Diversity and similarity of near-death experiences across cultures and history: implications for the survival hypothesis

Abstract

While accounts of near-death experiences (NDEs) are found around the world and throughout history, descriptions of the phenomenon vary widely. Whether arguing for or against the survival hypothesis, most scholarly and scientific discussions of NDEs are predicated on seeing them as either a universal human phenomenon or as an entirely culturally-constructed one. This article will discuss the implications for the survival hypothesis of historical and cross-cultural NDEs, in all their diversity and similarity. On the scientific level, it will consider how the apparent universality of NDEs can be been enlisted to support both survival and materialist hypotheses. On the metaphysical level, this chapter will explore what kind of afterlife might be philosophically conceivable if we were to accept NDE narratives as reflecting genuine afterlife experiences—particularly given all their diversity.