stories were passed down from generation to generation, but surely nobody came back with a proper travel guide saying, “Turn left after the Bridge of Forgetfulness, coffin shop is opposite the noodle stall.” And then I started thinking… these wandering souls can’t possibly be wandering around 365 days a year, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week without a break, right? Even ghosts must get tired. Surely they need somewhere to sit down once in a while. Maybe there are inns or hotels for travelling spirits. Maybe there are beds designed especially for ghosts who haven’t slept properly for the last 300 years. Maybe there is some poor underworld shopkeeper selling coffins in different sizes, colours and styles. “Would sir like the classic mahogany coffin, or perhaps something more modern with extra padding?” Maybe after wandering around for a few centuries, some exhausted soul decides, “Enough. I need a massage.” So somewhere in the underworld there could be a ghost massage parlour, a spa, a sauna, maybe even somebody doing facials. Imagine a 500-year-old ghost complaining, “Can you do something about these dark circles under my eyes?” And the beautician looks at him and says, “Mate… you’ve been dead since the Ming Dynasty.” Surely they would also need to replace their clothes once in a while. Their garments can’t last forever. Somebody must be designing, sewing and altering clothes for ghosts and spirits. Maybe there are underworld fashion shops where spirits complain that their robes are too long, too short, too old-fashioned or don’t match their complexion anymore. Maybe some ghosts are extremely fussy. “No, no, no. I said funeral chic, not haunted farmhouse.” And what about their appearance? Surely after hundreds of years somebody would want a haircut, makeup, facial treatment or at least a quick tidy-up before appearing in somebody’s bedroom at 3am. You can’t haunt people looking completely unprepared. Then there are the new arrivals. Surely someone needs to guide them around. Imagine arriving in the underworld for the first time with absolutely no idea where to go. “Excuse me, where is Hall Number Seven?” “Straight ahead, second gate on the right, cross the bridge, don’t drink the soup yet, and if you see a three-headed dog you’ve gone too far.” Maybe there are professional underworld guides whose entire job is dealing with confused new souls. And surely there are tolls too. If there is a bridge going into the underworld, someone somewhere is going to charge for crossing it. That seems almost universal. Maybe there is a grumpy ghost sitting inside a tiny toll booth. “Three coins.” “But I’m dead.” “Still three coins.” “I don’t have any money.” “Then go back and ask your family to burn some.” Suddenly the whole ancient tradition of burning paper money starts looking suspiciously like an underworld banking system. Which then makes me wonder… if they have money, surely they must have shops. And if they have shops, they need workers. If they have workers, they need customers. If they have customers, somebody is eventually going to ask to speak to the manager. And this is basically where all these renderings came from. My wandering mind started imagining the underworld not only as this giant terrifying place full of judgement and punishment, but perhaps also as another functioning world existing on the opposite side of ours. A strange mirror version of everyday life. We have clothing shops. Maybe they have ghost clothing shops. We have beauty salons. Maybe they have paranormal beauty salons. We have hotels, massage parlours, travel guides, transportation, toll booths, markets and funeral homes. Maybe they do too. Except their funeral homes probably work backwards, which is another problem for another day. The more I thought about it, the funnier it became. Maybe the underworld is actually extremely busy. Maybe behind all those frightening gates there are thousands of ordinary supernatural jobs nobody ever talks about. Coffin salesman. Ghost barber. Spirit beautician. Underworld tailor. Paranormal tour guide. Bridge toll collector. Possessed furniture repairman. Maybe even an underworld complaint department. Imagine working there. “Good morning, Underworld Customer Services, how can I help?” “Yes, I’ve been waiting for reincarnation for 186 years.” “Please hold.” And another 50 years goes by. So these images are really just the results of my restless imagination asking one simple question: What if the underworld is actually the flip side of our real world? A little darker, much stranger, definitely more haunted, but still filled with shops, workers, services, customers, annoying paperwork and souls just trying to get through another day… or eternity. And if we think about it that way, maybe the underworld doesn’t feel quite as scary anymore. Still creepy, obviously. But creepy with customer service.