Entering heaven alive
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In various religions, certain individuals are believed to have entered heaven without dying first—through "ascension", "assumption", or "translation". Since death is the normal end to an individual's
Ascension of Jesus, by John Singleton Copley. Christians believe that Jesus ascended into heaven after his death on the cross and resurrection. In Islam, it is believed that he ascended to heaven without dying at all.
Yudhishthira is believed to ascend heaven alive in Mahabharata.
Ascension Rock, inside the Chapel of the Ascension (Jerusalem), is said to bear the imprint of Jesus' right foot as he left Earth and ascended into heaven.
Orthodox icon of the Dormition of the Theotokos (1392, Theophan the Greek)
Enoch
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Enoch is a biblical figure and patriarch prior to Noah's flood. He is the son of Jared and father of Methuselah.
Entering heaven alive
…is considered exceptional and usually a sign of a deity's special recognition of the individual's piety. In the Hebrew Bible, there are two figures – Enoch and Elijah – who are said to have entered heaven alive, but both wordings are subject to debate. Genesis 5:24 says "Enoch walked with God; then he was…
Enoch from the 1728 Figures de la Bible illustrated by Gerard Hoet (1648–1733)
Enoch, lithograph by William Blake, 1807
Elijah and Enoch – seventeenth-century icon, Historic Museum in Sanok, Poland