The Book of heaven: an anthology of writings from ancient to modern times

I. Journey

Paradiso, Canto I / Dante Alighieri

From "The Vision of Drythelm" in Bede's Ecclesiastical History of the English People / St. Bede the Venerable

From The Pilgrim's Progress / John Bunyan

From A Journey from This World to the Next / Henry Feilding

From Adonais / Percy Bysshe Shelley

"How the Weaver Went to Heaven"

From The Tibetan Book of the Dead

"The Far-Off Journey"

From Memories, Dreams, Reflections / C. G. Jung

"The Mithras Liturgy" From The Greek Magical Papyri

"Spell for Ascending through the Heavens" From The Second Book of Jeu

"Commendation of the Soul" From The Book of the Craft of Dying

"The Passionate Mans Pilgrimage" / Walter Ralegh

Iroquois Mother's Lament: From League of the Ho-de-no-sau-nee

"The Hobo's Last Lament" From Hobo News

II. Lands of Bliss

"Where Is No More Sea" / "Fysh"

"Heaven" / Rupert Brooke

"Rangi and Papatua"

"The First Day" From The Legends of the Jews / Louis Ginzberg

"The Deluding of Gylfi" From The Prose Edda / Snorri Sturluson

From The Sukhavativyuha Sutra

From "The Dream of Scipio" in On the Republic / Marcus Tullius Cicero

"The Celestial Orchestra" / Howard Schwartz

Passion of Saints Perpetua and Felicity

From Black Elk Speaks / John G. Neihardt

From Experimental Investigation of the Spirit Manifestations / Robert Hare

From The Gates Ajar / Elizabeth Stuart Phelps

III. Vision of God

From Confessions / St. Augustine

From La'ali al-masnu'a / As-Suyuti

From The Shi'ur Qomah

From The Kausitaki Upanishad

From The Sukhavativyuha Sutra

Paradiso, Canto 33 / Dante Alighieri

From Sermon VIII on Romans 2:10 / Jonathan Edwards

From A Romance of Two Worlds / Marie Corelli

Pygmy Hymn

Bible

Psalm 104: 1-4

Ezekiel 1

Isaiah 6:1-7

Revelation 4, 5

From the Hekhalot Rabbati

From "An Hymne of Heavenly Beautie" / Edmund Spenser

"God Is All in All" / John Henry

IV. Celestial Court

From The Iliad / Homer

From The Celestial Hierarchy / Pseudo-Dionysius

From The Vision of Adamnan

From the Bhagavata Purana

From Paradise Lost / John Milton

From A Vision of Judgment / Robert Southey

From The Vision of Judgment / George Gordon

From On the Fitness of the Glories of Mary / John Henry

Assumption Prayer / Pius XII

From The Man Who Was Thursday / G. K. Chesterton

V. Heavenly Society

From Extract from Captain Stormfield's Visit to Heaven / Mark Twain

From Heaven and Its Wonders and Hell / Emanuel Swedenborg

From The Land of Mist / Arthur Conan Doyle

From A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters / Julian Barnes

"Concerning the Heavenly Joys of Virgins," from The Book of the Rewards of Life / Hildegard of Bingen

From Story of a Soul / St. Therese of Lisieux

"The Window of Paradise," from The Miracles of Our Lady Saint Mary / Evelyn Underhill

"Elijah" / Louis Ginzberg

"The Spirit of the Saints" / Jalal ad-Din ar-Rumi

VI. Heaven on Earth

From Phaedo / Plato

From The Voyage of Bran

From The Romance of the Rose / Guillaume de Lorris and Jean de Meun

From Paradise Lost / John Milton

From the Bhagavata Purana

From "The Knowledge-bearing Messenger" / Rinpung Ngawang Jigdag

From Centuries / Thomas Traherne

"A Leaf from Heaven" / Hans Christian Andersen

From the Preface to Theorie de l'unite universelle / Charles Fourier

From "What Makes a Life Significant" / William James

"An Invitation to Lubberland"

"Prayer" / George Herbert

"The Angel" / Mikhail Lermontov

Shaker songs

"Simple Gifts"

"Heavenly Display"

VII. New Heaven, New Earth

"Belief": From Legends of the Hasidim

"On the Sea," from In the Heart of the Seas / Shmuel Yosef Agnon

Bible

Daniel 12:1-3

Isaiah 65:17-25

1 Corinthians 15:35-54

Revelation 21:1-4

Qu'ran

Sura 55: 37-78

From the Bundahishn

Report on the Ghost Dance, From James Mooney, The Ghost-Dance Religion and the Sioux Outbreak of 1890 / George Sword

From The City of God / St. Augustine

From The Last Battle / C. S. Lewis

"Easter-day" / Henry Vaughan

"Easter Hymn"

"At the round earths imagin'd corners, blow ..." / John Donne

Spirituals

"In That Great Getting-up Morning"

"I'll Hear the Trumpet Sound"