do soul travel after death

Where Does The Soul Go After Death According To The Bible

The question of what happens after death has perplexed humanity since the dawn of time. If you’re looking for a quick answer according to the Bible – when we die, our soul leaves our earthly body and goes to either heaven or hell based on whether we had faith in Jesus Christ as savior .

In this comprehensive article, we will examine in detail the biblical teachings about the afterlife and the fate of the soul after death. We will look at verses from both the Old and New Testaments to understand God’s revelations on this profound topic.

The Immortality of the Human Soul

The soul lives on after death of the body.

The Bible teaches that the soul continues to exist after the death of the physical body. Passages like Ecclesiastes 12:7 state that “the spirit returns to God who gave it.” This indicates the spirit, or soul, survives the perishing of the body.

Jesus affirmed the ongoing existence of the soul in his story of Lazarus and the rich man in Luke 16:19-31 . After their deaths, Lazarus’ soul was comforted in the presence of Abraham, while the rich man’s soul was tormented in Hades.

The apostle Paul also assumed the soul lives on when he wrote his desire was “to depart and be with Christ” after death ( Philippians 1:23 ). Paul understood death meant his soul would leave his body to dwell in God’s presence.

Other verses like Matthew 10:28 , Revelation 6:9 and Hebrews 12:23 also confirm souls exist in a conscious state after bodily death.

The differences between the body, spirit and soul

The body is the physical aspect of a human being that enables sensory experiences and actions in the tangible world. The body allows the inner person to interact with creation.

The spirit is the immaterial part of a human that connects and communes with God. The spirit enables moral intuition, God-consciousness, and intuition of spiritual truths.

The soul is the immaterial essence of a human being which includes mind, emotion, passion, creativity, personality and conscience. The soul is who we are on the inside.

At death, the soul separates from the body and enters an intermediate state. The doctrine of “soul sleep” is unbiblical. The souls/spirits of both the saved and unsaved enter a conscious state, the former in heaven and the latter in Hades.

At the future resurrection, the disembodied soul/spirit will reunite with a resurrected imperishable body ( 1 Corinthians 15 ) suited for the eternal state.

Sheol and Hades – Realms of the Dead

Sheol in the hebrew bible.

In the Hebrew Bible, Sheol (שְׁאוֹל) is described as a place located below the ground where the dead would go after death. The word Sheol literally means “pit” or “grave” in Hebrew.

Sheol is portrayed as the final destination for all humans, both righteous and wicked, after death. It was considered to be a shadowy place cut off from God where lifeless souls would descend (Psalm 88:3-5).

According to Ecclesiastes 9:10, there is “no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom” in Sheol.

However, there are a few Old Testament passages that suggest a distinction between the fate of the righteous and the wicked in Sheol (Isaiah 14:9-11; Daniel 12:2). This set the foundation for a more developed concept of separate destinies after death in later Judaism.

Hades in the New Testament

The New Testament uses the Greek word ᾅδης (Hades) to refer to the abode of the dead. Hades is most often used as the Greek parallel to the Hebrew concept of Sheol.

Jesus mentions Hades several times according to the Gospels, most notably in the parable of Lazarus and the rich man (Luke 16:19-31). In this story, Jesus portrays Hades as a place of torment for the selfish rich man, distinct from Abraham’s bosom which received the beggar Lazarus after death.

So while Sheol in the Old Testament refers generally to the dwelling place of all the departed spirits, Hades begins to reflect the variety of fates expected by righteous and unrighteous souls after death.

This distinction is even firmer in Christ’s promise to the thief on the cross that “today you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43).

The concept of Hades in the New Testament therefore demonstrates a progression of the afterlife beliefs already foreshadowed in the Old Testament. Where the spirit goes after death came to be more clearly defined as either paradise for those who loved God or a place of anguish for those who rejected him.

The Final Destiny – Heaven or Hell

Heaven – dwelling place of god.

The Bible teaches that heaven is the dwelling place of God, where those who have put their faith in Jesus Christ for salvation will spend eternity after death (John 14:2-3). It is described as a place of perfection, with no sin, suffering, or death (Revelation 21:4).

Believers will have resurrected glorified bodies and will see God face to face (1 Corinthians 13:12). There will be ongoing fellowship and worship of God.

Some key aspects of heaven highlighted in Scripture include:

• A place prepared by Jesus for believers (John 14:2)
• Paradise (Luke 23:43)
• Eternal life in God’s presence (Psalms 16:11)
• No more tears, death, mourning, crying, or pain (Revelation 21:4)
• The New Jerusalem, the heavenly city (Revelation 21:2)

Hell – Place of eternal punishment

Hell is described in Scripture as a place of eternal punishment for the unbelieving and unrepentant (Matthew 25:46; Mark 9:43). It is a place of separation from God, with ongoing torment. Hell is the final destiny for Satan and fallen angels as well as those humans who reject Christ (Matthew 25:41; Revelation 20:10).

Some key things the Bible says about hell:

• Lake of fire, originally prepared for the devil and his angels (Matthew 25:41)
• Eternal fire (Matthew 18:8; 25:41)
• Eternal punishment (Matthew 25:46)
• Weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 13:42)
• Outer darkness (Matthew 22:13)

Final Resurrection and Last Judgment

The Bible teaches that all humanity will face a final resurrection and judgment before God (John 5:28-29; Revelation 20:11-15). Believers will be resurrected to eternal life with God while unbelievers will be resurrected to eternal punishment in hell.

This final resurrection and judgment will occur after Jesus’ Second Coming and the defeat of God’s enemies (Revelation 19:11-21). Some key events associated with this include:

• The resurrection of the righteous and unrighteous (Acts 24:15)
• The Great White Throne judgment by God (Revelation 20:11-15)
• Separation of the sheep (believers) and the goats (unbelievers) (Matthew 25:31-46)
• The lake of fire prepared for the devil, beast, false prophet and unbelievers (Revelation 20:10, 15)
• The new heaven and new earth for eternity (Revelation 21:1)

To conclude, the Bible clearly teaches we each have an immortal soul that will spend eternity in either a state of heavenly blessedness with God or horrific separation from Him. The decision resides in each individual’s response to Christ’s atoning sacrifice on the cross.

We encourage you to deeply consider where your soul will end up.

Amanda Williams is a dedicated Christian writer and blogger who is passionate about sharing Biblical truth and encouraging believers in their faith walks. After working as a youth pastor and Bible teacher for several years, she launched her blog in 2022 to minister to Christians online seeking to grow deeper in their relationship with Jesus Christ. When she's not creating content or connecting with readers, Amanda enjoys studying theology, being out in nature, baking, and spending time with family. Her goal is to provide practical wisdom and hope from a genuine Christian perspective. Amanda currently resides in Colorado with her husband, daughter, and two rescue dogs.

Similar Posts

What Does The Bible Say About Cremation?

Cremation is a method of final disposition of a dead body through burning. With rising funeral costs, more people are choosing cremation over traditional burials. If you’re wondering what the Bible says about cremating human remains, this comprehensive guide examines the scriptural evidence. If you’re short on time, here’s a quick answer: the Bible does…

Alabaster Skin Meaning: Unveiling The Secrets Of Porcelain Beauty

In the realm of beauty and aesthetics, few terms evoke a sense of ethereal elegance quite like ‘alabaster skin.’ This phrase, often used to describe a complexion of unparalleled radiance and purity, has captivated the imagination of poets, artists, and admirers alike for centuries. If you’re short on time, here’s a quick answer to your…

Rose With Wings Tattoo Meaning: A Comprehensive Guide

In the world of body art, tattoos have become a canvas for self-expression, symbolism, and personal narratives. Among the myriad of designs, the rose with wings tattoo has emerged as a captivating and multifaceted symbol, resonating with individuals seeking to embody strength, resilience, and the pursuit of freedom. If you’re short on time, here’s a…

What Does ‘Imk’ Mean In Text? A Comprehensive Guide

In the ever-evolving world of digital communication, acronyms and abbreviations have become an integral part of our daily conversations. One such acronym that has gained popularity, particularly among younger generations, is ‘imk.’ If you’ve ever come across this term and wondered what it means, you’re not alone. If you’re short on time, here’s a quick…

Double Heart Tattoo Meaning: A Comprehensive Guide

In the world of body art, tattoos have long been a means of self-expression, conveying personal stories, beliefs, and emotions through intricate designs etched onto the skin. Among the myriad of tattoo motifs, the double heart tattoo stands out as a symbol of profound significance, capturing the essence of love, unity, and eternal bonds. If…

Jesus Fish Tattoo Meaning: Exploring The Symbolism And Significance

In the vast tapestry of tattoo art, the Jesus fish symbol has emerged as a powerful and enduring emblem, resonating with individuals across various cultures and belief systems. If you’re short on time, here’s a quick answer to your question: The Jesus fish tattoo, also known as the ichthys or the Christian fish symbol, is…

What Happens After Death? Understanding Where Your Soul Goes

The present state is where you are now. You exist in this present state. From the moment of conception, you became a human being, that is, a “soul.” Your soul is eternal. Scripture teaches us that we exist from conception until death, from death until the Second Coming of Jesus Christ and the General Resurrection from the dead, and then, the New Heavens and the New Earth. This article will seek to answer what happens at death to both your body and soul. 

What Happens After Death?

It is important to admit that the word “soul” is not merely a disembodied entity. In the Bible, “soul” is who you are. Consider Genesis:

God “breathed the breath of life” into Adam, and he became a “living soul” ( Genesis 2:7 ; the New Revised Standard uses the word, “being”). Thus, in the biblical view, Adam does not have a soul; Adam is a soul (i.e., a person, a living being). The soul is, literally, “. . . that which breathes, the breathing substance or being. [1] In his article “Soul,” G.W. Moon says “In Christian theology the soul carries the further connotation of being that part of the individual that partakes of divinity and survives the death of the body.”

Augustine and Thomas Aquinas rejected Platonic dualism, which saw the soul as good and the body as corrupt. These two theological giants, separated by centuries, agreed the Bible teaches that the spirit is the eternal person, but will one day have an eternal body:

“According to Saint Thomas Aquinas, who follows Aristotle in his definition of the human soul, the soul is an individual spiritual substance, the ‘form’ of the body. Both, body and soul together, constitute the human unity, though the soul may be severed from the body and lead a separate existence, as happens after death. The separation, however, is not final, as the soul, in this differing from the angels, was made for the body. [2]

The Psalmist spoke of our soul as the very inmost being of our person: “Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name” ( Psalm 103:1 NIV).

Jesus spoke of the inestimable value of the human soul (and simultaneously taught that soul and body will be reunited for either eternal life with or, in that case, without God):

“Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell” ( Matthew 10:28 NIV).

Your body and soul, like all of Creation, are marred by the Fall and its consequences. Or, as John Milton titled the situation in his epic poem, Paradise Lost.  The fallen soul must be redeemed. This is the plan of God, the Covenant of Grace, that constitutes the single scarlet thread that binds the entire Bible together.

Therefore, we must admit:

Your Body and Soul Need Redeeming From the Fall

David wrote in Psalm 19 about the wonder of God’s world, His creation. But in verse seven David makes a turn. The “general revelation” gives evidence of Almighty God, but “special revelation,” God’s Word, is necessary to do this one thing: “revive” the human soul. Psalm 19:17 says “The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul” ( KJV ).

Indeed, we are to be born again, the soul undergoing a supernatural transition, making it “fit” for heaven. Our souls are “lost” without redemption.

The Bible teaches that there is no other redemption available except that “way” that Almighty God has provided through His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ: “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” ( Acts 4:12 ESV).

Jesus Christ is the Redeemer According to the Covenant of Grace

When the Gospel is proclaimed and received by faith, the terms of the Covenant are imputed to you (the terms are expressed in “a great exchange:” the repentant and believing sinner receives Christ’s righteousness and His atoning sacrifice on the Cross; Christ received the sinner’s sin and punishment for sin). You pass from death and judgment to forgiveness and eternal life. “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment but has passed from death to life” ( John 5:24 ESV).Not so the unrepentant. The soul remains in a fallen state, responsible for the terms of the Covenant of Works (the soul that sins must die). It is for this reason that the Psalmist, speaking in the voice of the Messiah to come, declares that God will not leave his soul to perish. This truth is also picked up by Peter in his first sermon at Pentecost. The soul without God will undergo unimaginable loss that is described by Jesus with the most severe imagery (e.g., Matthew 25:46 : “And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”).

My dear reader: your soul and mine must be redeemed from the auction block of sin and the devil lest we — that is, our souls — face certain loss and punishment. And the only Redeemer of God’s elect is the Lord Jesus Christ. Repent. Trust in the resurrected and living Christ while you are still reading this article. Stop what you are doing and turn to Jesus Christ by faith.

Our study leads us, then, to the place of the soul between death and the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.

When we say, “the intermediate state ,” we are not speaking of “limbo” or “purgatory” or any such thing. We are speaking of that period in which the soul is in heaven and our remains await resurrection. That is the “intermediate state” in our personal eschatology.

Where Do Bodies Go After Death?

The redeemed are ushered into the eternal presence of the Lord, and those without an advocate (righteousness to meet God’s Law and sacrifice to atone for sin) are ushered into hell to await the New Heaven and New Earth.

The Bible teaches that the human spirit, upon departing the body, goes immediately into the presence of God for either His welcoming or His disapproval. Thus, our blessed Savior taught this truth when He gave the parable of the wicked in Hell crying out to Abraham for refreshment:

“There was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus , covered with sores, who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover, even the dogs came and licked his sores. The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried, and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. And he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.’ But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish ( Luke 16:19-25 ESV).

There is no more concise and thoroughly Biblical expression of faith about the soul going immediately to be with God until the resurrection than the 38 th question in the Westminster Shorter Catechism:

Q. 38. What benefits do believers receive from Christ at the resurrection? A. At the resurrection, believers being raised up in glory ( 1 Cor. 15:42-43 ), shall be openly acknowledged and acquitted in the day of judgment ( Matt 25:33-34 ), and made perfectly blessed in the full enjoying of God ( Rom. 8:29 , 1 John 3:2 ) to all eternity ( Ps. 16:11 , 1 John 3:2 ).

At death, the body returns to the elements: “dust to dust . . .” But the soul resurrects with a new heavenly body. 

At the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, the General Resurrection commences. The redeemed bodies are renewed with the eternal soul and rise to meet Jesus Christ, joining Him in the air, taking their place with the glorious company of angels, archangels, prophets, apostles, martyrs and the whole company of heaven. The Great White Throne Judgement has been the subject of classical Christian teaching throughout Church history: “And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them” ( Revelation 20:11 ).

The unregenerate bodies are also resurrected. United with soul, each appears before the Great Final Judgment. Without the Advocate, our Lord Jesus Christ, these suffer the righteous sentence of God for unbelief. The redeemed also appear before the Lord. But Jesus Christ is their Advocate. His perfect life is accounted to theirs to meet the Divine requirement of perfect obedience (Christ fulfills the Covenant of Works). The Lord Jesus’ atoning death on Calvary’s Cross provides the blood sacrifice of the only Son of God applied to their lives. The punishment of their sins has been placed upon the Second Person of the One true and holy God.

The redeemed are fully acquitted, by God in Christ, their Savior. The unredeemed are cast into eternal hell with the devil and his angels (demons). Walter A. Elwell and Barry J. Beitzel summarized it in their article “Eschatology” with brilliant concision and brevity:

“All who have died will come to life. This will be a bodily resurrection, a resumption of bodily existence of each person. For believers this will take place in connection with the second coming of Christ and will involve the transformation of the body of this present flesh into a new, perfected body ( 1 Cor 15:35-56 ). The Bible also indicates a resurrection of unbelievers, unto eternal death ( Jn 5:28 , 29).

