Description
Book SynopsisDrawing on death and afterlife traditions from cultures around the world, Mark Mirabello explores the many forms of existence beyond death and each tradition’s instructions to access the afterlife. He examines beliefs on the soul, heaven, hell, and reincarnation and wisdom from Books of the Dead such as the Book of Going Forth by Day from Egypt, the Katha Upanishad from India, the Bardo Thodol from Tibet, the Golden Orphic Tablets from Greece, Lieh Tzu from China, and
Heaven and its Wonders and
Hell from Things Heard and Seen from 18th-century Europe. Considering the question “What is Death?” Mirabello provides answers from a wide range of ancient and modern thinkers, including scientist Nicholas Maxwell, the seer Emanuel Swedenborg, 1st-century Buddhist philosopher Nagarjuna, and Greek philosopher Euripides, who opined that we may already be dead and only dreaming we are alive. He explores the trek of the soul through life and death with firsthand accounts of the death journey and notes that what is perceived as death here may actually be life somewhere else.
Trade Review“People interested in the research of survival of physical death will find in A Traveler’s Guide to the Afterlife a compelling wealth of information. People who are not interested in the subject will benefit from the author’s erudition and his remarkable exploration of the sacred Eastern and Western traditions.” * Anabela Cardoso, retired Portuguese senior career diplomat, editor in chief of the ITC Journal, and *
“An extraordinary exploration of humankind’s collective wisdom about what lies on the other side of death.” * Matthew McKay, Ph.D., author of Seeking Jordan *
“What stands out in this traveler’s guide to the afterlife is how great minds throughout Earth’s history have over and over said that reincarnation, the recycling of souls, is the machinery of the universe. This book reinforces the importance of the soul in the mind-body-spirit complex that humans are; it should inspire all readers to do what they can to strengthen their soul while alive in the matter world.” * Linda Moulton Howe, Emmy Award-winning investigative journalist and reporter and editor of Earthfile *
“I have been hoping to find a resource like this for years. Mark’s book has become one of my most valuable reference tools for information on multicultural, multispiritual perspectives on death and the afterlife. The research is impeccable.” * Rev. Terri Daniel, CT, founder of the Death Awareness Institute and The Afterlife Conference *
“The suspense of death often kills us, figuratively speaking. That unknown door we all inevitably walk through stands as the proverbial ‘elephant in the room’ that we all choose to ignore. In this book Mark Mirabello has accumulated the most extensive knowledge on death and the afterlife; it is enough to make a believer out of the skeptic. After reading this book you will face that unknown door with no suspense but instead a sense of wonder and excitement.” * Jason Gregory, author of Enlightenment Now and The Science and Practice of Humility *
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments
Introduction I. Where Are We Now?
Euripides Said We May Be Already Dead
II. How to Live Forever without a God or an Immortal Soul
If Either Eternal Recurrence or Eternalism Is Correct, Scientific Skepticism May Be Groundless III. Information for the Nihilists
A Guide for the Metaphysically Impaired
IV. Souls and Other Worlds
Some Interesting Traditions
V. The Trek of Souls
Accounts of the Death Journey VI. Afterlife
How to Enter Other Worlds VII. Ghosts and Specters
When the Dead Are Here
VIII. Communicating with the Dead
From Necromancy to Scrying
Afterword
Appendix I A Quick Guide to a Good Death
The Tibetan Way of Death
Appendix II Reincarnation
Some Possibilities
Appendix III How to Have an Out-of-Body Experience
Appendix IV A Séance Procedure to Contact the Dead
Bibliography
Index
