Dante journeys with his heavenly guide Beatrice to explore the spiritual realms
Death is one of the biggest mysteries of life. What happens to us when we die? Is there an afterlife? Reincarnation? Heaven or hell?
Ancient and religious perspectives on what happens after death have always had many factors in common, like spiritual beings, demonic beings, judgment, and heavenly and hellish regions. Now, with the growing number of near-death experiences (NDEs), these factors are being corroborated by people today of all cultures and faiths – even by aethists. Compelling NDE accounts reveal that there is an existence after death and that these experiences are also a type of out-of-body experience.
Mystics throughout time, and still today, have used out-of-body experiences to visit the place we go to at death whilst still alive. One example is Dante who was able to explore the regions beyond the physical world, and return to give a detailed account of the afterlife in his epic work The Divine Comedy. This means that it is possible for each of us to know what life is for, and to prepare now for our journey beyond death.
Have you not wondered what you take with you at death? What you have within yourself, right now, which is not of time? What do you think you have within you which is spiritual? What can you really say that you know about life and death? Is it all just a belief?
Or are you prepared to find something real, which is not of the body? Can you live beyond the body? Can you acquire the spirit within you; can you reach the eternal within you?
~ Belsebuub in Gazing into the Eternal
Ancient and Religious Perspectives on Death and the Afterlife
To face death is to face an immensity, something very fundamental to existence. Everyone faces it; no one escapes it. There are very few who understand it.
~ Belsebuub in Gazing into the Eternal
‘Death’ and ‘preparation for death’ have formed a large part of most spiritual beliefs and practices throughout human history. This can be traced back as early on as the Iron and Bronze ages (3300 BC – 776 BC), where certain cultures held strong beliefs in a spirit world where the dead end up, as well as the possibility of life after death, with various myths and legends abounding about the trials a soul undergoes at death. Some of these cultures, such as the Eastern Melanesians, also believed that this underworld could be visited by the living via dreams and near-death experiences.
Anubis weighs someone's heart against the feather of Maat, as the crocodile Typhon waits and Thoth records the judgment
The ancient Egyptians considered death a necessary process that an individual must go through in order to enter a realm of bliss once their physical existence was over. In fact, they prepared for this sacred event their entire lives, because entering that divine realm at death was completely dependent on the way they lived their lives, contingent on the judgment each individual goes through where the merits of their heart are weighed on a scale against a feather to determine their purity.
From as early as 16oo BC, The Egyptian Book of the Dead, a compilation of funerary chapters, was placed in the tombs of the deceased with the aim of guiding them on their journey in the afterlife. Examining the passages, vignettes, and drawings from The Book of the Dead, one can see the process of death described in immense detail: upon death the human soul enters the underworld, where after passing some tests it reaches the Hall of Two Truths to undergo judgment by the god Anubis and the forty-two judges to determine its purity. The soul whose good deeds outweighed the bad was to proceed to its final destination of bliss and eternal happiness. If the scales were not in favor of the deceased however, the soul would be handed over through the Jaws of Typhon, the Crocodile, to enter the Abyss.
Similarly, The Tibetan Book of the Dead is still ritually used at funerals, serving as a guide to the deceased and containing an intricate description of the different stages of the experience of death. The Tibetan Book of the Dead explains the intermediate state of humans between death and reincarnation, where the deceased will find the bright light of wisdom, which shows a straightforward path to move upward and leave the cycle of reincarnation.
A painting of hell by Hieronymus Bosch
Zoroaster, who lived in the region now called Iran around 1000 BCE, teaches that the dead will be swallowed by terror and purified to live in a perfected material world at the end of time. The Pahlavi text Dadestani Denig (“Religious Decisions”) from about 900 CE, describes the particular judgment of the soul three days after death, with each soul sent to heaven, hell, or a neutral place (hamistagan) to await Judgment Day.
In Greece & Rome, Plato, in his Myth of Er, describes souls being judged immediately after death and sent either to the heavens for a reward or underground for punishment. After their respective judgments have been enjoyed or suffered, the souls are reincarnated. The Greek god Hades is known in Greek mythology as the king of the underworld, a bleak place in-between the place of torment and the place of rest, where most souls live after death. Some heroes of the Greek legends were allowed to visit the underworld while still alive. The Romans had a similar belief system about the afterlife, with Hades becoming known as Pluto. The Trojan prince Aeneas, who founds the nation that would later become Rome, visits the underworld according to the epic poem Aeneid.