The great Dutch commentator, William Hendriksen, wrote with unsurpassed theological and Scriptural fidelity as he described this event in his book “ More Than Conquerors: An Interpretation of the Book of Revelation ”:

“Christ’s coming in judgment is vividly described. John sees a great white throne. Upon it is seated the Christ ( Matt. 25:31 ; Rev. 14:14 ). From His face the earth and the heaven flee away. Not the destruction or annihilation but the renovation of the universe is indicated here. It will be a dissolution of the elements with great heat ( 2 Pet. 3:10 ); a regeneration (Mt. 19:28); a restoration of all things ( Acts 3:21 ); and a deliverance from the bondage of corruption ( Rom. 8:21 ). No longer will this universe be subject to ‘vanity’. John sees the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne. All individuals who have ever lived on earth are seen before the throne. The books are opened and the records of the life of every person consulted (Dn. 7:10). Also, the book of life, containing the names of all believers is opened ( Rev. 3:5 ; 13:8). The dead are judged in accordance with their works (Mt. 25:31 ff.; Rom. 14:10 ; 2 Cor. 5:10 ). The sea gives up its dead; so do Death and Hades. Here is the one, general resurrection of all the dead. The entire Bible teaches but one, general resurrection (read Jn. 5:28 f.). This one and only and general resurrection takes place at the last day ( Jn. 6:39 f., 44, 54).”

Even After Death - The New Heaven and the New Earth

The universe, earth, and all things are both burned and then renewed as the New Heavens and the New Earth is unveiled. While the souls (and bodies reunited) of the unrepentant are cast into eternal hell, believers are welcomed into the New Heaven and New Earth. One of the most remarkable passages among so many equally astounding passages is found in St. Paul’s first epistle to the Church at Corinth. In Chapter 15, the inspired Apostle makes the resurrection the centering point for “eternity past” and “eternity future.” Paul seeks to give words to what he sees at the farthest reaches of the future state: “When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things in subjection under him, that God may be all in all” ( 1 Corinthians 15:28 ).

Thus, the human soul. From the breath of life at conception to the inscrutable event in ages to come when, body and soul, we witness the climactic fulfillment of the ancient Covenant, this is the soul of a believer. The soul without Christ is in peril. The soul of any who calls upon the name of the Lord to be saved will be gloriously transformed.

Answering “What happens to my soul when I die?”

As a pastor and a teaching theologian, this is one of the most frequent questions I receive. However, the inquiry most often comes to me, not in the form of an abstract question, but in the context of crisis. Indeed, this is how the question was posed by Mrs. Henley: in a defining moment of her faith on trial.

I was a young pastor. I was on assignment as a pastoral care intern for a congregation not my own. I was a pastor “on loan,” one might say. My mission? I was dispatched by the church leadership to provide pastoral ministry to a family I didn’t know. I was told that the Henley family was gathered at a nearby nursing home and that they had requested a pastoral presence. The elder who telephoned me gave instructions that I would find Mr. Henley, a long-time member, in room 201. Mrs. Gladys Henley, his wife of sixty-some-odd years would be there to greet me. Mr. Henley’s forty-something-year-old son and his wife would also be there. They had flown in from the West Coast to be with the matriarch and patriarch in this difficult time.

I rehearsed the coming pastoral visit in my mind as I pulled into the covered parking garage. I guided my trusty old Buick sedan into that most appreciated of privileges — clergy parking. I put her in park. I killed the engine. I drew in a breath of hope as I exhaled a prayer for help: “Lord, guide me.”

Before departing for the brief stroll to the nursing home, I opened my Bible. I needed a passage that would serve as my “pastoral prescription” for the spiritual cure to the anticipated spiritual condition of this family. I keep a list of familiar Bible chapters and verses for hospital visits. The passages are arranged, in smeared fountain ink from my own hand, according to spiritual cure of common conditions — aging, bereavement, conflict, and so forth. I came to “vigil.” The family vigil is the gathering of family members (and close friends) in anticipation of a loved one’s passing. My eyes found the words of Luke’s Acts of the Apostles and Saint Peter’s quotation of 

Psalm 16:10 , “For you will not abandon my soul to Hades or let your Holy One see corruption. You have made known to me the paths of life; you will make me full of gladness with your presence” ( Acts 2:27 , 28 ESV).

The family greeted me at the lobby of this elegant elderly care facility. Formal introductions in hushed tones formed the introduction to the family. The Henley son, Robert, Jr., asked me to follow them to Mr. Henley’s room. Mr. Robert Henley, Sr., Esq., was nearly 100 years old. The wise old jurist was a long-time follower of Jesus Christ. Others recognized his gift of gentle leadership and patient wisdom. He was a well-beloved elder, a lay officer, in his home church. Robert Henley had been a prominent attorney in the community where I served. The phrase “city father” comes to mind. Mr. Henley was known as a godly, devoted family man, who also gave much of his life, and not a small amount of his fortune, to the service and needs of his neighbors.

He never had political aspirations. However, if you were a politician and wanted to increase your chances of election, you likely would pay a visit to Robert Henley before you even filed as a candidate. I guess one could say that Mr. Henley had gravitas. He was a big man, a great man, and a faithful man. His immediate family—Mrs. Henley and her adult son, Robert, Jr., and his wife, Katherine—were gathered in a family vigil. For, by then, Mr. Henley was a dying man.

It would be a familiar scene in my ministry for years to come. A grieving family gathered around a weakened figure. Prayers, hymns, silence, and memories converge to form a needed blanket of peace for the one about to depart if not more so for those remaining. Being with a family at such a tender time remains one of the greatest honors of my life. Ask any pastor. He will tell you the same.

I had been in Mr. Henley’s room at the nursing home — for all intents and purposes, it was a hospital room — for more than two hours. The family had been there much longer. I was thinking about the man before me, the man I didn’t know, but the man I was called to prepare for a journey home. My contemplations were pleasantly interrupted when a cheerful nurse came in to check for vital signs of her patient. As she finished her monitoring, she looked at Mrs. Henley and smiled. The kind woman leaned over and put her arm around Mrs. Henley and spoke softly: “Hon, why don’t you go to our café and get you some coffee and a sandwich? They have got some good sandwiches! And you sure need a break.” I certainly agreed. Poor Mrs. Henley looked so tired. The nurse encouraged Mrs. Henley with another whisper, as she helped her up, “Come on, now, Mrs. Henley. There we go . . .”

Reluctantly, Mrs. Henley agreed and stood erect in the room. Her son, Robert, Jr., and Katherine, his wife, the younger Mrs. Henley — a demure but smartly-dressed young lady with a pretty and seemingly permanent smile — guided the weakening wife away. I listened to the echoes of their steps in the hall. I heard the elevator ring its arrival. Then a sacred stillness seemed to descend on the scene like someone’s mother casting a cotton sheet on a bed in slow motion. Still. Slow. Silent. Holy.

I was alone in the hospital room with Mr. Henley. The various medical mechanisms mimicked the beating of his heart, inhaling, and exhaling of his lungs. I listened to the rhythmic beep-beep of a monitor, and the oscillating hiss of oxygen. I had taken a seat when the family had walked out. Yet, at that moment, I felt led to stand. I also felt led to speak, “Mr. Henley, I am not sure if you can hear me, Sir. Mr. Henley, I have a Scripture for you from God’s Word. It is a very simple and powerful truth. I am certain that you know it.” 

The blips, beeps, and hisses were unimpressed by my announcement. The background noises continued as a kind of technological witness. “Mr. Henley, this is the Word of the Lord: ‘We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord’ ( 2 Corinthians 5:8 KJV). Did you hear that Mr. Henley? Jesus will never leave you nor forsake you. And if He comes for you, your spirit — the real you! — will be with Jesus. The One you have loved throughout all of the days of your life will receive you.” He moved not. However, I was not deterred. I was convicted by early experience in my internship to read Scripture even if a patient was in a coma. I would follow for over three decades, occasionally with memorable results. This was one of them.  

I began to pray the Lord’s Prayer audibly: “Our Father . . .” Suddenly, and quite astonishingly, Mr. Henley’s lips began trying to move. I drew closer, still praying, “who art in heaven . . .” The old saint was seeking to pray with me. I continued. “Hallowed be Thy Name . . .” This dear man of God was giving the last measure of strength to do what he had done for nearly five thousand Sundays. He began to worship  God. It was as if the words to the Lord’s Prayer sparked an autonomic response of the soul. He opened his dry, cracking lips for just long enough to pray with me. He uttered the next phrase as if waiting to catch up with me. “Thy Kingdom come; Thy will be done . . .” As I continued, more confident in my own faith because of his, his voice went silent. The small motion of his lips ceased in mid-sentence. And as suddenly as he had begun, he stopped praying. Mr. Henley had stopped breathing. At just about “Thy Kingdom come . . .” Mr. Henley’s prayer was answered. Mr. Henley was in the presence of the Lord.

I stood without movement. I was transfixed by the sight. There was even a kind of beauty, though I was holding the hand of a dead man. I thought of the Psalmist’s words, “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints” ( Psalm 116:15 KJV). My fixed gaze of wonder was interrupted by the necessary practicality of nurses, residents, and orderlies hastening to the scene. In witnessing this miracle of the migration of the human soul, I didn't even notice the alarms. The mechanical sentries had sounded their call. The compassionate health care professionals answered in a second. But as I watched them, the scene was less of an emergency and more of, well, more of a tender moment of confirming what all were anticipating.

Soon enough, the family returned. Robert Jr. and Katherine both put their arms around Mrs. Henley. It was a holy moment. Soft sobs replaced the electronic sounds of the medical machinery. I knew the power of the ministry of presence as Mrs. Henley moved from her son to look at me. This new widow needed the promises of God, the assurance of the love of God, and the hope of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. For this reason, I was there. I embraced her — perhaps, better put, she embraced me — and she wept, ever so softly. This elderly woman of God, smaller than I, nestled her gray head on my chest. I was being inaugurated into the ministry by Mrs. Henley.

And then it happened. Right after I spoke these words, it happened: “Mrs. Henley, the Bible says that your dear husband is in the presence of our Lord Jesus at this very second. He passed from this life into the loving arms of Jesus. I was with him as his soul departed this room. He is more alive than ever.”

She confirmed my words by nodding her head as I held her. But something happened that I will never forget. The still, quiet sobs were broken by a rather stern word from her son. “Mother, I am sorry, but that is not right. Daddy is not here. And Daddy is not anywhere else. He is, well, for all practical purposes, just asleep.” He spoke the words for his mother, but he aimed his arrows at me. I was stunned, not by the theological error as much as the inappropriateness and even callousness of his words. “Mother, come out here and let me talk to you.” Mrs. Henley followed obediently. Scolded as her husband had died, she had, in the opinion of her son, succumbed to “nonsense.” She followed obediently. What else could she do? I stood motionless as both the family departed, and the medical professionals began procedures for removal of the body.

It could not have been more than about three minutes when Mrs. Henley returned. By this time, her late husband’s remains had been removed from the room. I extended my hands to welcome Mrs. Henley back. She took my hands without ever moving her eyes from mine. I smiled as if, perhaps, a warm gesture could erase the recent unpleasant words. Mrs. Henley broke down in heaving tears. I could barely hear her words: “Oh Pastor, my son says that my husband’s soul is just asleep! He is not with the Lord! Oh Pastor, everything I have ever known, ever believed, must be wrong!” I held Mrs. Henley and felt the deep grief rising through her sobs. “He is gone, Pastor. But where? Where is my husband?

I shared that intimate story with you because I believe that it illustrates the deep emotions that are involved with the question, “What happens to the soul at the time of death?” The question is not an esoteric inquiry into the unknowable. God has revealed to us in his word what happens to the human soul at the moment of death. In order to understand the answer to this question according to the Scriptures, we would do well to employ a systematic theological study  of the Christian faith concerning the question of the soul. To do so, let us arrange the biblical material according to the Bible’s explanation about the soul and the soul’s destiny. We will see that there is a present state, an intermediate state, and a final state . Theologians call this a personal eschatology. Eschatology speaks about the last things. We often think of eschatology in more cosmic terms, for example, what happens to the heavens and the earth in the future. That is a cosmic eschatology. But a personal eschatology is concerned with what happens to you. So let us begin.

As I opened my Bible and asked his grieving widow to read the Scriptures, she wiped her eyes, sought to compose herself, and adjusted her 1960s-framed-spectacle before leaning in to read: “We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord” ( 2 Corinthians 5:8 KJV). Mrs. Henley looked up again, her silver-haired, intelligent head raising, her eyes meeting mine. “Pastor, I read that according to the Bible my Robert — my husband, Mr. Henley — is with the Lord. As soon as his spirit left his body he went to be with Jesus. That is what I had always been taught. But my son . . . Oh, pastor, is this the truth?”

I put my right hand on her shoulder seeking to agree. “Yes, Mrs. Henley. I watched as the soul of your husband departed his body. According to the Word of the Lord, there is no doubt that he is in the presence of the Lord Jesus.” I gently placed my left hand to a shoulder, now looking at her intently, holding her shoulders, directing my gaze with the strongest possible position of attention: “My beloved Mrs. Henley,” I paused to prepare for an unequivocal declaration to this grieving woman: “Ma’am: According to the promises of our Lord Jesus Christ I say to you that in the name of God, you will  see your husband again.”  And she rested in the promises of God.

But have you? I say to anyone reading: God created you as a person: soul and body.  The soul lives forever in one of two places: with your Creator or without Him. The adjudication of your eternal life rests with the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. And He welcomes any and all who will turn from all other persons and plans and turn unto Him. For Jesus our Lord says, “Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” Rest from the frantic search for answers. Trust in Christ Jesus the resurrected and living Lord of life. His Covenant of Grace — Christ’s righteousness accounted for what you lack, and Christ’s sacrifice applied for your sins — has secured your destiny. And you will never walk alone.

God’s promises are your destiny: when you die, your soul goes immediately to the Lord. Your earthly remains are precious to God. “If the farmer knows where the corn is in the barn, then our Father knows where His precious seed is in the earth.” And in Christ, God will raise those remains to eternal life. If you have received Jesus Christ as Lord, you will be acquitted of all sins by the righteousness and the sacrifice on the cross by your Savior. And safe in the arms of Jesus. Why not pray with me?

Lord, our Heavenly Father: I am in awe of Your mighty creative power demonstrated not only in the wonder of the stars above or in the microscopic invisible world, but, especially, in the coming of Your Son Jesus our Lord; and in Him, in His perfect life lived for me and His sacrificial death offered for me on the cross, I do repent — turn away from — my sin of unbelief, self-sufficiency, and trusting in anyone and thing other than Your Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth; I know that I am a soul and body, and I ask that You transform my soul according to Your promises and Your power; I ask that you forgive me and receive me as Your child; and I believe that when I depart from this life I will go immediately to You, O dear Lord; So, take me and use me for Your glory. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

[1] Richard Whitaker, Francis Brown, et al., The Abridged Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew-English Lexicon of the Old Testament: From A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament by Francis Brown, S.R. Driver and Charles Briggs, Based on the Lexicon of Wilhelm Gesenius (Boston; New York: Houghton, Mifflin and Company, 1906).

[2] F. L. Cross and Elizabeth A. Livingstone, eds., The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church (Oxford;  New York: Oxford University Press, 2005), 1531.

Photo credit: ©GettyImages/ipopba

• Forgiveness
• Resurrection

What Happens to the Soul after Death?

If you believe in life after death, where do we go when we die? Much has been written about the afterlife, and you’ve probably heard some of the numerous accounts of near-death experiences where people move to a light and are greeted by loved ones. But is this just wishful thinking?

In The Place We Call Home: Exploring the Soul’s Existence after Death , the late writer Robert J. Grant explores the afterlife topic via the teachings of the famed clairvoyant Edgar Cayce (pronounced kay-see). Cayce lived from 1877 to 1945 and has been called “the most documented psychic of the 20th century.”

