Belief in an afterlife
Answered yes · n=588
Before54%
After89%
35 percentage points higher
Noeticmap · Stories, research, and the questions they leave us with
What happens
when we die?
Thousands of people have described near-death experiences. Explore their accounts, the research around them, and films that bring their stories into view.
Watch the films Follow your curiosity
Scenes from our short filmsInspired by near-death experiences
SHORT FILMS / INSPIRED BY NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCES
Stories from
the edge of life.
Cinematic interpretations of near-death experiences—from reported accounts to imagined journeys inspired by NDE themes. Watch with headphones.
Explore the collection
1:49An imagined journey
A breath between worlds
A London street. A single breath. A world waiting beyond the light.
1:30From Randall S’s reported account
What I could not bring back
Two familiar strangers. A city of crystal. Something too vast to carry home.
1:36From Mike W’s reported account
The golden field
Beyond the hospital, golden grass. Beneath an immense tree, a familiar face.
Artistic interpretations with AI-generated visuals and narration. Reported accounts and imagined stories are identified on each film.
Near-death experiences, in their own words
An extraordinary moment.
A life changed forever.
Read accounts of near-death experiences, alongside out-of-body and other spiritual experiences. Follow a question, a feeling, or a moment you recognize.
Skeptics transformed
When an experience changes everything.
Reunions with loved ones
Encounters with those who came before.
Into the light
An encounter with something beyond words.
Verified observations
Perceptions that invite a closer look.
A life, revisited
Looking back through someone else’s eyes.
Through a child’s eyes
Extraordinary experiences early in life.
Beyond the fear of death
A changed relationship with being alive.
The bonds we share
Animals, companions, and connections.
The experience is only the beginning
How NDEs
transform beliefs.
What changes when someone comes back? In these questionnaire responses, people describe a different relationship with life, belief, and death.
Explore the findingsBelief in God
Answered yes · n=833
Before66%
After83%
17 percentage points higher
Fear of death
Reported fear · n=883
Before85%
After30%
55 percentage points lower
Religious importance
Very important · n=636
Before25%
After75%
50 percentage points higher
Source: NDERF questionnaire responses. Before and after beliefs are reported retrospectively by the same respondents; sample sizes vary by question. This describes this sample, rather than establishing what caused a change or what all experiencers believe.
Visualization loads as you approach this section.
A living atlas of experience
Every point, a life.
Every connection, a question.
Near-death, out-of-body, and other extraordinary accounts, arranged by their similarities. See where their stories meet—and where they differ.
Enter the 3D mapNear-deathOut-of-bodyShared-deathAfter-death communication
From one story to a bigger picture
What do these stories
have in common?
Peace, light, encounters, a changed sense of time. Explore how elements of near-death experiences appear together.
Select an element in the diagram to follow its connections.
Visualization loads as you approach this section.
An open mind. A closer look.
Then, look at
the evidence.
A shared pattern is a place to start asking questions. Follow the studies, consider different explanations, and see what the evidence can—and can’t—tell us.
How to weigh the evidenceFollow a bigger question
What is consciousness?Did we exist before birth?Why are we here?Do we continue after death?Papers. Findings. Questions still open.
Open the literatureConsciousness & the brain
Theories of awareness and the relationship between mind and matter.
Near-death experiences
Clinical studies, first-person accounts, and the patterns within them.
Psi & perception
Research into information, intuition, and the limits of perception.
Altered states
Meditation, psychedelics, and changes in conscious experience.
Humanity has been asking for a long time
Different traditions.
Shared questions.
Across centuries and continents, people have wondered about the nature of awareness, the meaning of life, and what lies beyond it.
31 wisdom traditions13 enduring questions
Explore the wisdom traditions Buddhism Christianity Hinduism Islam Indigenous traditions
Make a little room to feel
Close your eyes.
Open another world.
Listen to narrated near-death and other extraordinary accounts. Hear what people remember, what changed, and how they describe returning to everyday life.
Your next listening journey is just ahead.
Browse the audio collectionA little orientation goes a long way
Curious is a
good place to start.
You don’t need a background in consciousness research. Start with a question, a short guide, or a story that stays with you.
Understanding near-death experiences5 min readThe experiences people describe7 min readHow researchers measure NDEs8 min read
More stories & ideas from the journal Keep a little wonder in your life.
A weekly selection of experiences, research, and new perspectives.
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