One fascinating account from classical antiquity takes place in Greece, where Plutarch narrates the tale of Arisdeu, a dishonest and poorly-liked individual who falls into a coma after accidently falling and hitting his head on a rock. During his comma he experiences life outside his body, meets a spiritual guide, and visits other dimensions of consciousness. His experience ended when he felt a sudden pull towards his body, waking up physically at the very moment he was about to be buried. This experience was a life-altering milestone for Arisdeu, who had since transformed himself into a well-respected citizen.
We see evidence of the belief of the after-life and the presence of near-death experiences in Taoist China as well, where Yu Pao, inspired by his brother’s near-death experience, assembled the Record of Researches after Spirits (Shen-shen chi), a compilation of stories of out-of-body experiences.
In the Norse religion, The Prose Edda describes “Hel” as an unpleasant abode for those unworthy of Valhalla, which is reserved for chosen warriors who die in battle.
In Judaism, writing that would later be incorporated into the Hebrew Bible names sheol as the afterlife, a gloomy place where all are destined to go after death. The Book of Numbers identifies sheol as literally underground (Numbers 16:31-33). The Book of Enoch describes sheol as divided into four compartments for four types of the dead: the faithful saints who await resurrection in paradise, the merely virtuous who await their reward, the wicked who await punishment, and the wicked who have already been punished and will not be resurrected on Judgment Day.
For Kabbalists, the Zohar describes Gehenna not as a place of punishment for the wicked but as a place of spiritual purification for the souls of almost all mortals.
Mohammed visiting hell
In Christianity, Jesus and the New Testament writers of the Bible mention notions of an afterlife and resurrection that involve ideas like heaven and hell. The author of Luke recounts the story of Lazarus and the rich man, which shows people in Hades awaiting the resurrection either in comfort or torment. The author of the Book of Revelation writes about God and the angels versus Satan and demons in an epic battle at the end of times when all souls are judged.
The Upanishads describe reincarnation, or Samsara. The Bhagavad Gita, a treasured book from the Mahabharata talks extensively about the afterlife. Here, Lord Krishna says that just as a man discards his old clothes and wears new ones; similarly the soul discards the old body and takes on a new one. One view in Hinduism is that the body is but a shell, the soul inside is immutable and indestructible and takes on different lives in a cycle of birth and death. The end of this cycle is Mukti or salvation.
Near-Death Experiences
Ancient and religious perspectives on death and the afterlife, with their many similarities, are also correlating increasingly with reports of near-death experiences (NDEs) today. Modern technological improvements have enabled cases of NDEs to be reported on a wider scale. According to the Near-Death Experience Research Foundation (NDERF), 774 NDEs occur daily in the US alone!
Near-death experiences occur when a person dies (often suddenly, for example due to cardiac arrest, an accident, etc.) yet their consciousness carries on existing outside their body. Upon their revival they are able to share an account of the experience they had while being clinically dead.
Individuals who have clinically died and were revived come back with relatively consistent accounts of what they’ve experienced upon the death of their body. Although no two near-death experiences are the same, typical accounts include the sensation of separating from the body, a perception of one’s own body and surroundings, a feeling of traveling through a tunnel towards the light, meeting deceased relatives and spiritual beings, traveling into divine realms, going through a life-review, and heightened perceptions of feelings of serenity, joy, and love. In the case of such positive experiences, most report not wanting to reincorporate back into their bodies, but rather having a longing to stay in those blissful states and realms. Needless to say, such experiences have life-altering implications, often resulting in a strengthened appreciation of spirituality and love, as well as a loss of the fear of death.
Exploring the Esoteric Side of NDEs
It’s really crucial to look beyond this life. Looking beyond it, one faces and sees eternity. Seeing things that physical eyes can never see. Seeing beings, light, and darkness, in different ways that cannot be seen here.