According to his Wikipedia profile, Cayce has an interesting backstory:

• At the age of 10, he read the Bible from cover to cover, twelve times over a two-year period.
• At the age of 12, he was visited by “a woman with wings” who would appear to him at various other times in his life.
• As a young adult, he began to see auras around people and hear the voices of departed relatives.

By the time he was in his 20s, Cayce had become a full-fledged clairvoyant, a person with “a  supernatural ability to perceive events in the future or beyond normal sensory contact.”  For more than forty years, he gave psychic “readings” while in what he described as an “intuitive sleep.” A stenographer would record what he said during these sessions, and it is reported that Cayce seemed to have no idea what he had said until it was read back to him.

Cayce’s readings included an ability to diagnose illnesses and prescribe treatments for the sick and ill (even when they weren’t present), uncover past lives, explain the meaning of dreams, and even access the Akashic records. But perhaps most fascinating were Cayce’s readings on the afterlife.

Cayce saw death as a transition from the physical world to a spiritual realm.

Cayce did not see death as an ending, but as a transitional period —that, through reincarnation, eventually led back to life. He saw death and life as interconnected, one leading to the other, our souls returning to earth over many lifetimes to learn and evolve.

Through his readings, Cayce provided descriptions of the various realms the soul traveled to after death. He had the seeming ability to travel to these realms himself and offered detailed descriptions of what he found there. Author Grant spoke with Cayce’s son who explained it like this:

He could withdraw from the physical body just as one withdraws at death … he was then free to move through many levels of consciousness … to touch the aspirations, purposes, and development of the soul.

It should be noted that there were (and are still) people skeptical of Cayce’s readings. Was he making it all up?  It’s impossible to say, but Cayce’s “readings” don’t seem too far removed from what many with near-death experiences have said.

The Place We Call Home includes extended excerpts of what Cayce experienced in the other levels beyond physical death. I’ve lightly edited these excerpts and placed them in the narrative below.

Edgar Cayce: On the Soul after Death

• Upon death, the transition involves a change of body. But this transition is as easy as walking through a door.
• If a person is free from earthly attachments and desires, the soul awakens in a light-filled realm where they experience great joy, peace, and contentment.
• But if a person is still attached to their earthly desires and longings, they are held in an earthbound state, inhibiting their ability to move on after death.
• You will not pass through the death transition alone. You’ll gather with loved ones and souls of a like mind, just as you gather with friends and family during your physical life.
• You’ll continue doing the things you started doing on this side, just in another dimension. You’ll carry with you what you have planned, what you desired, what you thought about.
• The most important lessons you learned in life—your ability to love, to forgive, to grow in patience and grace—go with your soul after your physical death. These lessons are not physical, they are spiritual.
• If a person has lived a life of malice, selfishness, and hate, they will be met with these things at death. But if it has been a life of love and self-sacrifice, then love will be the reward.
• Your ability to love or not to love creates the fabric of your after-death environment. You create heaven or hell for yourself, based upon how you applied these spiritual laws during your earthly life.
• The earth is a necessary school for learning and growth—but the unseen realm is the true home of the soul.
• Physical death is, in many ways, a return “home” with the lessons you learned while on earth.
• Each person is “rewarded” with the sum total of what they have built during their physical lives.
• If your thoughts and intentions in the physical world were to act from a place of compassion, love, forgiveness, and patience, these virtues will create a light-filled existence after death. This is heaven .
• If you have spent your life holding grudges and resentments, being prejudiced in your thinking, acting out of jealousy or malice or hate, these thoughts form the building blocks of a home in the shadowlands, the hellish realms.
• It is your earthly accomplishments that move you to high realms after death, it is from loving and acting from the heart in all facets of your life.
• It is a universal law. Your inner life during your waking hours creates the outer world of your existence after death. What you have cherished in your heart will have a great deal to do with where you find yourself after death.
• How can you best find your way to the light after death? You need to find and recognize the light here and now, during your time on earth. If you don’t find it here, you will not find it after death. But find it here and there is no mistaking it after death.

For more stories on the soul and other spiritual topics, check out my new book Wake Up Call: Daily Insights for the Spiritually Curious, now available at Amazon.

• Life after Death
• Edgar Cayce
• The Place We Call Home

• Library of World Religions
• Advertise With Us
• Write for Us
• Privacy Policy
• Terms of Service
• Do Not Sell My Data
• Radiant Digital
• Manage Newsletter Subscriptions
• Unsubscribe From Notifications

Email Login

Subscribe to CE (It’s free)

• CE in the News
• Apologetics & Education
• Art & Culture
• Culture of Life
• Food & Travel
• The Blessed Virgin Mary
• Marriage & Family
• Prayer & Spirituality
• Spiritual Warfare

Where Our Souls Go When We Die: A Thomistic Introduction to the Afterlife

The empyrean heaven is a corporeal place, and yet as soon as it was made it was filled with the holy angels, as Bede … says. Since then angels even as separated souls are incorporeal, it would seem that some place should also be assigned to receive separated souls. — St. Thomas Aquinas, Supplement, 69, 1

Did God create places to receive our souls after death?

The Catechism teaches that after death and before the resurrection, our souls are separated from our bodies (1005, 1016). Even in Thomas’s time, some people argued that because departed souls are entirely spiritual and do not have material bodies that could be placed in or affected by a physical location, there must not be a place appointed to receive our souls after death. Thomas responds to the contrary. As we see, “the empyrean heaven,” is a corporeal (material, physical, tangible) place that is full of angels, which are purely spiritual, bodiless beings. Further, within his Dialogues, Pope St. Gregory the Great (540–604) wrote about certain departed souls who were seen or revealed to be in particular places on earth or in hell.

Thomas explains that it is fitting for nobler spiritual substances to be assigned to nobler places, in the special sense that spiritual substances can be in a place . The nobler the spiritual substance, the closer it draws to the first substance, which resides in the highest place. That first and noblest substance is God, and while He is everywhere in the universe through His essence, presence, and power, Scripture tells us His throne is in heaven (Ps. 103 [102]:19; Isa. 66:1). 

Thomas notes that incorporeal spiritual substances, such as a disembodied soul, do not occupy a place in the same way bodies do, but in a special manner unique to spiritual substances — a manner that we, as ensouled bodies here on earth, cannot clearly comprehend. Earlier in the Summa , in his “Treatise on the Angels,” Thomas explained that angels are immaterial, like our separated souls, but they too can occupy places , although they are not contained by them . This is akin to the way in which, during life on earth, “the soul is in the body as containing it, not as contained by it.” 

Further, things can share something in common in two ways: first, by having the same quality , as hot things have their heat in common. Spiritual substances cannot have anything in common with corporeal things in this way. Second, things can share something in common by a kind of proportionality , as when the Scriptures metaphorically describe the spiritual world in terms of corporeal things . For example, God is spoken of as the sun, because “He is the principle of spiritual life as the sun is of corporeal life” on earth. In this analogical sense, we can see that souls hold things in common with certain places — “for instance, souls that are spiritually enlightened, with luminous bodies, and souls that are plunged in darkness by sin, with dark places.”   

Finally, separated souls are not affected directly by corporeal places as bodies are, but knowing the places to which they have been appointed brings these souls joy or sorrow , depending on where they’ve been placed. This joy or sorrow is part of their reward or punishment, respectively. 

Do our souls go straight to heaven or hell when we die?

Some have argued that according to Matthew 25:31–46, souls are not sent to experience the joys of heaven or the torments of hell until after the Last Judgment at the end of time.  

In response, Thomas again turns to Gregory, who observed in his Dialogues that the Last Judgment will indeed provide further reward to souls in heaven because “‘whereas now they enjoy only the happiness of the soul, afterwards they will enjoy also that of the body, so as to rejoice also in the flesh wherein they bore sorrow and torments for the Lord.’ The same is to be said in reference to the damned.”

Thomas makes clear that some souls do go straight to heaven or hell. St. Paul has told us, “For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens” (2 Cor. 5:1). “Therefore,” says Thomas, “after the body’s dissolution, the soul has an abode, which has been reserved for it in heaven.” Paul also proclaimed, “My desire is to depart and be with Christ” (Phil. 1:23). Since it is a truth of the Faith that Christ is in heaven, Gregory argues that “it cannot be denied that Paul’s soul is in heaven likewise.” Further, Scripture clearly tells us that some souls do go to hell immediately after death, as was the case for the rich man who died, was buried, and went to hell (Luke 16:22–23).

Still, some souls do not go straight to heaven or hell. Interestingly, Thomas compares the effect of sin on souls after death to that of gravity on physical bodies. Objects lighter than air will immediately rise, while heavier bodies will immediately fall, unless some obstacle impedes their path. A soul that is freed from all debt of sin will rise immediately to heaven, as a soul mired in mortal sin will descend into hell. An obstacle that can prevent a soul free of mortal sin from rising to heaven is the debt of venial sin, “for which [the soul’s] flight must needs be delayed, until the soul is first of all cleansed.”

In accord with Thomas, the Catechism teaches that after death, we all will face an immediate “particular judgment,” in which Christ determines whether our souls will proceed immediately to heaven or hell or first undergo a period of purification (1022).

Are souls ever allowed to leave heaven or hell?

Some passages in Scripture seem to suggest that souls can never leave heaven or hell. For example: “That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life” (Ps. 27 [26]:4) and “As the cloud fades and vanishes, so he who goes down to Sheol does not come up” (Job 7:9). 

To the contrary, Thomas cites the eloquent argument made by St. Jerome (A.D. 347–420) in the following rhetorical questions: “Wouldst thou then lay down the law for God? Wouldst thou put the apostles in chains, imprison them until the day of judgment, and forbid them to be with their lord, them of whom it is written: They follow the Lamb whithersoever He goeth? And if the Lamb is everywhere, therefore we must believe that those also who are with Him are everywhere.” Jerome further argues that since demons and the devil wander about the world, “why should the martyrs, after shedding their blood, be imprisoned and unable to go forth?” Thomas also notes that Gregory cited many cases in which the dead have appeared on earth. 

Scripture tells us that no one leaves heaven or hell “simply” or forever, but it does not tell us that souls cannot sometimes leave their abodes for limited periods of time to take part in the affairs of the living and appear to men “according to Divine providence,” as Thomas says. 

What are the “limbo of hell” and “Abraham’s bosom,” and are they the same thing?

We proclaim in the Creed that Christ “descended into hell.” The Catechism explains that “Jesus, like all men, experienced death and in his soul joined the others in the realm of the dead. But he descended there as Savior, proclaiming the Good News to the spirits imprisoned there” (632). Further, “Scripture calls the abode of the dead, to which the dead Christ went down, ‘hell’ —  Sheol in Hebrew or Hades in Greek — because those who are there are deprived of the vision of God” ( CCC 633).

With this context in mind, let us now go to Thomas. He argues that after death, souls cannot find rest except through faith, as Hebrews 11:6 says: “For whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.” Because Abraham was “the first to sever himself from the body of unbelievers, and to receive a special sign of faith,” the place of rest given to people after death is called “Abraham’s bosom,” as we see in Luke 16:22–23, which says that the unfaithful rich man Dives was damned to Hades, and the faithful Lazarus “was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom.” Before Christ came and set their souls free, the faithful in hell experienced partial rest in that they were not punished, but their ultimate end — being with God in heaven — had not yet been fulfilled. So the same place is called the “limbo of hell” because it was a place of waiting “in limbo” where souls were deprived of their final rest in God, and “Abraham’s bosom” because of the partial rest it afforded before the coming of Christ. “The state of the holy Fathers as regards what was good in it was called Abraham’s bosom, but as regards its deficiencies it was called hell.” 

Since the coming of Christ, Abraham’s bosom is no longer called the limbo of hell, because the saints in Abraham’s bosom now have complete rest in that they do see God. It is in this sense that the Church prays, echoing St. Luke, that departed souls will be carried to Abraham’s bosom. 

Is limbo the same as the hell of the damned?

Thomas states quite succinctly that “in hell, there is no redemption [Office of the Dead, resp. vii]. But the saints [the Patriarchs, or Fathers, and the other faithful who departed before Christ] were redeemed from limbo. Therefore, limbo is not the same as hell.” Limbo was a temporary place of waiting qualitatively distinct from the hell of the damned. Still, Thomas notes that hell and limbo may occupy the same place, or may be continuous such that some higher part of hell contains limbo. 

Should there be so many resting places for souls?

Sometimes, non-Catholic Christians criticize the Church’s teaching on the various resting places for souls. They think heaven and hell , the last two of the Last Things, suffice, and any other resting places derive from merely the traditions of men. Indeed, even before the Reformation, and within the Catholic Church herself, there were many misgivings and misunderstandings regarding the resting places for souls. Some people held that there should be many more resting places, even an infinite number, since the degrees of merit and sin are infinite! 

That Thomas provides and replies to a full ten objections in question 69, article 7, “Whether So Many Abodes Should Be Distinguished?” demonstrates the extent of this controversy. I invite you to read these objections and his replies at your leisure, but for now, I’ll supply a few of Thomas’s main conclusions.

Thomas notes that “the abodes of souls are distinguished according to the souls’ various states.” While on earth, united to the body, the soul is “in the state of meriting,” but after death, separated from the body, the soul can only receive good or evil for the merits it has already acquired, although it may not be in the proper state to do so. If it is, the soul will receive its final reward according to the two ways Thomas identifies. If the soul is pure and good, its abode is paradise, or heaven. If the soul is evil in terms of actual sin, its abode is hell , while if the soul is evil in terms of Original Sin only, its abode is the limbo of children . On the other hand, if by sin the soul is hindered or delayed from receiving its final reward, the soul’s abode is either purgatory (if the soul is hindered by a defect of the person, that is, personal venial sins) or the limbo of the Fathers , that is, Abraham’s bosom (if the soul is hindered by a defect of nature, namely, the guilt of human nature that had not yet been expiated by Christ).

This article is an excerpt taken from Dr. Vost’s latest book,  Aquinas on the Four Last Things: Everything You Need To Know About Death, Judgment, Heaven, and Hell . It is available as an ebook or paperback from your favorite bookseller or online through  Sophia Institute Press .

image: 17th century engraving of the Glorification of Saint Thomas Aquinas / Rijksmuseum / Europeana (Public Domain) .

Tagged as: Best of Week , four last things , harrowing hell , heaven , Limbo , Sophia Excerpts , St. Thomas Aquinas

By Dr. Kevin Vost

Dr. Kevin Vost, Psy D. is the author of  Memorize the Faith , The Seven Deadly Sins , The One Minute Aquinas ,  as well as numerous other books and articles. He has taught psychology at the University of Illinois at Springfield, Lincoln Land Community College, and MacMurray College. He is a Research Review Committee Member for American Mensa, which promotes the scientific study of human intelligence. You can find him at drvost.com .

Subscribe to CE (It's free)

More on catholic exchange.

What Does It Mean to “Fast” for the Saints?

God Fights for our Freedom to Worship

The Lord Loves Us in Our Weaknesses

Go to Catholic Exchange homepage

Adeodatus | The Renewal of Catholic Education feat. Dr. Alex Lessard

The Vocation of Consecrated Virginity | feat. Mary Beth Bracy

Modern Miracles at Lourdes | feat. Marlene Watkins

Most shared.

© Copyright 2024 Catholic Exchange. All rights reserved.

Catholic Exchange is a project of Sophia Institute Press .

Advertise on Catholic Exchange Design by Perceptions Studio .

Privacy Policy

Design by Perceptions Studio .

• Books and Art
• Catechetics
• Dating & Singles
• Faith & Spirituality
• Health & Spirituality
• Marriage & Family
• Media & Culture
• Money & Economics
• Lives of Saints
• Same Sex Attraction
• Science and Discovery

What Happens to Your Soul When You Die?

