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Life After Death And The Heavens Beyond Model Understanding Spirituality Using Modern Science
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Book Synopsis Life After Death and the Heavens Beyond Model by : Yousuf Ali
Download or read book Life After Death and the Heavens Beyond Model written by Yousuf Ali and published by . This book was released on 2019-02-11 with total page 42 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The right way to discover 'life after death' - A way toward 'one worldorder'. This article discusses the physics of Einstein and Stephen Hawking tokeep a brick in understanding life after death and discusses the only wayto possibly discover the soul. The model discussed in this book is a blendproduct of modern physics, Islam and neurological sciences. It is a piece ofliterature that combines various pieces of literatures on a single platform,for instance, it brings the "spiritual, islamic, physics, biology, informationtechnology, and scientific reasoning" literatures on a single platform. This issome extraordinary work and it took me two years to complete thethinking and finally give it a written shape. The theories mentioned in thisbook are totally workable and can be put to test by the scientists of the21st century to figure out whether the conceptualization of 'life afterdeath' is something real or unreal. This will lead to a huge advancement inmodern day science, leading to attainment of one world unity in theproven concept, thence the forever notioned 'one world peace and order'.This work is published under category "Physics and Astronomy" by "Lambert Academic Publishers", but I recommend it for the general population as well to read!This work is purely scientific and is based on facts. It is, in short, a sequel to the books of Stephen Hawking namely "A brief History of time" and "Black Holes And Baby Universes", and also a sequel to Albert Einstein's "theory of relativity". It offers a new understanding of time, a way never taken before. It is a piece of literature that combines various pieces of literatures on a single platform, for instance, it brings the "spiritual, islamic, physics, biology, information technology, and scientific reasoning" literatures on a single platform. This is some extraordinary work and it took me two years to complete the thinking and finally give it a written shape. Since this piece of work brings various pieces of literature on a single platform, a lot of literatures can intermingle on a single platform for the first time!See! This is a noble extraordinary work in literature. It might even win the "noble prize in literature"!I feel that this is going to have a lot of sales as well and since its extremely short (around 14,000 words and in 42 pages only) and mentions to the point theories and science, the people will eventually love it!Its written in extremely simple language so that the people may understand with ease.
Book Synopsis Life After Death And The Heavens Beyond Model: Understanding Spirituality Using Modern Science by : Yousuf Tahir Ali
Download or read book Life After Death And The Heavens Beyond Model: Understanding Spirituality Using Modern Science written by Yousuf Tahir Ali and published by Lulu.com. This book was released on with total page 56 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Book Synopsis Managing Stress: Skills for Anxiety Reduction, Self-Care, and Personal Resiliency by : Brian Luke Seaward
Download or read book Managing Stress: Skills for Anxiety Reduction, Self-Care, and Personal Resiliency written by Brian Luke Seaward and published by Jones & Bartlett Learning. This book was released on 2023 with total page 665 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Managing Stress provides a comprehensive approach to stress management, honoring the balance and harmony of the mind, body, spirit, and emotions. Referred to as the "authority on stress management" by students and professionals, this book equips students with the tools needed to identify and manage stress while teaching them how to strive for health and balance. The holistic approach gently guides the reader to greater levels of mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual well-being by emphasizing the importance of mind-body-spirit unity"--
Book Synopsis The Map of Heaven by : Eben Alexander
Download or read book The Map of Heaven written by Eben Alexander and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2014-10-07 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Proof of Heaven teams up with the sages of times past, modern scientists, and with ordinary people who have had profound spiritual experiences to show the reality of heaven and our true identities as spiritual beings. When Dr. Eben Alexander told the story of his near-death experience and his vivid journey to the other side, many readers wrote to say it resonated with them profoundly. Thanks to them, Dr. Alexander realized that sharing his story allowed people to rediscover what so many in ancient times knew: there is more to life, and to the universe, than this single earthly life. Dr. Alexander and his coauthor Ptolemy Tompkins were surprised to see how often his readers’ visions of the afterlife synced up with each other and with those of the world’s spiritual leaders, as well as its philosophers and scientists. In The Map of Heaven, he shares the stories people have told him and shows how they are echoed both in the world’s faiths and in its latest scientific insights. It turns out there is much agreement, across time and terrain, about the journey of the soul and its survival beyond death. In this book, Dr. Alexander makes the case for heaven as a genuine place, showing how we have forgotten, but are now at last remembering, who we really are and what our destiny truly is. The Map of Heaven takes the broad view to reveal how modern science is on the verge of the most profound revolution in recorded history—all around the phenomenon of consciousness itself!
