Abstract
Since Hans Christian Andersen has been admitted to the latest official hymn book in Denmark (2003) with two hymns, one might on this basis argue that he is no doubt a true Christian author. But although religion is essential to his life and works, his Christianity has often been questioned. A closer look at poems and stories by Andersen reveals a view of death as a moment of exclusiveness, intensity and enlightenment very similar to experiences known from mystic literature, but in his case connected with an idea of the soul as basically immortal and as being on an eternal journey, even qualifying and developing through and after death. This view of life and death and an ongoing life after death leads to a literary practice that dissolves the given epic structures and replaces them with musical and lyrical highlighting of the momentary experience.
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