We’ve all thought about it. What happens the moment we take our last breath, our heart stops beating, and our soul departs from our now dead body? Truth be told, most of us fear dying, even if we do not fear death. Dying is often a painful struggle. Dying often occurs in a sterile, clinical environment and is usually an ugly process. However, by trusting in the promise that death means entrance into eternal life in the presence of the Lord, as well as trusting in the power of Christ to raise the dead, Christians need not fear the outcome of death even if we experience trepidation regarding the process of dying.

Stories and legends about death and dying abound. This is the case, in part, because the Scriptures do not describe the process of dying, although they do speak of several individuals who died but were raised back to life by Jesus. Lazarus comes to mind (John 11) among others (e.g., the widow of Nain’s son in Luke 7:11–17). But we do not possess any firsthand account (including from Lazarus) of what these people experienced when they died. We can only but wonder what Lazarus was thinking when he died a second time, this time to enter eternal life. Now, we do know what our resurrection bodies will be like, since Paul gives us a remarkable description of the complete transformation that takes place when Christ returns and we are raised imperishable (1 Cor. 15:35–49). But there is not much biblical data on the intermediate state—that period of time when the souls of the believing dead await the resurrection of their bodies and the final and complete overturning of the curse (death).

It is also the case that the very nature of the question (What happens to our soul when we die?) lends itself to speculation. I recall my saintly grandmother (a pastor’s daughter) recounting bedside vigils with dying church members. She described how before breathing their last, a dying person would often open their eyes, look heavenward, express some sort of joy and expectation, then surrender to the inevitable. She believed these saints were given a brief glimpse of what (or who) awaited them. That may be, but it is just as likely that the biochemical reactions within the brain to a body shutting down produces all kinds of sensory activity. Such accounts, however sincere, are anecdotal and provide no basis on which to build doctrine.

We’ve all heard stories about those who supposedly died and then returned from the afterlife. Such stories are fascinating, which explains the existence of the cottage industry of books written about near-death experiences that spin tales of the author’s personal visit to heaven before returning to write a book about their experience. These books usually reveal encounters with the dearly departed, they often include descriptions of heaven (usually exaggerated earthly scenes), accounts of meeting Jesus, talking with God, and descriptions of heavenly things.

But all of these likely spurious accounts conflict with what we know the Bible says about entrance into the presence of God. Isaiah 6:1–7 comes to mind. Isaiah is overcome by his unworthiness when given a vision of the Lord. The biblical accounts of encounters with God—such as Moses’ glimpse of the Lord’s glory (Ex. 33:18–23) or Jesus’ appearance to two of His disciples on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:37)—produce fear if not terror at being in the presence of the Holy God. The biblical accounts do not square with the casual, if not trivial nature of the “I saw heaven” or “I walked with Jesus” genre of literature. Since the Bible does not describe the process or the reflections of the dying, many have sought to fill in the gap with fabricated stories. Sadly, they’ve been very successful. Many people accept these legends as truth.

Thankfully, the Bible gives us two points of reference regarding the intermediate state that help prepare us for death. First, in several well-known passages, Paul specifically addresses the matter of what happens to believers between the time they die and when Christ returns. According to 2 Corinthians 5:8, Paul teaches that at the moment of a believer’s death, we immediately enter into the presence of the Lord. The Apostle writes, “We would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.” Paul also spoke of how he desired “to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better” (Phil. 1:23). When we die, we are immediately “with Christ” and enter into the presence of God. This is usually what we mean when we speak of “heaven.”

Second, the heavenly scene described by John in Revelation 4–6 gives us a glimpse of that previously unseen reality we will experience upon dying. We who have trusted in Christ alone will join the redeemed saints before the heavenly throne in the presence of God. We are conscious, aware of where we are, and joyfully praising God. To put it simply, this heavenly scene is the clearest image we have of what happens to our soul when we die. In these three chapters, John gives a glorious image of heaven, where God dwells among His people until the resurrection of our bodies at the end of the age. This is what heaven is—the redeemed dwelling in the presence of the Holy God, ascribing all praise and glory to our Creator and Redeemer.

While the scene is wonderful, and in many ways beyond our comprehension, it is worth noting that the saints in heaven are crying out, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” (Rev. 6:10). Those already in God’s presence before His throne—who have died before us and are now experiencing the intermediate state, the time between death and the Lord’s return—long for that day when Jesus Christ returns to earth on the day of resurrection and judgment.

So, what happens to the souls of believers when we die? We immediately enter the glorious presence of the Lord, where we await the resurrection of our bodies at the end of the age.

New to Ligonier?

Download R.C. Sproul’s ebook on church leadership for free.

REQUEST NOW

We All Inhabit a Spirit World After Our Deaths

• Beliefs and Teachings
• Christianity Origins
• The New Testament
• The Old Testament
• Practical Tools for Christians
• Christian Life For Teens
• Christian Prayers
• Inspirational Bible Devotions
• Denominations of Christianity
• Christian Holidays
• Christian Entertainment
• Key Terms in Christianity
• Catholicism
• A.S., Computer Information Technology, LDS Business College

Our life after death is part of the great Plan of Salvation . After we die, we will inhabit a spirit world.

Life After Death

Our spirit does not die when our body does but continues to live. After we die, our spirit leaves our mortal body and enters a spirit world, where we await the resurrection .

The Spirit World is divided into two parts: paradise and prison. Those who accepted the gospel of Jesus Christ and lived righteously upon the earth during mortality  go to spirit paradise.

However, those who lived wickedly denied the gospel, or who never had the chance to hear the gospel during their earthly life will go to spirit prison.

The Spirit World Is Composed of Paradise and Prison

In the Spirit World, those in paradise experience happiness and peace and are free from trouble, sorrow, and pain. They continue to associate in family relationships and engage in worthwhile activities.

In the Book of Mormon the prophet Alma said :

And then shall it come to pass, that the spirits of those who are righteous are received into a state of happiness, which is called paradise, a state of rest, a state of peace, where they shall rest from all their troubles and from all care, and sorrow.

The spirits in prison are those who, for whatever reason, did not accept the gospel while on the earth. They cannot partake of the blessings received in paradise, nor are they allowed to enter it.

In this sense, it is considered a prison. However, those who never had the opportunity to hear the gospel during their earthly life  will  be given this chance while in spirit prison. 

Missionary Work Continues in the Spirit World

Jesus Christ's church has been organized in the Spirit World, in paradise, and continues to function as it does on earth.

Many spirits in paradise will be called as missionaries and will enter the spirit prison to teach those who never had the opportunity to hear the gospel while upon earth. Those in prison still have their agency and, if they accept the gospel, they will be allowed to enter paradise.

Those who rejected the gospel while on the earth will not have this opportunity. They will live in a state of hell until the resurrection. They will have to pay in full for their own sins because they rejected Christ.

For behold, I, God, have suffered these things for all, that they might not suffer if they would repent;

But if they would not repent they must suffer even as I;

Salvation for the Dead

There will be many who will repent and accept the gospel of Jesus Christ. Before they can enter paradise they will need to have the necessary saving ordinances performed in their behalf. These include baptism, the gift of the Holy Ghost and all the temple ordinances .

Because they lack a physical body they are unable to perform these ordinances for themselves. Their work is performed on earth by those who have already received these ordinances for themselves. The Lord has commanded his servants to build temples for this purpose.

Those who do not repent will eventually pay the price for their sins, be resurrected and receive the lowest degree of glory.

What We Will Look Like

As spirits, we will appear much the same way as we appear now upon the earth. We will look the same, have the same personality and will believe the same things as we did during our earthly life.

We will also have the same beliefs and behaviors in the spirit world that we had on earth before we died. Our bodies will be spirits, but our attitudes and inclinations will be the same.

Because our spirits were already full grown before we left our premortal life, they will appear in adult form in the afterlife. There are no baby spirits in the spirit world.

Where is the Spirit World?

Brigham Young answered this question simply. He said the spirit world is here on earth . Only a veil separates the mortals from the spirits of the departed.

Updated by Krista Cook .

• Quotes of the Founding Fathers on Religion
• Development of Christian Denominations
• Who Is the Holy Spirit?
• Scripture Readings for Holy Week
• Death is a Step in Our Progression, Not the End of Our Existence
• The 3 Guiding Principles of the LDS Church in the Mormon Faith
• 8 Reasons Why Temples Are Important to Mormons
• Persecuting Witches and Witchcraft
• Is Reincarnation in the Bible?
• Scripture Readings for the Second Week of Advent
• The 7 Main Christian Denominations: What Are the Differences?
• Scripture Readings for the Fourth Week of Lent
• Scripture Readings for the First Week of Advent
• What Does the Bible Say About Eternal Life?
• Scripture Readings for Ash Wednesday Through the First Week of Lent
• Who Is the Virgin Mary?

July 1, 2017

Why the “You” in an Afterlife Wouldn't Really Be You

Memories, points of view and the self

By Michael Shermer

Izhar Cohen

The Discovery is a 2017 Netflix film in which Robert Redford plays a scientist who proves that the afterlife is real. “Once the body dies, some part of our consciousness leaves us and travels to a new plane,” the scientist explains, evidenced by his machine that measures, as another character puts it, “brain wavelengths on a subatomic level leaving the body after death.”

This idea is not too far afield from a real theory called quantum consciousness, proffered by a wide range of people, from physicist Roger Penrose to physician Deepak Chopra. Some versions hold that our mind is not strictly the product of our brain and that consciousness exists separately from material substance, so the death of your physical body is not the end of your conscious existence. Because this is the topic of my next book, Heavens on Earth: The Scientific Search for the Afterlife, Immortality, and Utopia (Henry Holt, 2018), the film triggered a number of problems I have identified with all such concepts, both scientific and religious.

First, there is the assumption that our identity is located in our memories, which are presumed to be permanently recorded in the brain: if they could be copied and pasted into a computer or duplicated and implanted into a resurrected body or soul, we would be restored. But that is not how memory works. Memory is not like a DVR that can play back the past on a screen in your mind. Memory is a continually edited and fluid process that utterly depends on the neurons in your brain being functional. It is true that when you go to sleep and wake up the next morning or go under anesthesia for surgery and come back hours later, your memories return, as they do even after so-called profound hypothermia and circulatory arrest. Under this procedure, a patient's brain is cooled to as low as 50 degrees Fahrenheit, which causes electrical activity in neurons to stop—suggesting that long-term memories are stored statically. But that cannot happen if your brain dies. That is why CPR has to be done so soon after a heart attack or drowning—because if the brain is starved of oxygen-rich blood, the neurons die, along with the memories stored therein.

On supporting science journalism

If you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing . By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.

Second, there is the supposition that copying your brain's connectome—the diagram of its neural connections—uploading it into a computer (as some scientists suggest) or resurrecting your physical self in an afterlife (as many religions envision) will result in you waking up as if from a long sleep either in a lab or in heaven. But a copy of your memories, your mind or even your soul is not you. It is a copy of you, no different than a twin, and no twin looks at his or her sibling and thinks, “There I am.” Neither duplication nor resurrection can instantiate you in another plane of existence.

Third, your unique identity is more than just your intact memories; it is also your personal point of view. Neuroscientist Kenneth Hayworth, a senior scientist at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and president of the Brain Preservation Foundation, divided this entity into the MEMself and the POVself. He believes that if a complete MEMself is transferred into a computer (or, presumably, resurrected in heaven), the POVself will awaken. I disagree. If this were done without the death of the person, there would be two memory selves, each with its own POVself looking out at the world through its unique eyes. At that moment, each would take a different path in life, thereby recording different memories based on different experiences. “You” would not suddenly have two POVs. If you died, there is no known mechanism by which your POVself would be transported from your brain into a computer (or a resurrected body). A POV depends entirely on the continuity of self from one moment to the next, even if that continuity is broken by sleep or anesthesia. Death is a permanent break in continuity, and your personal POV cannot be moved from your brain into some other medium, here or in the hereafter.

If this sounds dispiriting, it is just the opposite. Awareness of our mortality is uplifting because it means that every moment, every day and every relationship matters. Engaging deeply with the world and with other sentient beings brings meaning and purpose. We are each of us unique in the world and in history, geographically and chronologically. Our genomes and connectomes cannot be duplicated, so we are individuals vouchsafed with awareness of our mortality and self-awareness of what that means. What does it mean? Life is not some temporary staging before the big show hereafter—it is our personal proscenium in the drama of the cosmos here and now.”

Unconscious

What happens after death, three viewpoints expressed by my teenage patients..

Posted February 11, 2023 | Reviewed by Tyler Woods

• What Is the Unconscious
• Find a therapist near me
• A common view is that after death, the soul ascends to heaven.
• Some are certain about the lack of existence after death and believe this makes life all the more beautiful.
• A humble position is to accept that what happens after death is unknowable.

Children often bring up the subject of death in my counseling practice. Some children in their middle elementary school years report a fear of dying and sometimes express worry about falling asleep because they or their family members might die overnight. More frequently, teenagers bring up the topic of death in the context of coming to grips with having a finite life and asking about its meaning.

Many of my patients who bring up the topic deal with anxiety , but some deal with the loss or impending loss of a loved one, including a pet. Some patients have a serious or terminal medical illness that brings death closer to home.

Studies have shown that children develop views on death based on how it is presented to them. If death is presented as resulting from a cessation of biological function, young children are more apt to think of death in biological terms than when death is explained in an afterlife context, e.g., “Your grandmother is now with God.” However, as they age, children and adults often adopt two parallel stances about death involving a biological and an afterlife or religious stance (Harris, 2018).

In this post, I present the views of representative teenagers from my practice, including brief excerpts of the discussions I have had with them.

A common view expressed by many of my patients is that after death, their souls will go to heaven. These patients also mostly believe that their pets will go to heaven. However, very few say they can explain what happens in heaven. They are of split opinion regarding whether they can interact with the souls of loved ones in heaven.

For grieving patients who believe in the afterlife, I offer the opportunity to use hypnosis to interact with their loved ones. Most patients take up this opportunity, including those who say they are unsure whether interactions are possible with the deceased. After they imagine such an interaction, most patients report that it felt real and that they feel better about the loss of their loved one.

Some patients wonder how heaven can be real if different religions view the afterlife differently. We discuss that religions represent mankind’s attempts to make sense of the world and define principles we should live. I suggest that since people have promulgated religions, the guidance they offer may be imperfect and inconsistent within each religion or in comparison with other religions, even if God originally inspired it.

There Is Nothing After Death

A view expressed by a minority of my patients is that existence ceases at death. They explain that they believe there is no ability to feel, think, or perceive anything after death. Some express that life is pointless as it has no inherent meaning.

I share that a few of my patients believe that the lack of existence after death makes life all the more beautiful. They suggest that the fragility of life can serve as an impetus to make the most out of it.

We discuss that our perception of reality is limited by what our brains have been geared to handle. For example, we know a lot that we cannot perceive, such as light or sound, that is out of range of our brain’s ability to register. It also is reasonable to assume that there are many things we cannot perceive, of which we are unaware. Thus, rather than a position of certainty about the lack of existence after death, it may be more humble to hold an agnostic position: It is unknowable what happens after death.

Uncertainty

My remaining patients state they do not know what happens after death, and many are bothered by this ambiguity.

I ask my patients if they want to find out whether they can develop a different understanding of what happens after death. If they are interested, I offer to interview their subconscious and typically ask the following questions:

Did you exist before the patient was born? The majority of my patients’ subconscious responds affirmatively.

Will you exist after the patient dies? Nearly all of the subconscious responds affirmatively.

If patients have questions for their subconscious, we pose them. Whether the subconscious responses to these questions represent a reality regarding existence after death or the patients’ wishful thinking, from a clinical standpoint, it is apparent that this exercise is useful as patients report feeling better.

Finally, I often share a story I wrote as an 18-year-old when I grappled with the same questions.

The Potion-Maker

The main character of this story is the potion-maker who has a shop that contains all the potions that might exist. He offers a potion of everlasting life for free to a young man who has come into the shop. The young man inquired whether the potion-maker knew if there is life after death.

