Proof of Heaven

A Neurosurgeon's Journey into the Afterlife

By: Eben Alexander

Narrated by: Eben Alexander

Length: 5 hrs and 29 mins

Publisher's summary

The #1 New York Times bestselling account of a neurosurgeon's own near-death experience—for fans of 7 Lessons from Heaven.

Thousands of people have had near-death experiences, but scientists have argued that they are impossible. Dr. Eben Alexander was one of those scientists. A highly trained neurosurgeon, Alexander knew that NDEs feel real, but are simply fantasies produced by brains under extreme stress.

Then, Dr. Alexander’s own brain was attacked by a rare illness. The part of the brain that controls thought and emotion—and in essence makes us human—shut down completely. For seven days he lay in a coma. Then, as his doctors considered stopping treatment, Alexander’s eyes popped open. He had come back.

Alexander’s recovery is a medical miracle. But the real miracle of his story lies elsewhere. While his body lay in coma, Alexander journeyed beyond this world and encountered an angelic being who guided him into the deepest realms of super-physical existence. There he met, and spoke with, the Divine source of the universe itself.

Alexander’s story is not a fantasy. Before he underwent his journey, he could not reconcile his knowledge of neuroscience with any belief in heaven, God, or the soul. Today Alexander is a doctor who believes that true health can be achieved only when we realize that God and the soul are real and that death is not the end of personal existence but only a transition.

This story would be remarkable no matter who it happened to. That it happened to Dr. Alexander makes it revolutionary. No scientist or person of faith will be able to ignore it. Listening to it will change your life.

©2012 Eben Alexander (P)2012 Simon & Schuster, Inc

Critic reviews

"Dr. Eben Alexander's near-death experience is the most astounding I have heard in more than four decades of studying this phenomenon. In my opinion, Dr Alexander is living proof of an afterlife." (Raymond Moody, MD, PhD, author of Life Beyond Life)

"Eben Alexander brings a unique perspective to the sacred world combining a glorious, personal vision of spiritual consciousness with patient, insightful scientific inquiry. Proof of Heaven is a compelling story of what may lie ahead for all of us in the life beyond this one. We have nothing to fear." (Allan J. Hamilton, MD, FACS, author of The Scalpel and the Soul and Zen Mind, Zen Horse)

"I can highly recommend this important book that has the potential to break many scientific taboos." (Dr. Pim van Lommel, cardiologist, author of Consciousness Beyond Life: The Science of the Near-Death Experience)

Excellent in Every Category. Fascinating Story

Where does Proof of Heaven rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

It would rank in the top 5 for sure.

What did you like best about this story?

The reason I loved this story is because the chapter in which he begins to realize something is going on with his health and it progresses at such a rapid pace, is almost the exact scenario I experienced when I had a health scare. The medical symptoms and terminology he uses in the story that lead up to him on his deathbed in the hospital was eerily the same experience I had. Of course, the similarities end there, but his story continues to unfold in such a fascinating, well-told story from then on. I thoroughly enjoyed the entire book.

What about Eben Alexander’s performance did you like?

A high quality performance.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Not necessarily/

Any additional comments?

If your a skeptic, it's food for thought. If you are a believer it's just another confirmation that there is life after death and your loved ones are never very far from you.

Life Changing and Faith Building

It explained, expanded and restores faith. I am eternally grateful. Going to read other books he has written.

Loved his descriptive ability.

What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?

His obvious search for the best words to describe this sensation which had so much emotion tied to it was, I felt, in the end successful and kept me wanting to hear more.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I was alway looking for a spare moment to continue to story.

Any additional comments?

I think the science, for me, made this a more interesting story, and really made me consider the author's viewpoint as a real possibility.
Very interesting and well put together story.

Amazing memoir on the spirit from a scientist

Another in the list of there really IS something beyond death...noteworthy because of the author's education and experience in dealing with the transition from life to after-life.
Believers will be comforted, non-believers will seek to discredit the author's account and/or experience and conclusions. A gentle listen on a fascinating subject.

LOVED this book!

This book is magical and beautiful and inspiring! Thank you to the author for putting this story into the world!

The proof is in he Logic

What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?

I did enjoy listening to this book. It is well written and beautifully narrated. I am one of those skeptics when it comes to accepting the so called spiritual world but I am also open minded and this is why I listened to this book.
Unfortunately the outcome is always a sense of disappointment since in this case as in all other books written before it, it only served to reinforce what I, and so many others already know namely, belief systems and formal logic are mutually exclusive. In other words, any attempt to explain a belief and still comply with the strict rules of logic, is doomed to failure. In the end you either believe it or not.

Remarkable!

Would you consider the audio edition of Proof of Heaven to be better than the print version?

I have both, and it's great to hear the author's voice change when he's describing something particularly meaningful for him.

What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?

His authenticity and his objective presentation of data

A good story and a great listen!!

Would you listen to Proof of Heaven again? Why?

Yes, I thought it was well laid out and was a very memorable listen. I also may pick up some additional details if I were to listen to it again.

I have a number of doctors in my family and many skeptics about Near Death Experiences and I think they all should listen to this book. I think this is an outstanding book and that Eben Alexander is sincere. I purchased this book as a Christmas present for a good friend of mine. I highly recommend it.

My only concern is what Eben Alexander is doing with the proceeds of sales of this book. As a Neurosurgeon he must be fairly wealthy already. I would think that the proceeds should be donated to charity or NDE research.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I would say Eben, the author - but he's really the only character.

What about Eben Alexander’s performance did you like?

It seemed genuine and personal.

Any additional comments?

Eben Alexander goes into a little bit too much detail about his personal history and life. While I think this might help the story a bit, it was more detail than was probably needed.

Overall though I thought this was a great book.

One of the Best NDE Books!

One of the best NDE books around. I found the narration to be very well done and the storyline very believable. I've read other NDE books that try to explain the experience scientifically, and they end up being dry and boring. This book was interesting from the start to the end. I won't say I couldn't put it down, but I always looked forward to getting back to listening to Ebon's encounter.

This book may not make me 100% certain that NDE’s are real, but it did bring me one step closer. I don't know if it's possible for a human being to really be 100% certain of anything. It’s just not in our nature.


Excellent book and well worth reading. I really enjoyed it.

Very good book

This is a very good book however is missing something, it’s a fascinating story but I think that there is more into it, Not sure if I want to keep this book.