Discussion Topic #27: NEAR DEATH EXPERIENCE -- Share your thoughts, experiences and stories

Fascinating stuff. I had a NDE and was greeted by my grandmother who promptly told me it was too soon and sent me back. I was in my late twenties and the experience really shook me. I didnt share it until 10 years later after learning that others had had similar experiences. Now I am so happy about it. That was over thirty years ago and I know Grandma will be waiting for me when the time does come.

I had one after my car accident when I was real young and my parents thought I was dead and a couple of weeks later I was awake and I'm happy to be alive

I've never had personal experience or known anyone personally but I've read a book in two volumes which chronicles many such experiences. They all seem to have the same experience to some extent; hovering over their own body, being able to give data the doctors felt they couldn't know after the moment of "death", seeing a bright light, some heard voices or saw entities who soothed them and told them to go back, it was not time.

I also read one doctor's account that he felt as many people awoke frightened and saying in essence, do whatever you must to save me I can't go back there. These people he claims reported darkness, pain, and terrible fright and believed they had seen hell rather than heaven.

I wonder how much this is influenced by the person's own religious beliefs about the next life? I'd like to research this and find out if there truly are more people who've had a negative experience when "dead".

One thing that impresses me is that people who claim to have had this experience say they no longer fear death and have a renewed interest in a purpose to their life. This leads me to believe that whatever the phenomena they have experienced really means, it is a positive experience.

An interesting question. After my own "spiritual awakening" (there are many other qualifying names for it also) I began extensive reading in an attempt to understand it from the perspective of others ... in doing so I came to recognise the commonality on so many levels with NDEs.

PS ... mine was nowhere near being a "negative" experience, on the contrary, I could never envision anything more positive.

I haven't had one, but I've read about them. It seems difficult for many people to fit this kind of experience into their view of reality, whether or not they've had one, but there are more and more books on the subject from people of many different backgrounds. My dreams and meditative experiences have showed me many levels of reality, so it's not hard for me to "believe" this could happen.

Interesting, I have never had one or known anyone who has. Interesting that people have them

there is no scientific basis for the belief that one dies then comes back to life. although, i have heard of those who see a bright white light before they are about to die, or have a near-death experience but it doesn't mean they are having a spiritual moment, this phenomenom is due to the body's physiological reaction.

Thanks everyone for your comments. Mary, that must have been an incredible experience being met by your grandmother. And I can understand why you would not fear death now.

And Alisa, it sounds like yours was a life-changing event. I'm so glad that you are here to share this experience with us.

Sandy, I have read where the after-life does often reflect the beliefs of the person. If a person is a Christian, they may be met by Jesus. Or if they are Buddhist, it may be Buddha. Most everyone that I have heard about has had a positive experience like you, Jerry.

I was with someone who was dying who talked about the music and the light. Many other things occurred, as well. This experience is what helped me to cope with the pain of losing them.

During the past 30 years, near-death experiences (NDEs) have been the focus of many scientific studies at universities and medical centers around the world. Many medical professionals who have seriously studied the research – and it is extensive – no longer dismiss this phenomenon as hallucinations, intense dreams, or caused by physiological or pharmacological factors.

The most credible source for research on NDEs is the website of the International Association for Near-Death Studies at www.iands.org. In particular, you might want to check under the Research tab for published papers outlining the most current research, particularly the two written by Dr. Peter Fenwick and Dr. Pim Van Lommel, at http://www.iands.org/research/important_studies.

The best analysis of the many physiological theories that attempt to explain NDEs -- and why those theories are deficient -- is on a DVD that has a presentation by Dr. Bruce Greyson (from the University of Virginia Medical School) titled "T3-Explanatory Models of NDEs." It can be obtained from the website above at http://www.iands.org/conferences/2006_conference_presentations
This presentation was from an international conference in 2006 at the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center.

I am a member of the above association because I am interested in the topic. To join is inexpensive, and they keep you up-to-date with the latest NDE research along with e-mails of experiencer accounts every month.
Allen

Linda, I know what you mean. My father saw his mother before he passed over and was lovingly and gently escorted to the other side.