“Why yes, I do,” answered the potion-maker, gesturing toward a massive book on his shelf. “I have determined that there is definitely no life after death.”

In response to the young man’s question, the potion-maker stated that he has not taken the potion.

“But why not?”

“The reason is quite simple,” explained the potion-maker. “Life is just too long if it lasts an eternity. I would see everything, do everything, gain everything, lose everything, and then I would still need to exist for an eternity with nothing new to do.”

The young man thanked the potion-maker for his honesty but declined to take the potion.

Sometime later, a young lady entered the shop and inquired about the potion or everlasting life. She, too, wanted to know if there is life after death.

“I have looked at that question long and hard, “replied the potion-maker. “And I have reached the conclusion that it is impossible to reach a conclusion regarding this question.”

The young lady mused, “There are so many things I want to do. It would simply be marvelous to live forever.”

The potion-maker interjected, “But what if there is a heaven? Would you not be missing your chance to go there if you lived forever on this Earth?”

The young lady decided to pass on the opportunity to live forever.

Finally, an old man rushed into the store and demanded the potion of everlasting life.

“But wait,” said the potion-maker. “Don’t be hasty. Should you not consider that I have proven that there is life after death? I’ve even proven there is a heaven.”

“Yes,” said the old man irritably. “I already know that heaven exists. And I also know that there is a hell. And that’s where I’ll be going if I do not live forever. For you see, I have committed a terrible crime .”

“I see,” said the potion-maker. “You wish to live forever so that you can escape eternal damnation?”

“Yeah,” replied the old man. “Can I have the potion now?”

“Certainly.” The potion-maker gave the old man a bottle of black bubbling liquid.

The old man turned away from the counter and looked out the door of the shop as he greedily drank the potion. He started feeling better within a few moments.

“Am I going to live forever now?” he asked.

“Yes,” replied the devil.

The potion-maker story often serves as a platform for my patients to further discuss their ideas.

I share with my patients that I believe the mystery of death is one of the gifts we have been given by virtue of being sentient beings. This mystery can prompt us to carefully consider what we want to achieve in our limited existence on this Earth and gives us a better perspective regarding what is truly important in our lives.

Harris, Paul, L. 2018. Children’s understanding of death: from biology to religion. Phil Trans R Soc B , 373: 20170266.

More information about how patients deal with questions relating to death can be found in the 2021 book, "Changing Children’s Lives with Hypnosis: A Journey to the Center," by Ran D. Anbar, Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.

Ran D. Anbar, M.D., FAAP, is board-certified in both pediatric pulmonology and general pediatrics. He is the author of the new book Changing Children’s Lives with Hypnosis: A Journey to the Center .

• Find a Therapist
• Find a Treatment Center
• Find a Psychiatrist
• Find a Support Group
• Find Teletherapy
• United States
• Brooklyn, NY
• Chicago, IL
• Houston, TX
• Los Angeles, CA
• New York, NY
• Portland, OR
• San Diego, CA
• San Francisco, CA
• Seattle, WA
• Washington, DC
• Asperger's
• Bipolar Disorder
• Chronic Pain
• Eating Disorders
• Passive Aggression
• Personality
• Goal Setting
• Positive Psychology
• Stopping Smoking
• Low Sexual Desire
• Relationships
• Child Development
• Therapy Center NEW
• Diagnosis Dictionary
• Types of Therapy

Understanding what emotional intelligence looks like and the steps needed to improve it could light a path to a more emotionally adept world.

• Coronavirus Disease 2019
• Affective Forecasting
• Neuroscience

Your browser does not support JavaScript. Please note, our website requires JavaScript to be supported.

Please contact us or click here to learn more about how to enable JavaScript on your browser.

• Change Country
• Article Library
• Resources /

Awake beyond the Grave: What the Bible Says about Soul Sleep

Death raises many questions: When will it happen? What will it be like? What is the soul's destiny? Chuck Swindoll addresses that last question in Growing Deep in the Christian Life :

When the believer dies, the body goes into the grave; the soul and spirit go immediately to be with the Lord Jesus awaiting the body's resurrection, when they're joined together to be forever with the Lord in eternal bliss. 1

Sadly, many fear their souls will have to wait indefinitely for heaven. "Soul sleep"—the belief that the soul rests after death in an unconscious state, or ceases to exist, until the final resurrection—finds its roots in the common "sleeping" metaphor for bodily death. Although this metaphor appears in Scripture, a thorough study shows that the metaphor of sleep refers only to the earthly body's inanimate state after death, not to the soul.

Scripture assures believers of their souls' destiny at death:

Therefore, being always of good courage, and knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord—for we walk by faith, not by sight—we are of good courage, I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord . (2 Corinthians 5:6–8, emphasis added) For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. But if I am to live on in the flesh, this will mean fruitful labor for me; and I do not know which to choose. But I am hard-pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better; yet to remain on in the flesh is more necessary for your sake. (Philippians 1:21–24) And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, "Father, into Your hands I commit My Spirit." Having said this, He breathed His last. (Luke 23:46)

Jesus, as God's Son, knew He would be spiritually present in the Father's "hands" at the very moment of His death, not asleep in the grave.

Other biblical events make clear there is no soul sleep for believers but rather a conscious, immediate presence with God after death:

• The stoning of Stephen (Acts 7:54–59)
• The transfiguration (Matthew 17:1–8; Mark 9:1–8; Luke 9:28–36)
• Rachel's soul departing when she died (Genesis 35:18)

Two more passages bear further discussion. First, John 11:23–27:

Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again." Martha said to him, "I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day." Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?" She said to Him, "Yes, Lord; I have believed that You are the Christ, the Son of God, even He who comes into the world."

Notice Jesus corrected Martha's belief that her brother would only "live" in the resurrection. In contrast, Jesus revealed that believers will live even if they die, and in fact, they will never die in the way that our bodies do.

The second passage comes from Peter's pen:

For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit. (1 Peter 3:18)

Believers, at the moment of salvation, are "crucified with Christ," and yet they live (Galatians 2:20). When the earthly body of the believer dies, he or she lives on spiritually. Through faith in Christ, believers have been made alive in the spirit just as Jesus lives in the spirit. We who profess Christ are not destined for soul sleep or the grave!

We can resolve many of the interpretation conflicts that surround the issue of death by simply keeping the earthly physical body's inanimate state after death completely separate from the soul's spiritual life and location apart from the body .

One key scriptural event that supports this, but is sometimes misunderstood, is Jesus's exchange with the thief on the cross. Jesus tells the thief dying next to Him that their spirits would be together, alive, and conscious on that day. Yet some argue the punctuation is misplaced in Luke 23:42–43. Instead of, "Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise," they argue Jesus really said, "Truly I say to you today, you shall be with Me in Paradise." But Scripture includes no other instance of Jesus saying, "I say to you today." This adds to the likelihood that, as every English translation indicates, Jesus was emphasizing that today was the time He and the thief would be together in paradise. And even Jesus's statement, "Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit," points to His being spiritually in God's presence immediately upon death.

Another scriptural event that is sometimes misinterpreted is Saul's visit to the medium of Endor. Some believe that Saul summoned the spirit of Samuel, that Samuel's spirit ascended from the ground, and that Samuel was angry because his sleep had been disturbed. However, sleep is not mentioned in the passage. The text only says, "Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?" (1 Samuel 28:15). Further, as Thomas Constable noted, "This passage does not say that the witch brought up Samuel from the dead. God revealed Samuel to Saul." 2

We don't know exactly where Samuel was before he was disturbed, but we do know he told Saul that the king and his sons would be with the prophet the very next day (28:19). This wouldn't be very meaningful if their souls were just going to be sleeping after they died. Rather, it's more likely Samuel meant they would all be conscious of their spirits meeting one another the next day.

In Luke 16:19–31, Lazarus and the rich man were in "Abraham's bosom" and "Hades" after their deaths. But some readers conclude that those "waiting places" indicate that our souls will wait for heaven in similar places. Actually, this story, told by Jesus himself, teaches that the soul is not sleeping but alive and conscious after death and before bodily resurrection. Incidentally, this is the only time the phrase "Abraham's bosom" appears in the Bible. "Abraham's bosom" was an expression referring to the "paradise" Jesus anticipated following His death.

Some wonder if we will recognize our loved ones in heaven or if our spirits will be without form like a ghost or a wispy cloud, but these passages suggest we will have a bodily form. The Bible doesn't give us details, but several passages suggest we will have recognizable intermediate bodies .

Lewis Sperry Chafer refers to 2 Corinthians 5:1–5 when he explains "the concept of an intermediate body between death and resurrection":

At the present time believers are in an "earthly tent" (v. 1), but they long for their "heavenly dwelling" (v. 2). References to believers after death but before resurrection all seem to suggest that they have a body, as in the case of Lazarus (Luke 16:19–25). When Moses and Elijah met with Christ on the Mount of Transfiguration, they were represented as having bodies (Matt. 17:1–3; Mark 9:4; Luke 9:30). In Revelation 6:9–11 [and 7:13–17] the martyred dead . . . are represented as wearing robes and being before the throne of God. Though full revelation was not given in Scripture concerning the exact characteristics of these bodies, apparently they will not be suited for eternity for they will be replaced by resurrection bodies. 3

This conscious, intermediate state is not an intermediate cleansing place between heaven and earth, like purgatory, a concept that is never found in the Bible and contradicts the gospel. Rather, it's a temporary body, intermediate between the time of our death and the resurrection, which will take place when Jesus returns.

Scripture not only assures us of our souls' destiny; God's Word also offers insight on the future of our earthly, physical bodies, which will be resurrected at the Rapture. Paul wrote that we "wait eagerly for . . . the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved" (Romans 8:23–24 NIV). Unfortunately, many who believe in soul sleep have confused the resurrection of our earthly bodies and spiritual life after death. Regarding the earthly body and its significance after death, Scripture says, "It has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is" (1 John 3:2). The exact details of that will remain a mystery; however, we know that we will be physically resurrected at the Rapture (John 5:29; Acts 24:15; 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18). We also know that our resurrected bodies will be different in some ways than our current bodies (1 Corinthians 15:45–49) and suited for eternity.

We can learn about our resurrected bodies by considering Jesus's body after His resurrection. We know that Jesus ate and drank, that the disciples could touch Him, and that He had flesh and bones yet could move at will without physical limitations. "See my hands and my feet, that it is I Myself; touch Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have" (Luke 24:39). If Jesus's resurrected body could do all these things, our resurrected bodies likely will too.

Fears and questions about death are natural, but the Bible offers peace. Believers can take courage in the knowledge that the rest God provides for us after death is so much better than any so-called "soul sleep." While death is sorrowful and painful, for those who know Christ, the time beyond death carries with it marvelous hope. For Christians, death means we will finally, immediately be face-to-face with our Father.

• Charles R. Swindoll, Growing Deep in the Christian Life: Essential Truths for Becoming Strong in the Faith (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1995), 308.
• Thomas L. Constable, Notes on 1 Samuel (Dallas: Sonic Light, 2013), 115, http://www.soniclight.com/constable/notes/pdf/1samuel.pdf (accessed May 28, 2013).
• Lewis Sperry Chafer, Systematic Theology , vol. 2, abr. ed. (Wheaton, Ill.: Victor, 1988), 507.

Copyright © 2013 by Insight for Living Ministries. All rights reserved worldwide.

About the author

Brian Leicht

Brian Leicht received a master of theology degree in Pastoral Ministries from Dallas Theological Seminary. As director of the Biblical Counseling team at Insight for Living Ministries, he provides biblical guidance to listeners through written and verbal correspondence. He has also pastored in single adult, marriage reconciliation, and missions ministries for 20 years. Brian also holds a master’s degree in Trumpet Performance, and he, his wife Bonnie, and their three sons enjoy participating in worship ministry and local theater.

Featured Resources

How the Soul Travels After Death

Are you curious about what happens to your soul after death? Wondering if there’s more to the story than just this life? In this article, we’ll take you on a journey exploring different belief systems and how they view the soul’s travel after death. We’ll delve into near-death experiences, reincarnation, astral projection, and the role of spirit guides. Get ready for an eye-opening exploration of what lies beyond – because freedom is yours to seek.

Key Takeaways

• Different belief systems have varying views on the soul’s journey after death, including reincarnation, judgment based on earthly actions, peaceful reunions, and eternal bliss.
• Near-death experiences allow the soul to embark on a remarkable journey, providing a sense of freedom and reassurance about the existence beyond this earthly realm.
• Reincarnation offers the concept of seamless transition into new lives, providing opportunities for self-discovery and personal growth.
• Astral projection enables individuals to explore new dimensions, transcend limitations, and gain profound insights, guiding them towards spiritual growth.

The Journey of the Soul in Different Belief Systems

In different belief systems, the journey of the soul after death varies. For some, it is believed that your soul will be reborn into a new body, starting a fresh chapter in the cycle of life. Others believe in an afterlife where your soul will be judged and either rewarded or punished based on your actions on Earth. There are also those who envision a peaceful place where souls reunite with loved ones and experience eternal bliss. Whatever the belief, freedom lies in knowing that you have a choice in shaping your own destiny even after death. You can strive to live a life filled with love, kindness, and compassion so that your soul may find peace and freedom in whatever journey awaits beyond this earthly existence.

Near-Death Experiences and the Soul’s Voyage

During a near-death experience, your soul typically embarks on a remarkable journey. It’s like an exhilarating adventure that sets your spirit free from the confines of your physical body. You float above, observing everything from a different perspective. As you travel through a tunnel of light, you can feel the energy pulling you towards it, guiding you towards something greater. This journey is liberating and awe-inspiring, as if all the weight and worries of life are lifted off your shoulders. You may encounter loved ones who have passed on or even celestial beings who radiate love and compassion. It’s an experience that instills in you a sense of freedom and reassurance that there is so much more beyond this earthly realm.

Reincarnation: How the Soul Moves From One Life to Another

As you contemplate the concept of reincarnation, imagine how your essence seamlessly transitions from one existence to another. It’s a fascinating idea, isn’t it? The freedom to live multiple lives, to learn and grow through different experiences. The notion that death is not an end, but merely a transition into something new and exciting. In this journey of continuous rebirth, you have the power to shape your destiny. With each life you lead, you have the opportunity to explore different perspectives, cultures, and passions. You are not bound by limitations or restrictions; instead, you are free to roam the vast expanse of existence. Embrace this concept of reincarnation and let it empower you on your quest for self-discovery and personal growth.

Exploring Astral Projection and Out-of-Body Experiences

Imagine yourself floating outside of your body, experiencing the incredible sensation of astral projection and exploring new dimensions beyond the physical realm. It is a liberating experience, one that allows you to break free from the constraints of your earthly existence and venture into uncharted territories.

• The ability to astral project opens up a world of possibilities, where you can travel to distant places without limitations or boundaries.
• Through astral projection, you can connect with higher realms of consciousness and gain profound insights about yourself and the universe.
• This practice provides a sense of freedom like no other, allowing you to transcend the limitations of time and space.

As you navigate these ethereal planes, embracing the freedom that comes with astral projection, know that there are no limits to where your soul can travel. Embrace this journey and let it guide you towards greater understanding and spiritual growth.

The Role of Spirit Guides in Guiding the Soul’s Travel After Death

Spirit guides play a crucial role in guiding your soul’s journey beyond physical existence. These benevolent beings are here to assist you as you navigate the vast realms of the afterlife. They serve as your trusted companions, offering guidance and support every step of the way. Whether you choose to explore different dimensions, reunite with loved ones, or embark on new adventures, spirit guides are there to ensure your freedom and growth. They help you shed any lingering attachments from your earthly life and encourage you to embrace the limitless possibilities that await you. With their gentle nudges and loving presence, they empower you to fulfill your soul’s purpose and experience ultimate liberation. Trust in your spirit guides as they guide you towards eternal expansion and enlightenment.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are some common signs that indicate the soul has successfully transitioned to the afterlife.