Book Synopsis Spirituality Beyond Science and Religion by : Lillian Stover Wells
Download or read book Spirituality Beyond Science and Religion written by Lillian Stover Wells and published by iUniverse. This book was released on 2012-05-25 with total page 172 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Spirituality means something different to everyone. Some may believe it involves participating in organized religion. Others may prefer it to be more personal, like getting in touch with ones inner self through yoga, meditation, quiet reflection, or even long walks. A few may find that it lies in finding a new sense of purpose for their lives. Spirituality Beyond Science and Religion addresses all of these, and more, through a new paradigm about life and death. It lifts readers above their daily press for competitive survival and success, by going to the heart of all spirituality. The book disputes traditional sciences claim that physical matter is the only reality. It also helps explain enigmas that have confronted orthodox religion for centuries. To do so, this book correlates published research from nearly one hundred and fifty authors and professionals in medicine, neuroscience, psychology, theology, history, and metaphysics. It explores new insights being revealed through thousands of subjective experiences around the worldall of them beyond the ability of science or religion to explain. The book therefore not only offers reassurance that death is not final but it also discloses profound implications for how we live our lives on earth. The US Review of Books Spirituality Beyond Science and Religion by William Pillow, with Jack McMahan and Lillian Stover Wells iUniverse reviewed by Priscilla Estes "but deep inside us is the recognition that life can and should have more meaning, one that reaches far beyond traditional science and orthodox religion and one that involves all of us." The mind-body-spirit (MBS) publishing industry has come a long way since the 1960s and 1970s when Aldous Huxley, Hermann Hesse and Carlos Castaneda combined Eastern and Western thought in the best-sellers Doors of Perception, Siddhartha, and The Teachings of Don Juan, respectively. In fact, according to religion and publishing expert Elizabeth Puttick, MBS publishing is the fastest growing non-fiction genre, which a quick examination of virtual and real bookstores supports. More than ever before, great minds race to close the gap between science and religion, to answer the questions of where do we come from, why are we here, and where do we go after death. We search for answers inside the human brain, the psyche, the fetus, gravity, energy fields, near-death experiences (NDEs), universal consciousness, time travel, soul travel, quantum medicine, karma, dharma, and moreit's hard for the average person to comprehend, let alone keep up! Finally, here is a book that helps pull it all together for us, written by William Pillow, ex-US Air Force and retired pharmacist with thirty-four years at Eli Lilly. Pillow began a quest to discover where we go after death and why when a long and lingering illness befell his wife and he confronted aging. Initially a Southern Baptist and a skeptic about all things metaphysical, he changed his mind while reading the incredible body of research on soul survival. After prodigious investigation, much of which concerns NDEs and studies on fetal awareness, Pillow concluded there is a soul, a God, and a Heaven. His conclusions may challenge your philosophy, but parenthetical documentation and a fifteen-page bibliography encourage independent verification. The book starts slowly and carefully as Pillow builds his case by conscientiously stitching together scientific, religious, and metaphysical literature, both ancient and modern, on the nature of God (the spark of life), souls (the human superconsciousness) and Heaven (the spirit world). The brain begins to smoke while chugging through study after study on NDE's, shared NDE's, life-between-lives (LBL), out-of-body-experiences (OBE), past-life regression, after death communications (ADC), pre-birth visions, neurological pathways, the transcendent source of consciousness, the ego, and more. We long for an index, a glossary, and less use of quotes around words that don't require them. Halfway through, our mental labors are rewarded with chapter 7, "Our Incomparable Souls." This is the heart of the book, a behind-the scenes look at the soul and a parting of the veil of forgetfulness produced by the ego. Pillow discusses studies on fetal consciousness, which provide the strongest circumstantial evidence for existence of the soul, and gives a moving testament to the soul's purpose: to instill compassion, empathy, and benevolence in its human host. The second half of the book flies by, as we greedily gobble mainstream studies on energy healing, brain waves, and the need for face-to-face friendships in an electronically connected world. Tucked unobtrusively at the end of chapter 11 are three paragraphs titled "For Me Personally," in which the author shares his private definition of faith. Such unheralded brevity from a man who once considered entering the Christian ministry shows great respect for the reader and for the role of science in decoding religion and spirituality. The final chapter implores us "to at least consider the possible importance of these concepts and commentaries for your loved ones and for you." Pillow believes that by knowing there is a God, a soul, and a Heaven, we can sustain our inner journey toward purpose and meaning in our lives; and that by