Allen, welcome to our discussion and thanks so much for this information!

Someone earlier mentioned that there was NO "scientific evidence" that allowed for NDE's to be anything other than "physiological" occurences ...

As long as one is "convinced" that scientific evidence is "required" to "validate" any spiritual experience, then they have pretty well excluded themselves from ever having one ... or at least of recognising it for what it truly is, spiritual, in order to benefit from it ...

At least I had NO prior expectations or "requirements" (such as religious perceptions) to "color" mine into being anything other than "pure truth" around unconditional loving acceptance (and so much more) ... but I did have an initial "phase" experience where I did make a conscious decision to STOP the process because I had a sudden paranoid FEAR concern that IT might be "Satanic" (that based upon a lifetime of religious warnings second, third and beyond, hand) that prompted me to consult my religious mother-in-law (just to be safe ?) BEFORE I allowed the "procedure" to continue.

I had an NDE in 1996. I was gravely ill at the time and in a coma for three days.

I suddenly realized that I was standing on a high cliff and what I saw beyond it was amazing - like a massive glowing, radiating, living energy that I knew to be God. The a voice boomed from within it - angry that we have so destroyed our planet with pollutions of every kind. I trembled with fear at this point, but then realized that Jesus was standing just behind me to one side.

Jesus told me that God was not angry just with me, but with everyone here on planet Earth. He then said that I would have to go back as I was not finished with what I was supposed to do. However, He added that first I would have to go through a life review. Like a panoramic scene, my life unfolded and I saw how I had interacted with others - both good and bad. During this process, I felt how others felt by the way I treated them and Jesus simply stood silently beside me not saying anything. It was only for me to see what I had done that was good or bad and to react to each event.

Jesus then told me that the most important lesson I or anyone can learn in life is "unconditional love," which means loving others without concern for what they look like, act like or anything else. Of course, this is what I have been working on since I've been back and it is interesting that David Oakford, who is also on Gather and had an NDE was told exactly the same thing by Jesus!

And He sure was right about me having more to do in this life. I have been a most valuable lifeline for my family, in particular taking care of my grandchildren when their parents are working or out for some other reason. As well, I am helping my younger daughter go back to school taking care of her and some of her expenses.

Since this experience, I have also had five books published, a sixth is written and almost ready to go and a seventh is currently being worked on. I am also helping another Gather member set up a series of web sites strictly for seniors to help them live more creatively. Whew!

Jerry, I do think that it helps to be open-minded about these things in order to experience them. But I've also heard of people having an experience that was in direct contrast to their belief about the possibility of an after-life.

Martha, it does sound like you had many reasons to return. You are a busy lady! You mentioned God's comment about polluting the world. Are you involved in environmental activism now? This has been something that I have also felt strongly about.

My experience happened in 2005 while they were struggling to keep me alive during a kidney failure. I was pregnant with my son when they failed, so the first thing they did was a c-section. As soon as I didn't have to focus all my attention and worry on my son, worried about whether he was ok, I could let go. My body was shutting down and they had problems keeping me breathing.

Where I went, it was like a beautiful city, not like we have here, not modern. Those who greeted me I didn't recognize but felt like we were old, old friends. My sense was that they were all cloaked, the colors all soft, muted - though reflecting on this later I wondered if I was seeing Auras and interpreting them as a cloak, because I do not usually see auras. The voices were gentle, completely understanding - telepathic. The limits of language were gone, there was no misunderstanding or ambiguous meaning. And the sense of oneness and connection, of being among old, old friends who know everything about you and judge none of it, was profound.

We moved inside, into a library that is also a center of learning (school, but not as we have them now), and sat at a table to talk. There was a sense of urgency, of needing to share important knowledge or teaching in a limited amount of time because I wasn't staying - my life's work still waited for me to do. I understood that raising my children was my primary goal, but there was more, too. I was also told that much of what we shared there I would forget until it was time for me to remember.

