Many sets of religious beliefs have a particular spirit, deity, demon or angel whose responsibility is to escort newly-deceased souls to the afterlife, such as Heaven or Hell. These creatures are called psychopomps, from the Greek word psuchopompos, literally meaning the “guide of souls”.
two comments...
here’s a bit of trivia for ya…. I once went to see a psychic & she told me I was one of those WalMart Greeters for the Dead. Apparently I do this while I’m sleeping. That explains why I wake up tired all the time — I’m spending the whole night on another astral plane, escorting people through the appropriate gates.
how’s that for a part-time job?!
If anyone is a long time reader of Stephen King, they will know that he uses this word in a couple of his books, most lately “Cell”. That was the first time I had ever seen the word used (and only time, really).