recognizing our shared humanity, we can save civilization. One hopes and prays this is true as murders by children, mass killings by governments, greed, corruption, materialism, apathy, mental illness, addiction, and more threaten to suffocate humanity's life force. Pillow is an accomplished author, having written or edited five educational textbooks, several dozen articles, one murder mystery involving reincarnation and the paranormal, and five books about the search for self and the meaning of life through science, self-awareness, and spirituality. Spirituality Beyond Science and Religion is his first book written with theologian Jack McMahan and clinical psychologist Lillian Stover Wells. Pillow brilliantly connects his philosophy on the soul, God, and Heaven with salient literature in the field of science and religion. The MBS genre has come a long way from the Indian fables and drug-induced journeys of the sixties and seventies. Pillow's overall message that the power of love is greater than the love of power points us in the right direction for the twenty-first century.
Download or read book Beyond Death written by Gary R. Habermas and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2004-01-29 with total page 463 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Death - and what lies beyond - is not something you consider every day. But the thought of it raises some intriguing questions: Are there good reasons for believing in life after death? What is the afterlife like? How valid are the reports of near death experiences? Do heaven and hell exist? And if so, how can hell be reconciled with a loving God? By sharing the very latest scientific, philosophical, anthropological, ethical, and theological evidence on life after death, noted Christian scholars Habermas and Moreland present a strong case for immortality with this book. They begin by taking up the question of whether life after death is real and what evidence supports its reality. They then explore what the afterlife is like and go on to show how having this reality in your future should affect the way you live here and now. This book will reassure you that there's no need to fear death - as long as you're prepared eternity that follows. It's also a great aid in developing a serious biblical, rational, and even scientific defense for the belief in life beyond the grave.
Book Synopsis War of the Worldviews by : Deepak Chopra, M.D.
Download or read book War of the Worldviews written by Deepak Chopra, M.D. and published by Harmony. This book was released on 2011-10-04 with total page 354 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Two bestselling authors first met in a televised Caltech debate on “the future of God,” one an articulate advocate for spirituality, the other a prominent physicist. This remarkable book is the product of that serendipitous encounter and the contentious—but respectful—clash of worldviews that grew along with their friendship. In War of the Worldviews these two great thinkers battle over the cosmos, evolution and life, the human brain, and God, probing the fundamental questions that define the human experience. How did the universe emerge? What is the nature of time? What is life? Did Darwin go wrong? What makes us human? What is the connection between mind and brain? Is God an illusion? This extraordinary book will fascinate millions of readers of science and spirituality alike, as well as anyone who has ever asked themselves, What does it mean that I am alive?
Author :Reverend Dr. Charles B. Broadway,Ph.D Publisher :Xlibris Corporation ISBN 13 :1479777218 Total Pages :200 pages Book Rating :4.4/5 (797 download)
Book Synopsis Life Beyond Death by : Reverend Dr. Charles B. Broadway,Ph.D
Download or read book Life Beyond Death written by Reverend Dr. Charles B. Broadway,Ph.D and published by Xlibris Corporation. This book was released on 2013 with total page 200 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Do we have reasonable and rational hope of life after the event I call death? Knowledge is powerful. This book is powerful because it presents knowledge, information, insights, discoveries, experiences, and rational, compelling evidence of life and consciousness after the event I call death. Life Beyond Death, if read, digested, and experienced with an open mind, will greatly help you to understand and, most likely, not be afraid of death anymore as you attain a position and level of consciousness with insights and truths that humans have searched for down through the ages and the search by numerous civilizations for this information and insights. The book addresses, responds, and answers the following questions, among many others. 1) What is a near-death experience? 2) What happens at our death? 3) What are God (Yahweh, Elohim) and Jesus Christ like? 4) How big is God according to Jesus Christ of the Holy Bible? 5) Are animals/pets in heaven? 6) Are our physically deceased loved ones in heaven? 7) What is the relationship between life, soul, spirit, breath, essence, and consciousness, and what do they tell us about death? 8) What are the rational proof and compelling anecdotal evidence to support life beyond death? There is life after death. I know by experience and a lot of research. This book will bring you closer to God our Father, Creator, and Supreme Level of Consciousness. If you have questions or concerns about death and the afterlife, this book is a must-read. Faith and reason (thinking) go together as they are connected. This book will reduce your fear of death and make you a happier and more fulfilled person.