I came out of it with no fear of death, anymore, though in the struggle as my body fought to heal I hit a downward spiral in the pain and often wished I hadn't survived. Life felt so cold and cruel, every injustice we do to each other echoed through me greatly magnified and seemed an epic tragedy. The sense of being cut off, isolated from Source, from each other, was horrific too. I got a sense of the shock babies must feel when they are suddenly no longer a part of us.

I was off-kilter for months but reading the experiences of others in an online NDE database helped me start to process it. No one in my "real life" wanted to talk about it, it was a horribly lonely feeling. Friends and loved ones just really weren't comfortable with the topic and I never even related any of the experience from having no one who wanted to hear it until I finally blogged about it. Then at least it was "out there" and I could forgive them and understand why my death might make them uncomfortable to revisit.

Lune, thank you so much for sharing this experience. I'm sure that your's and other's sharing will help other people to be more comfortable talking about their experience. I have to admit that I am somewhat envious of the NDEs that so many have written about. Not that I want to go through it, but that feeling of complete assurance and the beauty and unconditional love and acceptance that many experience sounds so wonderful.

Interesting topic. Thanks for providing the chance to read about it.

one of my friends told me about a near death experience her mom had once. she was swimming and almost drowned somehow, and saw a white light

Ellen, that seems to be a common experience--seeing the white light.

Carla - I am not physically involved with environmental issues though I make sure to recycle everything I can. Also, I write articles on the issue from time to time as well.

And then there is the (claimed) "actuality of being in heaven itself for 90 minutes" according to a long time Baptist minister named Don Piper who has written a couple books about his "experience" which he does NOT equate to "just" a NDE ... he actually claims that the streets there were really paved with gold ... that he stood "before the gates" just prior to his entry ... all of that resulting from an automobile accident where he was "actually dead" ... none of this "mere" NDE stuff ... go figure ... :-(

Jerry, it is interesting the different experiences that people have. I like the idea of streets paved with gold. And you didn't mention...were the gates "pearly" as we have heard?

Carla, I have one of his books that a relative left with me but I only got about 2/3 of the way through it (and probably will never finish it), but between that and seeing him on Bill O'Reilly recently, I would have swore that he did use those words of description somewhere along the line ... all of which to me points out the suggestive power of preconceptions (such as many Christians say about meeting Jesus in their NDEs).

Many years ago I had a dream where I ended up in a small religious room with draperies on the walls and filled with big pillows for furniture on a carpeted floor ... all very colorful, but strange enough to me (having never been religious) for me to ask of an unseen authority in the dream what religion it was related to ... the answer came back that it was Coptic ... I made a point of remembering that to look up when I awoke because at that point in my life I do not recall having ever heard of the word even ...

The following day I researched that and was amazed at what I read ... still believe it had some special significance that I have yet to discover ...

But on the same token, just a few days ago (early morning actually) I had an unusual dream where I was in a huge religious building that I knew to be Muslim and I asked an "authority" there with me if it were a Mausoleum and the answer was a yes. Yet I was uncomfortable with that because I seemed to realize that I had used the wrong word in place of the one that most likely applied which was what I meant to ask ... but didn't, if it were a mosque ... of course it being just a dream and the authority I was asking may have been a spiritual being that actually read my mind and was answering to the word mosque that he "knew" I really meant ... .?. :-)

Point being that in subjective matters such as dreams and mystical experiences, things may well be true on the allegorical and metaphoric (symbolic) levels but not so much on the literal ... IMnsHO.

That is true Jerry. I have learned to look at the symbolism in my dreams rather than just look at the literal happenings. The emotions experienced in the dream are important too.

Interesting insights into a fascinating topic. I can see how a person's life experience could influence what happens during an NDE. I don't think that makes it less valid. Our lives are different, so are our beliefs.

By its very nature, NDE is extremely difficult to prove--how would a person get evidence back and forth across the border between now and forever? Some things we have to trust.

