There is nothing more unknown in this world than what happens after a person's death. Throughout our lives we are told that there is a world to come, olam haba, which consists of Gan Eden and Gehenom. Olam Haba is greater than any reward in the physical world, and Gehenom is worse than any pain in the physical world. No human has been able to return from the dead and confirm it for humanity, but we have strong evidence to support the idea that there is an afterlife full of rewards and punishments. Judaism books focus largely on being a good Jew in this life and rarely on the afterlife. Since the Torah does not focus much on the afterlife, we have a limited source of knowledge on the subject. The answers to the question of what happens after death are derived primarily from pesukim throughout the Tanach. Before we start discussing what olam haba is, one should first understand what happens immediately after a person's death according to Judaism. Once a person is declared dead, there are three rituals that must be performed on him. The person must undergo tahara, be dressed in tachrichim and placed in an aron. It is necessary for the deceased to become tahor, or pure. The “tahara” process is a key element to performing a proper Jewish burial. The Chevra Kaddisha purifies, halachically washes and dresses the corpse. Since the soul of a dead person will have to confront its Creator, in olam haba, he or she must be as pure as possible. After a person has been purified, he must be dressed in tachrichim. Tachrichim are simple, handmade white garments made from linen or muslin. There are two reasons why the dead are dressed in such simple clothes. The first answer given is that these are… the middle of the paper… the soul feels it doesn't like it and is punished. In fact, God needs to send us to Gehenom for the same reason we need to clean our clothes. A dirty shirt can be compared to our soul after a lifetime. Throughout our lives, every act we perform leaves an imprint on our soul. The good mitzvot we perform enlighten and uplift our souls, while the bad deeds leave stains on our soul. Fortunately, if a person repents or undoes his wrongdoings, then the spiritual stains can be removed; but if a person dies without correcting his sins, then the stains go with him to the afterlife. It is not possible for a soul to reach its pinnacle of rest without atoning for its sins. Consequently, God sends the soul to Gehenom to free it from every “spiritual stain”. After this seemingly painful process, the soul can finally be taken to heaven for eternal bliss.