Book Synopsis My Life After Death by : Erik Medhus
Download or read book My Life After Death written by Erik Medhus and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2015-09 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the follow-up to Elisa Medhus’s My Son and the Afterlife—“a heartfelt, deeply moving story” (Eben Alexander, New York Times bestselling author of Proof of Heaven)—her son Erik tells his astounding story directly from the afterlife, describing in detail his death, transition, and spiritual renewal. My Life After Death begins on the tragic day when Erik Medhus took his own life. What follows is a moment-by-moment account of the spiritual life he discovers on the other side—told for the very first time in his own words as channeled by medium Jamie Butler and then transcribed by his mother Elisa. Overflowing with his signature honesty and candor, Erik describes more than just a visit to the afterlife. He personally walks us through the experience of dying, transitioning into spirit form, and reveals a detailed look at the life awaiting us on the other side. In this intimate and provocative memoir, crucial questions will finally be answered, including: What does it feel like to die? What is it like to become a spirit? Why and how do spirits communicate with the living? Is there a heaven? Ultimately, Erik’s story provides the answers that will help readers find solace and remove the fears surrounding death, showing that love has no boundaries and life does not truly end.
Book Synopsis Talking to Heaven by : James Van Praagh
Download or read book Talking to Heaven written by James Van Praagh and published by Penguin. This book was released on 1999-03-01 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: James Van Praagh is a spiritual medium—someone who is able to bridge the physical and spiritual worlds. Though unaware of his gifts until his twenties, he slowly came to terms with his unique abilities. Talking to Heaven explores his most revealing sessions with grieving people seeking to contact the spirits of loved ones. From a devastated mother receiving a message of hope from her deceased little girl, to communicating with a young man, killed in Vietnam, who doesn’t realize he’s dead, Van Praagh affirms his belief in the existence of a peaceful afterlife. Talking to Heaven also offers those who are grieving methods to recognize and positively deal with the pain of grief in a healthy, honest manner. Part spiritual memoir, part case study, part instrumental guide, Talking to Heaven will change the way you perceive death and life.
Book Synopsis Life After Death and the World Beyond by : Jenny Randles
Download or read book Life After Death and the World Beyond written by Jenny Randles and published by . This book was released on 1998 with total page 174 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Examines a variety of topics relevant to the question of an afterlife for the soul after the body dies, including dreams, out-of-body and near-death experiences, angels, ghosts, and communication with spirits.
Book Synopsis Secrets of Life After Death by : Ward Edward Barcafer Jr.