You’ll notice signs that indicate the successful transition of a soul to the afterlife. These common signals bring comfort and peace, assuring you that your loved one’s journey continues beyond this earthly realm.

Can the Soul Choose to Stay on Earth After Death Rather Than Continuing Its Journey?

You have the freedom to choose whether your soul stays on Earth after death or continues its journey. It’s up to you to decide what feels right and brings you peace.

Are There Any Scientific Explanations or Evidence Supporting the Concept of the Soul’s Travel After Death?

There isn’t scientific evidence for the soul’s travel after death. But hey, you’re free to believe what resonates with you. Explore spirituality, philosophy, and personal experiences to find your own truth.

How Does the Soul’s Journey Differ for Those Who Have Committed Heinous Acts in Their Lifetime?

The journey of the soul after death can vary depending on one’s actions in life. For those who have committed heinous acts, their journey may be more challenging and filled with remorse.

Can the Soul Experience Pain or Suffering During Its Travel After Death?

You may wonder if the soul can suffer after death. It’s a valid question. The journey of the soul is complex, and while pain and suffering may be part of it, there is also room for growth and freedom.

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Notify me of follow-up comments by email.

Notify me of new posts by email.

Golden Celestial

How To Soul Travel – Everything You Need to Know!

Soul travel is travelling without physical limitations to another realm where you become one with God or the higher consciousness. Soul travel is often likened to a near-death or an out-of-body experience where the traveller becomes transformed. A soul traveller can become his/her best version since they receive powerful insights on their journeys from their spirit guides and angels. Soul travellers can also solve complex problems in real life, gain clarity, and live their lives to their fullest potential.

If you think soul travel is difficult or complex, think again. With the right tools and techniques, you can consciously direct your soul’s energy to travel wherever it wants to go. Learn to visualise and meditate so you can achieve your life’s dreams.

Table of Contents

What is Soul Travelling? 

Soul travel, as mentioned above, is an out-of-body experience where the traveller’s conscious body leaves his/her physical body and travels to a different realm. Many religious practices and scriptures have described soul travel in detail.

Soul travellers describe their experience as leaving their physical bodies and floating or hovering over them. They report meeting entities (including angels or the deceased) and visiting different locations they have never physically been to. They gain profound insights from these travels and can solve complex problems in real life.

It is believed that Nikola Tesla, Einstein, Edison, and other great inventors all soul-traveled which helped them solve complex scientific problems.

What Happens In Soul Travel? Is It The Same as Astral Projection?

People often confuse soul travel with astral projection. In reality, the two are very different. Astral projection is done with the help of the astral body (also called the subtle body or the energy body), whereas soul travel involves the light body. In astral travel, the subtle body leaves the physical body (either through lucid dreaming or meditation), but the traveller remains aware of her/his physical body.

In soul travel, you travel with your light body . It involves raising the vibrations so you are at the same frequency as the highest source. You achieve this through unconditional love. The main difference between astral and soul travel is that, in soul travel, the light body also encompasses the astral body and the traveller does not remain aware of his/her physical body. 

Here are some experiences you could have during soul travel:

• Sense of separation – you might get a sense of detachment from the physical body. Some people report floating or hovering over their physical bodies.
• Visit to different realms – Soul travellers report visiting different realms and dimensions. These realms have a dream-like quality. 
• Encounters and meetings – a soul traveller might meet different entities and spirit guides on their travels. These could be angels, deceased loved ones, and spirit guides. These entities guide the traveller and give him/her a deep insight into any answers they seek.
• Loss of time – soul travellers often lose the sense of time as time is not linear during these journeys. 
• Heightened perception – soul travellers experience bright and vivid colours, sounds, and sensations they have never experienced in real life.
• A deeper understanding of the self and heightened spiritual awareness – soul travellers often get deep insights into questions about their higher purpose and report having a spiritual awakening. They get a deeper understanding of reality and their true nature and selves. They come back with greater wisdom and knowledge.
• Lasting bliss – once the soul traveller comes back to the physical realm or back into the body, they feel joy bubbling from their core. They report feeling a high, not very different from an orgasm or climax. This joy bubbles through their being and every cell. Life becomes beautiful.

What Are The Benefits of Soul Travel?

Soul travellers often experience several benefits in their spiritual, personal, and professional lives. Anecdotal reports suggest that the practice could have the following advantages:

Deeper Understanding of The Self

Soul travel can connect you with the divine consciousness. This helps you become aware of things and concepts beyond the physical realm. A soul traveller could experience expanded consciousness and get a deeper understanding of the self, life, and the interconnectedness of all things.

Spiritual Growth

Soul travel can lead to spiritual awakening and growth. The traveller gets to explore realms beyond the physical. Many travellers encounter their angels or spiritual guides, who help them gain insights into the nature of existence and the afterlife.

Physical and Emotional Healing

Since travellers gain insights into their bodies and minds, they can heal themselves from diseases and emotional trauma. They get connected with their spirit guides, who guide them into spiritual, physical, and emotional healing.

Alleviated Fear of Death and After-Life

Death is one way of soul travelling (since the soul leaves the physical realm after death). With soul travel, you get to experience the concept of heaven without dying. Travellers get an understanding of the continuity of life and with the help of their angels, they can accept the cycle of life and death. Many travellers also report meeting their deceased loved ones, which fosters a sense of love and connection and brings immense peace and happiness.

Personal and Professional Development

Astral and soul travel can help you develop empathy for all those around you. They give you an understanding of the fact that we are all connected through a higher consciousness. This helps you see people and relationships in a different light. This can help you develop amazing relationships. 

Furthermore, soul travels encourage creativity, problem-solving, and intuition. They can help you solve complex issues and give you a greater sense of empowerment. These enhanced skills can also help you in your professional life.

Lasting Joy and Bliss

Soul travels allow you to have unique and beautiful experiences. You get to journey to different planes and exciting places. These mental adventures can give you a “high” without drugs and eternal bliss and joy that extend into your daily life.

What is the Importance of Soul Travel?

Soul travel is important because it gives an individual insight into his/her true purpose. It helps them view humanity with greater empathy. At the core of soul travel is unconditional love. This unconditional love can help human beings connect and look beyond race, gender, and other differences.

By journeying beyond the confines of the physical body, soul travellers get deeper insights into human existence. They explore facets of themselves that might be hidden in the routine of everyday life. This quest for understanding often leads to greater alignment with personal missions, values, and a sense of purpose.

Soul travel can help human beings see the interconnectedness of life. Through soul travel, humans can develop a deeper appreciation for the shared human experience – which can promote love, compassion, and understanding.

At the core of soul travel is unconditional love, which transcends ego and judgment. It can help provide a profound sense of unity and bliss. Imagine if every human got this experience; we could perhaps solve wars and conflicts with compassion, kindness, empathy, and understanding.

How Can I Soul Travel?

Step 1: chanting a mantra.

Mantras are sacred sounds or phrases used to focus the mind. Some practitioners receive mantras from a guru or spiritual master. If you don’t have a guru, you can use commonly used mantras like “Om” to help centre your thoughts and create a meditative state.

Step 2: Setting Intention

Clearly define where you wish to go or what you aim to explore during the soul travel experience. It could be a specific destination or a realm you wish to visit. Focus your mind on this destination.

Step 3: Meditation or Concentration

Engage in meditation or concentration practises. This involves sitting quietly, relaxing your body, and calming your mind. Concentrate on your breath or a point of focus. You can also do guided meditations available online. We will discuss some meditation techniques later in this guide.

Step 4: Listening to Inner Sounds

As you meditate or concentrate, listen for inner sounds, particularly those related to the mantra you are chanting. The goal is to attune your awareness to these subtle inner vibrations or sounds associated with the mantra. It is not just about hearing with your physical ears but also perceiving these sounds within your consciousness.

Techniques for Soul Travel

Different meditation techniques have helped people transcend to other realms:

Guided Light Meditation

This meditation is aimed at activating the crown and root chakras while invoking unconditional love. 

• Find a quiet, comfortable space to sit or lie down. 
• Close your eyes and take deep, calming breaths, allowing your body to relax completely.
• Take your attention upward to your crown chakra, located at the top of your head. Visualise a loving golden light here. With each inhale, imagine this light intensifying, opening up your connection to higher consciousness (the source) and divine love. Feel a sense of spiritual expansion, transcendence, and connection to the universe.
• Imagine this light travelling down to your root chakra, located at the base of the spine. Imagine the chakra glowing red and light expanding with each breath, grounding you to the earth. 
• Allow the light to enhance feelings of security, stability, and a sense of belonging. Feel the connection to the earth’s energy and unconditional love supporting you.

Two Pyramid Technique

• Find a comfortable seated position. Close your eyes and take several deep breaths to relax.
• Visualise a pyramid-shaped energy field inside you. Imagine the base of the pyramid resting at your hips, extending upwards, with the tip reaching your crown chakra (top of the head).
• Imagine another pyramid within your body, with its base at your heart and its tip pointing downward, grounding into the earth. Continue deep breathing while holding this visualisation.
• Visualise a golden, loving orb of light encompassing both pyramids. Feel this radiant light fill your entire being with unconditional love and warmth.
• Imagine the pyramids and the golden orb of light spinning gently and harmoniously. As they rotate, visualise this loving energy expanding and permeating your entire body, infusing every cell with pure, unconditional love.
• Extend this feeling of love beyond yourself, sending it out to envelop the entire planet. Visualise the Earth bathed in this golden light, radiating love and healing energy to all beings.

Third Eye/Pineal Gland Activation

• Sit or lie down in a comfortable position.
• Close your eyes and take several deep, calming breaths. Relax your body by releasing tension with each exhale.
• Bring your attention to the area between your eyebrows, often referred to as the third eye or the location of the pineal gland. Visualise deep indigo or purple-coloured energy centre in this area.
•  Imagine a bright, radiant, loving light or a glowing ball of light at the centre of your forehead, activating and energising your third eye.
• Focus on your breath. Inhale and exhale naturally while directing your attention to the third eye area. Imagine the breath flowing in and out of this centre, cleansing and energising it.
• If needed, chant your guru mantra or Om/AUM.
• Allow your mind to become still and observe any sensations, images, or insights that arise without attachment or judgement. Be open to receiving messages or guidance.
• See unconditional love flowing through your body. Send this love to the planet.

 Build a Daily Practise

Practise these techniques daily. You can also do reality checks to see if you are dreaming or awake. These checks can help you enter lucid dream states, which help the astral body and light body travel to different realms.

You can also visualise a scene from your past while changing something in that scene – like wind blowing or people moving, etc. 

Keep your vibrations high while keeping up with the daily chanting, visualisations, and meditations. 

Key Takeaways – How To Soul Travel

Soul travel is a method of realising your soul’s true purpose or discovering your true essence or true self. 

To perform soul travel, you need to build a daily meditation practice, such as chanting your guru mantra given to you by your spiritual teacher or master. You also need to practise raising your vibration through unconditional love. Meditate on your pineal gland or use the two-pyramid technique. Do these practises daily and you will surely realise your true essence.

Soul Travel FAQ’s

What is Soul Travel?

• Soul travel refers to the intentional journeying of the soul outside the confines of the physical body, exploring realms beyond the ordinary.

2. How is Soul Travel Different from Astral Projection?

• While astral projection often involves exploring the astral plane, soul travel is a broader concept, encompassing journeys through various spiritual dimensions.

3. Can Anyone Learn to Soul Travel?

• Yes, with practice and dedication, most individuals can develop the ability to soul travel. It requires honing spiritual awareness and deepening one’s connection to the soul.

4. Are There Specific Techniques for Soul Travel?

• Techniques may vary, but common approaches include meditation, visualization, and energy work. Finding what resonates best with you is crucial.

5. Is Soul Travel Safe?

• When approached with respect and positive intent, soul travel is generally considered safe. However, it’s essential to be mindful and follow spiritual principles during the practice.

6. Can Soul Travel Enhance Spiritual Growth?

• Yes, soul travel is often seen as a powerful tool for spiritual evolution, providing profound insights, expanded consciousness, and a deeper understanding of one’s spiritual path.

7. How Long Does It Take to Master Soul Travel?

• The timeframe varies for each individual. Consistent practice and patience are key. Some may experience progress sooner, while others may take more time.

8. Can Soul Travel Be Used for Healing?

• Many practitioners believe that soul travel can contribute to emotional, mental, and even physical healing by accessing higher states of consciousness and divine energy.

9. What Role Does Intent Play in Soul Travel?

• Intent is fundamental in soul travel. Clearly defined and positive intentions guide the journey, ensuring a purposeful and meaningful experience.

10. Are There Risks Associated with Soul Travel?

• While risks are minimal, individuals should approach soul travel with responsibility. Maintaining a strong connection to the physical body and staying grounded are essential precautions.

Are you not interested in unlocking the deeper meanings of life?

Don't miss out on our latest research sent direct to your inbox for you to view at your leisure. We can't wait to share it with you!

We don’t spam! Read our privacy policy for more info.

Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription.

Related posts:

Related Posts

From Fragility to Ultimate Perfection: The Hidden Meaning of a Broken Bowl

The Surprising Spiritual Significance of Finding a Rosary

By Billy Graham   •   June 19, 2006

Where does our soul go when we die if we are believers? Does it go into some kind of sleep until the last judgment, or does it go immediately to heaven?

My own study of the Bible has convinced me that our souls or spirits go immediately into the presence of God when we die. The Apostle Paul wrote that those of us who are Christians “would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord” (2 Corinthians 5:8).

Although the Bible doesn’t answer all our questions about life after death, it clearly tells us that we can look forward to heaven’s joys when we die, if we know Christ. Shortly before His death and resurrection, Jesus told His disciples, “I am going there to prepare a place for you … that you also may be where I am” (John 14:2-3). The Bible also says, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23).

The most important truth I can tell you about heaven, however, is that we will be with God, and nothing evil or harmful will ever touch us again. In heaven, God “will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away” (Revelation 21:4). Why would anyone not want to go there?

All this is possible because Jesus Christ took upon Himself the death and judgment we deserve when He died on the cross for us. And by rising from the dead, He showed that He has conquered death and Hell and Satan forever. Is your faith and trust in Him for your salvation? If not, commit your life to Him today.

More Stories

Wilkesboro, NC, Residents See the Light After the Storm

Will Graham Devotion: Think Your Sin Isn’t So Bad?

Running to God in Kraków

Franklin Graham Tells Poland: ‘Hang on to Your Faith’

Chaplains Serve in Slidell, Louisiana After EF1 Tornado

Read Today's Devotion

Our basic need.

Inspiration to your inbox

• spirituality
• Law Of Attraction
• Beauty And FItness
• Better Life
• Energy Healing
• mental health
• Anger Management Tips
• relationship
• Personality
• Toxic People
• Blood Sugar
• Natural Remedies
• Pain Relief
• Weight Loss

• Lifestyle , Science

Science Explains What Happens To Your Soul After Death

• By Power of Positivity
• Published on December 16, 2017
• Last modified June 1, 2023

A few things fit the bill of fascinating, thought-provoking, and frightening. Death is one such thing.

Since the dawn of mankind, human beings have pondered the question “What happens after we die?” When you stop and think it, you quickly realize there are only two possible answers: something or nothing.

Of course, religion adds some nuance to the abovementioned question, but that’s pretty much it. Either something happens, or nothing happens. Either we are matter to be disposed of and recycled – or we aren’t.

Which one is it?

Well, if you were to ask Dr. Stuart Hameroff,  something happens – and it involves consciousness .

“I believe that consciousness, or its immediate precursor proto-consciousness, has been in the universe all along, perhaps from the big bang.” ~ Dr. Stuart Hameroff, MD

Scientists Reveal What Happens To Your Soul After Death

What is consciousness?