You're correct, Kate. Some things we just have to trust. For those who have had a NDE it is very real and very personal and most are never the same again.

As my brother was passing through (he was a very strong willed and determined man, and consistently resisted his own passing) He spoke with several of our family who had gone before him. Mumbling, by then, and unconnected, but their names were clear, and it was as though it were a series of love-stuffed conversations with the people he cared most about as a child. I just sat, next to his bed, and held his hand...and listened.

I've never had a NDE, and have not 'researched it' but I am not closed to the idea that it exists, and is possible, and may very well be reassuring to the traveller.

Kathy, my father also had this experience as he neared his passing. I believe that he saw and spoke to his mother, who had died when he was four. At one point, he said, "Mama" although most everyone in the room thought that it was him rambling in his comatose state. I knew differently. He had told me that he wanted his mother to greet him when he crossed over.

My biological father, James Johnston, claims to have had "definitely three" NDEs. He used to say to me "That which does not kill me makes me stronger." My retort is "What about that which does kill you?"

He said that he found the other side pleasant, he felt a flow toward something as if he was in a gentle river, and he did not feel inclined to return. But the doctors brought him back. He could describe what was happening in the vicinity of his body on some of these occasions when he supposedly couldn't be aware of anything.

I used to volunteer at the As You Like It Library, renamed Seattle Metaphysical Library, and met a couple of people there who have told me of their NDEs. They don't seem to be worried at all about death any longer.

Thanks for sharing this, David. I have to admit that what I have read about this and what I have heard has also made me excited about passing over. I look forward to seeing my own friends and family who have already passed. Not too soon, however. :-)

Lune, You described in detail a dream my sister had, of being in a library, speaking with beings who she felt she had always known. I had a similar dream of sitting at a table with beings I felt I knew like old friends, or family. I was given information, and the only thing I remembered was being so excited about the mathematics of it all.. amazed how easy it was, and wanted to "come back" to tell everyone I knew, but was told to "forget". It wasn't time.

We moved inside, into a library that is also a center of learning (school, but not as we have them now), and sat at a table to talk. There was a sense of urgency, of needing to share important knowledge or teaching in a limited amount of time because I wasn't staying - my life's work still waited for me to do. I understood that raising my children was my primary goal, but there was more, too. I was also told that much of what we shared there I would forget until it was time for me to remember.

I also had a dream where I was swimming naked in a large pool. The scene reminded of old Roman pools with large pillars. A being of light walked up to the pool side and told me, "God is waiting to see you". I told the being (who was covered in bright white light), "but I'm naked".. so I was given a robe to put on. I went to a place that seemed to be like an edge of a cliff that looked out over what I would describe as the universe. "God" looked like a setting sun to me, only brighter and larger with colors more vibrant. Within that light a voice said, "Some day you will understand everything".

My mother experienced an NDE. As she was leaving her body, she would tell her doctor, "I'm leaving". It was his will against hers that she would live. That experience as she told it to me, caused her to not fear death..and it was a place she wanted to return to.

M.Jette described her NDE exactly as Betty Eadie described it in her book, Embraced By The Light Betty was shown that we judge people by appearance, but that each and every person on earth has an important role in life. She was shown a homeless drunk, who slept on the streets and told that he was held in high esteem for his courage in this "life's work".

Debra, I've read Betty's book too. It seems like I remember her relating some scary examples of NDE. I had never heard of any experiences like that previously. All of them that I had heard about were extremely beautiful and light-filled. Very reassuring. I do think that it often has to do with our own beliefs and expectations. Your experience was very interesting. And the mathematics part...VERY interesting!(although I've never been good at math)

I am torn on the reasons for near death experiences. Carla, would you be will to post this to the Near Death Experience (nde) group? The responses others have made are very interesting. Just go to: http://nde.www.gather.com/ to join and post.

You have had some interesting comments on your post yet I see no explanation of how and why these events occur. Just so you understand, perception is not always reality.
You might try reading my blog at: www.myspace.com/richardregener for more information on this subject.