Download or read book Secrets of Life After Death written by Ward Edward Barcafer Jr. and published by Balboa Press. This book was released on 2020-07-29 with total page 459 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is a book about life after death as provided to me through journaling and a series of extraordinary events by my wife, Suzette Delashmet Shockley, after her demise. When these events started to happen, I, having not known or even though about life after someone has passed was in disbelief. I researched and kept an open mind. Because of these happenings and my research, I now know that when a person loses a good friend, a spouse, a child, or other loving relationship, the deceased person can come through. The stronger the love vibrations, the easier and the stronger the connection between them will be. In shock and deep despair over the death of his beloved wife, Suzette Delashmet Shockley-Barcafer, Ward Barcafer struggled to live his life. But to his surprise, he began hearing Sue’s voice coming through to him from her life in Heaven! ... (Paula Lenz) This profound inner play from the light of love gives insight to the presence of heaven on earth and the continual expression of earth connection to what is called Heaven. The depth and breadth of their love is known as a harmonic love. ... (Dr. Patty Luckenbach) For those of a skeptical nature, the proof of life after death is undeniable. For those who are grieving, the intimacy and teachings are comforting. For those who are curious, these are remarkable stories. ... (Marcia Beachy) In this intimate journal of his experiences with Suzette and his spirit guides, Ward walks us through spirit to spirit connection and communication that has no barriers separating the earthly and ethereal realms. Suzette selflessly shares with us, through Ward, what life is like for a soul in Heaven ... (Dr. Ruth Anderson)
Book Synopsis Messages from Heaven by : Patricia Kirmond
Download or read book Messages from Heaven written by Patricia Kirmond and published by SCB Distributors. This book was released on 2010-02-10 with total page 190 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "What is heaven really like? A recently departed soul speaks from heaven about his experiences on the other side. The unseen author of this book tells us of life’s true purpose and urges us to make the most of our sojourn on earth. He warns us that we are fast approaching a turning point, which could lead to an age of enlightenment and peace or to a future none of us wants to see. If we act now, we can still turn things around...but we need help from heaven. “I have witnessed so many beautiful and amazing events on this side. However, I believe that my greatest opportunity is to urge you to see what you have, where the planet is headed without intervention and how you can make a difference.... I feel an urgency to help people recognize the signs of the times.” This story of a soul’s life after death will change the way you look at life—and death."
Book Synopsis Heaven on My Mind by : George E. Vaillant
Download or read book Heaven on My Mind written by George E. Vaillant and published by Nova Science Publishers. This book was released on 2017 with total page 110 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Heaven fascinates us, yet we lack any empirical information about it. Why, despite our multiple faith traditions, does Heaven have such positive connotations for us all? Why, despite no tangible evidence, should autobiographies by authors who claim to have visited Heaven, usually through near death experiences, attract literally millions of readers? Why does virtually everyone, even non-believers, agree with the old adage that "There is nothing better than Heaven"? Since a picture is worth a thousand words, Heaven on My Mind will focus more on true stories than on explication. In this book, the author shows how the prospectively gathered spiritual and religious biographies of the men in Harvard's legendary Study of Adult Development (The Grant Study) cast light upon the significance of faith and hope for love in Heaven in real lives.The author intends to show that putting the newly discovered concept of prospection together with our ancient faith in heaven allows us to understand the value of ruminating on an afterlife. Indeed, the life histories of the 184 men followed for their life-time in Harvard's path-breaking Study of Adult Development faith in Heaven is significantly associated with leading more successful lives.Due to recent advances in neurophysiology, the study of prospection reflects a paradigm shift in our understanding of the human mind. Prospection reflects the fact that the brain combines incoming information with stored information to build "mental representations" of the external world.Dr. Seligman and his colleagues' book, Homo Prospectus (2016) revolutionizes modern psychology and supplants the past oriented psychology of Skinner, Freud and cognitive psychology with future oriented psychology suggested by this recently discovered neuroscience. It is prospection that allows us "to fight the next war, not the last war."The author received a Templeton grant to study prospection by reanalyzing The Harvard Study of Adult Development (The Grant Study). Since 1939, the landmark Grant Study has conducted a prospective - in contrast to retrospective - lifelong social and medical study of a cohort of healthy college males.In order to document whether religious affiliation increased over time, beginning at age 47, every 6 years the author, as the longtime Grant Study Director, has asked the men about the intensity of their religious affiliation and the degree of their belief in life after death. Heaven on My Mind uses these spiritual and religious biographies to illuminate the significance of faith and hope for Heaven. In short, Heaven on My Mind will reflect the "natural history" of the men's religious affiliation and their prospection of - and their expectations about - Heaven over the course of their lives.Admittedly, the Study surveyed a very narrow sample; it only studied the lives of 184 socially privileged, not very religious, Jewish and Christian men born around 1920. However, it is to the author's knowledge that this is the only study in the world to follow prospectively the religious development of human beings over a lifetime. As in time-lapse photography, all of the men visibly evolved; "caterpillars" were transformed into "butterflies". The majority of men became more resilient, more mature and more open.For 40 years, readers have found such human transformations in the longitudinal studies of the author's books fascinating. The author believes Heaven on my Mind will be yet another major chapter in the research toward fully understanding the Study of Adult Development.