~ Belsebuub in Gazing into the Eternal
Testimonials of NDEs are abundant, and are interesting and important to reflect on. They give us clues into the process of death and can illuminate the fabric of life… Continued in PART 2
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Belsebuub’s book Gazing into the Eternal will be released as a free eBook to download online in July 2011 at www.belsebuub.com.
What a fabulous article, bringing together many of the words myths and beliefs of death, hell and heaven, shedding light on them all in an easily digestible format. Thank you.
This was really interesting and inspiring. I was really taken back by some of the accounts of people who have had NDE’s. The sheer amount of people having them is remarkable.
It was great to read about how the afterlife is described in different religious and spiritual traditions.
I also found that message about how the deciding factor of where people ended up in their experiences (i.e. “heaven” vs. “hell”) was what they actually did in their lives very important.
This article has inspired me to be more serious about how I live my life and to aim to investigate more about this process through dreams and OBE’s.
Thanks very much for posting this.
The points you highlighted really stood out to me as well, Gabrielle, along with the quotes from Gazing Into the Eternal, which I found to be very reflection-provoking as well.
Exactly, that message stood out for me too; that no matter what I believe in, it is the actions that will count most at the end. To try to do my best so that my heart could be weighed against the feather successfully…
Wow! This was just an amazing read. So inspiring!
It gave me a lot to reflect upon, and a lot of inspiration to explore further with my own practices of astral projection and meditation.
Thank you!
The article is so informative and inspiring, thank you! There are so many references both from these ancient texts but also from reports by so many people. 774 NDEs daily is not a mere coincidence! It definitely inspired me to investigate more about OBEs and the process of death too.
Seriously awesome article. Really interesting stuff and totally inspiring, I’m so keen to step up my astral practices now. So much to explore! Thanks for the inspiration, the research, writing, web work and everything.
I’ve had a hellish experience quite similar to a few of the ones described. However it was in a dream not an NDE, but it seemed directly linked to an episode in my life when I behaved poorly and treated others badly. I awoke from it in terror with this understanding of exactly why I had the experience and what I needed to change.
Thank you this has been a very informative and inspiring article.
Certainly much to reflect upon and more so to try and experience.
The account of the priest being condemned to hell is compelling, highlighting the universality of humanity and the need for each person to live a life governed by the highest human good.
We see the caterpillar and the butterfly, a tree in winter and then in the summer and many other transformations of life and we get a glimpse of the possibilities. Einstein’s theory of Relativity can predict with perfect accuracy where bodies will be in time and space. It has worked perfectly since it was discovered. The theory does however break down at the point of a black hole or so physicist say. Using Einstein’s theory for a black hole mathematically says 1=0 and 0=1 which is infinity. Physicist say this is an impossibility. “It can’t exist”. The only way the mathematics work is if you add up to 10 or 11 dimensions. What are those dimensions? We know length, width, height, (mass) time, and what? Suppose Einstein’s Theory doesn’t break down at the point of a black hole and those other dimensions are the first mathematical proof of heaven. Can we really understand dimensions that transcend mass, space and time. Can a fish in a pond understand what life is like for most of us? Cell phones, cars, planes? Could we be the fish and those other dimensions are………..?
Thanks for this article. It puts things into a different perspective when you take these accounts into consideration.
Definately an article worth reflecting upon.
What touched me the most is the part that says how a person feels remorse when they are shown how they wasted their opportunities to change.
A realization of complete failure and loss of any other opoportunities must be very harsh. I understand that this feeling of desparation must be worse than the fear of death itself.
I found that touching as well Christos, about the remorse and the wasted opportunities. It’s harsh but very motivating at the same time to work hard now.
Amazing and very important article – thank you for this.
We will face death at one moment, but instead of fearing it we can actually learn about it while being alive.
It is amazing to realize that anyone of us can attain knowledge of such a depth through our own efforts, and that the limit lays only in what we make of our life and how much do we try to really experience and push through.
I wish everyone here to keep pushing with their efforts and to make the work happen in their lives, now and not tomorrow.
Amazing article, thank you again for it – it is powerful, important and inspiring.
This was a truly amazing article and it’s inspired me to sincerely try to find out more about death, and more importantly to sincerely go for the spiritual work in daily life.
Thank you to everyone involved in researching and writing it.