The word ‘consciousness’ is defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as:

• a state of being awake and aware of one’s surroundings.
• the awareness of perception of something by a person.
• the fact of awareness by the mind of itself and the world.

Predictably, consciousness – like death – is heavily debated. Some believe that consciousness is the direct result of brain activity. Others think that outside forces, e.g., the ‘Universe,’ ‘God’ – and internal elements, e.g., the ‘Spirit,’ ‘Lifeforce,’ ‘Mind,’ etc., contributes to our state of being.

The Orch-OR Theory

Dr. Hameroff oversees the Center of Consciousness Studies at the University of Arizona and has spent the last 50-plus years exploring consciousness as it relates to the field of quantum mechanics .

Quantum mechanics is “a fundamental theory in physics which describes nature at the smallest scales of energy levels of atoms and subatomic particles.”

To explain just how essential quantum mechanics is to the perception of reality – and to Hameroff’s theory– let’s quickly talk about where it all began: The “Double-Slit Experiment.”

(We’ll get back to Orch-OR in a bit!)

The Double-Slit Experiment

Every quantum physicist is baffled by the double-slit experiment. And they have good reason to be –it defies natural law.

Here’s all you need to know about the experiment:

• Light particles called photons pass through two slits (hence the name).
• Photons, as researchers predict, form an ordered pattern on a wall. (To help you visualize this, imagine two vertical lines filled with little ‘pellet protons’ shooting onto a screen.)
• When an observational device (a detector) detects which protons go through which slit, no pattern emerges (no more vertically-aligned pellet protons).
• In other words, human observation (via a technical apparatus) alters the pattern.
• The predicted energy pattern, as should be decided by natural law, instead produces no pattern whatsoever.

Anil Ananthaswamy of New Scientist – in a piece called “Classic quantum experiment could conceal theory of everything” explains the experiment and potential ramifications:

“ Our classical view of the world suggests that photons of light should pass through one slit or the other, and thus create two parallel bands on the screen behind. But instead, the light spreads out onto alternating bands of light and dark … (the) iconic physics experiment may be hiding more than we ever realized about the nature of reality.”

“Quantum Consciousness”

What do the human mind and the Universe have in common?

The answer: two things.

(1) We know relatively little about them.

(2) Quantum vibrations are found in both.

Read that again. It’s important.

While the phrase “correlation does not imply causation” is played on a loop within the scientific community (for a good reason, BTW), there is no denying the relationship between the human mind and universe.

But what is that relationship , exactly?

Back to ‘Orch-OR’

In 1996, Dr. Hameroff and Roger Penrose, mathematician, and physicist, proposed the orchestrated objective reduction theory of consciousness, or the ‘Orch-OR’ theory.

According the Orch-OR theory, consciousness derives itself from tiny protein structures within the brain called microtubules .

On a physiological level, microtubules are the cell’s “conveyor belts.”  They transport cellular resources and materials. Microtubules are also involved in cell division and the structuring of cells.

Microtubules also contain quantum energy.

“The origin of consciousness reflects our place in the universe, the nature of our existence. Did consciousness evolve from complex computations among brain neurons, as most scientists assert? Or has consciousness, in some sense, been here all along, as spiritual approaches maintain?”

Hameroff and Penrose answer their own rhetorical question:

“… our theory accommodates both these views, suggesting consciousness derives from quantum vibrations in microtubules, protein polymers inside brain neurons, which both govern neuronal and synaptic function, and connect brain processes to self-organizing processes in the fine scale, ‘proto-conscious’ quantum structure of reality.”

Bear in mind that the duo published their findings over twenty years ago. Since then, numerous technological advances (e.g., brain imaging and observational apparatuses) have taken place which appears to support Hameroff and Penrose’s theory.

Arch-OR and Death

The law of conservation of energy, resoundingly accepted by scientists, states that “energy can neither be created nor destroyed.”

Energy, however, can change forms. The energy within us must change forms. It’s the ‘law.’

Final Thoughts on Death and Quantum Energy

Quantum energy, the intrinsic energy that forms the universe’s very fabric, also resides within us. Indeed, it underscores our deep-rooted connections with the cosmos. This profound realization begs the question: Are we, as sentient beings, the direct manifestations of the Universe itself? Scientists continue to dive into our understanding of mortality through the lens of quantum energy. Thus, their research illuminates our existence’s potential vastness beyond the conventional constraints of life and death.

Do we ‘go home’ after shedding our bodily form , as Hamerof and Penrose seem to suggest? It certainly seems to be food for thought!

Comments & Discussions

Connect With Me

About the Author

Power of Positivity

Our passion is to serve and bring the best possible positive information, news, expertise and opinions to this page. We want to help our community find and shine their inner light – the truth of love, light, and positivity that is within us all! Read more about Power of Positivity…

Related Articles

20 Phrases Never to Say to a Sensitive Man

10 Things That Cause Self-Hatred (and How to Fix It)

When a Strong Woman Moves On, You Can’t Win Her Back

Psychiatry Gives 10 Alternatives to Spanking Children

Here’s What Happens to Your Soul in the Afterlife

Here’s How a Man Reveals His Love (Without Saying a Word)

Doctor Reveals 3 Top Tips for Better Health

50 Affirmations to Replace Disappointment with Gratitude

20 Ways to Cheater-Proof Your Relationship

The community, our free community of positively powerful superfans.

Join our free community of superfans today and get access to courses, affirmations, accountability, and so much more… plus meet other like-minded positive people committed to living the power of positivity. Over the years, we’ve brought 50+ million people together through the Power of Positivity … this free community is an evolution of our journey so far, empowering you to take control, live your best life, and have fun while doing so.

Rise and Shine On! Master Your Day with the Ultimate Positive Morning Guide + Checklist

Stay connected with, every day is a day to shine. shine on.

This site is not intended to provide, and does not constitute, medical, health, legal, financial or other professional advice. This site is for entertainment purposes only. Our editors handpick the products that we feature. We may earn commission from the links on this page.

All rights Reserved. All trademarks and service marks are the property of their respective owners.

Please see our Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | About | Cookie Policy | Editorial Policy | Contact | Accessibility |  [cookie_settings] | Disclaimer

• Copyright Power of Positivity 2024
• Terms of Service
• Privacy Policy
• Cookie Policy
• Accessibility

Quote Remedy — Positive Energy+

• Pandit For Funeral Services
• Parsi Cremation Services
• Funeral box Services
• Funeral Condolences messages
• Mortuary services
• Funeral procession
• Post Cremation Burial
• How is a Deceased’s Body Prepared for Funeral?
• Freezer Box Services
• Cremation Services
• Prayer Hall
• Asthi Visarjan Services
• Pet Memorial
• Pet Cremation Services
• Transportation
• All Faith Funeral
• Repatriation Services
• Garhmukteshwar
• The Last Journey Funeral
• Green Funeral Services
• Celebrate the life of you
• Counselling Services
• Dog Therapy Services
• Prayer Meeting On Zoom

Select Your Location

Lastjourney Blog

Journey of the soul after death in Hinduism

26 July, 2021

When it comes to thinking spiritually, one of the most pondered upon and asked questions by us humans is what happens after death?

There are a lot of different views by people belonging to different faiths and by people believing in scientific theories. In our country, Hinduism is one of the oldest and the largest population, comprising 80% of the population of India. According to the Hindu religion, the human soul is immortal and never dies. After the death of a human, the soul(atman) is reborn in a different body through reincarnation. It is the good and the offensive actions (Karma) that determine the fate of the soul. The ultimate goal is to achieve “moksha,” i.e. liberate oneself from the cycles of rebirth and become a part of an absolute soul.

Hindu Funeral Traditions

The reason that the last rites practices (Antyesti) in Hinduism are very important is because of the beliefs and values that this religion has. As per the beliefs, our karmas of the present life are determining the length and the form of each of our rebirths ( saṃsāra). To simplify each of our action and moral attributes are going to affect what we receive in our next life.

To end or escape this cycle of rebirths, one must achieve salvation (Moksha). Those who are saints or those whose ashes after the last rites are scattered in the holy waters of Ganga can only achieve this state. For others, fate will lead to reincarnation.

Through the process of cremation which involves the burning of the body in wooden logs, it is believed that the fire acts as a messenger. The Agni consumes the body and returns it to where it came from which is Earth. With this process, the soul can move to its next destination.

Journey of the soul

Based on the Hindu rituals and ceremonies, immediately after the demise, the soul does not reincarnate into the next form of life. It stays in a structure of ( linga ṡarīra ). The god of death also known as the Yama takes this form for an identity check. After this process, it returns the soul to the place of the deceased where it will stay at the doorstep. As per the beliefs, we must perform the cremation rituals before this return so that the soul does not reenter the body.

It is believed that by the 10th day of the demise the immediate family has purged the defilement. The Karta (Chief mourner) and the priest carry out the rituals of the śrāddha. They conduct these rituals to ensure the dignified rebirth of the next physical form for the soul (preta) of the deceased. To perform the ceremonies, a trench is dug on land near a holy river. Lord Vishnu is called on and ten balls of flour with ingredients such as honey, curd, ghee, sesame seeds, sugar, and milk are placed in the area.

One by one as the items are being placed the chief mourner says and wishes for the creation of a head, a neck, shoulders, heart, chest, and so on. The last and the 10th request is that the soul can digest and eat, which ultimately can satisfy the thirst and hunger of the new reincarnated body. With the completion of all these rituals, the soul leaves the world for its further journey. The other shraddha rituals are performed at the allotted periods depending on the caste. Throughout the journey, the soul is sustained by the rituals and ceremonies of the śrāddha s in which the family provides Brahmans with clothes, shoes, and money in the hope of benefitting the soul of the deceased.

After one year, the soul of the deceased will reach the Yama’s final judgement of whether it will receive svarga(heaven) or Naraka(hell) depending on the karma. After this decision, the soul will be reincarnated into the next form which could be a cockroach, a parasite, a mouse, a plant, or a human.

How to conduct dignified last rites?

For the peace and salvation of your loved one, all the rituals and ceremonies must be conducted as per the beliefs. To help families in such times and to guide them through the process service providers such as the Last Journey offers assistance in conducting all the funeral rituals. They ensure a dignified funeral service for your loved ones.

Read more at: Life After Death: Beliefs

What happens to the soul after 13 days?

As per Hinduism, it is after 13 days that the soul begins its real transitioning journey.

What becomes of the soul after death?

After the death of a human, the soul(atman) is reborn in a different body through reincarnation.

What happens to a soul after death in Hinduism?

The soul is reborn in a different body through reincarnation. It is the good and the offensive actions (Karma) that determine the fate of the soul.

8 Interesting Facts You Must Know About Cremation

10 December, 2021

Some Etiquette to Keep in Mind While Attending A Funeral Service

06 September, 2021

What do I need to do if an Indian dies in the USA

07 October, 2022

How does Last Journey offer comfort to grieving families?

Deepu Verma

06 November, 2023

Transporting a Dead Body to Jharkhand: Everything you Need to Know!

21 March, 2022

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

The Last Journey is a team of professionals working towards conducting dignified last rites for your loved one. We aim at bringing homes and families peace by assisting you during the most distressing times.

FNP Care LLP Khasra No. 584 585 586 G/F, Gadaipur, New Delhi, New Delhi, Delhi, 110030, India

Quick Links

• Funeral E-invites
• Franchise Programme
• Green Remembrance

Connect With Us

Copyright 2023, All Right Reserved.

Privacy policy

Term & Conditions

Be Assured With Last Journey

Recommended

Family of ny doctor killed after falling from moving trailer while going to watch eclipse cite ‘significant safety oversight’.

• View Author Archive
• Get author RSS feed

Thanks for contacting us. We've received your submission.

The Long Island doctor who fatally fell out of her family’s moving Airstream loved the trailer so much that she nicknamed it and used to sleep there even when it was parked in their driveway.

Tragic well-known pediatrician Monika Woroniecka, 58, dubbed her and her husband’s shiny new silver RV “Nebula” because “it represented adventure and exploration,” said shattered daughter Helena Woroniecka, who witnessed her mother’s ”crazy accident” Saturday afternoon as the family headed through upstate New York to watch the solar eclipse.

“She loved that trailer so much and poured her soul into it,” Helena told The Post on Tuesday.

“She gathered shells from a beach at home and arranged them to spell ‘Nebula’ in a frame above the entrance,” Helena said of her mom, a Stony Brook Medicine allergy specialist and married mother of three.

“She would go in there even just to sleep at home when it was rainy and put so much love into it.”

“She did also love to travel and explore, which is why my parents bought the trailer — they were planning to take an early retirement and travel to national parks and spend time exploring together,” Helena said of the two-month-old vehicle.

“My mom loved her family above everything else, so the fact that my sister and I were coming home so everyone could go see the eclipse together — that’s what she was most excited for was spending time with everyone,” the heartbroken daughter said.

“She was so excited about this trip that for weeks beforehand, she was learning about space and researching different eclipse glasses and buying everyone’s favorite groceries.”

Helena called her mom’s death “pure accident” — although she suggested that the trailer’s design suffered from “a significant safety oversight” because its door opened inward as opposed to outward “against the wind.”

Helena and her mom were riding in the family’s gray 2019 Chrysler Ram truck — which dad Robert, 59, was driving and pulling the Airstream along with — before the family stopped for ice cream at an upstate Stewart’s, state police have said.

Mom and daughter then decided to ride in the trailer during the final 20-minute leg of the family’s trip to an Airbnb in Cape Vincent , cops said.

The family had planned to gather to watch Monday’s celestial event, knowing they also would be together again for Helena’s wedding later this year, neighbors have told The Post.

Helena was lying in the bed in the Airstream when her mom went to “secure” the door — and was still clutching the handle when the door suddenly flew open and hurled her onto the pavement, state police said.

Officials at Airstream, the trailer’s manufacturer, said in a statement this week that their products “are not designed to carry passengers  while in motion.”

New York state law also prohibits anyone from riding inside a trailer while it is being pulled by a separate vehicle.

“This was an accident. Pure accident, and there’s nobody to blame. This is nobody’s fault,” Helena said. 

Keep up with today's most important news

Stay up on the very latest with Evening Update.

Thanks for signing up!

Please provide a valid email address.

By clicking above you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy .

Never miss a story.

“Sure, maybe Airstream doesn’t advise traveling inside the trailer. But we thought maybe that the last 20 minutes of an eight-hour drive on very quiet and slow country roads would be fine,” Helena said.

“And it’s perfectly legal to do so in some states.

“It was just a crazy accident,” she said.

Still, “The doors on the Airstream open the opposite way that you would expect. It doesn’t take an engineering degree to know that on any moving vehicle, whether a bus or a car or a trailer, doors should open against the wind, not towards it,” Helena told The Post.

“That seems like a significant safety oversight to me and seems like the only reason they do open that way is to protect the awning of the trailer.”

Monika was pronounced dead at Samaritan Medical Center — the same hospital where Helena was born while the family lived in Buffalo, the daughter said.

“This trip was the first time they would be back in that town, and she was excited to see their old apartment and the old town, and it so happens that she died in the same hospital I happened to be born in,” Helena said.

Monika and Robert were both born in Poland in 1965 and moved to the US in 1992, their daughter said.

They lived in Sackets Harbor from 1996 to 1999 before moving to Long Island, she said.

“She was the most loving, generous, and golden-hearted person I’ve ever known,” Helena said of her mother.

“She was always, always thinking about how to lend a helping hand to someone, whether her family or patients or friends that had medical questions or strangers on the street.

“She spent her whole life helping and taking care of people in one way or another, and I’ll spend the rest of my life trying to be like her.”

Share this article:

Advertisement

• Travel Updates

Rachael Dixon, 53, dies in suspected mushroom poisoning

A health centre has spoken out following the death of a woman who consumed a drink believed to contain mushrooms, as her son shares a touching tribute.

