Introduction : The undiscover'd country
pt. 1. The climate of immortality. Egypt
The First Temple Period in Israel
pt. 2. From climate to the self. Iranian views of the afterlife and ascent to the heavens
Greek and classical views of life after death and ascent to the heavens
Second Temple Judaism : the rise of a beatific afterlife in the Bible
pt. 3. Visions of resurrection and the immortality of the soul. Apocalypticism and millenarianism : the social backgrounds to the martyrdoms in Daniel and Qumran
Religiously interpreted states of consciousness : prophecy, self-consciousness, and life after death
Sectarian life in New Testament times
pt. 4. The path to modern views of the afterlife. Paul's vision of the afterlife
The Gospels in contrast to Paul's writings
The pseudepigraphic literature
The Church Fathers and their opponents
Islam and the afterlife : Muslim, Christian, and Jewish fundamentalism
Afterword : Immortal longings.
