
Death and dying
Articles, Films and practical Guides on death and dying, part of Psyche’s coverage of self-knowledge and personal growth.


The existential balm of seeing yourself as a verb, not a noun
In the therapy room, I’ve seen how rethinking what we are – and what it means to ‘be dead’ – can lighten our fears
by Eric Jannazzo

They keep the Hindu funeral pyres burning, but at what cost?
For the men and boys of the Dom community in Varanasi, sacred cremations demand a lifetime of exhausting, dangerous labour
by Radhika Iyengar



Reflections on mortality can help you live well now – here’s how
For me and many others, contemplating death has clarified what matters. These curiosity-based exercises will get you started
by Joanna Ebenstein

Why one death doula sees an examined death as vital to a good life
A film by Annie Marr

As a society, we’re not death phobic, we’re death complacent
Our culture is routinely diagnosed with an excessive fear of mortality. A calm look at the evidence tells a different story
by Ingemar Patrick Linden

It’s not foolish to foster hope in the face of illness and death
As a great loss loomed, I feared straying too far from the hard truth. But I learned to distinguish denial from hope
by Christiana Boules

Why do so many of us blame ourselves after a loved one’s death?
After losing my father, I felt the guilt and regret that burden many other bereaved people – and found a way to carry them
by Delaney Rebernik


Why so many of us see our loved ones after they have died
These experiences – which are more of an illusion than a hallucination – can be a healthy part of the grieving process
by Shayla Love

Ethan ponders his daughter’s future without him in this celebrated short
Directed by Ethan Barrett

Together forever: ‘at-home burial’ in southern Vietnam
What might a traveller along the Mekong Delta learn about the beliefs and traditions behind the country’s elevated tombs?
by Gina Elia

