Sep
16
2008
The Near-Death Experience and Endless Consciousness
“You would know the secret of death. But how shall you find it unless you seek it in the heart of life.” – Kahlil Gibran
Following my last post, I have read some research on ‘Near-Death Experiences’ (NDEs), which I thought may be interesting to share.
Dutch cardiologist Pim van Lommel made headlines with an article in The Lancet. in 2001. In a study of 344 Dutch patients surving cardiac arrest, 62 of them reported NDEs when they were clinically dead. Van Lommel’s writings centre around what he calls “Endless Consciousness” :
According to van Lommel, the leading mainstream materialistic vision held by doctors, philosophers and psychologists on the brain-consciousness relation is insufficient to explain this phenomenon. There are good reasons to assume that our consciousness does not coincide with brain activity; it can be experienced separate from the body. [Source]
Two things I find most interesting in NDE research. The first and most obvious is that NDEs can be considered proof of an afterlife. I am not so surprised or fascinated by that evidence though; I have always believed in reincarnation, and have further studied the teachings of my spiritual Master, Sri Chinmoy, on that subject for the last 12 years. I am most fascinated by the fact that those who have had NDEs are very often permanently changed by their experience, and pretty much always for the better.
This phenomenon is not only reported by van Lommel, but by PMH Atwater who notes the following amazing findings (and more), in her article Another Look at the After-Effects of the Near-Death Experience:
- Unconditional love — Experiencers perceive themselves as equally and fully loving of each and all, openly generous, excited about the potential and wonder of each person they see…
- Lack of boundaries — Familiar codes of conduct can lose relevance or disappear altogether as unlimited avenues of interest and inquiry take priority…
- Timelessness — Most experiencers begin to “flow” with natural shift of time, rejecting locks and schedules as they exhibit a heightened awareness of the present moment and the importance of “now.”
- The psychic — Extrasensory perception and various types of psychic phenomena become normal and ordinary in the lives of experiencers…
- Reality switches — Hard-driving achievers and materialists can transform into easy-going philosophers; but, by the same token, those once more relaxed or uncommitted can become energetic “movers and shakers,” determined to make a difference in the world. Switches seem to depend more on what is “needed” to round out the individual’s growth than on any uniform result.
- The soul as self — Most come to recognize themselves as an immortal soul currently resident within material form so lessons can be learned while sojourning in the earthplane. They know they are not their body; it is a “jacket” they wear…
Atwater reports other remarkable patterns in patients following NDEs: substantially altered energy levels, hypersensitive to light and sound, stress easier to handle, lower blood pressure, increased intelligence, clustered thinking (as opposed to sequential), charismatic, quicker assimilation, reduction in red meat consumption, “merge” easily (absorption), latent talents surface, a hunger for knowledge, synchronicity commonplace, multiple sensing (synesthesia).
She notes that such positive life changes do not only depend on a person returning from clinical death (fortunately!); they can arise from a life-threatening or frightening situation for example. They can also be achieved consciously and gradually through spiritual practice:
I would also include those more tranquil in how they’re experienced: from the slow, steady application of spiritual disciplines, mindfulness techniques, meditation, vision quests, or because, in a prayerful state of mind, an individual simply desires to become a better person.
- Image: Painting by Abbott Handerson Thayer (1849-1921)
- The Near Death Phenomenon: an article by PMH Atwater
- Death and Reincarnation: a free online book by Sri Chinmoy
- Learn to Meditate: a practical site based on the teachiings of Sri Chinmoy
wow .. this research could make me wonder .. but I do not agree with the existence of reincarnation because I think if you do not do well in this life will be rewarded in life after we die is not then we are in the law with another life
I’m not what you would consider a religious person but in my opinion, there must be something to near death experiences. There have been too many people experience the same sort of experience. It can be just coincidence.
When my 80 year old Grandpa was dying from cancer, he choose to die at home with the help of Hospice. In his last breathes he saw and called out to his mother. My grandpa ran away from home as a young teen and never saw his mother again and yet he was seeing her as he was crossing over. I’m positive she was waiting for him on the other side.
Thanks so much for visiting, Abhinabha. I heard you had met Pim van Lommel — how amazing! Thank you for the further information on this fascinating subject.
Hi Sumangali. How wonderful you have come across the work of Pim van Lommel. I had the good fortune to interview him last year for an esoteric magazine after his book ‘Endless Consciousness’ was published. We had a very pleasant conversation in his house. Van Lommel is a remarkable man, who has done a lot to raise awareness for the possibility of an afterlife. He is widely criticized (or just ignored) in scientific circles, but nobody has ever been able to debunk his research. In the article I also interviewed several people who had experienced an NDE and whose lives were changed because of it. Their stories of the Heaven they experienced are breathtaking. It makes one lose all fear of death. Great post.
This is a marvelous source of insight. Scientific studies are often done of ‘phenomena’ that evoke scepticism. When sceptics find reason to change their minds, this is evidence of their own evolution and changing self-awareness.
Andrés and John, thank you for visiting.
Beautifully described, Andrés. I didn’t really know why I put that picture there, but it seemed to fit. I think you have explained to me why! I didn’t know this artist before, but I have a penchant for the Pre-Raphaelites and his work reminded me of my favourite: John William Waterhouse. I like to see an angel painted so realistically; I am sure they are quite so close and so real.
I have never come across these two books, John. Then you are much more familiar with the phenomenon than I am. It is a curious topic. Although the research does not really prove anything I did not already believe, I find it comforting. It is encouraging when science treads deeply beyond its own confines, if only in small steps.
Nice article Sumangali. I remember being highly inspired many years ago by two books on NDEs: Life After Life by Raymond Moody and Into the Light by John Lerma, which very nicely reaffirmed the validity of spiritual experience for this rational, empirical Western mind.
I love the portrait of the angel, as if it were just a breath away, behind the curtain or on our shoulder, the same as death, simultaneously treading many worlds.