num_pages: 288
description: Many publications, tv shows &amp; films relating near-death experiences have appeared. People who've survived brushes with death reveal their extraordinary visions &amp; ecstatic feelings at the moment they died, describing journeys thru a tunnel to a realm of light, visual reviews of past deeds, encounters with benevolent spirits &amp; lasting transformation upon returning to life. Zaleski's Otherworld Journeys offers the a comprehensive treatment of the evidence surrounding near-death experiences. The 1st to place researchers' findings, 1st-person accounts &amp; possible medical or psychological explanations in historical perspective, she discusses how these materials reflect contemporary culture. She demonstrates that modern near-death reports belong to a vast family of otherworld journey tales, with examples in most religious heritages. She identifies universal as well as culturally specific features by comparing near-death narratives in two distinct periods of Western society: medieval Christendom &amp; contemporary secular America. This comparison reveals profound similarities, such as life-review &amp; transforming aftereffects of the vision, as well as striking contrasts, such as the absence of hell or punishment from modern accounts. Mediating between debunkers &amp; near-death researchers, she considers current efforts to explain near-death experience scientifically. She concludes by emphasizing the importance of otherworld visions for understanding imaginative &amp; religious experience in general.
language: English
title: Otherworld Journeys: Accounts of Near-death Experience in Medieval & Modern Times
titlecomplete: Otherworld Journeys: Accounts of Near-death Experience in Medieval & Modern Times
genres: Religion, Death, Spirituality, Nonfiction, History
ratings_count: 49
publisher: Oxford University Press (NYC/Oxford)