The dying-moment dream hypothesis: heaven and hell as the brain's final dream.
Frontiers in psychology January 1, 2026 Recai Kayış
Near-death experiences and end-of-life visions may be final internally generated simulations—dying dreams—produced by the brain's own activity rather than evidence of an afterlife. The hypothesis proposes that a surge of terminal neural activity, combined with memory integration, a breakdown in time perception, and neurochemical changes, generates a vivid, culturally shaped experience. Under oxygen deprivation, subjective time can dilate, so seconds of brain activity may feel timeless. Because the person never wakes, this simulation becomes their last conscious experience. The framework draws on studies of near-death experiences, brain recordings at death, dream science, cultural beliefs, psychedelic research, and hospice observations, and it offers testable predictions.