When I refer to all things Abyssal, one might think I refer to Hell. But I do not. The Abyssal is deeper and beyond Hell. If the planes of existence were like depths in a well, the Abyssal is the deepest point a living human mortal would be able to perceive and/or understand.  Our material plane would be the surface. And what most consider to be the "higher" planes of existence are further "upward" towards "Heaven" and beyond it.

Hell, is butted up right under our feet. Hell exists because it is the mixing point between what sparse Abyssal energies have migrated towards our plane of existence. What was once formless and unknowable has imprinted on humanity's many many thoughts and feelings. What remnants of our souls and living energy are captured if the conditions are right. And over countless millenia, this has formed what one would describe as Hell: A region of Abyssal energy which has absorbed the collective thought forms of humanity over a long period of time and manifested a plane of existence which reflects back to us, those thoughts that have been literally and figuratively pushed down.

If one subscribes to the belief in the Abyssal then I suggest that one consider that Hell is a natural phenomena resulting from the interaction of thought forms and energies from the material plane and the sparse Abyssal energies. This explains many aspects of Hell's nature: the allowed existence of human souls in that plane, albeit continually tortured... but not destroyed. The ability to "breath" in that place, even though it is a realm far removed from the material plane and its vast quantities of breathable air. The very rock and flames within the realms of Hell are no more than densified energies taking on familiar shapes and forms as _we_ understand them to be... or more accurately, the collective of thinking life on the material plane.

The Concept of Distance

Though... that kind of poses the question then... _how_ is it that our material plane is butted up right against an emission of Abyssal energy allowing the formation of a Hell? No great mystery there. Also, no greater intelligence at work either. The Abyssal exists in all of _space_ and _time_. The only distance it has from our realm is _dimension_ or perhaps... a difference of vectors. But if you consider the sparse space within a multidimensional vector, there should be little chance for close proximity. To which I would ask you... according to what scale? A vector is merely our conceptualization of what we believe to be points, locations, regions, etc. in a relatively unknown existence. Those from the religious and science communities who make bold proclamations of certainty and then throw human lives at it... are barbarians. No, given a vector space of an infinite number of values and each value being of infinite ranges, the _distance_ between the material plane and the Abyssal plane is and always will be some fraction of 1. So an infinite number of points can exist along an infinite number of dimensions. But that merely increases the resolution by which we can measure that nearly non-existent distance between realms. There is a reason why they call it piercing the veil between dimensions and planes of existence... not journeying to or sailing to or flying to. It is a mere membrane that keeps that Abyssal realm from us.

And Hell? Hell is a mere onion skin of depth within that veil. And the distance between our material plane and Hell is likewise 1 with both infinite possible space and at the same time, virtually no space between the two. Hell is the resulting image when our material plane and the Abyssal plane's lights intersect, creating a shadow. No, I have no idea of the maths involved or any such rigorous approaches. This is why neither religion nor science will make use of these devices and processes... Because of the absolute relativety of all things... it is not possible to commit these concepts down in any writings of humanity. It would not make sense. Perhaps the denizens of Hell have a language for it. But our society prohibits exploration of both the Abyssal and Hell due to the stigma of those places and the negative and violent interactions that have resulted each and every time.

Why do I take pains to explain this? Because in your attempts to locate the Abyssal, you will more than likely instead tune into Hell, as the majority of our collective mental imagery leads us there when we consider the darkness that is likewise associated with the Abyssal.

So, here is something that will help you in discerning the two or at least... discerning past Hell: If Hell is a horrible place that lies between us and the Abyssal and it is so much worse... what would be butted up against Hell between Hell and the Abyssal? 

I strongly believe that this line of thinking is what will lead one closer to reaching a point of contact within the Abyssal.