tours of heaven on a purely theoretical level, I suggest that we place these
accounts into the context of related, cross-culturally documented experiences.
(1) First, the notion of ecstaticflightis attested in many cultures (Mahony,
2005). Discussions of the subject are found in texts from Daoist China,
Vedic India, Sufimysticism, and Buddhism, among others. The ability
tofly is often ascribed to specialists and heroes, but is not exclusive to
them. For example,Yogattava Upanisaḍ 107 teaches the following
technique: “Thrusting the tongue into the back of the throat and
focusing one’s eyes on the spot between the eyebrows, one sits in the
posture in which one gains the power tofloat up into the air.”An
example of an antagonist levitating (as perceived by spectators) is found
inActs of Peter32 (Martyrdom 3), where Simon Magus appearsflying
over the Roman Forum. Inflight experiences, people can visit earthly or
fantastic landscapes, as well as supernatural realms. Let us note that the
widespread textual evidence of levitation andflight as well as ritual
practices that include aspects offlying do not automatically mean that
people involved in those traditions and practices have actual subjective
experiences offlying. Unfortunately, scholars have taken little interest
in asking about the experiential component of the respective traditions.
(2) Second, inascensionexperiences, people specifically visit places that are
above the realm of the earth (Tommasi, 2005). Descent to the under-
world is a related concept (Bremmer, 2013). We can usually think about
such experiences as religious, although a clear distinction cannot be
always made. For example, philosophical accounts of the ascent to the
absolute beauty might not be very different from religious accounts
(O’Meara, 1993, pp. 100–10). Given the widespread occurrence of
the theme of ascension in Western literature, it is important to avoid
the pitfall of eurocentrism when speaking of ascension experiences. The
reception of the biblical Book of Revelation and a number of related
apocalyptic texts (such as theApocalypse of Peterand theVisio Pauli,as
well as Jewish sources; cf. Himmelfarb, 1993; Collins, 1998; Bremmer &
Czachesz, 2003, 2007) have deeply penetrated Western art, literature,
music, and popular imagination. However, it would be a mistake to
assume that whenever people ascend into supernatural realms they see
something like a Christian heaven. The experience of ascension it
attested in Ancient Greece and was widespread in the Roman Hellen-
istic world, independently of Jewish and Christian apocalypticism
(Destro & Pesce, 2011). Shamans are often mentioned in the context
of ascension experiences. Although religious experts identified as sha-
mans in academic and popular literature can do different things and
play diverse roles, depending on how the category is used, visiting the
realm of spirits is usually considered essential to shamanic practice156 Cognitive Science and the New Testament