In The Next World, historian of religions Gregory Shushan explores the relationships between extraordinary experiences and beliefs in life after death. He first shows how throughout history and around the world, near-death experiences have influenced ideas about the afterlife. Shushan also takes a deep dive into the problem of similarities and differences between NDE accounts. Not only do they vary widely, but so does a culture's way of responding to them and integrating them into their belief systems. In this book Shushan also compares NDEs with accounts of shamanic spirit journeys to afterlife realms, intermission states between reincarnations from people who remember past lives, and descriptions of otherworlds by souls of the dead communicating through mediums. Accounts of all these phenomena bear striking similarities to NDEs, though also have important differences. Examining them each in relation to the other results in a kind of reciprocal illumination, in which each type of extraordinary experience sheds light on the other. Drawing on over two decades of research into cross-cultural afterlife beliefs and extraordinary experiences, The Next World presents not only an accessible overview of Shushan's work, but also takes a bold new step in psychical research. By combining ideas and methods from a variety of disciplines - archaeology, anthropology, sociology, and the study of religions - Shushan's unique take on the issues leads to new understandings of them. Unlike any of these disciplines, however, Shushan also crosses over into metaphysics, philosophy, and parapsychology, considering the implications of the cross-cultural data for the survival Are NDEs and other extraordinary experiences actually glimpses into another world and a taste of the true spiritual reality? If so, what could this afterlife actually be like in light of all the diversity of accounts? "...an original treatment of the subject, as wide-ranging in thought and feeling as it is rigorous and scholarly. Heartily recommended." ~ Michael Grosso, Journal of Scientific Exploration. "Gregory Shushan is one of the brightest lights in the rising generation of scholars in psychical research." ~ Alan Gauld, author, The Heyday of Mental 1880s - 1930 Investigators, Mediums and Communicators. "This fine new book by Gregory Shushan encapsulates his decades of painstaking ethnohistorical research on NDEs and various related phenomena, spanning a remarkable range of cultures and times. Strongly recommended!" ~ Edward F. Kelly, co-editor, Irreducible Mind, Beyond Physicalism. "Advances our understanding of NDEs and of our own nature as few other books have. This truly is a remarkable book." ~ Bruce Greyson, author, A Doctor Explores What Near-Death Experiences Reveal About Life and Beyond. "What a breathtaking tour of the expanse of human experience! It left me with a sense of wonder and admiration." ~ Zofie Weaver, author, Other Realities? The Enigma of Franek Kluski's Mediumship. "This extraordinary book provides concise, clearly-written text describing important NDE universal, cultural, and individual layers; revelations; geographical and historical perspectives; reincarnation; academic and popular hypotheses. Shushan provides abundant NDE narratives, illustrating his arguments.