William Peters, Santa Barbara-based author of “At Heavens Door” will engage in a virtual dialogue with Eben Alexander, New York Times best-selling author of “Proof of Heaven,” 5 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 18. The program is part of the book launch of “At Heaven’s Door.”
The free event features a conversation about the stories and research of Shared Death Experiences that is the subject of this work. Drawing from years of clinical practice, extensive research, and personal experiences, Alexander and Peters will provide a closer look into near-death experiences and shared death experiences; why they happen and what they mean for us all.
“This brilliant and fascinating research about shared death experiences removes the conventional myth of death’s finality and shows how love binds us together beyond the material realm. Highly recommended,” Alexander said of Peters’ book.
In 2000, Peters — now an internationally recognized end-of-life expert and grief and bereavement therapist — was volunteering at the Zen Hospice Project in San Francisco when something strange happened. He was reading aloud to a patient when suddenly, he felt himself floating in midair, completely out of his body.
The patient, who was also aloft, looked at him and smiled. The next moment, Peters felt himself return to his body, but the patient never regained consciousness and died. Perplexed and stunned, Peters began searching for other people who had similar experiences and for answers explaining what had happened.
“At Heaven’s Door: What Shared Journeys to the Afterlife Teach About Dying Well and Living Better” (Jan. 11, 2022; Simon & Schuster) is the culmination of that work.
Peters, who holds degrees from Harvard’s Graduate School of Education and UC Berkeley, has spent nearly 20 years gathering and meticulously categorizing stories of people who have experienced what is known as a shared death experience, or SDE.
“We are living through a period of immeasurable loss,” Peters said. “More than one in 400 Americans has died due to COVID-19, creating ripples of bereavement and loss. Death is also finding us sooner; in 2021, US life expectancy fell to its lowest levels in nearly 20 years, and experienced the biggest single year drop since the worst days of World War II.
“Not only are we unable to outrun death, we cannot even keep it at bay,” said Peters. “I hope these stories from ordinary people just like you and me will provide solace for those of you who may fear death, and inspiration for those of you who want to cross this great divide with confidence and courage.”
To hear the discussion, visit https://www.facebook.com/events/4721784294604358/?active_tab=discussion.