Sam Bercholz

We’ve all heard the stories of someone who has had a near-death experience. They’ve gone toward that white light, seen a vision of heaven, and have lived to tell the tale. But what about someone who took a journey in the opposite direction, not to the heavenly realms, but to the terrifying depths of hell?

Here, Sam Bercholz, the visionary founder of Shambhala Publications and influential figure in disseminating Buddhist teachings and Eastern wisdom in the West, tells his story. After a sextuple coronary bypass surgery, Bercholz experienced a vision of the underworld, a place of unending suffering where human souls go to meet their karmic retribution. We see tyrants and mass-murderers, the selfish and careless, the abusive and power-hungry—all who once thought they were getting ahead on earth now faced with the hard truths of the consequences of their actions in this fiery realm.

Bercholz relayed his story to the renowned Tibetan artist Pema Namdol Thaye, and the result—as you’ll see in the pages here—is truly astounding. Part Dante’s Inferno, part Tibetan Book of the Dead, part Hellboy, the images graphically transport the reader and viewer into the horrifying world Bercholz describes. These paintings are complex, unforgettable, and truly unique, and several prestigious art institutions have already signed for special exhibitions of this work.

The book has already been optioned for film by Stuart MacDonald of Emerald Entertainment, and tickets for a New York City event at The Rubin Museum, featuring the author in conversation with the actor Steve Buscemi, sold out within weeks of going on sale. Praise has been received from writer George Saunders (“A dark thrill to read.”), author and activist Matthieu Ricard (“A fascinating and deeply thought-provoking testimony, powerfully illustrated.”) and Tibetan art expert Robert Beer (“A courageous and subjective account.”).