What an amazing article. I feel like I got goosebumps reading all those NDE accounts…it really sparked that curiosity in me to explore these other realms and as others have said, I’m very motivated to use the practices to achieve that exploration! Thanks for this great article!
Excellent read, thankyou for the article.
I have been very lucky to experience, at least to some degree, both worlds; the hellish realm where chaos dominates and also the spiritual blissful state of infinite love and pure light. The contrast between the two is like nothing I have seen on Earth.
One of the things I took from reading this article is that our lives are very short and pass quickly; born 20/30/40 years ago, yet this seemingly long period of time has passed already, literally in a blink of an eye. How much of that time has been wasted on meaningless, temporary activities; how much energy has been scattered in million directions…
Thankyou again for a very powerful read.
Great article, giving insight into traditions of the past and showing how they are just as relevant today, becasue death and the afterlife is still there waiting to be faced, although we don’t like to think about it, but NDEs bring that reality back home. Thanks for all the research and linking it all together. Definitely highlights the need to explore and understand what life is for and to live it well.
I know someone who had an NDE which had many things in common with the negative accounts here. But after they felt remorse and prayed, it became a positive experience, and when they revived they wanted to change their life.
NDEs really are more common than people realise. Taking a quick look on YouTube shows the number of experiences out there, both the positive and negative.
How incredible to read about all of those people’s stories. I find the subject of death very intriguing, ever since I was a young child I would wonder about what happens when we die, but I never really thought there was a way to explore it.
Actually, after learning about astral projection from Belsebuub’s teachings, I was able to meet a deceased relative just after they died. The experience shed some light about the process of death in a way that was really helpful for me. Not at all like anything I could have read or studied in a physical way.
I think the thing that touches me most about this subject, and this article, is how much help we get during the process of death. It’s very amazing to me to try and fathom the amount of compassion and mercy that the divine beings must have who oversee the death process. You really get a sense of that from the NDE accounts where people are saved after almost going to hell, and the descriptions of going through a life review. It’s a very striking and poignant, the ultimate learning experience.
I also found it really interesting reading up on how all those different cultures and religions viewed these topics, as well as reading through the many different NDE stories and accounts. It really makes you question those fundamental things such as can consciousness exist once the body or brain ceases to function. After having found and become interested in these teachings and all the topics they cover, I really wished I was aware of all this information earlier and not just the usual one-sided explanations and beliefs you hear out there these days about death and the afterlife.
Brilliant article! It’s great how the common wisdom about life and death from many traditions throughout the world has been drawn together and synthesized here.
The facts here speak for themselves, and like it was pointed out in the article, “…the weight of the decision of where people end up after death seems to be dependent solely on how people actually live their lives, not the beliefs they hold dear.”
May our actions and conduct in life be virtuous and wise, not just our intentions and beliefs.
Thanks for this great article, it really puts things into perspective.
Is such a contradiction that most of the time we live each day with the sensation of being permanent in this physical world and we give our life for granted not thinking about death at all, yet every night we go to the place where we’ll go when we die and where the deceased go, most of the times not even realizing it.
For me it’s been so helpful to learn about out of body experiences from Belsebuub and similar to Dara I’ve had some experiences (actually 3) with people before they died or had a NDE and it’s really striking. Only after that I understood deeply the quote above “it’s good to make use of this time” and since then my priorities had definitely changed as well as my understanding about death.
An incredible article, so compelling and so eye opening.
Many things stood out to me too, like everyone here, but one that stood out the most was the last quote from Belsebuub’s book Gazing into the Eternal, because it showed how incredibly valuable it is to live life from within and not the external perception of it, not even of ourself:
“Whoever lives their life intelligently knows that they are not their physical body. By living life well, using it to successfully awaken, death is faced in a completely different way. ”
If what truly counts is what is within us, how important is it to understand what is within and how to live life intelligently… such an amazing and soul provoking article.
Thanks for enlightening us and invigorating our uneasiness so that we can get up and walk…
Thank you very much for the article and work put in. Was so interesting to read all the different accounts and insights from Belsebuub.
Once you have your own OBE you really cant deny it or pass it off as a bad curry or something. I hope that more people can experience them and start to question their lives and priorities.