"The afterlife or life after death is a purported existence in which the essential part of an individual's stream of consciousness or identity continues to exist after the death of their physical body."
Discussion of beliefs about death, the afterlife, and how the dead are remembered in different religions.
Beliefs about Death: This includes an overview of different religious and cultural beliefs about what occurs after death, and how individuals and communities have traditionally approached death and dying.
Near-Death Experiences: Exploration of experiences such as seeing a "white light" or traveling through a tunnel, and how these experiences shape our understanding of what might occur after death.
Reincarnation: The concept of rebirth or return to life in a new form, and how this idea is found in different faiths and cultures.
Ghosts and Hauntings: Examination of beliefs and myths about spirits and apparitions that linger after death, and the ways these concepts have been explored in folklore, literature and popular culture.
Afterlife Rituals: The practices and rituals that different religious and cultural traditions use to honor deceased individuals, facilitate their journey to the afterlife, and support their surviving loved ones.
Judgment and Salvation: How different religions address the idea of judgment, considering in what ways individuals are saved or punished after death.
Heaven and Hell: An overview of different notions of paradise and damnation, and how different religious traditions envision these states of being.
Death as a Gateway: This includes a consideration of death as the end of one phase and the beginning of another, as more than just an endpoint.
Existential Ideas: Philosophical and psychological considerations of life and death, including thoughts about purpose or the meaning of existence.
Contemporary Issues: Areas of modern concern, like medical ethics, mental health, and end-of-life care, and how these themes intersect with religious beliefs about death and the afterlife.
Reincarnation: The belief that after death, a person's soul is reborn into another body, either human or non-human, in a cycle of birth, death, and rebirth until it reaches enlightenment or liberation from the cycle.
Heaven and Hell: The belief that after death, a person's soul goes to a place of reward or punishment, respectively, based on their deeds or beliefs during their lifetime.
Purgatory: The belief that after death, a person's soul goes to a temporary state of purification or atonement before going to heaven.
Annihilationism: The belief that after death, a person's soul ceases to exist, and there is no afterlife.
Ghosts/Spirits: The belief that after death, a person's soul remains as a disembodied entity or a specter that can interact with the living or haunt them.
Nirvana: The Buddhist concept of liberation from the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth, achieved through enlightenment and detachment from worldly attachment and desire.
Ancestors: The belief that after death, a person's soul becomes an ancestor spirit that can protect or influence the lives of their descendants.
Resurrection: The belief that after death, a person's body and soul will be resurrected for judgment and eternal life.
Cyberspace: The belief that after death, a person's mind or consciousness can be uploaded onto a computer or virtual reality, where they can continue to exist.
Wandering soul: The belief that after death, a person's soul can wander or roam aimlessly until it finds rest or is guided to the afterlife.
Merging with god: The belief that after death, a person's soul merges or unites with the divine or godhead.
Limbo: The belief that after death, a person's soul goes to a neutral state or place of waiting before going to heaven or hell.
"The surviving essential aspect varies between belief systems; it may be some partial element, or the entire soul or spirit, which carries with it one's personal identity."
"Belief in an afterlife is in contrast to the belief in oblivion after death."
"In some views, this continued existence takes place in a spiritual realm..."
"Yes, in others, the individual may be reborn into this world and begin the life cycle over again..."
"likely with no memory of what they have done in the past."
"...rebirths and deaths may take place over and over again continuously..."
"...until the individual gains entry to a spiritual realm or otherworld."
"Major views on the afterlife derive from religion, esotericism and metaphysics."
"...the dead go to a specific place (e.g. Paradise) after death, as determined by God, based on their actions and beliefs during life."
"The nature of the continued existence is determined directly by the actions of the individual in the ended life."
"The surviving essential aspect varies between belief systems; it may be some partial element, or the entire soul or spirit, which carries with it one's personal identity."
"In some views, this continued existence takes place in a spiritual realm..."
"In some views, this continued existence takes place in a spiritual realm, while in others, the individual may be reborn into this world and begin the life cycle over again..."
"...as determined by God, based on their actions and beliefs during life."
"In this latter view, such rebirths and deaths may take place over and over again continuously until the individual gains entry to a spiritual realm or otherworld."
"...the entire soul or spirit, which carries with it one's personal identity."
"Belief in an afterlife is in contrast to the belief in oblivion after death."
"...until the individual gains entry to a spiritual realm or otherworld."
"...the nature of the continued existence is determined directly by the actions of the individual in the ended life."