‘Absolute mayhem’: Chaos inside airport

‘Snapped in half’: Man’s horror flight

Uber bans Sydney mum over first name

The alternative health centre where a Melbourne mother died after consuming a drink her family believes contained mushrooms says it is devastated about the “tragic incident”.

Personal trainer Rachael Dixon, 53, went into cardiac arrest and died about midnight on Sunday after consuming the drink at Soul Barn in Clunes, near Ballarat in regional Victoria.

Soul Barn, which is described as a “creative wellbeing centre” specialising in holistic and alternative practices, said in a statement on Thursday it was shocked and devastated by Ms Dixon’s death.

The centre said the event was not run by them or facilitated by any of their staff.

“Soul Barn hires out workshop space to external businesses and facilitators,” the centre said.

“The event which took place on April 13 was a private event, and those facilitating the event do not work for or represent Soul Barn in any way.

“None of our regular therapists, staff or facilitators were present at any point during this event.

“We share the shock and devastation of everyone involved, and our hearts are with those families affected.”

Soul Barn will remain closed while police investigate Ms Dixon’s death.

Two other people were taken to hospital but were later discharged.

While Ms Dixon’s son and ex-husband believe the drink contained mushrooms, police have not confirmed that.

Ms Dixon’s son Matthew posted a heartbreaking tribute to his mother on social media on Sunday, writing that he wished he could give her “one last hug”.

“To the most loving, most caring person I’ve ever known, can’t thank you enough for everything you ever did for me and all the support you gave me,” he said.

“Words can’t begin to describe how much I will miss you, wish I could give you one last hug.”

A Victoria Police spokeswoman said it’s believed Ms Dixon became ill after ingesting a drink just after 12am.

“Investigations remain ongoing and police will prepare a report for the coroner,” the spokesperson said.

Before releasing this statement, the owners of the centre had not posted anything on its Facebook page since the weekend, save for a single post on Sunday abruptly cancelling a sound healing workshop for the same afternoon.

Several people commented offering “healing” and their support in the wake of the news on Soul Barn’s last Facebook update.

“I’m sending so much love to you all. Your community is sending you lots of love. Reach out if you need anything,” one woman wrote.

Soul Barn had earlier advertised a “Slow Beauty Medicine” event with “ritual skincare and reiki to soothe body and spirit”.

“Using infused herbal oils sourced from local farms & wild foraged plants, plus handcrafted skincare from around the world,” a listing in the centre’s newsletter reads.

“Woven into bespoke treatments to deliver your best skin, all while uplifting and enriching your soul with Reiki. This is a facial like none other, one you will never forget!”

Police have called on anyone with information about the incident to get in touch.

A spokesman from Ambulance Victoria said paramedics arrived at the property just after 11.50am on Saturday, with two people taken to Ballarat Base Hospital.

The death comes after Victorian authorities warned residents earlier this month that poisonous mushrooms were growing across the state.

“Unless you are an expert, do not pick and eat wild mushrooms in Victoria,” acting chief health officer Evelyn Wong said.

“There is no home test available to distinguish safe and edible mushrooms from poisonous mushrooms.”

The town of Clunes was rocked by a tragedy last week after former resident Hannah McGuire was allegedly murdered by her ex-partner near Ballarat.

The 21-year-old’s remains were discovered in burnt-out car at State Forest Road in Scarsdale, south of the town Ballarat on April 5.

Crime Stoppers can be reached on 1800 333 000 or online at crimestoppervic.com.au

A passenger has described inside one of the world’s busiest airport’s as “absolute mayhem” as she showed the painfully long lost luggage line.

A man has broken his leg 30 minutes into a seven hour flight after the plane hit turbulence when he was returning from the bathroom.

A woman shares how she was suddenly banned on the Uber app for her name.

Joel Cauchi was a 'tormented soul' says his tearful father Andrew after Bondi Junction stabbing

The father of Bondi Junction killer Joel Cauchi has tearfully apologised for the actions of his "tormented" son, saying he too would have shot him dead if he was the police officer responding to the tragedy.

Speaking outside his home in Toowoomba, Queensland, Andrew Cauchi said he was "not really" coping with the aftermath of his 40-year-old son's actions.

Mr Cauchi's son stabbed six people to death and injured several more at Bondi Junction Westfield on Saturday afternoon.

The incident is still under police investigation and will be subject to a coronial inquest.

"He was a tormented soul, tormented, and frustrated, and I'm sorry that he's done this to your children and this nation," Mr Cauchi, 76, said through tears.

"There's nothing I can say, there is nothing I can say that will take away the pain that my son has caused."

Cauchi's mother, Michele, said her son had been under the care of doctors for about 18 years while receiving treatment for mental illness.

She said he had lived at home until he was 35, at which point he moved to Brisbane and stopped seeing his regular doctor.

She said he had a loving childhood with lots of friends and they had supported his efforts to finish a degree.

'A parent's nightmare'

"This is a parent's absolute nightmare when they have a child with mental illness, that something like this would happen, and my heart goes out to the people my son has hurt," Mrs Cauchi said.

"If he was in his right mind he would be absolutely devastated at what he has done, but he obviously was not in his right mind, he had been triggered into some kind of psychosis and lost touch with reality."

Mr Cauchi and his wife tipped off NSW police that they believed their son was the attacker as they saw the event unfold on social media and television news.

"My wife said 'This looks like Joel' when you saw him on the stairway with his head down, and I said it might look like Joel but I'm not going to say it's Joel," Mr Cauchi said.

"So I watched and watched, and I watched until 3 o'clock in the morning.

"The police then knocked on my door that night to tell us they believe this is Joel, and I said 'you don't have to believe it, you can know it'."

Mr Cauchi said he held no ill feelings to Inspector Amy Scott, who killed Cauchi at the scene, because she was "doing her job".

"If I was in her uniform, and this wasn't my son … and he runs at me with a knife, I'd have to do the same thing she did," he said.

"We have no ill feelings towards her because she was doing her job and she did a wonderful job, even though it was my son.

"I mean, how I can stand here and say that she did a wonderful job killing my son, I don't know, but she did her job and she did it well."

Fixation with knives

Mr Cauchi says it was approximately January, 2023 when his son moved from Brisbane back to Toowoomba, and did so with a number of knives.

When he took those knives from his son, Joel called the police on his father.

"I found these US Army combat knives and I said 'Joel you can stay here as long as you like but you are not going to have these in my house', and so I took them off him, knowing that there was going to be pandemonium, but I was willing to put up with it," Mr Cauchi said.

"He rang the police saying I stole his knives … I said 'look I am not having these in my home, I have given them to a mate to look after them'."

Mr Cauchi said Joel then drove himself across the state border to the NSW town of Tweed Heads and bought another knife, which he said he did not take.

"I had already taken six and it was hassle enough to take those six," Mr Cauchi said.

Asked why his son needed knives Mr Cauchi said he was unsure but his wife had her own theory.

"My wife said it was probably for self-protection," he said, before again lamenting his son's actions through tears..

"I wish I knew what was in his bloody head.

"If I knew what was in his head I would have rung the New South Wales police and said 'please pick my son up and do something about him before something goes wrong'," he said.

Watch 7.30 , Mondays to Thursdays 7:30pm on ABC iview and ABC TV

• X (formerly Twitter)

Related Stories

Bondi junction attacker 'focused on women and avoided the men', police commissioner says.

'Shopping will be a different experience': Sydney reels after attack where everyday life happens

Who are the victims of the Bondi Junction stabbing attack?

• Bondi Junction

Police investigating after 'American Idol' alum, singer Mandisa found dead in home

Christian music sensation Mandisa has died at 47.

The singer was found deceased in her home on Thursday, a rep for Mandisa confirmed to USA TODAY on Friday.

“At this time, we do not know the cause of death or any further details. We ask for your prayers for her family and close-knit circle of friends during this incredibly difficult time," her team said via email.

Officers were investigating her death, a spokesperson for the Franklin Police Department told the USA TODAY Network on Friday after the Christian singer and "American Idol" alum was found dead.

"Mandisa was a voice of encouragement and truth to people facing life’s challenges all around the world. She wrote this song for a dear friend who had passed in 2017. Her own words say it best. 'I'm already home, You've got to lay it down 'cause Jesus holds me now—And I am not alone,'" a statement posted Friday on her official Facebook account read.

The California native first rose to fame on Season 5 of "American Idol," when she finished within the Top 10.

Later, she released her debut album "True Beauty" and went on to become one of the most recognizable voices in the Christian music industry. The five-time Grammy Award nominee snagged the best contemporary Christian music album award for her 2013 album, "Overcomer," featuring the popular title song.

Passages 2024: Dickey Betts, Eleanor Coppola, Roberto Cavalli, more stars we've lost

Reps for the show issued a statement to USA TODAY about the loss of Mandisa on Friday.

"Mandisa was an adored icon on American Idol and in the music industry. She had become a platinum-selling artist and had won several Grammys for her music. Her passing has left everyone on the show heartbroken, and we extend our deepest condolences to her family," the statement read.

Robin Roberts mourns loss of Mandisa, who she listened to during cancer treatments

In 2017, during an interview with Robin Roberts on "Good Morning America," Mandisa recounted her struggle with a deep depression three years prior. Mandisa said she became depressed after the death from breast cancer of her best friend LaKisha "Kisha" Mitchell , who was also a background singer for the star.

“It got pretty bad to the point where if I had not gotten off that road I would not be sitting here today,” Mandisa told Robin Roberts on “ GMA .” "I was this close to listening to that voice that told me, ‘You can be with Jesus right now, Mandisa. All you have to do is take your life.'"

Roberts, who listened to Mandisa's song "Stronger" during her own breast cancer treatments, mourned Mandisa's loss in a Facebook post Friday, recounting how the "Idol" alum was present during her first day back on "GMA" after her cancer battle.

"My heart is heavy hearing about Mandisa. Incredibly blessed that she was there my first day back on GMA after my long medical leave. Her beautiful music and spirit lifted me and countless others. Sending prayers and condolences to her family & loved ones." she said, adding a link of Mandisa's performance .

Mandisa's death shared by Christian radio station: 'Struggles are over'

Mandisa's death was first shared in a blog post by Christian radio station K-Love.

In a statement, K-Love Chief Media Officer David Pierce said she "loved Jesus, and she used her unusually extensive platform to talk about Him at every turn" and asked for prayers for the star's family and friends.

"Her kindness was epic, her smile electric, her voice massive, but it wasno match for the size of her heart. Mandisa struggled, and she was vulnerable enough to share that with us, which helped us talk about our own struggles. Mandisa’s struggles are over. She is with the God she sang about now. While we are saddened, Mandisa is home," the statement read.

Contributing: Melonee Hurt and Craig Shoup; The Tennessean

• International edition
• Australia edition
• Europe edition

Iran missile and drone attack on Israel – what we know so far

Israel’s military has reported minor damage after Iran launched dozens of drones and missiles towards it late on Saturday

• Iran attack on Israel – live updates
• Full report: Iran launches drones and cruise missiles against Israel

Iran launched hundreds of drones as well as cruise missiles towards Israel , in the Islamic Republic’s first ever direct attack on the Jewish state, in response to the 1 April strike on an Iranian diplomatic building in the Syrian capital, Damascus, which killed a senior figure in Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards and eight other officers.

Benny Gantz, a member of the war cabinet, said that Israel will exact a price from Iran in response to its mass missile and drone attack when the time is right. His comments came ahead of a war cabinet meeting alongside Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and the country’s defence minister, Yoav Gallant.

Tehran has warned it will strike again with greater force if Israel or the US retaliate for the Iranian strike on Israel by more 300 drones and missiles on Saturday night. The air raids , the Islamic Republic’s first ever direct attack on the Israeli state, brought a years-long shadow war into the open and threatened to draw the region into a broader conflagration as Israel said it was considering its response.

However, the attack, mostly launched from inside Iran, caused only modest damage in Israel as most were shot down with the help of the US, Britain and Jordan. An air force base in southern Israel was hit, but continued to operate as normal and a seven-year-old child was seriously hurt by shrapnel. There were no other reports of serious damage. Israeli military spokesperson Rear Adm Daniel Hagari said that 99% of the launches had been intercepted.

Most of the Iranian drones flying over Syria’s airspace during Tehran’s strikes overnight were downed by Israeli and US jets before reaching their targets in Israel, two western intelligence sources told Reuters .

The UN security council will hold an emergency meeting on Sunday at the request of Israel’s ambassador to the UN, the council’s president said in a statement.

Iran informed Turkey in advance of its planned operation against Israel, a Turkish diplomatic source has told Reuters . The source also said that the US conveyed to Iran via Ankara that its operation must be “within certain limits”. These reports come after Iran’s foreign minister, Hossein Amirabdollahian , said in a meeting with foreign ambassadors in Tehran that Iran had informed the US that its attacks against Israel will be “limited” and for self-defence only.

John Kirby, the White House’s top national security spokesperson, told ABC’s This Week programme on Sunday that the US will continue to help Israel defend itself, but does not want war with Iran. “We don’t seek escalated tensions in the region. We don’t seek a wider conflict,” Kirby said. News outlet Axios reported that Joe Biden , the US president, had told Netanyahu that he would oppose an Israeli counterattack against Iran and that the prime minister should “take the win”.

UK Royal Air Force fighter jets and refuelling aircraft were also involved in Israel’s defence, taking off from bases in Cyprus. Their role, according to the UK Ministry of Defence, was to fill in for the US air force in the sorties against Islamic State normally carried out over Iraq and north-eastern Syria, but also to intercept Iranian drones if they came into the UK area of operations.

World leaders have condemned Iran’s attack, with regional powers including Saudi Arabia and Egypt calling for restraint. The UN secretary general, António Guterres, said: “I am deeply alarmed about the very real danger of a devastating region-wide escalation. I urge all parties to exercise maximum restraint to avoid any action that could lead to major military confrontations on multiple fronts in the Middle East.”

Jordan’s prime minister, Bisher Khasawneh , warned that any escalation in the region would lead to “dangerous paths”, joining a chorus of condemnation from world leaders to the attack. Other countries including the UK, Spain, the US, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and China, have called for restraint amid fears of a regional escalation of conflict across the Middle East. Iran’s foreign ministry has summoned the ambassadors of the UK , France , and Germany to question what it referred to as their “irresponsible stance” regarding Tehran’s retaliatory strikes on Israel, the semi-official Iranian Labour news agency reported .

Major airlines across the Middle East, including Emirates Airlines and Qatar Airways , announced they would resume some of their operations in the region after cancelling or rerouting some flights in response to Iran’s attack on Israel. Israel said it had reopened its airspace as of 7:30am local time on Sunday morning, with Beirut airport also reopening this morning. Several Iranian airports, including Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International, however, have cancelled flights until Monday.

• Middle East and north Africa
• US military

Most viewed

Iran launches retaliatory attack on Israel with hundreds of drones, missiles

• Medium Text
• For a Reuters live page of coverage of the Iranian attack, click

Coming soon: Get the latest news and expert analysis about the state of the global economy with Reuters Econ World. Sign up here.

Reporting by Dan Williams in Jerusalem, Parisa Hafezi in Dubai, Timur Azhari in Baghdad, Jeff Mason, Eric Beech and Doina Chiacu in Washington and Suleiman al-Khalidi in Amman and Lidia Kelly in Lisbon; Writing by Angus McDowall; Editing by Jonathan Oatis, Daniel Wallis, Chizu Nomiyama, Howard Goller and William Mallard

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. New Tab , opens new tab

World Chevron

WADA says 23 Chinese swimmers tested positive before Tokyo Games but it accepted contamination finding

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) confirmed reports on Saturday that 23 Chinese swimmers had tested positive for a banned drug before the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, but it accepted the country's findings that this was due to substance contamination.

Russia's newly-appointed navy chief will take part in a major military conference in ally China, Russian state news agency TASS reported on Saturday, amid growing Western criticism of ties between the two countries.