The Dark Night of the Soul

Near-death experiences and journeys of the soul have been labelled the biggest unsolved mystery of the sciences of consciousness. And indeed: so far, all philosophical, neurological or psychiatric-psychological attempts of explanation have failed.

Well-known philosopher and ethnologist Hans Peter Duerr has documented and analysed all accessible sources on near-death experiences and journeys of the soul from the beginning of records up until the present. That way, he succeeds in presenting an easily comprehensible, illuminating overview of interpretations of and opinions on this extraordinary experience. Beyond esoterism and dogmatic scientific rationalism, a frequently occurring and usually misunderstood phenomenon receives a convincing explanation.

»a wonderful, nearly lavish kaleidoscope of internal and external journeys« FAZ

»[a] fascinating [and] impressive book« Otto A. Böhmer, Frankfurter Rundschau

»Fascinating and enlightening – the first legitimate work on near-death experiences.« kultbote.de

»Duerr’s approach, informed by neurology and the philosophy of mind, handles hallucinations that are not quite of this world expertly and excitingly.« Hendrik Werner, Weser-Kurier