The existence of an afterlife.

Asphodel Meadows, Cockaigne, Mictlan, and Valhalla cannot be discovered unintentionally; they have to be explained. When I first heard the term “Valhalla,” as well as the other terms listed here, I thought, “What is that?” Later, I learned about the beliefs of the Vikings and the hall that they aspired to attend. But, these alleged locations cannot be discovered accidentally. Real locations can. So, regarding Heaven and Hell, are they more similar in kind to real locations or to Valhalla and the others? y = -3 + x:Initially, this might seem unrelatable to our topic. But, bear with me please. What is the value of y when x is equal to 3, in the equation y = -3 + x? We know how to solve for y. But, imagine that for some reason we were not allowed to directly replace x with 3 and solve for y. We are allowed to use any other value for x -- just not 3 nor its equivalent forms. Suppose we decide to use 3.001 for x, and find that we would get 0.001 for y. Continuing this way, suppose we substitute 3.00001 for x and evaluate that we would receive the value 0.00001 for y. So, even if we weren't permitted to evaluate directly the value of y if x were 3, we could gain an understanding of the likely outcome by investigating values close to 3. Similarly, we are told that we cannot evaluate, at our will, directly, the nature of Heaven nor Hell. But, we can evaluate matters approaching death. When death is near, the skin will show the effects of slowing circulation, respiration will become irregular and stop at times, there will be increased periods of sleepiness, a decreased intake of fluids and liquids, and a decrease in blood pressure and body temperature.[1][5][6] Yet, the adopted assumptions of believers are contrary to what's indicated. It's as though they believe that those functions as well as consciousness are either preserved elsewhere or will be reinstated. And, that is somewhat like believing that we should get the value 7,000 for y, when x is 3. Since we are discussing matters close to death, I'll express my views on near-death experiences. Firstly, near-death experiences are not unvarying nor a standard aspect of dying for all people. Reports of them vary in correlation with prevalent cultural norms.[4][7] In countries where Hinduism is a prevalent cultural norm, people report seeing Yama, the god of the dead, and having the akashic record of their life read.[4][7] A Lakota Sioux Native American's near-death story involved horses, spotted eagles, and geese.[7] An Egyptian Muslim lady reported seeing a throne inscribed with the words “There is no God but God, and Muhammad is His messenger,” after a car wreck.[7] A Taoist reported seeing Yudi, The Jade Emperor, during his near-death experience.[7] It is as if the religious teachings in a region can prompt people's subconscious. We do know what happens to our bodies when we die, just as we know the value for y if x were 3. But, it's as though the grim facts of decomposition are disregarded to heed afterlife notions instead. We have more specific definitions for death. One definition entails the cessation of respiration and heartbeat. It's called “clinical death.”[2] “Brain death” is the complete cessation of brain function as evidenced by absence of brain-wave activity and is used as a legal definition of death.[3] Those who report near-death experiences do not have brain death.[1] http://health.howstuffworks.com...[2] http://www.dictionary.com...[3] http://www.dictionary.com...[4] http://www.near-death.com...[5] http://www.hospicepatients.org...[6] http://www.hrrv.org...[7] http://listverse.com...