In Hindusm, the soul leaves the body after death but stays there for few days before it starts its journey to heaven/hell.
On the first day after death a
pinda or round ball (made from rice flour and milk) is offered with libations of water etc. on which the
preta (Soul) is supposed to feed, and which endows it with the basis of the requisite body. Next day another
pinda is offered with water etc. which gives it perhaps, limbs such as arms and legs. Then it receives hands, feet etc. This goes on for twelve days and the offering of the
pinda on the twelfth day gives the head. No sooner the
preta obtains a complete body then it becomes a
PITRI, when instead of being regarded as impure, it is held to be a
deva or deity, and practically worshipped as such in the
Shraddha ceremonies, the first of which takes place on the twelfth day after death.
Shraddha is the name of the ceremonies performed by relatives to help the departed soul.
A Shraddha is not a funeral ceremony but a
Pitri-Yajna or worship of departed ancestors, which worship, however, is something different from a
puja (ceremonial worship) to a God. It is performed by making offerings of round balls of rice, flour etc. with accompaniments of sacred grass (
kusha grass), flowers, and sprinkling of water, and with repetitions of mantras and texts from the Sam Veda, the whole ceremonial being conducted, not in a temple, but at any sacred spot such as the margin of a river.
It takes many months for the departed soul to reach the abode of the
Pitris or the souls of the ancestors. The word
Pitris primarily means the immediate ancestors. Viz. Father, mother etc. This abode of the
Pitris is known as
Pitri-lok (Heaven/sometimes hell).
Performance of
Shraddha and
Tarpan (libations of water) relieves the hunger and thirst of the departed soul during its journey to the
Pitri Lok. By the offering of the
Shraddha, the son helps his father to dwell in joy with the
Pitris.
The Bhagavad Gita, which forms a vital and philosophically important part of the great epic Mahabharata, states that on the eve of death the individual soul contracts all its energies and centres these into the subtle body. Our ordinary sight is incapable of perceiving it.
There is no specific "judgement day" in Hinduism. However, the soul, called "
Atma" leaves the body and reincarnates itself according to the deeds or Karma performed by one in last birth.
Re-birth would be in form of animals or other lower creatures if one performed bad
Karmas and in human form in a good family with joyous lifetime if the person was good in last birth.
In between the two births a human is also required to either face punishments for bad
Karmas in "
narak" or hell or enjoy for the good karmas in "
swarg" or heaven for good deeds. Whenever his or her punishments or rewards are over he or she is sent back to earth, also known as "
Mrityulok" or World of Death.
A person is merged with the God or ultimate power when he discharges only & only good
Karmas in last birth and the same is called as "
Moksha", which is the ultimate goal of a true Hindu.
source:
https://www.quora.com/What-exactly-...g-to-Hindu-scriptures/answer/Bhaskar-Dutta-15