Have you ever wondered what it would be like to experience your own funeral? In South Korea, it has become all the rage. While some people are personally compelled to envisage their own deaths, others are sent by their businesses as part of a motivational program to better appreciate life. 

Participants sit at desks next to wooden coffins and write their last testaments, then climb into the coffins, which are hammered shut by "the Envoy from Another World," clad in a black robe. There they lie in complete darkness for 10 minutes. 

One such program at the Hyowon Healing Center in Seoul has had more than 15,000 people participate in these mock deaths since 2012. By and large, the experience seems to leave most participants strangely refreshed, with a new zest for life. The free program is aimed at preventing suicide, which is a growing problem in South Korea. The country has one of the highest suicide rates in the world. 

Source: The New York Times, UPI