ENGLISH

Conceptions of the afterlife in early civilizations : universalism, constructivism, and near-death experience

By Gavin Flood , Gregory Shushan

Book information

Publisher
Bloomsbury Academic;Continuum
Year
2009
ISBN
0-8264-4073-8, 978-0-8264-4073-0, 9781441188120, 1441188126
Language
english
Format
PDF
Filesize
2 MB (1880233 bytes)
Series
Continuum advances in religious studies
Edition
1
Pages
238\255
Time added
2015-12-23 22:00:00
Future life. Universalism.

Description

In an original and innovative piece of comparative research, Gregory Shushan analyses afterlife conceptions in five ancient civilisations (Old and Middle Kingdom Egypt, Sumerian and Old Babylonian Mesopotamia, Vedic India, pre-Buddhist China, and pre-Columbian Mesoamerica). These are considered in light of historical and contemporary reports of near-death experiences, and shamanic afterlife 'journeys'. Conceptions of the Afterlife in Early Civilizations is a significant study, for it presents a comprehensive new comparative framework for the cross-cultural study of myth and religion, while at the same time providing a fascinating exploration of the interface between belief and experience - as well as a challenge to post-modern scholarly attitudes concerning cross-cultural comparisons in the study of religions.  The book was nominated for the 2011 Grawemeyer Award.

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