Heaven Is Beautiful : How Dying Taught Me That Death Is Just the Beginning

In the tradition of Heaven is for Real (with a twist of Into Thin Air), a book that explores what really happens when we die

He died on a mountain. He lived to tell the tale.

In March 1980, Peter Panagore went ice climbing on the world-famous Lower Weeping Wall, along the Icefields Parkway in Banff National Park in Alberta. His climbing partner was an experienced ice climber, but Panagore was a novice. On their descent, they became trapped on the side of the mountain. As the sun set, Panagore was overcome by exhaustion and hypothermia and died on that mountain. During his minutes on the other side, he experienced hell, forgiveness and unconditional love. Heaven was beautiful.

In Heaven Is Beautiful, Panagore explores how his near-death experience, or NDE, changed his life and resulted in an intense spiritual journey that has continued for decades. It impelled him to pursue a master’s degree at Yale Divinity School, focusing on systematic theology and Christian mysticism. His educational background, combined with 30 years of yogic and meditative practice and 20 years of professional work with the dying and grieving, has given him unique insight and perspective on heaven, God, death, life, love, beauty and hope. In Panagore’s words: “I have told my story to audiences large and small for a decade now. . . . My story touches people’s hearts; every time I tell it the audience is gripped and silent. . . . This book is about hope. It is meant to provide real hope to the dying, hope to the fearful, hope to the hopeless, hope to the grieving.”