Christopher M. Moreman is professor and chair of the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at California State University, East Bay, USA. He has edited several volumes, including Teaching Death and Dying (2008) and The Routledge Companion to Death and Dying (2020).

Moreman (philosophy and religious studies, California State Univ., East Bay), editor of Routledge Companion to Death and Dying (2018), provides an accessible overview of different spiritual traditions' beliefs about the state of the human body and soul after death. The book covers the major world religions—Judaism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism—but Moreman expands this second edition (the first edition appeared in 2008) to include African traditions. In addition, he includes the beliefs and practices of individuals such as mediums and those who have had near-death experiences, looking at how they have shaped cultural views of the afterlife. What is most helpful about this book is that it presents these traditions in a fair, informative, and balanced way without getting lost in more technical debates or theological questions that might be of more concern to specialists. Moreman's inclusiveness makes the book relevant for those interested in cultural studies as well as those studying religion and dying. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-division undergraduates; general readers; professionals.

• Preface to the Third EditionAcknowledgmentsIntroductionPart I: An Overview of Beliefs in an Afterlife from Major World Religions1 Ancient Conceptions2 Judaism3 Christianity4 Islam5 Hinduism6 Buddhism7 Chinese Religions8 African TraditionsPart II: An Overview of the Research into Experiences of an Afterlife9 Mediumship10 Apparitions and Hauntings11 Near-Death and Out-of-Body Experiences12 Past-Life MemoriesPart III: Beliefs and Experiences: An Attempt at a Synthesis13 Comparison of Beliefs14 Comparison of Phenomena15 Speculations on Mysticism and the AfterlifeNotesBibliographyIndexAbout the Author

Christopher M. Moreman is professor and chair of the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at California State University, East Bay, USA. He has edited several volumes, including Teaching Death and Dying (2008) and The Routledge Companion to Death and Dying (2020).

Moreman (philosophy and religious studies, California State Univ., East Bay), editor of Routledge Companion to Death and Dying (2018), provides an accessible overview of different spiritual traditions' beliefs about the state of the human body and soul after death. The book covers the major world religions—Judaism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism—but Moreman expands this second edition (the first edition appeared in 2008) to include African traditions. In addition, he includes the beliefs and practices of individuals such as mediums and those who have had near-death experiences, looking at how they have shaped cultural views of the afterlife. What is most helpful about this book is that it presents these traditions in a fair, informative, and balanced way without getting lost in more technical debates or theological questions that might be of more concern to specialists. Moreman's inclusiveness makes the book relevant for those interested in cultural studies as well as those studying religion and dying. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-division undergraduates; general readers; professionals.

• Preface to the Third EditionAcknowledgmentsIntroductionPart I: An Overview of Beliefs in an Afterlife from Major World Religions1 Ancient Conceptions2 Judaism3 Christianity4 Islam5 Hinduism6 Buddhism7 Chinese Religions8 African TraditionsPart II: An Overview of the Research into Experiences of an Afterlife9 Mediumship10 Apparitions and Hauntings11 Near-Death and Out-of-Body Experiences12 Past-Life MemoriesPart III: Beliefs and Experiences: An Attempt at a Synthesis13 Comparison of Beliefs14 Comparison of Phenomena15 Speculations on Mysticism and the AfterlifeNotesBibliographyIndexAbout the Author

Christopher M. Moreman is professor and chair of the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at California State University, East Bay, USA. He has edited several volumes, including Teaching Death and Dying (2008) and The Routledge Companion to Death and Dying (2020).

Moreman (philosophy and religious studies, California State Univ., East Bay), editor of Routledge Companion to Death and Dying (2018), provides an accessible overview of different spiritual traditions' beliefs about the state of the human body and soul after death. The book covers the major world religions—Judaism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism—but Moreman expands this second edition (the first edition appeared in 2008) to include African traditions. In addition, he includes the beliefs and practices of individuals such as mediums and those who have had near-death experiences, looking at how they have shaped cultural views of the afterlife. What is most helpful about this book is that it presents these traditions in a fair, informative, and balanced way without getting lost in more technical debates or theological questions that might be of more concern to specialists. Moreman's inclusiveness makes the book relevant for those interested in cultural studies as well as those studying religion and dying. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-division undergraduates; general readers; professionals.

• Preface to the Third EditionAcknowledgmentsIntroductionPart I: An Overview of Beliefs in an Afterlife from Major World Religions1 Ancient Conceptions2 Judaism3 Christianity4 Islam5 Hinduism6 Buddhism7 Chinese Religions8 African TraditionsPart II: An Overview of the Research into Experiences of an Afterlife9 Mediumship10 Apparitions and Hauntings11 Near-Death and Out-of-Body Experiences12 Past-Life MemoriesPart III: Beliefs and Experiences: An Attempt at a Synthesis13 Comparison of Beliefs14 Comparison of Phenomena15 Speculations on Mysticism and the AfterlifeNotesBibliographyIndexAbout the Author