Book Synopsis Science and Beyond by : Roberto Miguel Rodriguez
Download or read book Science and Beyond written by Roberto Miguel Rodriguez and published by . This book was released on 2023-09-24 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Science and Beyond: Investigating the Possibility of an Afterlife" delves into one of humanity's most timeless and profound questions: Is there life after death? This groundbreaking book marries scientific rigor with open-minded exploration, shedding light on age-old beliefs, recent discoveries, and the myriad intersections between spirituality and science. Key features include: Historical Perspectives: A journey through civilizations, tracing humanity's evolving beliefs about the afterlife across cultures, religions, and epochs. The Brain and Consciousness: A deep dive into the latest neuroscientific research about consciousness, near-death experiences, and the mysteries of the human mind. Quantum Considerations: Explore the implications of quantum physics on concepts of consciousness, reality, and potential dimensions beyond our own. Case Studies: Documented experiences from individuals who claim to have had glimpses of an afterlife, analyzed with a critical but open-minded approach. Mediumship and Paranormal: An objective examination of mediums, channeling, and other paranormal phenomena that suggest communication with another realm. The Science of Memory: Investigating how memories, genetics, and epigenetics might play a role in our understanding of continuity after death. Philosophical and Ethical Implications: Reflect on the meaning of life, morality, and the human psyche's need for continuity, purpose, and transcendence. Future Research: A look ahead to the next frontier in afterlife research, technological advancements, and the potential for new scientific methods to explore the unknown. A Global Perspective: In addition to Western beliefs and scientific approaches, the book also integrates views on death and the afterlife from indigenous cultures, Eastern philosophies, and lesser-known spiritual traditions. "Science and Beyond: Investigating the Possibility of an Afterlife" invites readers to embark on a thought-provoking journey, challenging preconceived notions and encouraging an interdisciplinary dialogue about life, death, and the realms that might lie beyond. A blend of hard science, philosophy, and spiritual exploration, this book serves as a comprehensive guide for anyone seeking a broader understanding of our existence's ultimate questions.
Book Synopsis What Happens After Death by : Migene González-Wippler
Download or read book What Happens After Death written by Migene González-Wippler and published by Llewellyn Worldwide. This book was released on 1997 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A text which poses the question; what does modern science and the world's religions tell us about the mystery of life after death? This book explores these issues, enabling readers to experience one soul's journey through the afterlife.
Download or read book Life After Death written by Alan Segal and published by Image. This book was released on 2010-06-23 with total page 882 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A magisterial work of social history, Life After Death illuminates the many different ways ancient civilizations grappled with the question of what exactly happens to us after we die. In a masterful exploration of how Western civilizations have defined the afterlife, Alan F. Segal weaves together biblical and literary scholarship, sociology, history, and philosophy. A renowned scholar, Segal examines the maps of the afterlife found in Western religious texts and reveals not only what various cultures believed but how their notions reflected their societies’ realities and ideals, and why those beliefs changed over time. He maintains that the afterlife is the mirror in which a society arranges its concept of the self. The composition process for Judaism, Christianity, and Islam begins in grief and ends in the victory of the self over death. Arguing that in every religious tradition the afterlife represents the ultimate reward for the good, Segal combines historical and anthropological data with insights gleaned from religious and philosophical writings to explain the following mysteries: why the Egyptians insisted on an afterlife in heaven, while the body was embalmed in a tomb on earth; why the Babylonians viewed the dead as living in underground prisons; why the Hebrews remained silent about life after death during the period of the First Temple, yet embraced it in the Second Temple period (534 B.C.E. –70 C.E.); and why Christianity placed the afterlife in the center of its belief system. He discusses the inner dialogues and arguments within Judaism and Christianity, showing the underlying dynamic behind them, as well as the ideas that mark the differences between the two religions. In a thoughtful examination of the influence of biblical views of heaven and martyrdom on Islamic beliefs, he offers a fascinating perspective on the current troubling rise of Islamic fundamentalism. In tracing the organic, historical relationships between sacred texts and communities of belief and comparing the visions of life after death that have emerged throughout history, Segal sheds a bright, revealing light on the intimate connections between notions of the afterlife, the societies that produced them, and the individual’s search for the ultimate meaning of life on earth.
