Soul Society (Gravity Force)

Soul Society (尸魂界 (ソウル・ソサエティ), the Japanese spelling used literally translates to "dead spirit world") is the afterlife (also called the spirit world). It is meant to correspond to Heaven or Nirvana in Human belief systems. It is the place where most departed souls and Shinigami dwell.

Overview
While Rukia Kuchiki initially describes Soul Society as something of a paradise, where nine out of ten times it is better than the living world and hunger is never a problem, Soul Society is portrayed as anything but sublime. In fact, aside from the slowed aging and aforementioned lack of hunger, life there is much like that in the living world.

The Soul Society consists of the Rukongai (Rukon District in the English version), where souls first live when they arrive in the Soul Society, and the Seireitei ("Court of Pure Souls"), which is at the center of the Soul Society. The mode of life here closely resembles that of feudal Japan.

The Human World and Soul Society are parallel to each other and are two sides of the same coin. Families separated by death are rarely reunited in the Soul Society unless they arrive in Soul Society together. People live nestled together like a family of strangers. One never gets hungry (if she or he doesn't have spiritual powers) and aging is slowed to a great extent, with lifespans of 2000 or more years not being unheard of, though such ages are limited to Shinigami or other Soul Society dwellers with high spiritual power. Children can even be born as they are in the Human World. People can also be killed as regular Humans are, though they are capable of surviving wounds that would normally be considered fatal. A soul that dies in Soul Society is reincarnated on Earth as a new Human with no past memories.

Entering Soul Society
Shinigami enter and leave Soul Society by unlocking the Senkaimon using a Jigokuchō. Pluses, on the other hand, enter Soul Society through the ritual of Konso, (Soul Burial). When people die, they are assigned a number to a part of Soul Society according to when they died. Spirits can be born in Soul Society as much as in the living world, with the Shinigami acting to balance the souls.

Outsiders can pass through the Senkaimon in the same manner, but only in soul form. This allows spiritual beings, such as Ichigo in his Shinigami form, to enter without permission. Humans can also use such a gate through the use of Reishihenkanki (霊子変換機, spirit exchangers), which convert solid matter into Reishi's. While this method uses the same gate, the lack of a Jigokuchō forces intruders to pass through the Dangai. This is much more dangerous to do, as souls that cannot pass through before the gate to Soul Society closes are trapped there forever.

Hollows can also directly rip a hole to Soul Society from Hueco Mundo, or in the case of Arrancar, using their ability of Garganta.

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